making your own curriculum

Using the Library to Build Living Unit Studies: How We Learn Through Books, Notebooks, and Curiosity

Homeschooling families often ask: "How do you create a curriculum without buying expensive programs?"

You only need the library, a blank notebook, and your child’s current interests.

Here’s how this works in real life.

Step 1: Follow the Obsession

Holden’s interests span dinosaurs, artificial intelligence, ocean ecosystems, evolutionary biology, mythology, and monster design. Some last weeks; others, months. Some return years later, richer and deeper.

I focus on Holden’s current curiosity and build learning around that.

Interest-led unit studies work because children learn best when the topic matters to them. Motivation and attention come naturally. Learning sticks because it’s personal, and that matters.

Step 2: Ask a Librarian (The Secret Weapon)

Most homeschoolers don’t use their library’s Ask a Librarian services.

Public libraries often offer an online form to request a personalized book list from a librarian—an expert at finding the right books.

Here’s what I include in my request:

Sample Request to Librarian:

Hi! I’m homeschooling my 9-year-old son using interest-led unit studies. He’s currently fascinated by dinosaurs, artificial intelligence, evolution, and ocean ecosystems. We’re looking for:

- Books he can read independently at his level (early chapter books, graphic novels, high-interest/low-reading-level)

- Books I can read aloud to him (middle grade and up, more complex vocabulary and concepts)

- Both fiction and nonfiction

- Folktales, myths, and stories from different cultures related to these topics (creation myths, ocean legends, trickster tales, etc.)

- Visual/graphic-heavy books (he’s dyslexic and learns well from images)

Thank you!

Within a day or two, I receive a list of 15-25 books tailored to our needs. I then select the books, place holds, and pick them up.

• Place holds online

• Pick them up at the library (often they’re gathered and waiting for me at the desk)

This takes 15 minutes. The librarian researches. I collect the matched books.

Step 3: Create a Living Curriculum Book (Waldorf-Inspired)

We create our own curriculum book, inspired by Waldorf education and adapted to unschooling.

What you need:

• A blank notebook (composition book, sketchbook, spiral notebook—whatever your child prefers)

• Colored pencils, pastels, paints, stickers, markers, crayons, anything really. It can be elaborate, like a fancy scrapbook, or simple, like written descriptions.

• The books from the library

• Your child’s curiosity

How it works:

As we read, explore, and learn about the topic, Holden records what matters to him in his curriculum book. This might include:

• Drawings: A dinosaur he found interesting, an AI robot concept, and an ocean creature

• Diagrams: How evolution works, food chains, tectonic plates

• Written summaries: A paragraph about what he learned (dictated to me if writing is hard that day, typed and printed if he prefers, or handwritten if he’s feeling it)

• Quotes: A line from a book that stuck with him

• Questions: Things he’s still wondering about

• Maps: Where fossils were found, where ocean trenches are, and migration patterns

• Timelines: Geological eras, evolutionary milestones

• Comparisons: Chart of dinosaur sizes, ocean depth zones

• Stories: Retelling a myth in his own words, creating his own folktale inspired by what we read

• Comic strips: Explaining a concept in panels with pictures and dialogue

ALL of them include:

• Reference/Citation: This is the MOST important piece. This way, we can look back and see what inspired the pages.

• Date

Holden chooses what goes in. He decides what’s important. He creates his own learning record.

This is not busy work; it is meaning-making. Holden processes information by translating it into his own language—visual, written, or narrative. This foundational skill prepares him for:

Academic Writing Skills:

• Essay writing (organizing thoughts, building arguments)

• Putting information in your own words (avoiding plagiarism, true comprehension)

• Research papers (synthesizing multiple sources into a coherent analysis)

• Thesis development (identifying what matters most about a topic)

• Annotation and note-taking (capturing key ideas while reading)

• Literature analysis (interpreting text and supporting claims with evidence)

• Scientific writing (observation → hypothesis → conclusion)

• Historical analysis (cause and effect, connecting events across time)

Critical Thinking Skills:

• Determining what's important vs. what's tangential

• Identifying patterns and connections across different sources

• Evaluating credibility and bias in information

• Asking meaningful questions that lead somewhere

• Distinguishing fact from interpretation

• Recognizing gaps in understanding and seeking answers

• Building and testing hypotheses

• Metacognition (thinking about your own thinking)

Information Processing:

• Summarizing complex information concisely

• Paraphrasing without losing meaning

• Translating abstract concepts into concrete examples

• Organizing information hierarchically (main ideas, supporting details)

