The curriculum
Ten strands across six tiers. Tiers T0–T3 (K–6) are specified objective by objective; T4–T5 are outlined.
T3 · Upper Grammar
Grammar → Dialectic stage · ages 10–12 · 4.5–5 hours a dayThe bridge. Facts start becoming arguments. The student writes real essays, parses real Latin, handles fractions and pre-algebra, and begins asking why rather than what.
That the student can defend a claim in writing, complete the Baptist Catechism, and hold a doctrine across both Testaments.
Bible & Doctrine
Daily, first thing, with family worship.Biblical narrative, redemptive history, systematic theology, and church history. The organizing strand — every other strand is taught as a servant of this one.
Produce a one-page written chronological outline of redemptive history from creation to the consummation, including at least twelve dated or datable anchor events.
- Assessment
- Closed-book written outline, graded against a rubric for sequence, coverage, and accuracy.
- Mastery criterion
- Scores 85% or higher on the rubric on two attempts in different terms.
Identify the genre of any biblical book — law, history, wisdom, prophecy, gospel, epistle, apocalyptic — and state one way that genre affects how the book should be read.
- Assessment
- Twenty books drawn at random; oral or written identification with the interpretive note.
- Mastery criterion
- 18 of 20 genres correct with a defensible interpretive implication for at least 15.
Recite a cumulative one hundred verses plus Romans 8:28–39, Isaiah 53, the Ten Commandments from Exodus 20, and the Beatitudes.
- Assessment
- Term recitation before the family; random cumulative draw of 25 verses.
- Mastery criterion
- All four extended passages word-perfect; at least 22 of 25 drawn verses correct.
Trace one doctrine — substitutionary atonement — from Genesis through Revelation, citing at least six texts from both Testaments and explaining how each contributes.
- Assessment
- Written paper of 500–750 words with texts cited.
- Mastery criterion
- At least six apt texts, at least two from the Old Testament, each with an accurate explanation; 85% on the rubric.
State that the Second London Baptist Confession has thirty-two chapters, name its major divisions, and locate the chapter that addresses a given doctrinal question.
- Assessment
- Ten doctrinal questions; student names the governing chapter.
- Mastery criterion
- Nine of ten chapters correctly identified without the index.
Compare the 1689 Confession with the Westminster Confession on baptism and church government, stating accurately what each teaches and where the Baptists departed and why.
- Assessment
- Written comparison of 400–600 words, graded partly on charitable and accurate representation of the Presbyterian position.
- Mastery criterion
- Both positions stated in terms their own adherents would accept; scores 85% on the rubric.
Write a three-paragraph defense of the sufficiency and final authority of Scripture, supported by at least four texts and answering one common objection.
- Assessment
- Written essay graded on thesis, support, and the handling of the objection.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the essay rubric, with the objection answered rather than dismissed.
Narrate the Reformation naming six figures with dates and contributions, and explain the origin of the Particular Baptists, including the 1644 and 1689 confessions and why they were written.
- Assessment
- Oral narration of ten minutes, followed by parent questions.
- Mastery criterion
- Six figures correctly dated within a decade; both confessions correctly dated and their purpose accurately stated.
State the regulative principle of worship, cite two supporting texts, and evaluate a proposed order of service by it, explaining each judgment.
- Assessment
- Written evaluation of a sample order of service supplied by the parent.
- Mastery criterion
- Principle stated accurately, two apt texts cited, and each element judged with a stated reason rather than a bare verdict.
Materials for this tier
- Truth78 (formerly Children Desiring God) — Foundations of Faith / Making Him Known · Truth78 · core
Explicitly Reformed, God-centered, and built on a deliberate nursery-through-junior-high scope and sequence combining chronological Bible survey with systematic theology. Written from a Baptist-friendly (Bethlehem Baptist) heritage, so it does not assume paedobaptism. The strongest single fit for this strand.
