10 WEIRD & Wonderful Homeschool Curriculum ELECTIVES
Is your homeschool really as fascinating as you want it to be? Are you looking for some out-of-the-box homeschool electives…a course that’s really fun? Well, in this video, I'm going to unveil 10 of the most bizarre and unique homeschool courses that just about every homeschooler will love.
Many parents offer their kids a limited selection of electives, some of which may not fully capture their interests. [me yawning]
But what I’m going to share with you today are not just courses.
They are opportunities for your homeschooler to explore new horizons and develop their interests.
This post presents a diverse range of options that will (I guarantee) ignite your homeschooler's curiosity and inspire their learning journey!
Hi there, I'm Rebecca Devitt, a homeschool mom and curriculum expert.
I've spent countless hours exploring online curricula, and in this article, I'll share some fascinating curriculum electives that will add a whole new dimension to your homeschooling experience.
Watch the video below to see more details of exactly what is in these elective courses.
WORD UP! (Compass Classroom) Vocab Show
Firstly, let's talk about language electives.
Ever wanted your kids to learn a language, but they're not interested?
This WordUp! homeschool high school elective (pictured above) will fascinate just about EVERY child.
Not to mention parents.
This 3-volume homeschool elective (which gets 24 5-star reviews) is presented as a news broadcast where the host (Dwayne Thomas) switches from the 'Latin guy' on one side and the 'Greek guy' on the other side.
The idea is that the lesson features a common English word like WATER.
Then, the main host has rather hilarious interactions with the Latin and Greek guy as they teach you common English words that come from the Latin word (aqua) and the Greek word (hydra).
These are called English derivatives.
Whether you're a Latin or Greek buff, or you've never done a day's language study in your life, you're going to love this program!
You can get the complete set of WordUp! for $108 on DVD.
Or you can get two weeks of access for free (online streaming), then pay for a monthly ($39) or yearly ($390) subscription fee.
Because, after all, let's say you needed to say, "Oy you! Your caprae fell into the aqua!", you'd be able to say it.
Podcasting to change the world
But let's say you don't like Latin for some funky reason; what about Podcasting to Change the World?
As a parent, I want my children to know the good news of Jesus Christ.
I'm also hoping that one day, they'll tell millions of people why Christ's death for our sins is so (quite literally) vital.
And this elective shows them how to do that.
Podcasting to Change the World is a 6-week video-based elective for homeschoolers in middle and high school.
It's not just about talking into a microphone—it's a comprehensive guide that walks students through everything from cover art to how to set up a podcasting system, what to say, and how to record, upload, polish, and finalize the podcast.
You can get this one on a subscription for around $30 a month or $60 a quarter.
Hands-on architecture
But, let's say your kids want to get more hands-on with their electives.
How about Hands-On Architecture?
Amy Gillespie piques student interest by... cheating.
She not only gets them hands-on and active as they architecturally design and build a house and zoo with some aqua (see what I did there), but she also uses marshmallows and cheese spread to do it!
This 27-week elective, suitable for Grades 3-7, is not your typical architecture course.
It's a hands-on, text-based learning experience where children can read the lessons themselves (they're written to them directly for independent learning) and look at the photos before designing their own projects.
They'll learn about points, lines, planes, shapes, and more as they experiment using everyday objects.
Pretty great.
Homesteading
But what if your kids don't want to be inside at all?
What if they want to get out and...milk a goat for fun?
Well, there's a goat milking elective - I mean, homesteading elective for them.
But this one isn't for a particular grade.
Instead, it's for the WHOLE FAMILY!
There are more than 20 Units in this course, and it's VERY extensive.
It covers everything from breeding chicks to chickens, making strawberry jam, and canning apricots.
You'll also learn about caring for dogs and rabbits and how to protect your house from poisonous snakes.
And of course, if you want to learn how to milk a goat (I mean a caprae), this one is for you!
When I was homeschooled around 25 years ago, I got to milk a cow...some experience!
Preventing & responding to emergencies
But let's say milking small mammals isn't the right homeschool curriculum elective for you or your homeschoolers.
It's not…exciting enough.
What about the homeschool elective, Preventing and Responding to Emergencies?
This course is a health and fitness program for middle schoolers.
It runs for 9-weeks.
In this course, students will study common injuries like strains and broken bones...what you might get if you don't milk that goat properly.
