Homeschool Methods Used by

Virtual Homeschool International

We have tied these methods together in the development of Virtual Homeschool International's curriculum to provide students and families with the best and most comprehensive curriculum we could devise. You will find elements of each method on each academic page of VHI. We intend the curriculum to be used with all these methods of homeschooling as well as to be flexible enough to allow for instant adjustments to student interest and ability level.

Classical Curriculum

Classical Curriculum is systematic and repeats the trivium (the total of human knowledge) three different times during the 14 years of education (12 plus Preschool and Kindergarten).

• The first phase is the “grammar” stage where facts, rules, and functions are learned and/or memorized. This is necessary for the deeper learning and understanding of the next 2 phases.
• The Second phase is called the “Logic” stage and is when students are asking why about their learning and world. Cause and effect relationships are explored during this stage, and students begin to put together the “facts” of the “grammar” stage and explore how learning from various subject areas fits together.
• The last phase is known as the “Rhetoric” stage and is the time in education when the student builds on the first two stages and begins to establish their own thoughts on subjects. The student in this stage will begin writing opinion papers and establish the ability to defend those opinions with logical arguments. Fluidity of thought is the hallmark of this phase and the student will surprise you with his or her ability to move between his or her original ideas and the ideas of acknowledged experts.

Charlotte Mason

Charlotte Mason believed that Learning should be important. Parents should not ask their children to learn trivia for the sake of just learning it. She believed that learning should be constructed from the child's own experiences with guidance from parents and learned others through direct contact with situations and materials. She espoused the use of:

• Living books where the student learns through the adventures of others.
• Whole books, where the student reads the entire book, not an anthology or a smorgasbord of the content.
• Narration where the student “tells" back to a caring significant person what he or she has learned or understands from the experience.
• Short lessens that increase in length as the student matures.
• Nature walks where the student experiences nature first hand for the student's own edification.
• Daily walks where the student gets some space and fresh air.
• Nature notebooks in which the student records facts, names, and other facts and feelings related to the subject of inquiry as well as sketches detailing specific information and feelings or poetry.
• Art Appreciation consisting of the works of famous artists of both historical and contemporary times. Six works from each artist should be studied intensively for at least 15 min per week. The student should then narrate what was observed.
• Journaling consisting of reflective and descriptive writing and other personal thoughts and communications the students have with themselves.
• Copy work consisting of ongoing practice of handwriting skills, spelling and grammar practice and the learning of great quotes.
• Dictation of important aural information such as great quotes or memorization materials for practice in the practical skills of handwriting.
• Time-lines consisting of notebooks or connected papers recording important people, times, places and events.
• Training in good habits such as work before play and personal responsibility.
• Handicrafts and other leisure activities of personal interest.

More Charlotte Mason information offsite

Eclectic Education

Eclectic Education consists of the use of a variety of materials and curricula to fit the needs of the student, the family, and the budget. Eclectic homeschoolers like to choose and “tweak” curriculum to fit their needs. When something does not work, they will typically shift gears and move on to materials that work better for their student(s).

Standard U.S. Curriculum

Education departments in states across the country make decisions each year about what a good education should look like for the students in their states. Although these vary somewhat from year to year, and from state to state, many commonalities remain. An average of these requirements is the typical course of studies used as a guide by Virtual Homeschool International.

Many resources used by VHI are in PDF format. Download Adobe Acrobat reader if you need a PDF reader.

Sample Pages

Sample Page (6th Grade Language Arts)

Sample Page (2nd Grade Science)

Sample Page (10th Grade Math)