- Church history readers — Trial and Triumph (Hannula), Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress · Canon Press / various · supporting
Hannula is written from a Presbyterian standpoint; it is fair on the Reformation but thin on Baptist origins. Supplement it with a Particular Baptist source for the 1644/1689 material rather than expecting it to cover that ground.
Catechism & Confession
Daily, 5–10 minutes; review cycles weekly.Formal memorization and understanding of A Catechism for Boys and Girls, The Baptist Catechism (Keach's, 1695), and the 1689 Second London Confession. Question-by-question progress is tracked in the catechism module.
Complete all 114 questions of The Baptist Catechism verbatim, answered cold and out of order, with proof texts for the questions on the Ten Commandments.
- Assessment
- Cumulative examination across a term. Tracked question-by-question.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 90% of the 114 verbatim, and a proof text supplied for at least 25 of questions 44–86.
Name the thirty-two chapter titles of the Second London Baptist Confession in order.
- Assessment
- Written listing from memory.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 29 of 32 titles listed in correct order.
Explain in his own words, with proof texts, the substance of eight chapters of the 1689 Confession: 1 (Scripture), 3 (Decree), 7 (Covenant), 8 (Christ the Mediator), 11 (Justification), 22 (Worship and the Sabbath), 26 (The Church), and 29 (Baptism).
- Assessment
- One chapter per fortnight: a written summary of 200–300 words plus an oral defense with parent questions.
- Mastery criterion
- Each summary judged doctrinally accurate and supported by at least two of the confession's own proof texts.
Materials for this tier
- The Baptist Catechism (Keach's Catechism, 1695) — 114 questions · Founders Ministries / public domain · core
The confessional catechism companion to the 1689. Full text with scripture references is bundled and loaded into the app. Note this is the Baptist revision of the Westminster Shorter Catechism — the differences from Westminster (chiefly baptism and church order) are themselves worth teaching in Tier 3.
- Truth and Grace Memory Books 1–3 · Founders Press · supporting
Bundles catechism, Scripture memory, and hymns on a graded schedule. Book 2 contains The Baptist Catechism. Useful if you would rather buy the memory schedule than build it.
- The Second London Baptist Confession of Faith (1689), with proof texts · Founders Press / various · core
The doctrinal standard of this curriculum. Tier 3 works through eight chapters; Tier 4 works through all thirty-two.
Language Arts
Daily.Phonics, reading fluency, spelling, penmanship, English grammar, and composition.
Diagram complex and compound-complex sentences including subordinate clauses, appositives, participles, gerunds, and infinitives.
- Assessment
- Twelve sentences on a timed written test.
- Mastery criterion
- 10 of 12 diagrammed correctly, twice in a school year.
Write a five-paragraph essay with an arguable thesis, three developed supporting paragraphs each with evidence, and a conclusion that does more than restate.
- Assessment
- Essay drafted, revised, and submitted; graded on a six-trait rubric.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the rubric for two essays in different terms, at least one written under a two-hour limit.
Write a persuasive composition that states a claim, gives at least two reasons with support, and answers one opposing argument fairly.
- Assessment
- Written composition graded partly on whether the opposing view is stated in terms its holders would accept.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the rubric, with the counterargument judged fairly represented.
Use forty Latin and Greek roots, prefixes, and suffixes to infer the meaning of unfamiliar English words in context.
- Assessment
- Thirty unfamiliar words in sentences; student gives a meaning and names the root used.
- Mastery criterion
- 24 of 30 meanings substantially correct with the root correctly identified.
Take notes in outline form from a fifteen-minute spoken lecture or sermon and reconstruct its argument afterward.
- Assessment
- Notes plus a written reconstruction submitted; compared against the speaker's actual outline.
- Mastery criterion
- Main proposition and at least three of four main points captured, on three of four attempts.
Revise his own draft against a twelve-item proofreading checklist covering agreement, tense, fragments, run-ons, spelling, punctuation, and word choice.
