Are you thinking about homeschooling your children? Here are the top 11 reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum!
My husband and I decided before our first child was born that we would homeschool our children. We had several reasons for this decision but the most impactful reasons were our homesteading lifestyle and the biblical values we want to instill in our children.
Currently, our 2-month-old daughter is our first and only child but we are hoping and praying for a few more children in the future Lord-willing. We have already started thinking about what curriculum we would start to use when we began homeschooling her!
My husband, Landon, was homeschooled growing up and used several different biblical curriculums. I was Christian schooled and have never used a homeschool curriculum in my life. When I first started looking at the different options, I felt so overwhelmed!
After lots of research and recommendations, we found that the reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum aligned with our reasons!
While we have the curriculum purchased and ready to go in the next few years, we have yet to use it and experience it for ourselves. The reasons below on why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum are all the reasons others gave us.
I pray this information will help you in making an educated and informed decision when choosing a homeschooling curriculum for your family.
Let’s check it out…
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What Rod And Staff Curriculum Is
The reasons below will help you understand the curriculum in great detail, but here is a general description. This may be a great curriculum for you even if you aren’t a homesteading family like us.
Rod and Staff curriculum was designed by Mennonites to be a simple textbook and workbook system with black and white pictures. It was created to fit their culture, where children learn the core basic subjects by the time they 14-years-old and are able to leave the house, or up to Grade 10.
The Rod and Staff curriculum is Christian-based and helps children learn and understand Biblical content at the same time. Math, Reading, Phonics, Spelling, English, Science, Social Studies, and Music are all subjects covered.
Mennonite and Amish lifestyles are depicted in the books so that they are relatable. But, they are also not too unrelatable if you do not follow a similar lifestyle.
Next are the exact reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum!
11 Reasons Why People Homeschool With Rod And Staff Curriculum
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Repetition And Mastery
Rod and Staff curriculum is often described as classical, complete, though, and understandable. One reason is that the topics in each subject are not taken lightly.
There is lots of information on the basics of each subject so that the child will understand the core information before moving on. To make this possible Rod and Staff curriculum includes a great deal of repetition.
Your child will master the information in each subject before moving on. Because the information builds on itself, there is no need to go back and look at what you learned before, saving time, and making learning more enjoyable!
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Teach Themselves Starting in 3rd Grade
Around third grade, your child will not need you to help them with their lessons. They can take the textbook and workbook to learn the information themselves and come to you with questions.
This encourages problem-solving and also gives you more free time in the day!
The textbooks are also relatable to the child so that they can see how everything relates back to their own walk-through life with God and the family unit. They would rather do it on their own most of the time.
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Easy To Use And Simple
The lessons are short, straightforward, and easy to understand. While in the beginning, early grades, there is some teacher involvement, it slowly dips away.
It is so easy and simple, your child will understand what they are learning right away and soon be able to learn it on their own.
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Thorough And Paced Appropriately
Each subject gradually builds at a realistic pace. Even though your child will be done by 9th grade, the information isn’t crammed into the lessons.
Math, for example, starts simple, and then the concepts gradually build on top of one another. They are focused on having a very solid understanding of basic math before moving on to a new, advanced topic.
Also, social studies and science are written in a story format but include facts and accurate information. It’s also conversational. This makes the curriculum fun and relatable.
Homeschooling parents everywhere love that Rod and Staff curriculum is so thorough, making it their favorite curriculum and one of the reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum over and over again!
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Biblical
Rod and Staff curriculum has a main priority of teaching your child the Word of God while they learn their school subjects. They will learn about what God says in the Bible each day when they open their curriculum.
Stories and examples also focus on strong Biblical family values. Your child will learn how to be mature in their role in the family, from the fruits of the spirit to chores, to family time.
The characters in the stories you read teach moral lessons to your children.
When choosing a Biblical curriculum, you want to make sure it is sound in its teaching. I have been told by other homeschooling parents that this is the soundest curriculum they have found. It will teach your child to pursue excellence in every area of their lives!