• Cross-referencing and connecting disparate sources

• Chunking information into manageable pieces

• Creating personal frameworks for understanding new material

• Integrating new knowledge with existing knowledge

Communication Skills:

• Explaining complex ideas to different audiences

• Choosing an appropriate format for the message (visual vs. written vs. oral)

• Using evidence to support claims

• Structuring information logically

• Developing voice and style

• Adapting communication for purpose (inform, persuade, entertain, explain)

• Presenting information clearly and compellingly

Research Skills:

• Identifying what you need to know

• Formulating research questions

• Finding relevant sources

• Extracting key information efficiently

• Tracking sources and citations

• Building bibliographies

• Comparing multiple perspectives on a topic

• Recognizing when you need more information

Study and Learning Skills:

• Creating study guides and reference materials

• Active reading (not passive consumption)

• Self-assessment (do I actually understand this?)

• Spaced repetition (returning to material over time)

• Connecting new learning to prior knowledge

• Memory encoding through multiple modalities

• Reviewing and revising understanding as you learn more

Creative and Analytical Integration:

• Using visual thinking to solve abstract problems

• Translating between different modes (image → text → diagram)

• Creating infographics and data visualizations

• Storyboarding complex processes

• Mind-mapping and concept mapping

• Using metaphor and analogy to explain difficult concepts

• Balancing analytical and creative thinking

Executive Function and Self-Direction:

• Deciding what's worth documenting

• Taking ownership of your own learning record

• Self-directed inquiry (following curiosity systematically)

• Project planning and completion

• Time management (how long does this take? When is it "done"?)

• Prioritizing information

• Self-motivation through meaningful work

Higher-Level Academic Applications:

• College-level seminar participation (synthesizing readings, contributing insights)

• Thesis writing (organizing years of research into a coherent argument)

• Lab reports (observation → data → interpretation)

• Case studies (applying theory to real-world examples)

• Literature reviews (surveying existing research and identifying gaps)

• Presentation development (translating written work into slides/talks)

• Grant writing (explaining why your idea matters and what you'll do)

• Publishing and peer review (articulating ideas for expert audiences)

Lifelong Learning Skills:

• Reading dense material and extracting what matters

• Teaching yourself new subjects independently

• Creating personal reference libraries

• Documenting your own growth and progress over time

• Returning to old learning with new eyes

• Building on prior knowledge systematically

• Staying curious and engaged with ideas

The Fundamental Skill Underneath All Of This: The ability to encounter new information and ask: "What does this mean to me? How do I understand it? How would I explain it? What matters here?"

This is not memorization. This is not regurgitation. This is thinking, and thinking is the foundation of all higher learning.

A Note on Digital Options: This is also very easy to do electronically.

Why This Works (Especially for Neurodivergent Learners)

For kids with dyslexia (like Holden):

• They can choose how much to write and how much to draw.

• Visual learning is prioritized.

• Reading levels are flexible (some books I read aloud, some he tackles independently)

• There’s no “right” way to record learning.

For kids with ADHD or executive function challenges:

• Interest-led means motivation is built in.

• No overwhelming curriculum to follow

• Flexible pacing (obsess for three weeks, then move on)

• Multimodal learning (reading, drawing, building, playing)

For anxious kids:

• No grades, no tests, no “wrong” answers

• They control what goes in the book.

• Learning feels like exploration, not performance.

For all kids:

• They see themselves as authors and creators, not just consumers.

• Learning has an immediate purpose (record what matters to ME)

• The curriculum book becomes a treasure—proof of their own thinking.

.

Nothing is ever forced; if he doesn't want to write the date, I do it for him so he can focus on the picture he is creating.  Whether analog or digital, the process is the same: encounter information, process it, make it yours.

Final Thoughts

This approach isn’t about checking boxes or meeting standards. It’s about following curiosity to see where it leads. It is about taking in information, processing it, and putting it into our own style to cement the memory of what we learned.

When children are genuinely engaged, learning happens—deep, lasting, and meaningful.

It’s about giving children the tools to use the vast amount of information at our fingertips to document their own thinking and see themselves as knowledge creators, not just knowledge consumers.

And it’s about using resources that already exist (libraries! librarians! blank notebooks!) to build something beautiful and entirely your own.

You don’t need an expensive curriculum. You need a library card, a notebook, and a curious child.

The rest unfolds naturally.

Want to talk through how to adapt this for your family? I offer free consults to homeschooling families navigating their own path.

Christel Hino

Email: sonderlife4u@gmail.com

Website: sonderlife.net