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Creative Ways to Use Unit Studies in Your Homeschool

If you're looking to bring more excitement, flexibility, and depth into your homeschool, exploring creative ways to use unit studies in your homeschool is a great place to start.

If you’re looking to bring more excitement, flexibility, and depth into your homeschool, exploring creative ways to use unit studies in your homeschool is a great place to start. Whether you’re looking to simplify lesson planning, nurture curiosity, or create hands-on experiences, unit studies can be adapted in countless ways to fit your family’s unique style of homeschooling.

If you're looking to bring more excitement, flexibility, and depth into your homeschool, exploring creative ways to use unit studies in your homeschool is a great place to start.

A Look Inside Our Unit Studies

I found out about Amanda Bennett’s Download N Go® studies last spring from a fellow homeschool mom. I promptly found the USAB website and Facebook page and started to do a little research. I realized that they were going to be a perfect match for my teaching style and my wiggly four-year-old. I decided to purchase the Sunny Seashells unit since we were going to the beach that summer.

If you're looking to bring more excitement, flexibility, and depth into your homeschool, exploring creative ways to use unit studies in your homeschool is a great place to start.

The unit is set up to be a five-day learning adventure. We took a lot longer than five days because my daughter was at the low end of the suggested age range for these. I wanted her to enjoy it and not feel like it was information overload. There are book suggestions for each day and video links built in. I ordered about a dozen books from the library, and we set the laptop on the table each time. Each day also has family fun suggestions and craft ideas included. There is a “shell of the day,” and my daughter liked some more than others. Each day also has a featured country of the day, and my daughter would find them on the world map and color them in. My friend from church brought a shoe box full of shells for us to use, and then when she found out how much my daughter loved them, she gave her the box full. My daughter was totally shocked, exclaiming, “MOM! Did you know that she gave me the whole box? Can you believe that?”

When we finished Sunny Seashells, my daughter said, “Mom, you are really fun to do this with. It’s like a party with you!” And at least ten times that day I heard, “I am so excited for our vacation. I want to find some shells!”

Homeschooling With Unit Studies Year Round

This sparked a love of unit studies in my daughter, and we moved on to Rocking Robots, Autumn Treasures, Goofy Geckos, and Valentine’s Day. We have been doing these for eight months now, and my now-five-year-old is totally involved with picking out which unit we will do next. She also gets excited to head to the library to get the next round of books for our study.

Autumn Treasures study uses fun videos, activities, learning explorations to help your child learn about geography, earth science, and so much more.

Something really cool has happened with every unit we have done. During Autumn Treasures we learned about monarch butterflies, and when leaving church that Sunday, the monarchs were on all the bushes in front of our car! I had our camera in there, and my husband was able to capture some amazing photos. I thought it was God’s gift to us to actually see them on their migration.

My daughter wanted to do the Goofy Gecko unit because she got a green anole for her fifth birthday. We love to watch him and knew that he was known as the American chameleon because he can change colors. During our gecko study we found out through one of the books that our anole is actually the smallest iguana in the world. My daughter loves to tell people that now. Our zoo has an amazing reptile exhibit, so we took a field trip there and my daughter was saying, “Hey, that guy was in our unit study,” or “There’s a giant day gecko.”

I think these units are really fantastic. I learned a lot or perhaps learned again things from when I was little. I love that it’s broken down day by day and you can do as little or as much as you want based on the age of your child. The videos and other links being built into the PDF are a huge convenience. We have also tried to do some kind of cooking project that ties into each unit, and my daughter really enjoys that part. I also think that these are not just for homeschoolers—a lot of families could use them to supplement an interest that their child has to gain more information in a fun way.

Louanne Mason

Fort Worth, Texas

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Embracing Educational Technology In Your Homeschool

Wondering about AI In Your Homeschool Learning? Here's a quick guide to educational technology options for learning.

When I first began incorporating internet links into my unit studies years ago, I often encountered resistance from parents. It was understandable as the internet was entirely new territory for many families. 

At the time, there was genuine uncertainty about its role in education. As an educator committed to ensuring homeschooled children had access to the same research tools as their traditionally-schooled peers, I knew I needed to thoroughly understand this technology myself before recommending it to others.

