Large Families
Homeschooling in a large family is both a joy and a challenge. Learn how to manage those challenges, while meeting the needs of everyone in the family. Here you'll find information on keeping your home running smoothly, tending to toddlers while homeschooling, teaching many different grade levels at once, and avoid burnout.
Homeschooling a Large Family
Must Have Homeschooling Items for a Large Family
This list of practical items and virtues are great for a large homeschooling family.
Day in the Life of a Large Homeschooling Family
Take a look at a day in the life of a large homeschooling family. Alison and Paul have seven children and share what a typical day is like at their house.
Tips for Homeschooling Multiple Ages in a Large Family
Heather Bowen shares some tips, tricks, and shortcuts for homeschooling multiple ages within a large family.
Tips for Homeschool Planning for Multiple Ages
For the most part, the more well ordered days are the more smoothly the day will go. Not only does it require planning on our part as homeschooling moms, it requires diligence and perseverance – daily.
How I Teach a Large Family in a Relaxed, Classical Way: Language Arts
Tips for teaching language arts (writing, grammar, handwriting) in a large family.
5 Tips for Homeschooling a Large Family
Great ideas and strategies for managing a large homeschooling family.
Identifying Priorities in a Large Family Homeschool
Teaching six children can be a challenge. How do you prioritize? Where do you focus your time? How do you make sure they all learn to read, write and tie their shoes? It is not impossible to teach a large family. It takes thoughtfulness and flexibility. It will keep you on your toes and keep you humble.
Homeschooling with Larger Families: How to Make It Work
Some ideas to encourage those who are homeschooling many children. Discusses how to develop daily plans, integrate your teaching to different age levels, maintain your presence to give your children a sense of stability, and keep your perspective.
Introversion, Large Families, and Homeschooling
The introvert can homeschool! Here are some tips for those whose nature is more introverted. Especially helpful for those homeschooling a large family.
Affording the Large Family Homeschool
For any family seeking a private Christian education in the home, money quickly becomes an issue. While programs like K12 and other public-school umbrellas exist, they do not offer the freedom of choice so many homeschoolers are looking for. Nor do they offer a Christian education.
Most homeschooling families opt to buy their own curriculum so they can truly be in charge of their child’s education. When a homeschooling family has many children, curriculum buying becomes an exercise in creative frugality.
Here are a few ways you can save and stretch money in your homeschool.
Married (with a lot) of Children
A candid look at the challenges and joys of raising a large family in a hostile world. This article is written from a Catholic perspective, but has food for thought for any parent of a large brood.
Field Trips in a Large Family
There are lots of things to love about a large family, but being agile and moving about quickly isn’t really one of them. Learning in action and experiencing something first hand is one of the best things about homeschooling. It’s often what really sets apart our education from that of a traditional brick and mortar school. It is worth it to make the effort for field trips, though it doesn’t necessarily make them any easier!
Secrets of successful moms: Homeschooling and raising a large family
An artist, blogger, painter, and mother of six (that's right, six) kids from ages 5 to 13, Denise is the queen of multitasking. In addition to managing a household of eight, the Southern California mom homeschools her three oldest boys – Noah, 13, Diego, 12, and Solomon, 10 – teaches art, and does duty as a baseball mom. There's no such thing as a set-in-stone schedule in the Cortes family. But within the swirl of noise, chaos, laundry, and huge grocery bills, this 38-year-old mom is obviously doing something very right.
Multi-age Homeschool: Older Teaches Younger
In a large family, it is inevitable that the older children will help guide the younger ones. Here are ideas on how to capitalize on that system.
How I Teach a Large Family in a Relaxed, Classical Way: Math
A look at a tag team approach to teaching math in a large homeschool family.
Planning a Homeschool Routine When You Are Homeschooling Multiple Children
How do you structure a homeschool day with four children? Do you teach each subject separately with each child? If not, what do you do together? This mom shares her strategies as she shows a day in her life.
5 Ways to Tell If You Fit the Large-Homeschooling-Family Mold
Ways to know if you are a large homeschooling family.
Large Family Workbox System for Homeschool
An example of an organizational system for a large homeschool family.
Implementing Discipleship Homeschool with a Large Family
How do you switch to a discipleship homeschool way of life? Theresa, mother of ten asked such a question – here is her letter and a reply. Theresa has given permission for this to be shared in the hope that other families will be encouraged too.
Homeschooling: How We Do It
This article details how Bob and Erika Shupe homeschool their nine children successfully.
Large Homeschool Family Blogs
Our Busy Homeschool: Large Family Learning at Home
Tristan is mom to eight children whom they homeschool.
