Blog

3 Affordable Homeschool Curriculum Bundles

Are you thinking about your homeschool curriculum for the coming school year?

Now is definitely the time to begin planning and preparing - so that you can relax a bit this summer and give yourself a break. (Who wants to be rushed at the beginning of their school year?)

If you’ve been following Homegrown Learners for any amount of time, you know I am PICKY about the resources I use - and recommend to readers. I’ve been watching the Build Your Bundle Homeschool sale for a couple of years now and have always been intrigued. I’m happy to be partnering with them this year to spread the word about excellent curriculum savings across all areas, disciplines, and age levels.

No matter the age of your child or your homeschooling style, you will be able to find something suited for you - and if you can’t - you can build it yourself!


Each year, a little company out of Colorado works diligently to source some of the most popular and effective resources on the market, bundle them together, and make them available to homeschoolers at incredibly low prices for one week only. Their purpose is to make homeschooling affordable and attainable for parents who feel this is the best educational route for their children. 

These bundles preserve time, energy, sanity, and save a ton of money on homeschooling resources.

I don’t need to tell you how time-consuming and expensive planning for an upcoming school year can be. Many folks still spend upwards of $1000 for a single child! 

It really doesn’t have to be that way.

Seriously, finding homeschool curriculum at low prices is doable and many parents have already caught on. They know the Build Your Bundle sale can save folks up to 92%. So, they eliminate stress, save money, and wait until the sale begins and get their full year’s curriculum all at once, which frees up the rest of the year to focus on the most important aspect of homeschooling–their kids. 

The sale kicked off on May 15th at 9:00 CST and lasts through May 22nd at 11:59 PM.

There are over 20 online courses and memberships, numerous selections for business-minded students, 22 Cathy Duffy approved products, a multitude of resources for STEM studies, Charlotte Mason inspired materials, and curriculum ranging from preschool through high school, and much, much more!

It’s truly one of the best homeschooling online events I’ve come across! It differs from some of the others out there because products are offered in both pre-built and build-your-own formats. Their goal is to provide access to high-quality and affordable curriculum for homeschooling families and offer the freedom to choose exactly what you want, rather that be the ease of grabbing proven pre-built bundles endorsed by some of the top homeschooling names or picking and choosing according to the learning style that works for your children. 

There are a ton of bundles and individual products to choose from, so when I was asked to pick my 3 favorite, I had a really difficult time. I narrowed it down, though, and wanted to share with you.

I am thankful to Build Your Bundle for providing a $5 discount for my readers to put toward any purchase of $25 or more!

(Click here to claim your discount)


3 Homeschooling Bundles That Will Save You Time & Money in the 2019/2020 School Year

Charlotte Mason Inspired Bundle

The Charlotte Mason Inspired bundle has always been a favorite and this year will not disappoint. In true Charlotte Mason flair the bundle offers a selection of nature study materials, music study, and history. This is a truly spectacular bundle and you will get all of these great resources for just $29.95.

Your children will enjoy learning from popular publishers such as Mystery of History, How Great Thou Art, Trivium Pursuit, and more. If you are new to the Charlotte Mason method or just want to add a Charlotte Mason flair to your children’s studies this is the bundle for your homeschool.

Cathy Duffy Endorsed Language Arts Bundle

If your homeschool centers on literature or you are unsure how to provide the best instruction in the subject, the Cathy Duffy Language Arts Bundle is definitely worth considering, especially at the price of $29.95.

Each product in this bundle was carefully selected and endorsed by homeschool guru, Cathy Duffy. Her book, How to Choose Homeschool Curriculum, was even included! Your children’s experience will be enriched by literature guides about The Courage of Sarah Noble, The Scarlet Letter, and Johnny Tremain.

Families will enjoy learning about music together with Beethoven Who. If your have children who love to read, then they can even join an online book club focusing on Mary Poppins.

Build Your Own Bundle 

Pre-built bundles are definitely nice because they eliminate any sort of resource research from the curriculum-sourcing equation, which is great for busy homeschooling parents.

That said, I have to say, I am obsessed with the Build Your Own option because it gives me the flexibility to choose exactly the products I want. Plus, I can add as few or as many to the bundle as my heart desires (and the more I add, the more I save). With children of different ages, stages, and learning styles, it is a perfect option.

It really is an inventive model—and one that no other companies are doing! So, whether you have a preschooler, a high schooler, or any combination of ages & stages between, Build Your Own might just be the right option for you!

Don’t forget to claim your coupon to get $5 off the already low-priced bundles!


I’m excited for homeschool families in this day and age - beautiful resources are literally available to us at the click of a button.

(Now that we are nearing the end of our homeschool journey I’m thinking I need some more children to homeschool! Who wants to send some over? )

Get your homeschool bundle now!


On May 22nd at 11:59 PM CST, the event will end and these bundles will be gone for at least a  year. So don’t miss out!

From School to Home: Our Story (Part Two)

Once we made the decision to bring our oldest home it was time to get down to the business of really schooling her.

We took a couple of months to “deschool” (I had read somewhere to give your child a month for every year they had been in traditional school - so we needed about 3 months to get public school out of our system). I needed this time as well to get my ducks in a row.

I began researching curriculum and methods and reading anything I could get my hands on. I ordered a full curriculum kit from Sonlight and we began!