Wondering about AI In Your Homeschool Learning? Here's a quick guide to educational technology options for learning.

After extensive research into the educational potential of the internet, I updated my unit studies to include tens of thousands of carefully selected links. These digital gateways opened extraordinary opportunities for students including virtual whale-watching expeditions, behind-the-scenes tours of baseball bat factories, thrilling Ferris wheel rides, and immersive journeys to destinations around the globe. The internet proved to be an invaluable learning resource for children of all ages.

I loved how it create so many wonderful learning options for my children and for yours. Most importantly, what remains at the heart of each unit study is something I consider irreplaceable: curated book lists. Books continue to be my favorite educational resource because the combination of children and quality literature creates something truly magical—lasting knowledge and a genuine love of learning that digital devices alone simply cannot replicate.

Artificial Intelligence: A New Educational Frontier

As we live in an era where artificial intelligence has emerged as a significant force in education, and even grocery shopping and medical care! Commerce. Whether we are aware of it or not,  AI now influences everything from personalized shopping recommendations to decision making in colleges, governments, and corporations. Our children are already likely to encounter AI in various platforms, making it essential that we help them understand and navigate this rapidly evolving technological tool. 

My commitment remains unchanged: to help students build a robust foundation of knowledge while preparing them to thrive in our dynamic, technology-rich culture. AI represents an additional tool in achieving this goal, but like any tool, it must be used wisely and purposefully.

Wondering about AI In Your Homeschool Learning? Here's a quick guide to educational technology options for learning.

Intentional AI In Your Homeschool Learning

Just as we approach internet resources and books with careful consideration, we must use AI to capture children’s attention and nurture their natural curiosity. AI should never serve as a student’s primary educational source, nor should it complete assignments, write papers, or compose essays on their behalf. Instead, AI should function like an engaging book, gradually building curiosity layer by layer while developing solid skills and foundational concepts. 

Our updated unit studies are designed for versatility and work seamlessly across tablets, laptops, phones, and desktops. Each study maintains its curated book lists as a foundation while incorporating age-appropriate “Ask AI” prompts. Every topical study guides students through essential concepts, introducing them to relevant history, geography, science, and key figures associated with the subject. Additionally, hands-on project suggestions help demonstrate and reinforce important ideas through experiential learning.

The “Ask AI” prompts serve as another avenue for engaging students at their individual learning levels. AI responses can illuminate topics in age-appropriate ways, serving as springboards to books and websites that encourage deeper exploration of both the main subject and the fascinating tangents that naturally arise during learning.

Wondering about AI In Your Homeschool Learning? Here's a quick guide to educational technology options for learning.

Fostering Critical Thinking With Educational Technology

There’s a fundamental distinction between using AI as a learning catalyst and allowing it to replace student thinking and creativity. When we use AI to help children explore topics more deeply, enabling them to write original responses based on enhanced understanding, we’re developing analytical skills. This approach requires significantly more cognitive engagement than simply asking AI to generate content on a student’s behalf.

Critical thinking skills are not just important. They are essential and they are at the heart of what we teach in our homeschools. 

The Most Important Part Of Any Homeschool 

I’d like to close with a quote that really encapsulates my approach to educational technology:

“We believe every student is made in the image of God, and that shaping a soul requires more than a circuit board… Let’s use technology, but never be used by it.”
—Dr. Kent Ingle, Southeastern University

It is a reminder that while technology can be a powerful support in education, it is the curiosity, creativity, critical thinking, and character development of our families that remain the most important parts of any meaningful learning.

Happy homeschooling,

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Animal Science Unit Studies: Life, Kids and Our Creator

Our Animal Science Unit Studies weave together life, creation and the joy of childhood. Education can be beautiful and engaging.

I’ve got my favorite mug of coffee on hand, and I’m sitting at the kitchen table, wishing I could share the view. This is the time of year that the kids were always very aware of what was going on outside, watching the changes in all of the living things that happened to share the mountain with us. As much as we could talk about God and His creativity and sense of order, the observations of living things in a close and personal way left them knowing Him better, and wanting to know more.