- Assessment
- Compare the student's marked draft against the parent's independent marking of the same draft.
- Mastery criterion
- Student catches at least 75% of the errors the parent finds, on three drafts.
Materials for this tier
- Spelling: All About Spelling or Spell to Write and Read · All About Learning Press / Wise Owl · core
Rule-based rather than list-based, which is what the objectives measure — the student must state the rule, not only pass the Friday test.
- Rod and Staff English · Rod and Staff · core
Rigorous, inexpensive, heavy on diagramming and usage — the best match for the diagramming objectives. Mennonite publisher: the theology is Anabaptist, so skip or discuss the occasional nonresistance and separatism content. Grammar instruction itself is doctrinally neutral and excellent.
- Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW) — Structure and Style · IEW · core
Key-word outlining and progymnasmata-style imitation. Begins around grade 3 and pairs naturally after Writing With Ease. Produces LNG.T2.04 and much of LNG.T3.
Literature & Recitation
Daily reading; recitation weekly; formal presentation each term.Read-alouds, independent reading, poetry memorization, oral narration, and public recitation.
Recite ten selections from memory including one Shakespeare passage of at least twelve lines and one full psalm.
- Assessment
- Termly public recitation before an audience outside the household.
- Mastery criterion
- All ten from memory; at least 85% on the delivery rubric for the Shakespeare passage.
Read sixteen full-length books independently, spanning at least four genres and at least three centuries.
- Assessment
- Reading log with genre and publication century recorded; oral discussion for each.
- Mastery criterion
- All sixteen completed and the genre and century spread met.
Identify and explain the effect of allusion, metaphor, simile, personification, foreshadowing, and irony in a text.
- Assessment
- Annotated passage plus written explanations of six marked devices.
- Mastery criterion
- Five of six correctly named with an accurate account of the effect.
Write a literary analysis of 600–800 words arguing a claim about a book, supported by at least four quotations correctly cited.
- Assessment
- Essay graded on thesis, textual support, and citation.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the rubric, with all quotations accurate and correctly attributed.
State what a book treats as good, true, and beautiful, and evaluate that vision against Scripture — without reducing the book to a moral lesson or condemning it merely for depicting sin.
- Assessment
- Written evaluation of 400–600 words on two books, one of them not written by a Christian.
- Mastery criterion
- Judged by the parent to engage the book on its own terms before evaluating it; specific texts cited for the evaluation.
Materials for this tier
- Memoria Press literature guides and poetry sets · Memoria Press · core
Well-sequenced classical reading lists with recitation built in. Roman Catholic and broadly Christian selections appear; read ahead and substitute where the theology matters.
Latin
Daily from Tier 1; 20–40 minutes.Classical Latin vocabulary, forms, and translation — chosen for its grammatical rigor, its yield in English vocabulary, and its access to the theological tradition.
Decline nouns of all five declensions in every case and number from memory, and identify the declension of an unfamiliar noun from its genitive singular.
- Assessment
- Written declension of five nouns plus ten identification items.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 90% of forms correct and 9 of 10 declensions correctly identified.
Conjugate verbs of all four conjugations in the six active indicative tenses, and form the principal parts of a given verb.
- Assessment
- Written conjugation test drawn from all four conjugations.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 88% of forms correct across two tests in different terms.
Parse any noun form by case, number, gender, and declension, and any verb form by person, number, tense, voice, mood, and conjugation.
- Assessment
- Twenty forms drawn from a passage, parsed in writing.
- Mastery criterion
- 18 of 20 parsed completely and correctly.
Make adjectives agree with their nouns in case, number, and gender, including when the adjective belongs to a different declension than the noun.
- Assessment
- Fifteen sentences requiring the correct adjective form supplied.
- Mastery criterion
- 13 of 15 correct, including at least three cross-declension pairs.
Translate a connected Latin passage of at least twenty sentences into idiomatic English with a glossary but no answer key.