Everyone remarked about my qualifications to homeschoolL

“Your children will do just fine being homeschooled because of your background in education; I have no idea how you could do it without a teaching degree.”

I would soon come to learn, however, that training as a public school teacher was actually a HINDRANCE to homeschooling. The most important qualifications for a homeschooling parent were a love for their children, a willingness to learn, and a commitment to their child’s individuality.

From School to Home: Our Story (Part Two) — our journey to #homeschool

The Classroom Mentality

I began homeschool with the classroom mentality. This involved:

  • a strict schedule

  • worksheets

  • grading

  • what children “should” know

  • a physical space where learning occurred

Even though we had the beautiful curriculum guide and all of the gorgeous books from Sonlight, I still tried to recreate school at home.

Homeschool Mom Fail #1 (the first of so many!)

I purchased the popular books about what children need to know at each grade level. I tried to supplement Sonlight with some of that knowledge.I followed the Sonlight curriculum guide to the letter.

I made sure all of our written work was complete before we had any rewards like reading for pleasure, playing outside, or taking field trips. (I’m sure this is NOT the purpose of Sonlight - I was just a slave to the curriculum.)

I purchased a gradebook program and began keeping grades.

We said the pledge first thing every morning and sang songs about the weather. (I turned a space in our upstairs family room into our school area - and would make the kids sit and listen to me as I went through our beginning of the day litany - the one I had been used to in public school!)

It was ridiculous.

Thank goodness it only took me approximately 6 months to realize (after reading many blogs and meeting a few wonderful local homeschool moms) I was doing it all wrong.

My child was basically getting a one-on-one classroom education at home. That wasn’t what I desired for her, and over the course of the next year we made many adjustments.

*I still am a huge proponent of the Sonlight box curriculum. I’m just giving you an example of how I wasn’t willing to trust the homeschool process and know that between their resources and what my OWN child needed we would have had a more than sufficient homeschool education for her.

Homeschooling Wasn’t My Plan

Because homeschooling my children hadn’t been part of our thought process for very long we were still adjusting.

I knew I wouldn’t be going back to work full time. I also knew I wouldn’t have any “free time” while both of the kids were in school.

To be honest, it felt a bit like a death of something I had been working towards for 8 years - getting of my children into school so I could do my own thing again. I’m ashamed to admit this. Homeschooling has caused me to die to self again and again, and I couldn’t be more thankful for that blessing. Our lives changed in a few marked ways:

  • Priorities shifted

  • Dependence on God deepened.

  • Friends were lost - and gained.

  • Certain members of our family drifted from us - others supported us 110%.

  • The relationship with my children became oh so sweet - they were (and still are) my buddies day in and day out!

Looking back I realize those first six months of homeschooling were a training ground and deschooling time for all of us. By the time my youngest was ready for Kindergarten I was confident in the decision to homeschool. As we entered the Fall of 2010 I was homeschooling a 5 and 9 year old full time.

I had an extremely eager five year old! I was so thankful to be homeschooling him because he just SOARED! I cannot imagine how stifling a traditional learning environment would have been for him.

From School to Home: Our Story (Part Two) #homeschool

Things That Worked

I was obsessed.

Homeschooling offered so many advantages. We kept our own schedule, imparted what WE deemed important to our children, and spent time on things that truly interested them. I could see my children thriving.

A wise friend advised me that as long as I was covering reading and math I could follow my children’s leads and do a lot of interest led learning with them. She encouraged me to cultivate the wonder in their lives. This was probably the best homeschooling advice I’ve ever received. We didn’t truly “buckle down” until 7th grade with my oldest and it was just fine!

I decided to piece together curriculum for my children and follow their lead. If I’m being honest this was the most fun time in our homeschool journey!

I was beginning to see the true beauty in customizing their education. Certain resources and activities just clicked with my kids.

We joined a local homeschool co-op that met one afternoon a week. This gave the kids a chance to take fun classes and make friends. Through the co-op we learned about a homeschool literature fair (that we participated in for several years) … all of the wonderful homeschooling opportunities simply snowballed.

From School to Home: Our Story (Part Two) #homeschool

I was beginning to realize I COULD homeschool my children. The naysayers had been wrong. Imagine that.

When It’s Not All Roses

Please don’t get the impression that homeschooling was all roses. It wasn’t.

We definitely had many beautiful days, but there were hard days, too. It’s the same way now.

Some of the things we battled in the early years…

  • Attitude (from mom and kids)

  • Friendships - it took us a while to find our “tribe”

  • Opposition - from family and friends

  • Isolation - My husband worked an hour away and was gone for long hours - I felt isolated and had trouble finding like minded friends the first few years.

  • Relationships - my kids needed to learn how to be with each other full time - and I needed to learn to be with them full time, too.

These things got better over the years, but it was definitely an adjustment for all of us. Our lifestyle was changing, and I now see that we were actually going through the process of building a better life for ourselves, but it was going to take time and patience.

And then, just when I thought I was getting the hang of things, something happened… middle school!

In Part Three of this series I’ll address homeschooling big kids and how I (reluctantly) adjusted to that transition.

I’d love to hear about your homeschool journey - have you always homeschooled, or did you stumble into it reluctantly?

Leave me a comment below!


Did you miss Part I of the series? Find it here!

Continue to read the rest of our story in Part III