Rigamaroo Starter Guides
Traditional
The Starter Guide
Traditional homeschooling brings the best of school home: a clear scope and sequence, solid textbooks, regular practice, and honest assessment — without the parts of school that never served your kid. Done well, it is not a replica of a classroom; it is the classroom’s clarity at a fraction of the hours, with mastery and margin built in.
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.
The Principles
A clear scope and sequence
You can always answer the question, “What are we covering this year, and are we on track?”
Mastery through practice
A new concept, worked examples, practice, and review make the loop that sticks.
Regular low-stakes assessment
Small checks catch gaps while they are still small.
Strong records
File grades, attendance, and work samples as you go instead of reconstructing them in May.
Home-sized hours
The structure of school compresses to two to four focused hours at home.
Your First Book List
Home Learning Year by Year
by Rebecca Rupp
What children typically learn in each grade — your scope-and-sequence backbone.
102 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum
by Cathy Duffy
How to choose among the big publishers without buying three of everything.
The Read-Aloud Handbook
by Jim Trelease
Whatever the workbooks say, this is the daily block that pays the most.
Curriculum Picks, Budget First
LIFEPAC or CLE (Christian Light)
Workbook-based, self-paced, and among the most affordable complete programs anywhere.
Abeka or BJU Press
Full-service traditional programs; BJU adds video lessons if you want a co-teacher.
The Good and the Beautiful
Free downloadable language-arts levels and low-cost math (note: openly faith-based).
Evan-Moor Workbooks
Inexpensive practice supplements for daily review in any subject.
A Sample Week
Monday
Opening (10 min)
Calendar + plan
Math (45 min)
Lesson + practice
Language arts (45 min)
Phonics/grammar
Reading (30 min)
Assigned + free
Content block (30 min)
Social studies
Tuesday
Opening (10 min)
Calendar + plan
Math (45 min)
Lesson + practice
Language arts (45 min)
Spelling + writing
Reading (30 min)
Assigned + free
Content block (30 min)
Science
Wednesday
Opening (10 min)
Calendar + plan
Math (45 min)
Lesson + practice
Language arts (45 min)
Phonics/grammar
Reading (30 min)
Assigned + free
Content block (30 min)
Social studies
Thursday
Opening (10 min)
Calendar + plan
Math (45 min)
Lesson + practice
Language arts (45 min)
Spelling + writing
Reading (30 min)
Assigned + free
Content block (30 min)
Science
Friday
Opening (10 min)
Week review
Math (45 min)
Quiz + facts games
Language arts (45 min)
Writing share
Reading (30 min)
Library visit
Content block (30 min)
Catch-up or field trip
Friday is deliberately lighter: assessment, catch-up, and something fun. Margin is part of the plan, not a failure of it.
Five Mistakes to Skip
Recreating the 8-to-3 school day
Home instruction is one-on-one. Two to four focused hours covers what a classroom needs seven for.
Grading everything
Practice is for learning, not scoring. Save grades for the checks that matter; aim for mastery in between.
A plan with no margin
Schedule 32–34 weeks of content into a 36-week year. Sick days and hard units will spend the difference.
Skipping placement tests
Grade-in-a-box fits the label, not necessarily your child. Nearly every publisher offers free placement tests — use them.
Letting review weeks slide
A review week each quarter feels slow and prevents the mid-year discovery that chapter three never stuck.
Your First 30 Days
Find your levels
Run free placement tests in math and language arts, and skim Rupp’s chapter for each child’s grade.
Choose your spines
Pick math and language arts first — they carry the year. Add content subjects after those feel settled.
Build the weekly template
Set your daily blocks with a light Friday, and set up your record-keeping before day one, not after.
Run it and adjust
Do one full week at half speed. Fix the friction (block order, timing), then start the year for real.
However You Homeschool, Rigamaroo Plans It Your Way
Lessons, attendance, records, and day sheets for every kid, in one calm hub.
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