Do You Really Need a Curriculum? A Fresh Perspective on Home Learning
Hello and welcome!
I’m Laura, the founder of The Harmonious Classroom. I created this space as a supportive place for homeschooling parents, educators, and anyone interested in teaching, self-directed learning, or alternative approaches to education.
Today, I want to talk about a question I hear all the time in homeschooling communities: “What’s the best curriculum out there?!” This is especially common among parents with preschoolers or kindergartners who are excited and anxious to get started with homeschooling.
Many families use a curriculum successfully, and that’s great! Every parent knows their child best, and whatever works for your family is the right choice for you. But I want to offer an alternative perspective: do you really need a curriculum at all?
Rethinking Learning
For some parents, the idea of teaching without a structured curriculum can feel overwhelming. You might think, “I’m not a teacher, how will my child learn to read, write, or do math if I don’t have a guide?”
I understand this feeling. I spent years as a school teacher, writing lesson plans and carefully following the set curriculum. And honestly? Many of those lessons didn’t reach learners the way I hoped. Some students weren’t interested, and others didn’t engage because things didn’t go as planned. This experience opened my eyes to a different approach to learning.
Many of us (myself included) were trained to think of learning in tidy little boxes: literacy from 9 to 10, math from 10 to 11, science after lunch. We followed lessons from a book or a curriculum, and our learning was compartmentalized.
But children don’t naturally learn that way, especially in the early years. Children are actually learning all the time, whether we guide them or not. And the good news? This means the pressure is really off. Learning doesn’t have to happen in structured lessons. It can happen naturally, all the time, through everyday life.
Everyday Life as Curriculum
When we homeschool and children participate in everyday life with us, they are learning constantly simply by observing and participating in real-life experiences. From measuring ingredients & following a recipe book while cooking, to counting and sorting laundry, to reading labels or exploring nature…. children are developing literacy, math, science and problem-solving skills through hands-on, real life activities. When we are attentive to their natural curiosity and follow their interests, we create a rich learning environment where a formal curriculum isn’t always necessary. Learning is simply INTEGRATED into everything we do.
Let’s take a three- to five-year-old as an example. You might be wondering if you need a workbook to teach letters and shapes. But let’s say you’re spending intentional time with your child….observing, guiding, and engaging in life together. Every moment can become an opportunity for learning.
Imagine walking to the playground. Your child points to a stop sign and says, “Stop!” You lift them up and trace the letters on the sign together: S, like a snake. You make the sound together. Suddenly, your child is learning literacy in a hands-on, meaningful way. This learning sticks because it’s connected to their life and interests, not just a page in a workbook.
Or take mathematics for example. Recently, my six-year-old and I were faced with a pile of 100 planks of wood for a forest school cabin we’re building. My son gasped at the enormous pile and asked how many trips it would take to move all of the planks into the forest. We counted, sorted into piles of ten, and calculated together. “If we carry ten boards at a time, and have ten piles of ten, then it will take 100 trips!” He had just explored grouping, counting, and multiplication - all without a worksheet. He came up with the question himself, and we seized the natural opportunity to teach him.
Learning like this happens everywhere: cooking, folding laundry, exploring nature, or even reading together. The more we tune in to our child’s curiosity and natural desire to learn, the more willing and engaged they become.
Let’s take science for example. Science is another subject that is naturally embedded into everyday life. Take your child outside - you’ll see science all around. Count leaves, explore symmetry in ferns, or investigate insects under rocks. Curiosity drives learning, and when we follow their lead, lessons happen organically, without formal instruction.
Let the child take the lead and you step in thoughtfully as the guide when teaching can enhance the experience.
A New Perspective on Curriculum
Before getting caught up in which curriculum is “best,” I invite you to consider this: what if childhood itself IS the curriculum? This approach, called self-directed learning, can be implemented at any age. It’s when we let the children’s interest take the lead for their learning. As the educator or parent, we follow the child’s lead and look for invitations throughout the day to teach them new things that are meaningful in their life.
If you’re just starting out, I encourage you to explore this perspective. Trust that your child is learning constantly, and that you don’t always need a structured program to guide them. They will learn everything they need to, in their time.
Thank you for reading!