- Assessment
- Timed written translation, graded sentence by sentence.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% of sentences rendered accurately, with English that reads as English.
Materials for this tier
- First Form Latin (and Second Form for accelerated students) · Memoria Press · core
All five declensions and four conjugations across six active tenses. On Memoria Press's standard track First Form falls in grade 5 and Second Form in grade 6; the accelerated track moves each up a year.
Mathematics
Daily, 30–60 minutes, plus 5 minutes of fact drill.Arithmetic fluency, conceptual understanding, and problem solving, taught as the study of order in a created world.
Add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions with unlike denominators, mixed numbers, and decimals.
- Assessment
- Thirty mixed problems on a cumulative test.
- Mastery criterion
- 26 of 30 correct on two tests in different terms.
Write and solve ratios and proportions and convert fluently among fractions, decimals, and percents, including percent increase and decrease.
- Assessment
- Twenty problems including four real-world contexts such as tithe, tax, and discount.
- Mastery criterion
- 17 of 20 correct.
Divide multi-digit numbers by two-digit divisors, including decimal quotients.
- Assessment
- Twelve problems.
- Mastery criterion
- 10 of 12 correct on two separate assessments.
Apply the order of operations to expressions with parentheses and exponents, and add, subtract, multiply, and divide positive and negative integers.
- Assessment
- Twenty-five mixed items.
- Mastery criterion
- 22 of 25 correct.
Solve one- and two-step linear equations in one variable and check the solution by substitution.
- Assessment
- Fifteen equations; the substitution check is graded.
- Mastery criterion
- 13 of 15 solved correctly with the check shown.
Calculate area of triangles, parallelograms, and circles; circumference of circles; and volume and surface area of rectangular prisms.
- Assessment
- Fifteen problems with formulas supplied only on the first attempt.
- Mastery criterion
- 13 of 15 correct on the second attempt without a formula sheet.
Compute mean, median, mode, and range for a data set, and construct and interpret bar graphs, line graphs, and circle graphs.
- Assessment
- One data set to analyze and graph, plus five interpretation questions on a graph the student did not make.
- Mastery criterion
- All four statistics correct, graph correctly constructed and labeled, and 4 of 5 interpretations correct.
Score at or above the publisher's placement threshold for a first-year algebra course.
- Assessment
- A published pre-algebra placement or readiness test administered under timed conditions.
- Mastery criterion
- Meets or exceeds the publisher's stated placement cutoff.
Materials for this tier
- Primary: Singapore Math (Primary Mathematics / Dimensions) · Singapore Math Inc. · core
Recommended spine. Concept-first with bar modeling, which produces genuine understanding of the fraction, ratio, and word-problem objectives rather than procedure-following. Requires a teaching parent; it is not self-instructing.
- Alternative: Saxon Math (K–6/5) or Math-U-See · Saxon / Demme Learning · alternative
Saxon if you want incremental spiral review and maximum independence; Math-U-See if a child needs manipulatives and video instruction. Both reach the same objectives. Choose on the child, not the brand — and do not switch spines mid-year.
- Fact fluency drill (Xtra Math, Kate Snow's Math Facts That Stick, or paper drills) · various · supporting
The timed-recall objectives (MTH.T1.01, MTH.T2.01) will not be met by the spine alone. Five minutes daily, separate from the lesson.
History & Geography
3–4 days per week.A four-year chronological cycle (Ancients → Medieval → Renaissance/Early Modern → Modern), run twice across K–8, with church history woven in and geography attached to whatever period is under study.
Place sixty events across the full chronological cycle and recall ten anchor dates exactly from memory.
- Assessment
- Cumulative written timeline plus an exact-date quiz.
- Mastery criterion
- 51 of 60 placed correctly and all ten anchor dates exact.
Write a three-paragraph historical essay with a thesis, evidence from at least two sources, and a conclusion.
- Assessment
- Essay graded on thesis, use of evidence, and citation.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the rubric for two essays in different terms.
