Why Homeschool with Catholic Materials?

Our Catholic Faith is central to all of life, not just something we do on Sundays or in religion class. By using Catholic materials, we teach our children that Catholicism unites and grounds all areas of their lives. The result is young people who are not conflicted about the role their Faith plays in their lives, but instead take their Faith with them into whatever fields and challenges God calls them to.

The short answer? Yes. For optimal integration of the Faith, students should learn as much as possible from a Catholic perspective. This will look different in each subject area: for example, students can learn words related to the Faith in spelling and be introduced to Catholic poems and texts while learning grammar.

CHC’s phonics program teaches reading in the context of Catholic family life, including engaging stories about obedience, thoughtfulness, helpfulness, and the sanctity of human life. A Catholic science textbook will organically foster the student’s wonder for God’s creation and pro-life values. Literature taught from a Catholic perspective will help students think through the decisions of literary characters in light of the truth of the Gospel.

Students who practice this kind of integrated thinking are much less likely to be blinded by ungodly perspectives or arguments in any area of life. They see that their Faith is the clearest and most beautiful way to understand their world—a great gift to children, especially those growing up in the modern world.

Some religious homeschool programs may turn students off by presenting the Faith in a heavy-handed or saccharine way. But just because Catholicism is sometimes integrated badly doesn’t mean it can’t be done well.

CHC follows a natural, gentle approach that waters the roots of children’s faith while presenting sound and challenging academic instruction. Rather than inserting religion in a way that distracts from the academic subject at hand, CHC allows Catholicism to be the natural part of the subject that it truly is. It’s actually more “fake” to take God out of school books.

It can be tempting to use Protestant or generically “Christian” textbooks—these books also acknowledge God. Unfortunately, many Christian textbooks contain anti-Catholic bias and/or omit mention of Catholic achievements in science and history. Even if you catch these errors and correct them, it takes time to discover errors, consider your response, and teach the truth. We homeschoolers are busy enough as it is—so why not use Catholic materials that naturally help our children to grow in the Faith?

With some careful planning and commitment to stay consistent in your Catholic homeschooling, it’s easy to ensure you’re always working from this powerful point of view—and that your child is getting an education that supports his beliefs and convictions. CHC has the resources available to support you and your students, no matter the age level or lesson. And that makes Catholic homeschooling doable, in any environment.