Our Animal Science Unit Studies weave together life, creation and the joy of childhood. Education can be beautiful and engaging.

Learning About The World Around Us

All it would take was a question to get them wondering and trying to find answers – “Why do you think it does that?” or “What do you think that it eats?” That’s one of the best things that can come from the time spent outdoors – conversation that captures their attention and lights up their curiosity.

Our Animal Science Unit Studies weave together life, creation and the joy of childhood. Education can be beautiful and engaging.

Observation and Animal Studies

If you can get a child to see the wonder in a few of the things that are there for the viewing, you’ll have their attention. From the amazing lines and patterns in a spider’s web to the patterns of leaves from different trees, show them the uniqueness of each of these. Go outside with them for a short time each day, to walk, draw, read in the shade of a tree, or simply lie on the picnic table and figure out what kinds of clouds are in the sky at the moment.

Celebrating Life and Creation

Teach them to celebrate and explore life and all of Creation. The lessons last a lifetime, and the wonder of God’s creativity never loses its sparkle as it is handed from one generation to the next.


Love of animals – an easy way to capture a child’s curiosity. This Animal Science set of studies is interactive and ready to use for your K-4th grade students!

The love of animals is often an easy way to capture a child’s curiosity, and the Animal Science set of Download N Go® studies is interactive and ready to use right now for your K-4th grade students! It includes:

More Encouragement for Learning In Your Homeschool

Happy homeschooling,

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Keeping Homeschool Science Simple

Science – that word can send fear through parents in an instant. I’ve seen it at conventions, time and time again, and I spend plenty of time taking away the dread and opening the door to wonder. Being a former geeky engineer, I had to learn the truth about science the hard way – by homeschooling a herd of kids. 😉 Here’s how I’ve learned to keep homeschool science simple.

Keeping homeschool science simple is not something that came naturally to me. But it was the secret to success in our homeschool.

How To Keep Homeschool Science Simple

Who knew that the concepts of orbit, light, and tides could be taught with a study of the moon and a plate of cookies?

I used to think of science as an area of academics that had to be learned and endured; a realm of formulas and theories that had to be memorized, categorized, and applied when necessary. I was WRONG, and began to understand my mistake when we started our second unit study – the Space unit study.

As I wrote about space for my children, I began to see the universe as one big canvas – not divided up into bits and pieces of science.

Keeping homeschool science simple is not something that came naturally to me. But it was the secret to success in our homeschool.

Integrated, Cross-Curricular Learning

Concepts like gravity and orbit, trajectory and light – they showed up as understandable parts of the picture, full of wonder and “let’s try this!” kinds of moments. From Copernicus to Isaac Newton, Galileo to Edwin Hubble, the explorers and wonderers have left a trail that isn’t just science – it’s history, geography, art, and much more.

Keeping homeschool science simple is not something that came naturally to me. But it was the secret to success in our homeschool.


We keep science simple and filled with wonder – it’s just one of the elements that they will discover as they explore, if you give them the chance. Curiosity, imagination, and tons of wonder await. Take a step out of the “standard” box and try it for yourself.  What have you got to lose?

More Encouragement for Learning In Your Homeschool

Happy homeschooling,

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Autumn Learning In Your Homeschool (with a Crockpot Applesauce Recipe)

Connecting the joys of autumn to learning in your homeschool is an excellent way to cultivate an interest-led education.

Many of you are now at least a week or two into the new school year, and your days are transitioning from summer social calendars to autumn events and scheduling school hours. I know how that feels, with plenty of changes in the works, and the responsibility of teaching your children weighing heavily as you begin this new year.

In the midst of it all, if you’re like me, you are beginning to pull out the autumn-scented candles, decorations, and a sweatshirt or two. It’s molasses cookie and apple pie season, along with time for Crockpot cooking of applesauce and banana bread baking. Busy times, and so many memories to be made! Let’s not forgot the autumn learning opportunities, too!

Connecting the joys of autumn to learning in your homeschool is an excellent way to cultivate an interest-led education.