They'll also examine how to deal with stressful emergency situations like electric shocks and drowning in aqua—I mean, hydra—I mean water.
Then they'll learn helpful tips about how to prevent these injuries and dangerous situations.
Fashions in history
But lets say aquatic adventures like these are not your homeschoolers thing.
Let's say you have a child who's interested in clothes.
Then the Fashions in History elective for homeschoolers from Schoolhouse Teachers is for you!
Fashions in History lasts 11+ weeks and is aimed at 3rd—12th graders—so it has a large age catchment!
In this homeschool curriculum elective, students combine history and fashions across the 18th and 20th centuries.
They'll have fun looking at all sorts of weird and wonderful fashions like crinoline and corsets.
But it's not just book learning - students can learn about historic dolls and do some crafts and sewing along the way.
I'm personally loving the sound of this one.
Writing with Hobbits
But, as one friend informed me, ‘Schooling should be more about reading and writing - not fun stuff like fashion.’
So, for those of you who hold to this mantra, there's Writing with Hobbits.
This is another Compass Classroom elective.
It is a series of 17 slick video lectures that stream online lectures and introduce middle and high schoolers to creative writing by examining Tolkien's The Hobbit.
And it only costs $35 for lifetime access!
However, this is a smaller part of the whole set called 'Creative Writing with Jonathan Rogers.'
This set includes:
Writing Through the Wardrobe
Writing Through To Kill a Mockingbird
Writing with the Bog Owl
and, of course, Writing with Hobbits
So, if your homeschooler is into small anthropomorphic mammals and killing birds, this is the elective for them!
Discovering Disgusting Creatures (and Worms)
What if small mammals don't cut it, though?
They may need something more... repellent to get them learning.
Well, there's no homeschool course more repulsive and repugnant than Discovering Disgusting Creatures by Schoolhouse Teachers.
In this 8-week science course, students in middle school will study everything gross and slimy.
They'll cover snakes, dart frogs, dung beetles, fire-bellied toads, and Zorillas (I had to look that last one up...and no, it's not a skunk...even though it's called an African skunk...go figure).
But - here's the all-consuming question with this one.
Will they learn about worms (I know some of you secretly LOVE worms)?
I don't know, but if they don't, you can always enroll them in the Schoolhouse Teachers elective Weird and Wonderful World of Worms (again, for middle schoolers).
Tinkers Club
What if, though, your child has some sort of morbid fear of worms.
This type of fear actually has a medical name, vermiphobia - which happens to be a Latin and a Greek derivative. YES!!!
Well, then, you'd want them to avoid tinkering with worms.
But maybe start them tinkering in the Tinkers Club.
This Club is actually a science course for Grades 4-8 who are interested in science or engineering (think STEM).
The idea is that kids tinker with objects and learn by creating, observing, questioning, and then changing them to achieve a desired result.
This course challenges a child's imagination, curiosity, and critical thinking skills.
Over this 9-unit course, students will do everything from building a catapult to popping a balloon with magnets.
They'll tinker with wheels, cars, and flying saucers.
In short, this is a great homeschool curriculum elective for STEM enthusiasts.
Trek to the Holy Land and Beyond AND Wonders of the World
But what if your kids just aren't scientists?
What if they'd like to travel and do geography instead?
Then, you can choose between the Wonders of the World and the Trek to the Holy Land and Beyond electives from Schoolhouse Teachers.
Wonders of the World is for Grades 3-5, whereas the Holy Land elective is for slightly older Grades 6-8 students.
Wonders of the World is a 5-week mini-course, where you'll get to cover all those unique pieces of architecture throughout ancient and modern history like:
Great Pyramid of Giza
The Empire State Building
The Temple of Artemis in Ephesus
and more!
The Trek to the Holy Land elective is a three-week series of text and interactive video lessons (30-40 minutes a day).
Kids will learn answers to questions like:
How big is the Sea of Galilee?
What does the top of Mt. Sinai look like?
The Bottom line
I think I'd like to do all of these homeschool electives!
However, purchasing homeschool electives can be expensive.
But what if you could access all your homeschool curriculum and most of the electives on this list for around $269?
You can with Schoolhouse Teachers.
What's included in the homeschool curriculum?
Checkout the program here to see the amazing value you can get.
