Welcome to Homeschool Portland​

Homeschool Portland is a homeschooling website dedicate to helping all homeschooling families deliver an academic and creative curriculum to their children. The site was built and developed by a homeschooling mama (me!) with more than ten years of college education under her belt and what feels like a lifetime of raising children. Homeschooling started as an idea while I was in grad school and became a reality when I decided to work-from-home. Not living on the 9-to-5 schedule has been the best thing that ever happened to my family. I've kept immaculate records of our homeschooling adventures and I thought sharing our schedule and resources with other families would be a great way to give back to others. 

Our homeschool program is secular and advanced with most kids being two years ahead of grade level (my ten-year-old is finishing "6th grade"), but I try not to measure success in our home by comparing it to the public school system. You never have to rush; if you decide to stretch it out, then go for it. Or you can finished the first six years up and then use years 7-8 as a period where you choose to focus on a few specialized subjects before beginning high school. 

The bones of our homeschooling program are textbooks that were written prior to Common Core, but not always. I like to look at the books as a starting point for our education, but not a cornerstone. Our education is rounded out by supplemental texts of all genres, experiential activities, external classes, field trips, and life. Because education means nothing if you can't explain to your children why you're doing what you're doing.

The curriculum offered on this website is free. Families have the choice to use downloadable workbooks, textbooks, and other resources, or they can opt to purchase print versions. I have always bought the print copies because my daughter is a very tactile and visual learner. If she can't touch the pages and carry it around, it's pretty much useless. When a resource that I use isn't available as a free download, I've done my very best to provide you with a comparable alternative. 

Because every homeschooling family is different, I provide the schedule we use along with what we learn every year, but do not tell you when to do it or how to do it. Homeschooling is about cultivating a lifelong love for learning -- and I don't know your family's style, so I leave it to you to plan it the way you think is best. Perhaps in the future, I will add our schedule as an example. 

To get started, you will want to check out our schedule and then head over to the early years page. If you are new to homeschooling and your child has already been in school, you can use this breakdown to place your child:
  • Year One: First/Second
  • Year Two: Third/Fourth
  • Year Three: Fifth
  • Year Four: Sixth
  • Year Five: Seventh
  • Year Six: Eighth

Even though our program is designed with Oregon in mind, anyone can use our program. Just be sure to check in with your local laws about home education. Every state is different.