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Strong Reading And Writing Concepts
I often hear others raving about the Rod and Staff English curriculum the most. It teaches punctuation, grammar, reading, writing, vocabulary, and spelling.
It includes diagramming, which some children really come to quite enjoy as it helps with remembering sentence structure. The writing can be exhausting if you are not used to it but there is always the option to the lessons orally.
Basically, these subjects go back to the basics. It is one of the reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum!
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Works With Learning Disabilities
Because the curriculum is so simple and focused on the core basics of each subject, it can be helpful to those with various learning disabilities.
If your child is struggling in one subject, it is worth a shot to see if the Rod and Staff curriculum could make a difference.
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Not Distracting
While some other curriculums are full of bright colors, pretty pictures, and fancy fonts, Rod and Staff is simply in black and white.
It doesn’t distract your child when they are trying to learn but makes it easy for them to understand the topic quickly and complete the lesson without all the bright and fancy distractions. It helps keep them on track.
Every exercise your child does in the curriculum is worthwhile. There is no fluff!
The teacher’s manuals are the same way and help you with presenting the lessons and answers quickly, instead of hindering you with useless information.
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Inexpensive Yet Heavy Duty
The textbooks are extremely affordable. You can purchase them here on Milestone books or you can purchase them used online on a re-selling marketplace like this Facebook group.
When purchasing them new, look for the all-in-one package deal to purchase everything you need for each grade level with one click. Here is grade 1 for example. For $1,000 my husband and I were able to purchase all the curriculum and extra reading books for preschool to grade 2. That also included the shipping cost!
The books are very solid and heavy-duty. I have no doubt they will last through all of our children.
If you have a large family then trying to afford a quality curriculum that also teaches Biblical principles can be challenging. Rod and Staff is a great solution.
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Rare Updates
Because the material is not updated frequently, you can use the textbooks again and again. Another reason it is so affordable!
The workbooks, or consumable items, are quite inexpensive and easy to reorder for the next child if you don’t photocopy the pages instead.
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Done With School Early
Your child will learn everything they need to know in school by grade 10. This can be beneficial if your child is ready to jump into learning a trade, working on a homestead or farm, or just ready to dive straight into college.
It can also save time and money, and you’ll likely find that your child is more prepared for the real world than someone schooling longer in the public system.
Cons To Using Rod And Staff Curriculum
One common complaint is that the curriculum is geared towards a classroom setting. Sometimes this makes it harder when you have multiple children in multiple grade levels.
Some people find the curriculum boring, which I find to be the case when we focus so much on entertainment as a culture. There is no technology to incorporate with the learning.
There are also no subjects like physics, chemistry, anatomy, etc. There are only core subjects, so if you are looking to dive deeper into a certain area, you would need to purchase an additional curriculum. It also doesn’t go past grade 10, which could also be a con to some families.
I’ve also heard that the books are too heavy, but this has not been my experience with them. Sometimes people wish there were more workbook activities for certain lessons or subjects, or that the font was larger.
Also, while it is Biblically-based and Christian, the Mennonite and Amish depictions may not be enjoyable for some families.
But, overall, most families that use Rod and Staff curriculum have come to love it with very few complaints.
Let me know in the comments below, which reasons why people homeschool with Rod and Staff curriculum resonates with you?
Kelsey at GoodPointGrandma
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This is a great well informed post!!! If I was a parent I would absolutely use this!!
Thanks Laura, that is so encouraging!
I have pretty strong opinions on education as I have a teaching degree, lol. I am not a teacher now because I was not happy with how our education system operates and didn’t feel like my skills were being best used there. If I had kids I think I would almost certainly homeschool them. Children’s brains are constantly changing and growing and kids have all sorts of different learning strengths and weaknesses, so I think it’s good that you’re researching options and that you’re going to be prepared. One thing that I personally think needs to be taught more is… Read more »
Yes, homeschooling is the way to go! Great info and perspective Becky, thanks for sharing!
God bless anyone who hoe schools their children! But this program actually sounds amazing!!!
Haha thanks Kelly!