Autumn Learning In Your Homeschool

One of the first things that I learned as a homeschool mom was the importance of connecting learning to the seasons that were going on just outside the window. While I could immerse them in all kinds of learning that was strictly focused on books, memorization, and test-taking, that wasn’t what grabbed their attention and left them wanting to know more. Their interest was focused on the outdoors with each change of the season, and that is natural and a great springboard for learning. Captivate them, encourage their curiosity, build up creativity, and connect it all to things that are happening in this season of their lives.

Fall Interest-Led Learning


Remember this, please. Work with what is right in front of you, and you’ll capture their interest. With topics like autumn, trees, baseball, football, soccer, and digital photography, you won’t have to look far to find one topic that they are interested in. Build on that interest. Simple learning simply lasts. Enjoy these days, and go on Autumn Treasures’ nature walks each day with your child. So much to see out there, and to see it through the eyes of your child is such a gift!

Connecting the joys of autumn to learning in your homeschool is an excellent way to cultivate an interest-led education.


Crockpot Applesauce Recipe Perfect For Autumn Learning

Wish you could be here in the kitchen with me to smell this delicious applesauce that is simmering in my slow cooker!

Here’s the recipe I’m using, if you want to try it out at your house:  Crock Pot Applesauce (I add a pinch of ground cloves to give it a bit more sparkle!).


Looking for more ideas to excite learning during the Autumn season?

We’ve got a beautiful set of unit studies that can help. Perfect for the months of September through December, the Autumn Download N Go® titles include:

Connecting the joys of autumn to learning in your homeschool is an excellent way to cultivate an interest-led education.

With more newly updated titles coming soon!

  • Soccer
  • Bountiful Bread
  • Crunchy Cookies
  • Thanksgiving

Never stop dreaming,

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Helping Your Homeschooled Children Pursue Their Dreams

It is those people that kept helping me define and pursue my dreams that made all the difference in my life.

True confession: I was one of those kids that was always in trouble for daydreaming. There were a few people in my family and our circle of friends that wouldn’t tease me about it –they would actually take the time to ask me what I was thinking about. It is those people that kept helping me define and pursue my dreams that made all the difference in my life.

I kept dreaming and building and designing, received a degree in engineering, and worked, and then came home to be with our children – an amazing turn in my life.

It is those people that kept helping me define and pursue my dreams that made all the difference in my life.

Encouraging Our Children’s Dreams


I determined that I would encourage their dreams, keep them talking, pursuing, and having fun along the way. Homeschooling opened that door in a big way for our kids. I tell you this to suggest that you take time when the opportunity arises, to do the same thing with your children.

It is those people that kept helping me define and pursue my dreams that made all the difference in my life.

Helping Our Children Pursue Their Dreams: A Part Of Homeschooling

We get so busy educating them that we sometimes lose sight of the goal. The goal is not to fill them up with random bits of information to complete checkoff. The goal is to discover what God has placed in them, and to find ways to encourage them and help them pursue these special gifts and talents. 

It is those people that kept helping me define and pursue my dreams that made all the difference in my life.

We raised a gifted veterinarian, a visionary tree farmer/entrepreneur, and a computer scientist extraordinaire. God knew what He was doing when He knit them together, and we discovered that focusing primarily on His creation was the path to success.

Free Getting to Know Their Interests Homeschool Download


Take time to ask them about their dreams – dream Lego creation, dream art project, dream computer they’d like to build, dream tree fort, dream invention, dream cake, and on and on. Their answers may be very simple at first, and that’s always the best place to begin.

You might also be interests in our Unit Study Homeschool Planner!

Never stop dreaming,

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Autumn Traditions In Your Homeschool

The arrival of fall brings with it a host of opportunities to celebrate with autumn traditions in your homeschool.

What are your favorite childhood traditions? Most of us would answer with the simplest traditions, not the more elaborate ones. Your children are no different – they will remember the simple family traditions that you create for them, whether old or new traditions.

The arrival of fall brings with it a host of opportunities to celebrate with autumn traditions in your homeschool.

