If you’re interested in implementing a classical Christian education in your homeschool, you can’t go past the Veritas Press curriculum. This curriculum provides a fun and rigorous education to students at a fraction of the cost of private schools. It has self-paced, online and teach-it-yourself options. The course is also accredited by the Middle States Association giving parents who want accreditation peace of mind.
As a person who’s interested in doing a classical Christian program with my children, we’ll be going over the basic features of this program. Join me as we look into it more closely below.
HDIH is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC and Veritas Press Associates Programs, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
Summary of Veritas Press
Veritas Press was started in 2006 so it is one of the oldest online providers of classical Christian education. The program follows the Classical method of education (described in more detail below), although it only separates its program into two stages instead of three stages which is traditional.
The program offers self-paced (asynchronous) or live (synchronous) online courses so children can be part of a classroom with other children. Using a high-speed internet connection, students go online for a few hours a couple of times a week and complete their assigned tasks and homework on the rest of the days.
If they have a group assignment, Veritas Press will make online learning spaces available where students can collaborate.
Children meet twice a week for
- 1 hour 15 min in the grammar stage and
- 1 hour 30 min in the secondary stage
Teachers and students have a microphone connected to computers where they can interact with each other. Using this, teachers can talk to students and if a student wants to say something they can ‘raise their hand’ and the teacher will allow them to talk when appropriate. At times, live videos of the students can be streamed (similar to Zoom) so all students and the teacher are visible to each other.
Another part I love about Veritas is their Phonics Museum app. This app teaches children to read in a few weeks as they follow a cartoon character (a medieval knight called Percival) though a museum as he teaches them words and sounds. It’s something I’ll certainly be using with my own children.
What Homeschooling Method Does the Veritas Press Curriculum Use?
Veritas Press uses the classical education method. This method is made up of three stages (of which Veritas uses the grammar stage and then a secondary stage which I assume is the logic and rhetoric stages):
- the grammar stage
- the logic stage (also called the dialectic) and
- the rhetoric stage
These stages are together called the trivium. Students study the trivium in their primary and secondary years before some of them study the quadrivium in a tertiary institution. Together these are called the 7 liberal arts.
Check out these videos that I made to explain it all.
Veritas Press Curriculum’s Religious Perspective
Veritas Press is unashamedly Christian.
It boldly teaches truths found in the Bible and has a strong focus on teaching children history. This means graduates from the Veritas curriculum know the history surrounding many Biblical events and cultural influences at the time these events occurred. They also get a good grounding in scripture which prepares them for life after homeschooling.
How Much Does the Veritas Press Homeschooling Curriculum Cost?
The cost of the Veritas Press curriculum varies considerably depending on the bells and whistles you want.
If you’d like online tutors for your homeschoolers, it is more expensive compared to parents teaching the program using their material.
The other variant is the stage children are up to. The grammar stage is less expensive than the secondary stage.
Each stage has a separate enrollment fee:
- Grammar school costs around $250 for the classic level and $550 for the premium level (as of 23/4/20)
- Secondary school costs around $350 for the classic level and $650 for the premium level
There is then course tuition fees on top of this which can be between $200 and $700. Check out more about course pricing at Veritas here. In comparison to other courses I’ve looked at, this type of pricing is fairly average for homeschooling curriculum today.
Is it Online or Paper-Based?
It can be either. If you choose both, it costs more. However, if parents undertake to teach the material themselves, it costs less.
Some parents might prefer a paper-based course as it means their children will spend less time on the computer. Additionally, they might like an offline version as then they can learn the course with their children (one advantage of homeschooling is that it is exciting for parents as parents learn the material themselves as well as their children!).
Is Veritas Press Accredited?
Veritas Press is accredited by Middle States Association which means they’re a recognized provider of education in America.
This is great, but it doesn’t mean you shouldn’t look at other curricula because they’re not accredited. These days home educators can easily write a transcript for their children which many colleges will accept willingly.
It’s good to note that a course which is accredited is then technically an online school or college. In a way, it is no longer a ‘homeschool’ as homeschool can’t be officially accredited as they’re eclectic in nature and accreditation agencies can’t accredit them.
In the end, you don’t need ‘homeschooling accreditation’ but it can be a ‘nice-to-have’ for some parents as it gives them peace of mind.
How Can I Start Using the Veritas Press Curriculum?
Veritas offers three options for a complete curriculum for the year. A ‘Good’ program (the basics), a ‘Better’ program (an intermediate amount of goodies), and a ‘Best’ program (which comes with all the bells and whistles). I’ll link to these options below for complete curriculum for the year level.
Check out the different curriculum options Veritas Press offers in the following Year Group stages below:
- Kindergarten – Good ($249), Better ($599), and Best ($749) Options
- 1st Grade – Good ($399), Better ($799), and Best ($999)
- 2nd Grade- Good ($999), Better ($1249), and Best ($1599)
- 3rd Grade – Good ($999), Better ($1499), and Best ($1749)
- 4th Grade- Good ($899), Better ($1399), and Best ($1549)
- 5th Grade – Good ($999), Better ($1449), and Best ($1649)
- 6th Grade – Good ($999), Better ($1499), and Best ($1599)
- 7th Grade – Good ($1599), Better ($1649), and Best ($1699)
- 8th Grade – Good ($1249), Better ($1349), and Best ($1549)
- 9th Grade – Good ($1249), Better ($1299), and Best ($1349)
- 10th Grade – Good ($1049), Better ($1299), and Best ($1399)
- 11th Grade – Good ($1549), Better ($1649), and Best ($1699)
- 12th Grade – Good ($1349), Better ($1499), and Best ($1699)
There are also self-paced (asynchronous) options below which we will talk about more below.
Veritas Press Self-Paced Options
If you don’t want to work at the same pace as everyone else, you can choose the self-paced option. This will be an attractive offer to many homeschooling families as the reason many of them begin homeschooling is that they want to work at a faster or slower pace compared to the pace set out in a traditional school.
What makes Veritas’ self-paced options even better is that they will give you a 90-day money-back guarantee if you don’t like the course. So, you can try it and see if it is working for your family.
Veritas Press Phonics Museum App
I first noticed the Veritas Press App when I started investigating the Reading Eggs app, a popular Australian app which teaches children to read. I was impressed with Reading Eggs, but I wanted a Christian ‘learn to read’ app which taught my children good content while also teaching them to read.
After asking about this on the forums, a number of parents recommended the Phonics Museum app. They were very impressed with it, especially after most stories are based on scripture and history.
Phonics Museum is essentially a fun set of stories that teach children to read in a few weeks. On the app, children follow Percival, a medieval knight, who gives students a tour through a museum. Children learn their letters and sounds along the way.
I feel that, even if I don’t end up buying the whole Veritas Press curriculum in favour of another Classical curriculum, I’ll definitely get the Phonics Museum App or reading package.
How Much is Phonics Museum?
Similar Curricula to Veritas Press
Other curricula that are similar to this course include:
- My Father’s World – a Christian, classical, Charlotte Mason and unit study bent
- Classical Conversations – great for American families who want to do a social co-op with fellow classical homeschoolers
- Memoria Press – quite similar to Veritas Press
There are also plenty of free curriculum options (albeit not after the classical style) for homeschooling parents on a budget.
Conclusion
Veritas Press’ homeschool curriculum is a great option for parents considering a classical Christian education in their homeschool. The program offers a rigorous sort of education which teaches children to read many classics and infuses them with a love of learning. The program comes with organized lesson plans and accreditation, giving parents ease of mind as their children transition from different courses to further education.
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