✏️ Plan With Me For Next Year | Homeschool Planning for 2025–2026 (4th & 8th Grade!)

Do you know what today is?

It’s Kit Day.

And if I’m being honest… it completely snuck up on me. I’m not fully prepared—but that’s exactly why I’m sharing this with you. So grab your favorite fancy pens and Plan With Me For Next Year as I put together our homeschool plan for the 2025–2026 school year for my rising 4th grader and 8th grader.

This is our ninth year homeschooling, and let me tell you—it’s been a journey. Some years feel easier to plan, others feel like a beautiful chaos. This year? It’s more of the latter. So today, I’m walking through my thought process and sharing what we’re planning to use, how we’re keeping it simple, and what I’m doing differently to make sure our year is manageable, meaningful, and maybe even magical.

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Why I’m Keeping It Simple This Year

If you’ve been around here a bit, you know this past year came with a ton of life stuff. Which meant my ideal schedule? Yeah… it didn’t quite happen. So for this next round, I’m intentionally planning less—but better.

We’re focusing on core subjects, thoughtful extras, and only choosing resources I know we’ll actually use. Because what’s the point of over-planning if it leads to overwhelm?

Let’s dig into the plan. 💫

Free Planning Template HERE

2025–2026 Homeschool Curriculum Plan

✏️ Plan With Me For Next Year (4th & 8th Grade Edition)

Here’s a breakdown of what I’m thinking for each subject—this may shift a bit as I finalize and order, but it’s a solid starting point:

📘 Language Arts

We’re going with Michael Clay Thompson again:

Level 5 for my 8th grader
Level 2 for my 4th grader

This covers grammar, vocabulary, writing, and even spelling + handwriting—yes, we’re skipping a separate spelling program this year. Simplifying!

➗ Math

8th Grade: Denison Geometry
4th Grade: Math-U-See Epsilon (whatever’s next after Delta—we’re keeping the progression going)

🧠 Thinking Skills

Murdle for both kids (Junior for the younger one)

They both love these!

📚 History

Crash Course: Black U.S. History
Supplemented with Teachers Pay Teachers worksheets

We’ll be doing this one together. Super engaging and meaningful.

🔬 Science

LEGO Physics! I’ve got a couple of options and haven’t nailed down which one just yet.
Museum classes at Houston Museum of Natural Science (yep, I’m in charge of organizing them—wish me luck!)

🌍 Geography

4th grader: Skill Sharpeners
8th grader: Possibly Crash Course Geography + TPT, but I’m still debating.

🎨 STEAM + Art

Possibly finishing up Have I Got A Story For You (HiGASFY)—we may only have Post-Impressionists left.
Considering Crash Course Art Appreciation if we want something different.

Both kids have creative outlets outside the homeschool day—art classes, performing arts, and music lessons—so we don’t need to overdo it here.

📰 Extras

CNN10 for current events (we love this!)
Even More Learning About Animals for my little animal lover

Group studies will likely just include history, science, and maybe art. And that’s enough.

My Homeschool Planning Strategy

My biggest focus this year? Use what works. Ditch what doesn’t. We’re going for:

Manageable routines
Minimal but meaningful subjects
Prioritizing what we’ll actually use

I’ve got my blank planning templates printed and filled in—color-coded pens and all. (BTW: You can grab your own printable homeschool planner templates right here with a few color options I’ve created just for you.)

Homeschool Planning Advice from a Seasoned (and Slightly Frazzled) Mom

If you’re also planning your next school year, here’s what I’d say:

Don’t overcomplicate it.
Choose what fits your life right now.
Resist the urge to “add just one more thing” (trust me—it adds up).

You don’t need to do everything to give your kids a great education. Focus on what matters most.

Let’s Keep Each Other Accountable

So that’s it—my honest, pared-down plan for the 2025–2026 school year. It’s not fancy, but it’s full of intention.

I’d love to hear from you:
Are you doing more this year? Less? Trying something totally new?
Drop it down in the comments—I’m all ears and always here for a real homeschool chat.

Oh, and if you need help getting started, check out the planning printables I’ve linked above—they’re simple, flexible, and built for busy homeschool families like ours.

Keyphrase Recap: ✏️ Plan With Me For Next Year

Just in case you missed it, here’s what we covered in this Plan With Me For Next Year post:

Core curriculum picks for 4th and 8th grade
How I’m using MCT, Math-U-See, and Crash Course
Museum classes, music, and more
Why less is more in homeschool planning
FREE printable homeschool planners

Let’s make this next school year the most intentional yet!