Simple Family Traditions For Your Fall Homeschool

Finally, with the arrival of the cooler weather of autumn, we begin observing an interesting collection of traditions here on the farm. We make quite a production of the first fire in the fireplace, enjoying the beauty of the fire and using the occasion to thank everyone for their labors of cutting and splitting the firewood for the coming winter. We also begin our autumn weekend sky-watching parties around large campfires. We watch for stars and planets and satellites, and enjoy the Milky Way as it spreads out across the dark country sky. Family and friends come from all around the country to join this endeavor, and while we don’t work out ALL of the problems of the world, everyone seems to benefit from the time spent together.

Family Bucket Lists For The Season

Autumn, the list-making begins for the projects that we enjoy—making gifts, preparing special treats that will keep in the freezer, and coming up with ideas to bless others and meet their needs. From making blankets for the abused children’s shelter to helping stock the local food bank, there have been so many great service projects that started on autumn evenings around the fire.

The arrival of fall brings with it a host of opportunities to celebrate with autumn traditions in your homeschool.


As we approach this new season, I know that there are plenty of decorating traditions that are observed in American homes. With the start of autumn, I make sure that we have chrysanthemums on the front steps. After spending their season of blooming on the steps, they are planted in my “Love Garden” that I can see year-round from the kitchen window. Dad collects several bales of hay, some corn stalks, and a few pumpkins and gourds to make a fall decoration by the driveway—”Dad’s masterpiece”, as the kids call it.


Why are Autumn Traditions Important?

  • They help families come together
  • They remind us of times together in the past
  • They give children a sense of security and predictability
  • They help our values and character span generations
  • They remind families that love and continuity go hand in hand
  • Traditions can be old and many are new
  • Traditions give children something to anticipate, a perspective on time passing by


We created our family traditions when our children were very young, building them up as time went on. We lived far from family and grandparents, and we wanted our children to have family traditions to treasure and savor in the years ahead.

Autumn is a great time to kick off a few new traditions in your own family. From autumn star-watching to s’mores over a campfire—the possibilities are there, waiting!

More Homeschool Resources And Support

Learn more about the unit study approach to homeschooling – where standard is not the goal:

Blessings,

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The Most Important Homeschool Lesson I Learned As A Homeschool Mom

The most important lesson I learned as a homeschool mom had nothing to do with academics. Over the years, this is what I've learned matters most in our homeschools.

The most important lesson I learned as a homeschool mom had nothing to do with academics. Over the years, this is what I’ve learned matters most in our homeschools.

This is an important lesson I learned from homeschooling and one that I know will bless you and your homeschool as well! The time to believe in children and their dreams is now—when they are just being formed. I have always loved this quote:


“My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person; he believed in me.”
-Jim Valvano

The most important lesson I learned as a homeschool mom had nothing to do with academics. Over the years, this is what I've learned matters most in our homeschools.

If I have done nothing else for our children, I have worked hard to help them understand our faith, and given them every opportunity to dream big dreams. They knew they could always run ideas by me, test a concept, or simply see if I understood what they were considering, whether with building blocks, a robot concept, or an idea for an art project. I learned to listen first, and then ask questions that encouraged and helped them frame the steps they would need to take. “That will never work” was a phrase I avoided.

“If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.”
-Albert Einstein

The most important lesson I learned as a homeschool mom had nothing to do with academics. Over the years, this is what I've learned matters most in our homeschools.

The Most Important Homeschool Lesson Of All

Believing in them and showing it on a daily basis—these are among the many benefits of homeschooling. Relationships are strengthened, trust develops, and their self-confidence grows in knowing that you believe in them. No matter what, they need to know that you are with them as they follow their dreams.

It’s never too late to change your approach, and there’s no time like the present. There are no do-overs in life, and this is not a dress rehearsal. God gives them gifts and talents, and we help them by teaching and nurturing them, getting them ready to have the faith and confidence to follow the path He has in mind.

More Homeschool Helps

We invite you to learn more about the unit study approach to homeschooling:

Blessings,

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Trying to Choose Homeschool Curriculum? Here’s What You Should Know!

Don't waste your time on textbooks! If you are trying to choose homeschool curriculum here are some creative tools for learning!

Don’t waste your time on textbooks! If you are trying to choose homeschool curriculum here are some creative tools for learning!

