Five Basic Types of Curriculum

By: Linda P

The five basic types of curriculum are Traditional, Thematic, Programmed, Classical, and Technological.  The most used curriculum can be found within these broader categories.

1.  Traditional

This is the traditional workbook/textbook approach familiar to those who attended American public schools growing up.  It is comprised of 6-7 unrelated subjects with a different book for each.  It is grade specific and may be expensive.

Examples: Bob Jones, A Beka, Calvert

Learning Style Match: Visual and Auditory

Pros: More likely to cover the basics, lesson plans laid out, security

Cons: Time consuming, expensive, difficult to teach several grades simultaneously, subjects each taught separately

Works well for:

• A child used to being in school (and that was doing well)
• A methodical, routine learner
• A mom who needs reassurance
• A mom who likes routine and does not have time to plan her own curriculum
• A first time home-schooling parent

Cautions:  Keep in mind that even teachers at school do not cover every page in every book.  In math they may assign odds or evens on certain assignments.  In Science and History, sometimes a chapter or even a unit may be omitted.  Remember that your kids are also learning language and culture.  Do not let yourself or your kids be stressed by trying to do too much.

2.  Thematic Unit Study

This type is known as “thematic learning,” “teaching across the curriculum,” or integrated study.  Basic school subjects are studied in light of a particular topic, theme, or historical period instead of isolated subjects.  Most often, a separate phonics and math program is needed (though some companies include them as supplements or offer choices).

Examples: KONOS, Weaver, Design a Study, Sonlight, Greenleaf Press, Moving Beyond the Page

Learning Style Match: Multi-sensory

Pros: All ages learn together; uses real books, inexpensive, teaches to child’s area of interest;

Cons: Can have gaps in skills so needs balance; can be overwhelming to new homeschoolers, lesson plans are more flexible and require you to provide the structure; may lack resource materials on the field, lacks test taking skills in content areas;

Works well for:

• A child pulled out of school that is burned out on learning
• A creative mom that feels secure about her abilities
• Multiple children in different grades
• Children who have difficulty sitting still and prefer hands-on learning

Cautions:  This type of curriculum can be hit and miss.  For 5^th and 6^th grade you many need to bring in a textbook and tests for content areas.

See also: Homeschooling Children with ADD or ODD; Making Math Meaningful; How We Learn and how We Teach; Multiple Intelligences: How Does My Child Think?

3.  Programmed:

This type is often based on a self-paced, sequential workbook.  It requires no preparation and usually little direct teaching by the parent.

Examples: Alpha Omega, School of Tomorrow, “PACES,” Switched-On Schoolhouse

Learning Style Match: Visual

Pros: Very easy to use, little preparation, lessons planned out, independent learner based, self-paced, especially great for content areas;

Cons: Not appropriate for younger grades, not suitable for auditory learners (except for Switched on Schoolhouse), boring to some, not designed to be interactive, skill building might be lacking;

Works well for:

• A mom who is very busy with little time for individual learning
• A child who loves workbooks and routine learning
• A family in transition
• A mom who just had a baby
• A child who is able to sit still, stay focused, and needs little direction or discipline

4.  Classical

“The Trivium” is stages or ways of learning that coincide with a child’s cognitive development.

• Grammar Stage—What’s in their world (PreK-2^nd or 3^rd)
• Dialectic Stage—Tell me more.  Tell my why.  How does it work?  Compare/contrast; Connect real things to abstract.  (2^nd or 3^rd – 5^th or 6^th)
• Rhetoric Stage—What does it mean to me?  What do I do with this info?  How am I going to use it?  Logic/Debate.  (Middle school to Adult)

Examples: My Father’s World (most self-contained, similar to Sonlight yet with chronological approach); Veritas Press; Memoria Press;

Reference book—The Well-Trained Mind (Susan Wise Baur–Classical Education for the Next Generation)

Compare and contrast Charlotte Mason  and Classical Education in this article by Susan Wise Bauer, author of The Well-Trained Mind.

Learning Style Match:  Multi-sensory

Pros: Works well for families with children close in ability level; developmentally appropriate methods; uses real books; unit study approach to content; systematic/chronological method to content; hooked/linked to history; progression of knowledge;

Cons: May not “feel” structured when compared to traditional curriculum; Not yet, totally self-contained; may be difficult to use when there is a wide ability gap between children; may be easy to miss certain skills

5.  Technological Learning

This includes internet and software based programs.  The internet provides multi-sensory, interactive learning via multi-media learning.  Software provides the same in a more controlled environment (minus the interaction).

Examples: NorthStar Academy; University of Nebraska; K-12; Potter’s School; Liberty U; Texas Tech University K-12; Switched-on School House; Time4Learning, Teaching Textbooks; Miss Humblebee’s Academy (pre-K)

Learning Style Match:  Multi-sensory, visual, auditory

Pros: Can be more interactive and engaging; provides structured learning so child can learn more independently; can be great preparation for future learning—delivery system of the future; opportunity to learn from a different teacher or teachers on line; can have virtual classmates;

Cons: on-line can be pricey; can be frustrating if not technologically savvy or if student has poor typing or reading skills; has set deadlines so less scheduling flexibility; may include more “busy work” as it is more of a structured school environment; software has preprogrammed responses and if child does not answer with exact response, may cause frustration

See Also the companion article on this blog: “Curriculum: How do I know what to choose?”

And these . . .

Strategies for Supplementing National Schools

Types of Curriculum: Technological (Online) Learning

5 Ultimate Education Goals for the Year

5 Pros and Cons to Homeschooling the Older Adopted Child

Great Books  and Articles as You Look Into Which Curriculum Fits Your Child:

The Way They Learn by Cynthia Tobias

Every Child Can Succeed by Cynthia Tobias

How We Learn and how We Teach

Multiple Intelligences: How Does My Child Think?

**********************************************************************

The Administrator of The Education Cafe invites you to discover how to persevere and thrive even through the most challenging situations. Do you sometimes suffer seasons of doubt? Stress? Insecurity? Overwhelming demands? Unanswered prayer? Depression? Loss? Grief? Learn how to do more than survive. Learn to persevere and thrive. This inspirational daily devotional gives the reader 365 days of answering the question: How am I to persevere in trying times?

https://read.amazon.com/kp/card?asin=B09W68K8KQ&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_EYHND6VY7NZVR1TBZ1S5

https://read.amazon.com/kp/card?asin=B09W68K8KQ&preview=inline&linkCode=kpe&ref_=cm_sw_r_kb_dp_EYHND6VY7NZVR1TBZ1S5” data-wplink-url-error=”true”>

******************************************************************

In August 2010, blogger The Pioneer Woman shares 5 approaches to homeschooling as: Charlotte Mason, Classical, Eclectic, Unit Studies, and Unschooling. The Charlotte Mason and Classical approaches to homeschooling would best be served by a classical type of curriculum as noted above. The unit-study approach would best be served by the thematic type of curriculum. Eclectic could be served by a combination of 2 or more of the 5 basic types above. And, as Unschooling is not curriculum based, it would best be served through access to a good library, internet, field trips, and lots of life-on-life experiences. The only approaches not really expressed by The Pioneer Woman (apart from its possible inclusion in the Eclectic approach, would be parents who tend to school their kids with a traditional approach and those who school their kids with a technological approach to education.