I was paid a wee bit to write this review, but just like with all things from The WOLFe Pack, what you will find here is an honest opinion from a seasoned homeschool mom with a Master’s Degree in Education and a decade of experience in the classroom…who also happens to be a mom with way too little sleep, too many dishes to do and only 9 months left on her homeschool clock.
Please read our Disclosure Policy for details.
Generous Students Homeschool Edition
I first encountered the Generous Students homeschool curriculum while cruising the expo hall at a homeschool convention. I was not really shopping for homeschool curriculum, but instead taking a break from working Nicole the Math Lady’s booth. As much as I love, love, love talking to homeschool moms about their math choices and how to outsource hard subjects, I do need a break from time to time…which is exactly what I was doing when a brightly colored booth staffed with enthusiastic people caught my eye.
Considering my son will be a senior this fall and already has a tough schedule lined up {plus the kid has a naturally generous heart,} I was not interested in buying the curriculum for myself, but more simply intrigued by the concept. So, I wandered over to check it out.
And, what I found was a super busy table buzzing with excitement from the enthusiastic staff on one side of the table and the interested families on the other. It was so busy that there was not a single staff person available to chat with me so, while I waited, I took the time to check out their materials. And the more I saw, the more interested I became in learning more! But, apparently, I was not the only one whose interest grew because as I waited, the group of interested people increased in size {and excitement!}
The staff members were doing an amazing job answering questions and showing off their product, but eventually, I had to step away so I could get back to work. I planned on returning to their booth later but our booth got too busy and I never made it back their way.
So, imagine how pleased I was when presented with the opportunity to review the very same product that caught my eye months before! And, now that I have had the opportunity to carefully look at the product and utilize it to a degree, I can understand why there was such a buzz at their booth!
Read on for a full review.
WHO IS Generous Family, the Company?
The company, Generous Family, is all about purposeful living & joyful giving with the goal of equipping families with the tools and resources needed to instill a habit of generosity in their children and for future generations. We aim to provide families with unique and transformative learning experiences and high-quality resources that will help families embrace the joy of living generously! We want to help you help your children become kind, generous individuals so that your family values will live on for generations. Generous Family is part of the organization I Like Giving which has spent more than a decade trying to start a worldwide generosity movement. The team is made of parents, educators, and business professionals with a shared mission to bring the Biblical message of generosity to the world. You can read more about Generous Family here; they have several wonderful blog articles about the topic of generosity as well which you can find here.
WHAT IS Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum?
The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum was designed by dozens of Christian homeschool moms with the intent of providing a fun and easy way to instill gratitude and generosity into the hearts of kids. It is based on the Seven Ways of Living Generously Framework. Each of the seven ways are focused on for three weeks and include:
- thoughts
- words
- time
- attention
- money
- influence
- belongings
The kit was designed to be easy-to-implement, flexible, not time consuming, fun for all ages and life changing.
WHAT IS INCLUDED in the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum Kit?
The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum Kit includes:
- 1 Instructor Guide
- 3 Student Journals
- 1 Generosity Heroes Book
- 3 Sticker Pages
- 1 Generosity Jar Sticker
- Access to Digital Instructor Portal via enclosed QR Code
- 1 Sturdy and Colorful Box to hold it all!
Now, let me break down each piece into more detail.
Instructor Guide: This is an 8.5″x11″ spiral bound book filled with 160+ pages and divided clearly into weeks and then further divided by days. The objectives are clearly stated and each step is fully explained. The spiral binding easily allows for the teacher to flip the pages all the way over {which means they paid attention to the little details!} The graphics, headings, etc presented in the Instructor Guide are the same as in the Student Journals which means the teacher and students should always and easily be on the same page, literally! 🙂 It also tells me that the creators paid attention to not just the little details but also the big picture. The guide also has frequent reminders to use the QR code that allows access to the Teacher Portal. You can see several sample pages of the Instructor Guide here.
Student Journals: Each 6″x9″ journal is 124 full-color, high-quality pages filled with cute graphics and purposeful activities. The entire journal is organized by clear titles and broken down into weeks. There are questions to answer, brainstorming bubbles to complete, gratitude lists to make and more.
Note: There are THREE journals included. Clearly, this kit was designed with multiple kids in mind! You can also purchase extra journals here if needed.
Generosity Heroes Book: This book also measures 6″x9″ but is smaller at just 55 pages. It includes twenty-six stories about real-life “Generosity Heroes” including Biblical, historical and every day heroes. Many of the stories are adapted from longer versions of literature or sourced from other pieces {all clearly noted in the book.} There is quite a mix of heroes here from Jesus to Ronald Reagan, from Cora ten Boom to Clara Barton and from Esther to Tim Tebow, plus several people of whom you have likely never heard. These stories are part of the weekly plan and are designed to be read aloud on the third day.