Explain the causes and consequences of five major historical events, distinguishing immediate from underlying causes.
- Assessment
- Written or oral explanation; the distinction between kinds of cause is graded explicitly.
- Mastery criterion
- Four of five explanations correctly separate immediate from underlying causes.
Explain what it means that God governs history, and evaluate a historical figure — including a figure the student admires — against Scripture, acknowledging both good and evil in the same person.
- Assessment
- Written evaluation of 400–600 words on two figures, one admired and one not.
- Mastery criterion
- Both figures assessed with specific evidence and specific texts; neither reduced to hero nor villain.
Label the major nations of every continent on unlabeled maps, and name the capital of at least thirty of them.
- Assessment
- Continent-by-continent blank map tests, then a cumulative test.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 80% of nations correctly labeled on the cumulative test.
Materials for this tier
- The Story of the World, vols. 1–4, with activity guides · Well-Trained Mind Press · core
The four-year chronological cycle this strand is built on: Ancients, Medieval–Early Renaissance, Late Renaissance–Early Modern, Modern. Secular in tone rather than hostile; treats Christianity as one religion among others, so the parent supplies the providential reading (HIS.T3.04). Run the cycle in grades 1–4 and again in 5–8.
- Veritas Press history cards and timeline · Veritas Press · supporting
Excellent memory pegs for the dated-events objectives. Veritas is CREC/Presbyterian — the Bible and church-history cards assume covenant baptism and presume the children of believers are covenant members. Use the cards for chronology and supply your own theology.
Science & Nature Study
2 days per week plus a weekly outdoor nature study.Observation, classification, and experiment — beginning with nature study out of doors and moving toward formal method and lab reporting.
Write ten formal lab reports containing purpose, hypothesis, materials, procedure, data, analysis, and conclusion, identifying the independent, dependent, and controlled variables.
- Assessment
- Lab notebook reviewed against a standard rubric.
- Mastery criterion
- Eight of ten reports score 85% or higher, with variables correctly identified in all ten.
Label the organelles of plant and animal cells and state the function of each, and explain the difference between the two cell types.
- Assessment
- Labeled diagrams plus a microscope observation of real cells.
- Mastery criterion
- All labeled organelles correct with functions, and the plant/animal difference correctly explained from an actual specimen.
Describe atomic structure, read an entry on the periodic table, and identify the first twenty elements by symbol.
- Assessment
- Written quiz plus a periodic table reading task.
- Mastery criterion
- 18 of 20 element symbols correct and all periodic table entries read correctly.
Describe six forms of energy and their transformations, and explain energy flow and nutrient cycling in an ecosystem.
- Assessment
- Written explanation plus a diagram of energy flow through a real local ecosystem.
- Mastery criterion
- All six forms described with a real transformation example; energy flow diagram correct in direction and loss.
Distinguish an empirical claim from a philosophical one in a science text, state what Scripture affirms about creation and providence, and identify where a naturalistic assumption has been smuggled into an argument as though it were an observation.
- Assessment
- Analysis of three real science texts, at least one written by a non-Christian author and taken seriously on its own terms.
- Mastery criterion
- Empirical and philosophical claims correctly separated in all three texts; the student's own theological claims stated as such rather than presented as scientific findings.
Materials for this tier
- Berean Builders (Wile) or Novare Science · Berean Builders / Novare · core
Both are written by working scientists and treat method seriously. Novare in particular is honest about the limits of scientific claims, which is what SCI.T3.05 measures. Avoid curricula that substitute apologetics for laboratory work.
Fine Arts & Music
Singing daily; art or composer study 1–2 days per week.Hymnody and psalmody, music literacy and instrument study, picture study, and hands-on art. Congregational singing is treated as a graded skill, not an extra.
Sing forty hymns and psalm settings from memory and sight-sing a simple unfamiliar melody in a major key.
- Assessment
- Cumulative singing assessment plus a cold sight-singing task.
