Vermont Homeschool Curriculum: Programs, Requirements, and Affordable Options

Vermont doesn't mandate a specific curriculum — it mandates specific subjects. This distinction matters because it means you have genuine freedom to choose how you teach, as long as you're covering what the law requires. Understanding the legal requirements first, then building your curriculum around them, is the most efficient approach.

What Vermont Law Actually Requires

Under 16 V.S.A. § 906, Vermont home study programs must cover these subjects:

• Reading
• Writing
• Mathematics
• Citizenship, history, and government (including Vermont history)
• Literature
• Sciences
• Fine arts
• Physical education
• Health

Students 13 and older are exempt from the fine arts, physical education, and health requirements — a meaningful reduction that gives older students more flexibility to specialize.

Vermont also requires 175 days of instruction per year and an annual assessment. The assessment doesn't evaluate the curriculum itself — it measures your child's progress. As long as you can demonstrate educational progress on any of Vermont's approved assessment methods, the curriculum is legally sound.

There is no requirement to use accredited materials, no requirement to teach at grade level on a specific timeline, and no requirement to submit curriculum plans to the Agency of Education. Vermont's notification system is just that — you notify the AOE that you're home studying, not what you're teaching.

Structured All-in-One Programs

For families who want a complete, pre-planned curriculum that covers all required subjects, several programs are popular in Vermont:

Sonlight: Literature-based, history-led curriculum that integrates reading, writing, and social studies around a central history timeline. Strong for families who enjoy a read-aloud culture. Christian perspective in some courses, but secular versions available for history packages.

Timberdoodle: Eclectic packages assembled annually, includes manipulatives, critical thinking materials, and hands-on components. Popular for elementary ages. Not rigidly religious.

Beestar / Time4Learning: Online programs that provide structured lessons across subjects. Time4Learning offers a sequential, grade-level approach with an online interface. Lower cost than print-based programs and tracks student progress automatically, which is helpful for Vermont's annual assessment documentation.

Connections Academy / K12 Inc.: Full-service online schools that provide curriculum, teacher oversight, and academic records. Note that these are technically public online schools, not private home study programs — using them changes your legal status in Vermont (you'd be enrolled in a program rather than operating as an independent home study). This distinction matters for your AOE filing.

Classical Conversations: Classical education model with memory work, Socratic discussion, and weekly community groups. Strong community component — local CC groups exist in Vermont, primarily in Chittenden County and the Upper Valley.

Subject-Specific Curriculum Choices

Many Vermont families use an eclectic approach: one or two core subjects from a structured program and mix-and-match for others. This is completely legal and often more cost-effective.

Math: Math-U-See (manipulative-based), Teaching Textbooks (online, self-grading), Singapore Math (rigorous, visual), and Saxon (traditional drill-and-practice) are all widely used. Khan Academy covers K-12 math comprehensively and is free.

Language arts / Writing: Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW), Writing & Rhetoric, All About Reading, or simply a combination of reading quality literature and writing regularly. Vermont's requirement is "reading" and "writing" — the method is your choice.

Sciences: Real Science-4-Kids offers a secular, academically rigorous approach. Apologia is the most common Christian science program. For high school, many families use standard textbooks from publishers like Pearson or use DIVE Science alongside older Apologia editions.

History and civics: Story of the World (ancient to modern history), Notgrass History, or a combination of primary sources and library books. Vermont specifically requires coverage of Vermont history — Vermont History Museum's educational resources and the Vermont State Archives offer excellent free primary source materials for this.

Literature: No specific texts are required — "literature" as a subject means covering fiction, poetry, and literary analysis. Most families integrate this with their history program or use a reading list.

Affordable and Free Curriculum Resources

Vermont families who want to minimize curriculum costs have strong options:

Vermont Virtual Library (libraries.vermont.gov): Vermont's statewide library system provides free access to digital resources including e-books, audiobooks, and databases. Every Vermont public library card gives access to these resources.

Khan Academy (khanacademy.org): Free, comprehensive, self-paced instruction in math, science, history, and test prep. The math sequence is particularly strong. Functions as a complete free math curriculum from kindergarten through AP Calculus.

CK-12 (ck12.org): Free digital textbooks and adaptive practice for middle and high school subjects. Secular and well-organized.

Vermont State Archives: Primary source documents for Vermont history. Useful for integrating Vermont-specific history into any curriculum.

Project Gutenberg / LibriVox: Free classic literature in text and audiobook form. Adequate for Vermont's literature requirement through high school.

Vermont libraries themselves: Vermont's interlibrary loan system is excellent. The Vermont Department of Libraries prioritizes rural access, meaning even small-town libraries can get materials from across the state within days.

Curriculum for Vermont's Annual Assessment

The annual assessment requirement shapes how you think about curriculum. Vermont allows assessment by:

• Standardized testing
• Teacher assessment (by a Vermont-certified teacher)
• Portfolio of at least 4 work samples per subject
• Online grade reports
• GED (for appropriate age students)

If you plan to use a portfolio assessment, your curriculum should naturally produce work samples — written assignments, math problem sets, science lab write-ups, art pieces. Programs that are entirely oral or video-based are harder to document for a portfolio assessment.

If you plan to use standardized testing (Iowa Test, Stanford 10, etc.), your curriculum should cover the tested material systematically. Many structured all-in-one programs are designed around these standards.

Making the Decision

For new Vermont home study families, the decision framework is:

1. What's your child's learning style? (visual, hands-on, text-based, online)
2. What's your teaching style? (scripted lesson plans, flexible, project-based)
3. What's your budget? (free resources + library vs. boxed curriculum vs. online subscription)
4. What assessment method will you use?

Many families start with more structure and loosen up as they find their rhythm. Buying a full boxed curriculum for the first year is reasonable if it reduces anxiety about covering everything — it's much easier to deviate from a complete curriculum than to realize mid-year you've missed an entire subject.

Before curriculum planning matters, your home study program needs to be legally established. Vermont requires a Notice of Intent filed with the AOE before you begin instruction. The Vermont Legal Withdrawal Blueprint covers the filing process, the 10-business-day waiting period, and the first-year record-keeping that makes annual assessment straightforward — regardless of which curriculum you choose.

See more United States homeschool guides →