I began homeschooling my oldest daughter in the fall of 2014. Since that time, our family has grown to a total of four kids. My oldest two have so far finished preschool, kindergarten, and first grade. My son will finish second grade this fall. My oldest has also finished third grade, fourth grade, and fifth grade. She will finish her sixth grade work by the end of the year. I already have my seventh grade materials purchased and organized. If you are interested in any of the materials, easily find copies on Amazon via my affiliate links.
Originally published on August 18, 2020. Updated on August 20, 2023.
Reading
I introduced the Language of Literature series from McDougal Littell at the end of sixth grade. For seventh grade reading, we continue using the series with the 1120-page Language of Literature (Grade 6) in sixth grade. We complete Unit 1 in sixth grade and continue with the textbook in seventh grade. We then move on to 1136-page Language of Literature (Grade 7). Both textbooks include a variety of texts. We also use the comprehension and critical thinking questions along with the vocabulary exercises after each reading passage.
Writing
For formal writing lessons, we continue using the Spectrum Writing series in our curriculum, using the Spectrum Writing Grade 7 workbook in seventh grade. The 136-page workbook teaches basic writing skills such as the writing process, story writing, informational writing, and opinion writing through a variety of creative writing prompts and writing practice activities.
For punctuation lessons, we use How to Punctuate from Teacher Created Resources. The 48-page workbook covers end marks, abbreviations, commas, semicolons, colons, underlining and italics, quotation marks, apostrophes, and hyphens. The reproducible workbook also includes a unit assessment and answer sheets.
For writing practice multiple days a week, I also include The Writing Prompts Workbook, Grades 7-8 in our seventh grade writing curriculum. My seventh graders complete the first 100 prompts followed by the second 100 prompts in eighth grade. The workbook provides a collection of imaginative situations and questions that get children writing. Do note that the prompts are not entirely secular but do include some questions about religion.
Spelling
Rather than using word lists for spelling, I continued with word study using Structured Word Inquiry in fifth grade. For my main resource, I use the InSight Words (Volume 1, Volume 2, Supplement, and Inflections) decks from Linguist-Educator Exchange.
I also created the Teach a Student to Spell: Level 6 workbook for spelling lessons as a follow up to Teach a Student to Read. Level 6 covers grades 7 and 8. Level 6 consists of 36 lists of one to four bases each. The number of bases in each list depends on the size of the word family. (One base is divided into two lessons because of the number of words in the word family.) The activities focus on the four questions of Structured Word Inquiry: (1) What does a word mean? (2) How is the word built? (3) What are morphological and etymological relatives of the word? and (4) What are the sounds that matter? What are the letters doing? The goal of Level 6 is to study the spelling of English words using the Structured Word Inquiry framework. Level 6 builds on the spelling rules introduced in Level 3, Level 4, and Level 5. Level 6 also reinforces the prefixes, suffixes, and connecting vowels from Level 2, Level 3, Level 4, and Level 5 while introducing additional prefixes and suffixes.
My seventh grader completes lists 1 to 18 of level 6 during seventh grade.
Vocabulary
For vocabulary, we use The Vocabulary Builder Workbook: Simple Lessons and Activities to Teach Yourself Over 1,400 Must-Know Words in seventh and eighth grade. The book contains 200 lessons. My seventh grader completes the first 100 lessons followed by the second 100 lessons in eighth grade. For each lesson, my child does the activity included in the book and then writes a sentence for each word to demonstrate understanding of the meaning and use.
Math
After completing Singapore Math in sixth grade, we moved on to Prealgebra from Derek Owens. The online course covers the topics normally covered in a middle school prealgebra course and is designed to prepare students for Algebra 1. We continue prealgebra in seventh grade if needed.
We then move on to Algebra 1 from Derek Owens. Typically taken by students in eighth or ninth grade, the online course covers the topics normally covered in a first year high school algebra course. We complete the entire class during seventh grade.
Science
Beginning in seventh grade, we use the Prentice Hall Science Explorer series, which consists of 16 textbooks. My seventh graders complete the first seven textbooks followed by the final nine textbooks in eighth grade. The first seven books are (1) From Bacteria to Plants, (2) Animals, (3) Cells and Heredity, (4) Human Biology and Health, (5) Environmental Science, (6) Inside Earth, and (7) Earth’s Changing Surface.
Social Studies
To begin seventh grade social studies, we study world history and American history using Everything You Need to Ace World History in One Big Fat Notebook and Everything You Need to Ace American History in One Big Fat Notebook. World History starts with the Paleolithic Era and ancient civilizations and continues through the present. American History covers American history from Colonial America, the Revolutionary, western expansion, the Civil War and Reconstruction, and notable events of the twentieth century. Both books includes questions (with answers) after each lesson. The information covered in both books provides a good foundation for future history studies.
We finish seventh grade social studies with two History Pockets workbooks from Evan-Moor: History Pockets: Ancient Greece, and History Pockets: Ancient Rome. The reproducible activity books teach information about each time period complete with illustrations, arts and crafts projects, and writing activities. My children complete each section over one or two days with a culminating portfolio to show their study of time period in history.
Health
For seventh grade health, my daughters start with Celebrate Your Body (and Its Changes, Too!): The Ultimate Puberty Book for Girls and Celebrate Your Body 2: The Ultimate Puberty Book for Preteen and Teen Girls. Recommended for readers between the ages of 8 and 12, the 174-page Celebrate Your Body is a body-positive guide that helps girls navigate the changes of puberty and grow into women. The book covers physical changes, emotional changes, social skills, self-care tips, and more. Recommended for readers between the ages of 10 and 18, the 188-page Celebrate Your Body 2 is a puberty guide for tween and teen girls. The book covers body changes, emotions, self-esteem, friendships, and more.
My son starts with American Medical Association Boy’s Guide to Becoming a Teen and Guy Talk: The Ultimate Boy’s Body Book with Stuff Guys Need to Know while Growing Up Great! Recommended for readers between the ages of 10 and 13, the 128-page Boy’s Guide to Becoming a Teen offers invaluable advice for getting ready for the changes experienced during puberty. The book covers physical changes, emotional changes, self-care, relationships, and more. The 96-page Guy Talk is an illustrated, easy-to-read guide about navigating puberty. The book covers body changes, personal hygiene, healthy eating, tips for sensitive topics, and more.
After covering puberty, we use the first half of Prentice Hall Health for seventh grade health. The 782-page covers mental health, social health, nutrition, physical fitness, substance abuse, human development, preventing disease, and community health and safety. We complete the first 13 chapters in seventh grade and then finish the book in eighth grade.
Art
For seventh grade art, we read The Short Story of Art. The 224-page book explores 50 key works and then links each work to art movements, themes, and techniques. Through an accessible and concise style, the book simplifies and explains the most important and influential concepts in art while demystifying artistic jargon to gives readers a thorough understanding and broad enjoyment of art.
Music
For seventh grade music, we use The Classical Music Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained of the DK Big Ideas series from DK. As with the other titles in the series, the book presents complex topics and themes in a simple and easy-to-follow format. By discussing more than 90 pieces of world-famous music, the book provides a captivating introduction to music theory, crucial composers, and the impact of seminal pieces. The discussion of classical music starts with early music starting around 1000 and progresses through to the contemporary era.