The Bates Family
This beautiful family of 19 children shares their journey with this blog.
There's No Place Like Home: Homeschooling my large, crazy family
Shelly is the mom of eleven children and is homeschooling. Share in her journey.
Raising Olives
This blog shares tips, ideas and some of the ups and downs of managing a home with lots of kids and raising children for the glory of God.
Large Family Learning
Follow Amber and her children as they enjoy large family learning.
Our Full House
Carrie shares life with her 14 blessings, offering a glimpse into the daily life of their family.
My Blessed Home
This blog shares homeschooling help and encouragement, parenting tips and insights, organizational tips, and more, all while chronicling the joys and challenges of raising a large family.
Raising Arrows
Join Amy Roberts as she shares her tips and ideas about homeschooling and large family living.
One Thankful Mom
This mom of 12 children shares her challenges and blessings at this blog. She shares about adoption, attachment, Sensory Processing Disorder, homeschooling, marriage, life with a large family, and more.
Little Earthling Blog
This beautiful family has grown through adoption and birth. With fourteen children, they homeschool and share their adventures on their blog.
Support for Homeschooling Large Families
Magnum Opus
Raising a large, Catholic, homeschooling family is a great work (Magnum Opus) and a great deal of work!
Hopefully this email discussion group will be a place for parents of four or more to help each other with the nitty-gritty details of raising and educating a large, Catholic family.
Lots of Kids
A place where families with four or more children can find friendship, fun, and support.
Large Families Forum at Just Mommies
This forum is for families with four or more kids.
Pregnant Again
Are you pregnant? Do you have a large family? Do people look at you like you're crazy? This is a list for all of you out there who are pregnant again for the third or more time. This is a supportive list wehre people believe that large families are wonderful.
K12 Large Families
This group is for large families using the K-12 curriculum created by Dr. William Bennett. Both homeschooling families and Virtual School families are welcome. It is particularly intended for families with more than 3 children in K-12 as well as additional teens, toddlers and babies. Discussions include both the curriculum and the challenges of implementing it in a large family.
Large Families Forum at BabyCenter
Do you come from a large family? Are you planning one? Share the challenges and joys a big family can bring.
Large Family Logistics
This group offers a discussion of Kim Brenneman's book Large Family Logistics.
Large families are amazing, and I have one
This Facebook page is a big support group of large family supporters who talk on a regular basis.
Large Families Home School
This list is to encourage and support those who homeschool many children. How many? To some 3 is a lot! If you have a large family (whether natural, adopted, foster or blended) and homeschool, you know that there are a lot of unique challenges ranging from orchestrating family harmony, dealing with multiple ages, trying to homeschool in a sometimes chaotic environment, keeping up with the never-ending laundry, transportation, cooking, chores, and more. This is a Christian list.
Tons of Kids
This mailing list is set up for parents of large families. Large for this list is defined as having five or more kids. They welcome everybody who has at least that many of any religion, or even no religion.
Featured Resources
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Spell to Write & Read
This teacher's manual, written by a homeschool educator with experience as a professional school teacher and private tutor, shows how to teach reading the "write" way. By phonetically teaching spelling from the start as the backbone for reading, all children can be taught, regardless of learning styles, to read and spell. If your student knows how to read already, this program can improve his or her spelling. Find out more about this product here.
Dr. Montessori's Own Handbook
A short, illustrated guide to the use of Montessori classroom materials. Describes how to set up a "children's house" - an environment for learning where children can be their own masters.
Upside-Down Brilliance: The Visual Spatial Learner
Dr. Linda Silverman coined the term "visual-spatial learner" to describe the special and unique gifts of people who learn best through seeing and with images. This guide is a great resource as you support your homeschooling visual learner in discovering the best ways to learn and succeed.
But What About Socialization? Answering the Perpetual Home Schooling Question: A Review of the Literature
This book by Dr. Susan A. McDowell uses research, statistics, and the experiences of homeschooling families to answer questions and counter myths about homeschooling and socialization. Read through a discussion of the multiple meanings of socialization, what parents, leaders, and children have to say about the issue, and what the research shows.
They're Your Kids: An Inspirational Journey from Self-Doubter to Home School Advocate
For many people, their schooling was uncomfortable, tedious, and sometimes a waste of time and energy. This book offers the idea that the public school system is tragically flawed and that we are able to do better for our own children. Sam Sorbo, mom of three and wife of actor Kevin Sorbo, took the leap into homeschooling and found the joy and success she was seeking. Included are strategies for working parents, those who are scared to take the leap, and anyone who wants the best for their child...