- Mastery criterion
- All forty from memory; sight-sung melody correct in pitch direction and rhythm with no more than two errors.
Perform a prepared piece on an instrument or as a vocal solo before an audience outside the household.
- Assessment
- Recital performance graded on accuracy, tempo, dynamics, and poise.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the performance rubric, performed from memory or from score as the piece requires.
Write a one-page biography of a composer or artist, connecting the person's work to the period in which they lived.
- Assessment
- Written biography graded on accuracy and on the historical connection.
- Mastery criterion
- 85% on the rubric, with at least two specific works discussed.
Evaluate a work of music or visual art by craft, truthfulness, and fittingness, giving reasons that go beyond personal preference.
- Assessment
- Written evaluation of two works, one the student likes and one he does not.
- Mastery criterion
- Both evaluations give at least two reasons drawn from the work itself rather than from the student's reaction to it.
Materials for this tier
- Your church's hymnal, plus a metrical psalter · various · core
The hymn objectives should track what your congregation actually sings, so that memory work serves Lord's Day worship rather than competing with it. Add a metrical psalter for the psalm-singing objectives.
- Picture study portfolios and composer studies · Simply Charlotte Mason / Memoria Press · supporting
Cheap, effective, and takes fifteen minutes a week.
Practical Arts, Logic & Character
Daily chores and physical activity; logic 1 day per week from Tier 2.Household competence, money, physical training, attention span, informal logic, and observable character habits tied to the Ten Commandments.
Plan, shop for, and cook a full meal within a set budget, and keep a written personal budget for a term.
- Assessment
- Practical assessment plus a budget ledger reviewed at term end.
- Mastery criterion
- Meal delivered within budget, and the ledger balanced and complete for the full term.
Use basic hand tools safely and complete two household repairs or making projects, including one requiring measurement.
- Assessment
- Completed projects inspected by the parent.
- Mastery criterion
- Both projects functional, safely made, and within a quarter inch of the intended measurement.
Work independently for ninety consecutive minutes on a multi-step assignment and produce the expected output.
- Assessment
- Timed observation with the work product checked.
- Mastery criterion
- Ninety minutes sustained with acceptable output on four of five attempts.
Identify twelve informal fallacies in real arguments and construct a valid categorical syllogism, distinguishing validity from truth.
- Assessment
- Twenty fallacy examples plus a syllogism construction task and an oral question on validity versus truth.
- Mastery criterion
- 16 of 20 fallacies identified, a valid syllogism produced, and the validity/truth distinction correctly explained.
Write a weekly schedule covering schoolwork, chores, and personal time, and keep it without parental reminders.
- Assessment
- Schedule compared against an actual activity log for four consecutive weeks.
- Mastery criterion
- At least 80% adherence with no more than two parental reminders across the four weeks.
Hold a defined serving role in the local church for a full term and report on it.
- Assessment
- Confirmation from the adult overseeing the role plus a written or oral report from the student.
- Mastery criterion
- Role held for the full term with reliable attendance, confirmed by someone other than a parent.
Materials for this tier
- The Fallacy Detective (Bluedorn) · Christian Logic · core
Informal logic in a form a ten-year-old will actually enjoy. Covers the fallacy objectives; follow with The Thinking Toolbox and then formal logic in Tier 4.
- Family worship: A Neglected Grace (Beeke) and Family Worship (Whitney) · Christian Focus / Crossway · supporting
For the parents, not the children. The BIB and CAT objectives assume daily family worship is already happening; if it is not, start there before adjusting anything else in this plan.
Mastery scale
- 0 · Not Introduced — Not yet taught.
- 1 · Introduced — Performs only with direct, step-by-step help.
- 2 · Developing — Performs with prompts; ≥70% accuracy.
- 3 · Proficient — Independent; ≥85% on two occasions ≥7 days apart.
- 4 · Mastered — Retained and transferred; ≥90% on a delayed check ≥30 days later.