Must Have Items for Homeschool Unit Studies

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Do you ever get going on your homeschool day and think, “How would I ever homeschool with out this?”

We have a lot of favorites.

This list is comprised of items you can use with almost any study.

Must Have Unit Study Curriculum

• Five in a Row– this is the mainstay of literature unit study curricula and one we have used for years for our kids through 7th grade. We’ve used FIAR from preschool to middle school at all levels.

• Amanda Bennett Unit Studies– We are fans of the original four week unit studies. I do dabble in Download n Go, but we’ve enjoyed many topics with AB units.
• Unit Studies Made Easy– Hands down my favorite book about unit studies by Valerie Bendt. The magic of this book is how Ms. Bendt explains putting together your own unit study.

Must Have Unit Study Reference Material

• Books– a large home library full of the good stuff. Organizing Your Homeschool LibraryEssential. offers a lot of pro tips for keeping track of books in your home and making them accessible to your students.
• Library– we use our local library for extra resources on topics.
• Notebooking & Lapbooking Resource Books– such as Dinah Zyke books and The Ultimate Lapbook Handbook. These have a treasure trove of ideas on how to present information kids learn in a unit study.

• Reference Books– Dictionaries, Atlases, thesaurus, etc. We also have general reference books on various topics of science and social studies. I like having something on almost any topic my kids can come up with as a starting place for research.
• Maps– both large wall maps and map software. Being able to see where your studies take place is important. We like to check the wall map for a quick look and being able to print good quality maps is crucial to a thorough unit study.

• Atlases– These are wonderful reference books to have in your homeschool library. We have all sorts of atlases whether it’s a world atlas, literary atlas, U.S. atlas, or a road atlas. They all serve a purpose in our home classroom.

Must Have Unit Study Technology

• Computers– We have two desk tops and a laptop for our older teens. We use Open DNS as a filter which allows us to control access at the router level. All of our kids have Kindle Fires and we turn the wifi on and off of those at regular hours as well. The internet is such a wonderful resource for doing in depth research.
• Google Earth– Replaces our globe. So many possibilities with this software. You visit a lot of places pretty vividly with Google Earth.

• eReaders– We have 6 Kindles at our house and 6 devices with a Kindle app. I love my Paperwhite and my daughter adores her Kindle Touch. I love the Kindle for books and short stories in the public domain. The flexibility of downloading a book within minutes is huge for us and keeps our day going.

• Video– Whether its stop motion animation or more conventional video, our kids enjoy making videos of what they are working on.
• Printer– What homeschooler can live without a printer? I highly recommend the Canon MX922 which can print duplex. Swoon.

Must Have Unit Study Supplies

• Craft Supplies– Such as paper of all kinds, paints of all kinds, adhesives, stencils, etc. The two most important things about craft supplies are quality and accessibility. Make them available and watch your kids create. The result is worth teaching them to be safe with the materials from a young age.
• Notebook Paper– This is a non-negotiable at our house! It is one of the most used items in our unit studies. Click the picture or the link to see how we use ordinary notebook paper in our homeschool.

Must Have Unit Study Bonus Material

What about those fun add ons to any study?

• Games– You can find board games and card games based on specific topics to enjoy with a study.
• Learning Activities– Bingo games, flash cards, maps, songs, music, etc.

Unit studies make homeschooling simple.

Having the right supplies can make things even simpler.

But, don’t confuse simple for cheap. There is a treasure trove available in and among the resources listed here.

You won’t regret the investment.

Join other bloggers with the iHomeschool Network for a look at their must haves!

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