Calvert Homeschool - A Crew Review

Every once in awhile, I think about how far the homeschooling movement has come. At one time, it was illegal, and not an educational option. Then came the early days, when it was something that only the weird, crunchy, families did. But look at us now. Homeschooling is not only an accepted option for schooling, it's also gaining momentum every day. Because of that, there are so many fantastic resources and products available for us. Back in the day, we were relegated to the traditional textbook learning, but not anymore. For those who prefer it, there are now a wealth of techy options. Online classes have become wildly popular, and it's no wonder. They offer anything from the opportunity to supplement studies with a little extra learning, to complete curriculums for any grade you need. It amazes me. In our homeschool, we've used a combination of textbooks and online, which works well for us. This month, we've been reviewing  Calvert Homeschool Online from Calvert Homeschool .

Step by step instructions for adding students.

Calvert Homeschool Online offers students in grades 3-12 access to 45 courses in history, geography, language arts, math, science, and spelling. Subscriptions are available for individual and family plans that can be paid monthly or yearly. Support is available for any help that students and parents need. Assistance can be found both by phone and online. Fortunately, I have not needed this, but I know that other Crew members have, and they have stellar reports on the great service provided to them.

Easy to personalize schedules.

Getting started is fairly simple. There are plenty of prompts that will walk you through every step. You'll begin by creating a parent account, with username and password. Then you will add your students, their usernames, and their passwords. After that, you'll be able to select the courses. Choices will vary according to the grades of your children. After choosing a class, you will create their weekly schedule by choosing the start and end date for each class, as well as the amount of days per week that they'll be working on them. Since we started this after our school year already began, I opted to use this as a supplement to our main curriculum, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. My 10th grader is using the Biology course, and my 9th grader is using the English 1, and World Geography.

Choose a background theme.

Guides are there for parents and teachers.

Prior to beginning, there are guides for both parents and teachers that will walk them through the basics of the class(es). Courses are interactive, and include reading various text, watching videos, and sections where students will drag and drop, match, and learning  vocabulary. Lessons end with a review, and questions to answer. Once all is completed, you can mark the lesson as complete. The program keeps track of how far along students are in the course.

Geography videos are fun and interesting.

Video lessons include interactive aspects.

Videos are interesting and engaging.

As with any program or curriculum, there are pros and cons for any given family. For us, the pros are the tracking of classes, automatic grading, and the videos which keep the material interesting. The cons have little to do with the content of the program, and more to do with our personal preferences. For the most part, while we do use and enjoy various online resources, we prefer a physical copy of what is being studied. We don't love reading from a screen, and because we spend so much time in the car getting from one activity to the next, a physical textbook is simply more convenient. The other con relates to the scheduling. Again, as we are often flitting around, we frequently shift our work from one day to a different one. Calvert has the work scheduled on specific days, but we often move things around to accommodate each days' changing plans. Now, you can change the schedule around in the program, but I prefer not to have the hassle. I just don't want to be tied to a rigid schedule. Again, these are small issues, and have nothing to do with the actual content of the program. Families who love a definite, set routine will love the layout.

Colorful tables and illustrations.

Review sections follow the lessons.

Review questions.

Other than the schedule, we like the program, and will continue to use this as a supplement. Would I recommend Calvert Homeschool Online to other families? Absolutely. This award winning program has many excellent components that busy families will appreciate. Are you looking to change or enhance your homeschool studies? Try Calvert Homeschool!

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