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What to Do Before You Buy Homeschool Curriculum: Deschooling, Dreaming, and Choosing Wisely
Every new homeschool mom has the same first question: what curriculum should I buy? It feels like the answer to all the chaos — if you can just find the right one, everything will fall into place. Homeschool expert Christy-Faith, author of Homeschool Rising and a teacher’s teacher with over 20 years of experience coaching hundreds of families through exactly this process, says that jumping straight to curriculum shopping is one of the most common and costly mistakes new homeschoolers make. And she’s seen the closets full of unused workbooks to prove it.
This is Part 2 of the New Homeschooler Series on The Christy-Faith Show — the podcast for homeschool moms who take their craft seriously. In this episode, Christy-Faith walks through steps four, five, and six of her proven 8-step framework: deschooling, dreaming with your kids, and how to choose homeschool curriculum without wasting your money or burning yourself out. These are the steps that make every decision after them easier — and the steps most people skip.
Step 4: Deschooling — Why You Can’t Skip This (Even If You Want To)
Before anything else, Christy-Faith clears up one of the most common points of confusion: deschooling is not the same as unschooling. Unschooling is a homeschool style — a child-led, interest-driven approach to education. Deschooling is a process. It’s the intentional work of shedding the beliefs, patterns, and assumptions about education that have been imprinted on you and your child by 150 years of the traditional school system.
Whether you realize it or not, that system shaped how you think about what learning is supposed to look like — what a good student looks like, what a productive day looks like, what success means. That programming runs deep in both parent and child. If you don’t give yourself space to examine it, you’ll accidentally rebuild the same system in your living room. Christy-Faith sees it constantly: mom pulls her kids out of school, buys a big curriculum, builds a classroom in the house, makes a school-style schedule, and wonders why everyone is miserable six months later. She didn’t deschool. She brought school home with her.
Deschooling isn’t doing nothing — it’s giving yourself and your child space to reset. Go to the library, cook together, build with Legos, let your child be bored. How long does it take? It depends on how long your child was in school and how much deprogramming everyone needs — some families take a week, some a month, some a whole summer. And if you want to go deep on this, Chapter 12 of Homeschool Rising is what Christy-Faith calls “taking the red pill.” Once you read it, you won’t see education the same way again.
Step 5: Dreaming With Your Kids Before You Build Your Homeschool
Before shopping for a single curriculum, Christy-Faith wants you to sit down with your kids — and with yourself — and dream. This is a step most new homeschoolers either don’t know to do or skip because it doesn’t feel practical. But homeschooling gives you enormous freedom, and without a clear vision of what you actually want to build, you’ll default to what’s familiar. That usually means building something that looks like school.
Ask your kids: What do you wish you could learn about? What are you curious about? What do you love doing when no one is telling you what to do? Then ask yourself: What kind of family do I want us to be? What do I want our days to feel like? What about education matters most to me — not my neighbor, not my mother-in-law, not the homeschool blogger I follow? Write the answers down. This isn’t a fluffy exercise. It’s the foundation that makes every curriculum decision after it easier. Once you know what you’re building toward, you stop asking “what’s the best curriculum?” and start asking “what’s the best curriculum for the life I’m trying to build?”
Step 6: All-in-One vs. Subject-by-Subject Curriculum — Understanding Your Two Main Options
Now you’re actually ready for this conversation. And because you’ve done the work of deschooling and dreaming first, you’re going to make far better decisions than if you had skipped those steps. There are essentially two approaches to homeschool curriculum.
All-in-one curriculum (sometimes called box curriculum) is a packaged program that includes everything you need for every subject for an entire year — lesson plans, textbooks, schedules, all of it. You open it up and it tells you what to do. This is a great option if you want structure, feel nervous about planning, or need something to lean on while you find your footing.
Subject-by-subject curriculum means picking individual resources for each subject from different providers — building a custom program for your child. This gives you more flexibility and lets you find specialists who do one thing exceptionally well. And it doesn’t have to be all or nothing. Christy-Faith primarily uses subject-by-subject for her own four kids, but she’ll buy one subject from an all-in-one company and use it as a standalone when it fits. Mix and match. There are no rules.
How to Choose Homeschool Curriculum Without Wasting Money or Burning Out
Christy-Faith gives four tips she calls non-negotiable for new homeschoolers buying curriculum for the first time:
- Start with your oldest child. If you have multiple kids, don’t try to buy curriculum for all of them at once. Start with your oldest and work your way down — otherwise it’s overwhelming.
- Go one subject at a time. Start with math or language arts, get that settled, then move on. You make better decisions when you’re only evaluating one subject and one child at a time.
- Watch for parent-intensive curriculum. Some curriculum requires you to sit with your child for every single lesson. That’s fine for some subjects with younger kids — but if every subject requires your constant presence, you’re going to burn out. Ask how parent-intensive a curriculum is before you buy, and call the company if you’re not sure.
