FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2
Happy October, Eddies!
Fall is a season of transition: cooler days, falling leaves, and (for some families) switching curriculum less than a month into the new school year.
If the plans you made in spring or summer need rethinking – or even just tweaking – check out our Education Pathways portal, which features a growing gallery of plain-English guides to the most common approaches to education:
Most OpenEd families end up mixing and matching, so these are meant to be browsed for inspiration rather than to direct you down a single road.
The newest pathway in the gallery is unit studies – the teaching of multiple subjects through a single topic or theme.
In last week’s podcast, Justine LoMonaco and Cynthia Holt gave the example of doing math by measuring dinosaur toys. This week, we thought we’d go deeper into a common question around unit studies: can learning that feels this much like play really be enough?
Unit studies can look very different from the school day most of us remember. In this guide, Justine and Cynthia explain how one theme can connect real academic work – and what it takes to make that approach work for your family.
Why a theme helps. “…learning in themes makes students more likely to retain what they learn. And although there is evidence that learning thematically has many academic benefits, we find that one of the biggest benefits of this method is that it brings joy to homeschooling.”
One unit, several ages. “Unit studies can be modified or upgraded to meet the needs of your child, and they are flexible enough to teach students of different ages with different learning styles and reading abilities. This adaptability also makes unit studies a great way to homeschool students who are neurodivergent.”
If you don’t know their passion yet. “Learning about a new unit study topic can awaken a love for something your child didn’t previously know they liked. Once the introduction has been made and they’ve established a base of knowledge on that subject, a new passion is born!”
The catch. “…planning them from scratch is very time consuming. Researching books and activity ideas, creating original activities, and sourcing supplies can consume hours per unit.”
Want to try it?
You don’t need a membership to get started. See how OpenEd ambassador Brettani Shannon builds her own unit studies using Perplexity and a library card, or browse free unit studies and planning resources.
If you’d prefer ready-made plans, The Learn + Live Letter offers themes for ages 3–12 and membership options, including a two-week free trial for first-time Year and Seasonal members.
Enjoy the weekend!
– Charlie (the OpenEd newsletter guy)
P.S. OpenEd has no financial relationship with The Learn + Live Letter; compare resources and choose what fits your family.
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