Trying to Choose Homeschool Curriculum? Here’s What I Want You To Know

For those of you that are puzzling over curriculum choices, here is some food for thought: an educational model that uses textbooks is not one that fosters creative thinking or innovation, and more egregiously, it is limiting our children’s knowledge base to one that is below that of a modern day robot. While robots don’t threaten me, the thought that our children are spending the first eighteen years of their lives learning a fraction of the same content that a robot was programmed with before these kids were born is mind-boggling.

Don't waste your time on textbooks! If you are trying to choose homeschool curriculum here are some creative tools for learning!

Consider this – robots already “know” this same information in textbooks or how to access it. When your child goes out into the “real world” many of the jobs that are now done by people will then be completed by robots. Right now, there are robots that drive cars, read x-rays, build things, fly an airplane, and so much more. They are programmed with knowledge, and LOTS of it (look up artificial intelligence) – much of the very same knowledge that textbooks teach a child, over and over again, for twelve years.

Homeschooling With The End In Mind

While robots will replace many human workers in the near future, the jobs they will not be replacing are ones that require creativity and innovation. These jobs will require the people that can creatively solve problems, connect concepts in creative new ways, and keep the “human” quotient in the future working world. Why use the centuries-old textbook model of education when new educational models and tools are at YOUR fingertips? #dumpthetextbooks

Don't waste your time on textbooks! If you are trying to choose homeschool curriculum here are some creative tools for learning!

I had one of those aha moments the other day. Over and over again, I’m told that kids love our interactive studies much better than textbooks and that they tend to remember the lessons learned for a long time. At the same time, I watch as parents get frustrated teaching math or spelling or (fill in the blank) and are thrilled when they find an app or online resource to help their child.

Textbooks vs. Technology

As an engineer, I am also very much aware of the exponential growth of robots in the workplace. In the meantime, parents are wasting those vital twelve years of education using textbooks that are boring and already out of date the instant that they are printed – textbooks that could someday be created by a robot, having gathered and formatted the content, inserted images, and then printed it.

And that thought alone brought a sense of urgency to my message – dump the textbooks and use the twelve years to teach them to think, make connections, create, explore, and much more. They will thank you for that step one day in the not too distant future.

Here to help,

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Best Tips for Homeschooling With a Toddler In The Mix

Here are our best tips for homeschooling with a toddler in the mix! Our three children cover a ten year age span, so I know just what it means to try to keep a VERY active toddler busy while the older kids are studying.

Here are our best tips for homeschooling with a toddler in the mix! Our three children cover a ten year age span, so I know just what it means to try to keep a VERY active toddler busy while the older kids are studying.

Our Best Tips for Homeschooling With a Toddler In The Mix

  1. I learned to plan our school day around the toddler’s nap schedule. When he slept (or was supposed to be sleeping), I worked one on one with the older kids with subject areas that required individual attention with each child.
  2. When the toddler was up and roaming, and yes – he was a VERY busy toddler – I learned how to entertain him while we worked on unit studies. He might be busy with building blocks or rearranging magnetic letters on a cookie sheet, or he might be enjoying a math lesson with an older sibling from books like “M&M Addition” or “M&M Multiplication.”
  3. I learned to limit the toy cars that were constantly zipping across the floor during reading time. Since he couldn’t sit still for long, he would quietly send the cars flying across the room. I learned to leave only a few out at a time – recycling them so that there were always a few he hadn’t seen in a while.
  4. I learned (the hard way) to make sure that some of our school projects included things for him to do – whether it involved log cabin construction with craft sticks or creating Bethlehem using modeling clay on the kitchen table.
  5. I learned the importance of keeping a toddler involved with the big kids – better learning opportunities for everyone. And memories more precious than gold, with plenty of pictures to keep us laughing for years to come.
Here are our best tips for homeschooling with a toddler in the mix! How to keep a VERY active toddler busy while the older kids are studying.

More Homeschool Resources And Support

Learn more about the unit study approach to homeschooling – where standard is not the goal:

Helping parents follow that new path now for over 20 years and blessed to be be able to help.

Happy homeschooling,