Note: Though the book has some muted colors included on the pages, there are no images to represent or enhance the story.
Sticker Pages: These are just simple sheets of stickers; one sticker for each “way” to work on generosity but they are cute, colorful and quality.
Generosity Jar Sticker: This is one simple sticker designed to put on a jar to use throughout the curriculum.
Digital Instructor Portal: In the Instructor’s Guide, there is a QR code (referenced on several pages) that takes you to this page filled with extra learning opportunities for each lesson. The page is very clearly organized and easy to maneuver. Every lesson has at least three different items including an audio version of the Generosity Hero Story, printables to download, small video clips, longer video shows, and more.
Sturdy and Colorful Box: I greatly value organization and believe that if a curriculum comes with a handy, dandy box that allows Mom to keep all of the pieces and parts together in a logical space, the more likely it will be used. The box also has extra space that would make it convenient if you added some of the extra books from the “Library Stop.”
HOW IS the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum Kit FORMATTED?
The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum has a very organized and easy-to-follow format. Each of the 26 weeks has clearly stated objectives and follows the same pattern:
- Day One- Introductory lesson with Scripture reading and questions
- Day Two- Devotional with Scripture readings and discussion connecting the reading to the lesson and real life
- Day Three- Generosity Hero Story with Scripture reading and questions
- Days Four and Five- Extra optional activities including videos, games, lessons and additional library books
Each day includes direct work in the Student Journal with activities such as:
- Making a list of what you are grateful for
- Reflecting on the lesson in a personal way
- Answering questions about the Generosity Hero story
- Brainstorming ideas on how to put the lesson into action
- And more!
Note: Though it is laid out in a highly organized format with very clear expectations, it is also formatted in such a way that the lesson plans are flexible with loads of room to add personal stories, change the order of lessons, eliminate activities, etc.
Note: Everything is structured around a Road Trip theme which is somewhat cute, but in my opinion, is actually a distraction on the verge of creating confusion. I understand the temptation to use a cute theme to try to tie everything together and allow the opportunity to use fun phrases like “Get Rolling” {for an intro activity} and “Rest Stop” {Scripture connection} but oftentimes, themes feel forced or, worse yet, do not fit the objective at all. Like I said, the Road Trip theme is cute and certainly allows for some lovely graphics, but I would have preferred if they had opted to focus on just generosity as the theme with each of the seven ways {thoughts, money, time, etc} serving double duty by adding the cute and creative aspect. But, this is just my honest opinion and certainly not worth missing out on this wonderful curriculum option.
For WHICH AGES Is the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum DESIGNED?
The site claims The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum is designed for “all ages 5-18,” and while I suppose it’s true that older teens could use it {and certainly benefit from it,} I don’t really see that many would want to. Plus, let’s be totally honest. As you reach those High School years, schedules get more crammed with mandatory courses and leave less room for optional classes. But, it is certainly something that would work for Kinder-Middle School with great success. I also think it would be easy to have High School students kind of tag in and out of the family’s generosity movement as fits their schedules.
WHICH LEARNING STYLES Will Do Well With the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum?
All! There are short stories to read for your auditory learners. There are cute and colorful images for your visual learners. There are hands-on activities for your kinesthetic learners and there are plenty of opportunities to read and write for your read/write learners. The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum is also designed to be flexible so you can change things up by adding more hands-on things, having your student read the weekly story instead of listening to it, watching extra videos to enhance the lesson, etc.
WHAT Are My FAVOTITE FEATURES of the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum?
Check out the video below where I highlight some of my favorite features!
HOW LONG Does the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum Take to Complete?
The curriculum is designed to be used 3-5 days per week for 26 weeks with about 15 minutes needed per day. But, there is definitely flexibility built in and I believe it would be easy to adapt it to your scheduling needs.
WHAT ELSE Should You Know About the Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum?
In my opinion, this would make an amazing option for a co-op class! I know it was designed for families to do together, and I think that is also a marvelous idea as well, but the fact that this is works for so many age/skill levels, is packaged all-in-one, is priced perfectly for a group, includes easy-to-implement lesson plans and has a big fun factor, also makes it ideal for a co-op class.
HOW MUCH Does The Generous Students Homeschool Curriculum Kit COST?
$149 for everything mentioned above, plus $15 per additional Student Journal if you need more than the three that are included. However, with discount code, GIVE20, you can save $20. Go here for more info or to buy a kit today!