- Know your homeschool style before you shop. Most curriculum is categorized under one of the nine homeschool styles. Buying a classical curriculum when you’re more interest-led is a fast track to misery. Take the 5-Minute Style Finder Quiz first — it’s free and takes five minutes.
And then use Christy-Faith’s free Curriculum Recommendations list — a vetted guide to reputable programs she’s seen families use successfully, with zero paid placements. If it’s on the list, it’s a good bet. Download it free here.
Resources Mentioned
- New Homeschooler’s Roadmap — Free step-by-step companion to this series, with all 8 steps, all links, and episode playlists in one place
- 20 Questions to Kickstart Your Deschooling Adventure — Free download to start the deschooling process with your kids
- 5-Minute Homeschool Style Finder Quiz — Free quiz to discover your homeschool style before you shop
- Free Curriculum Recommendations — Christy-Faith’s vetted list of reputable programs, zero paid placements
- Homeschool Rising by Christy-Faith — Chapter 12 is a deep dive on deschooling
- Thrive Homeschool Community — Where moms come to learn how to homeschool well (waitlist available)
- The Christy-Faith List — Free directory of homeschool-friendly businesses, doctors, colleges, and service providers
📚 Looking for more free resources? Find all of Christy-Faith’s freebies at christy-faith.com/#freebies
Related Episodes
If this episode resonated with you, these go even deeper:
- How to Start Homeschooling Part 1 — The Legal Stuff & Choosing the Right Approach — The episode that comes first in this series: state laws, exit plans, and finding your homeschool style before you do anything else. Listen here
- What I Wish I Knew Before Buying Homeschool Curriculum — Everything Christy-Faith learned the hard way about curriculum, so you don’t have to. Listen here
- Do You Meet the Qualifications for Homeschooling? — The episode for the mom who is convinced everyone else can do this except her. Listen here
Frequently Asked Questions
What is deschooling and do I need to do it before starting homeschool?
According to Christy-Faith, deschooling is the intentional process of shedding the beliefs and habits about education that have been shaped by years in the traditional school system — for both parent and child. It is not the same as unschooling, which is a homeschool style. Christy-Faith explains that skipping deschooling often leads parents to accidentally recreate a school environment at home, which causes burnout and frustration for everyone. It can take anywhere from a week to a full summer, depending on how long your child was in school and how much deprogramming is needed.
What is the difference between all-in-one and subject-by-subject homeschool curriculum?
As Christy-Faith explains in this episode, all-in-one (or box) curriculum covers all subjects for an entire year in a single package — lesson plans, textbooks, and schedule all included. Subject-by-subject curriculum means choosing individual resources for each subject from different providers, effectively building a customized program for your child. These approaches can be combined — many families mix and match based on their needs. Christy-Faith recommends all-in-one curriculum for moms who want structure and are still finding their footing.
How do I choose homeschool curriculum as a new homeschooler?
Christy-Faith recommends a step-by-step approach: complete the deschooling process and dream with your kids about what you want your homeschool to look like. Then identify your homeschool style using the free Style Finder Quiz. Start with your oldest child and choose one subject at a time — usually beginning with math or language arts. Be careful not to buy curriculum that is entirely parent-intensive, and use her free Curriculum Recommendations list to identify reputable options vetted by real families.
Should I know my homeschool style before buying curriculum?
Yes — according to Christy-Faith, knowing your homeschool style is non-negotiable before purchasing curriculum. Most curriculum on the market is categorized under one of nine educational styles, so identifying where you lean first immediately narrows your options and eliminates programs that won’t fit your family. Buying a classical curriculum when you’re more interest-led is a fast track to misery. The free 5-Minute Style Finder Quiz at christy-faith.com takes five minutes.
What free homeschool curriculum resources does Christy-Faith recommend?
Christy-Faith offers several free resources for new homeschoolers: the New Homeschooler’s Roadmap (a step-by-step guide with all episode playlists), the 20 Questions to Kickstart Your Deschooling Adventure download, the 5-Minute Homeschool Style Finder Quiz, and her Curriculum Recommendations list — a vetted guide to reputable curriculum with zero paid placements. All resources are available at christy-faith.com.
⭐ New to Homeschooling? Start with Episode 101 — the New Homeschooler Series is the best place to begin.
About Christy-Faith
Christy-Faith is a homeschool expert, author, speaker, and the host of The Christy-Faith Show — the podcast for homeschool moms who take their craft seriously. With over 20 years of experience in education, a master’s degree, and a background founding and directing one of the country’s top private learning centers, Christy-Faith has advised everyone from everyday families to A-list celebrities and billionaires on their children’s education. She is the author of Homeschool Rising: Shattering Myths, Finding Courage, and Opting Out of the School System, the founder of the Thrive Homeschool Community, and the creator of the Christy-Faith List — a free directory of homeschool-friendly businesses and providers. A homeschool mom of four, she reaches over 400,000 followers across social media and has built one of the largest and most trusted voices in the homeschool movement.
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