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You are here: Home / Homeschool / Homeschool Curriculum / Five Things You Might Not Know About Sonlight

Five Things You Might Not Know About Sonlight

April 9, 2014 By Roan · Disclosure: This Post May Contain Affiliate Links. {I may be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on my links.}

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The following post is from Roan of Joyful Always:

Five Things You Might Not Know about Sonlight

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My children and I are in our fifth year of using Sonlight.  I considered using Sonlight for many years before I actually became brave enough to buy curriculum and commit to using it for one school year.  In fact, for the first eight years of my homeschooling, I frequently used the Sonlight catalog as a booklist for my children.  I chose books to read aloud from the pages of my Sonlight catalog.

As I seriously perused the Sonlight website and catalog, and as I embarked on using my very first Sonlight Cores, I discovered that I was needlessly intimidated by the curriculum.  My only regret with using Sonlight is that I didn’t begin using their program earlier in my homeschool.

Five Things I Didn’t Know about Sonlight Before Using it

You don’t have to read every single book listed in the Instructor’s Guide.

In fact, the Instructor’s Guide is just that, a guide.  I consider it a menu, and just like I don’t order and eat everything on the menu when I am dining at a restaurant, neither do I read and do every single thing listed on the pages of the Instructor’s Guide.  

I use a completely different Bible curriculum than what Sonlight suggests.  I sometimes omit a history, geography, or literature book, or I will substitute a different book.  I also occasionally use audio books.  My children are still hearing the book, but it saves my voice and my time when we listen to a book in our car.

You don’t have to buy and use the Sonlight “extras.”

Language Arts used to be sold separately, and I usually did not buy that because I preferred the language arts resources that I had used for years.  I have used Sonlight’s science program, but normally I use something different.  My math and handwriting curricula differ from what Sonlight suggests as well.  But that is okay.  You can still reap numerable benefits from Sonlight by using their history, geography, and literature recommendations only.

In the long run, Sonlight is really not as expensive as it seems.

Almost all of Sonlight’s resources for history, geography, and literature are non-consumable.  You can use the same Instructor’s Guide and all of the books year after year.  I mark off each day’s block with the initial of my child and the date we completed it.  Even when Sonlight updates its Instructor Guides, I still use the ones that I have already purchased.  Since I have five children, the cost of Sonlight per child is not that expensive.  Plus, each year as I have purchased new Cores, I have found that I already owned at least one-third of the books.

Core letters do not necessarily correspond with grade level.

For the first two Cores, (Pre 3/4 and Pre 4/5), two ages are suggested.  For the remaining Cores, three ages are suggested.  For example, Core A, which you might automatically think of as Kindergarten level, has the age suggestion of 5, 6, and 7.  In our homeschool, I have used Core Pre 3/4 for my four year olds; Core Pre 4/5 for my kindergartners; Core A for 1st grade; Core B for second grade; Core C for third grade, and so on.

You can use multiple Cores at a time.

Like unit study curricula, Sonlight recommends that you put children close in age in the same core.  This does make sense, as it will save you time.  However, in our homeschool, I have kept each child using Sonlight in his or her own Core.  Yes, that does mean that I have taught three cores at one time, but only for two years.  Typically, I am doing two Cores at a time.

Currently we are using Core B for my 2nd grader and Core D for my 4th grader.  I do spend a lot of time reading aloud, but I really don’t mind.  Sonlight reading is the best part of our school day!

I only require the child whose Core books I am reading to sit with me and listen, but more times than not, two or more of my other children join us.  In fact, when my daughter went to college last fall, she asked to take several of the Sonlight books that I had read aloud over the years with her.  She said she had such fond memories of my reading them aloud to them.

If you have considered using Sonlight but were intimidated by the time or the cost required, I hope that you will reconsider.  Reading books aloud to my children for hours (yes, hours) each day has created a bond with them that I will always treasure.  I plan to keep my Instructor’s Guides and books for my children to use in their homeschool some day.

 photo credit – Jimmie on Flickr

Roan Roan is currently in her 13th year of homeschooling.  Her oldest child is a freshman in college, and her remaining home schooled students range in age from 8-16.  Roan blogs regularly on her personal blog, Joyful Always.  She writes about her interests which include family, homemaking, homeschooling, running, planning, and organization.

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Filed Under: Homeschool Curriculum

About Roan

Roan is the homeschooling mother of five children.  She writes regularly about homeschooling, running, and her family life at her personal blog, Joyful Johnsons.

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. John Coveyou says

    April 9, 2014 at 9:33 am

    Hey thanks for posting this great set of tips. We have been researching home-school curriculum and other educational material (probably a bit premature since our daughter is still an infant) and I found this helpful. Many thanks!

    Reply
  2. Christine @ Glory to God says

    April 9, 2014 at 9:21 pm

    We’re in our 3rd full year of Sonlight. Love, love, love it! I agree with everything you’ve written here! We love their science too.

    Reply
  3. Kimberly says

    April 11, 2014 at 9:25 am

    THANK YOU SO MUCH! I am researching home-schooling and am honestly intimated by the whole thing. Sonlight is one of the top curriculums on my list because it seems to spell everything out step-by-step. I am so nervous I will pick the wrong curriculum for my rising 2nd and 5th graders. Nice to see Sonlight is flexible!

    Reply
  4. Demetria @ Christian Homeschool Moms says

    April 16, 2014 at 4:20 pm

    We started with Sonlight last year and LOVE it! Thanks for posting the info about how non-intimidating SL really is.

    Reply
  5. Lori S says

    April 17, 2014 at 11:40 pm

    Thanks for sharing! I have been using Sonlight for two years with my now 7 year old daughter. This year was tough for a while as I was getting accustomed to also teaching my 5 year old for pre-k (using a beka). Next year I was planning on switching her to Sonlight also, but every time I think about it, I get overwhelmed just thinking about all the reading. Not to mention, I also have a 2 year old that will be coming up… How do you actually fit it all in, and still have time to do household responsibilities, errands, anything else besides school!? Would love to see your general daily routine. Right now we our day starts with Bible, then Core B History/Read Alouds, then I do LA at the table and call it “Table Time” with the 7 yr old, while I have the 5 yr old do activities with the 2 yr old. Then they switch. Then we all come back together for science & social studies. And by then it’s lunch or past lunch. I’m just still trying to figure out how it’s going to look next year….

    Reply
  6. CassC says

    April 22, 2014 at 7:01 pm

    Thank you so much for posting this! We are seriously thinking about homeschooling starting next year and I have pretty much settled on Sonlight, but am still nervous about the cost. One thing I did notice though was that a lot of the extra books they offer, actually, a lot of their books in general, you can buy cheaper on Amazon, so that was one thing that was helping us out.

    Reply
  7. Melissa says

    April 30, 2014 at 9:24 am

    Thanks for this post! Great reminder that Cores can be flexible. I will be using P4/5 with my 6 year old and then the next year combine my two kids with Core A. This will be our first year homeschooling! So excited to find another Sonlight blogger!
    htttp://addalittlespirit.blogspot.com

    Reply

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Angie, mom to three very fun kids, is the founder of Real Life at Home.  With degrees in elementary education (B.A.) and special education (M.S.Ed.), as well as being a former homeschooler, she is passionate about supporting both parents and teachers by providing printables, crafts, and activities to help children learn and grow. Read More…

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