Looking for math curriculums for worldschoolers?
Keeping on top of core subjects is a challenge when you’re a nomadic homeschooler.
But of all of them, math is the hardest to organize—-and the most difficult to catch up on if your child falls behind.
Fortunately, in the age of the internet, there are a plethora of options to keep your kids up-to-date and on grade level while you’re worldschooling.
This is NOT an affiliated post. All the math curriculums for worldschoolers presented here are collected advice from worldschoolers directly and real-world experience.
Khan Academy
By far the most popular, Khan Academy offers a wide variety of courses across the spectrum of math education.
Cost: Free
Pros: It’s online, extremely convenient, and covers a wide variety of math skills in every grade level.
Cons: A lot of parents and teachers find that it’s not enough on its own. You may need to supplement with a tutor or other materials to solidify your child’s math skills.
MIT
This one was a surprise to me! I had no idea MIT offered open courseware online math classes (and courses in a whole bunch of other subjects, too!)
This is a fantastic resource for college-bound high schoolers hoping to advance their higher-level math skills.
Cost: Free
Pros: Best for high school students who have mastered the basics and want to move on to more complex math concepts. Courses are free to use and can be started online from anywhere in the world.
Cons: You may need to supplement with a virtual tutor for difficult concepts.
The Good & The Beautiful
The Good & the Beautiful is what I use for math, and it’s the only one on this list that is an actual, physical book.
Even though it’s not an online option, I consider it travel-friendly because it’s so open-and-go. No prep work is necessary, it requires few (if any) additional materials outside the book & a lightweight box of manipulatives.
Cost: About $60
Pros: This is a holistic coursework that will keep your kid on track according to most state standards. Unless your child struggles with math in general, you won’t need to supplement it with any other materials.
Cons: It only goes up to the 8th grade (although they say they are developing other levels). It’s always a hassle to lug around a book, so this one is best used if you plan to stay in one place longer term (say, 2-3 months or more).
Also, it is a Christian company, so if that bothers you, it may be a no, although lots of secular homeschoolers use this brand and the God stuff is relatively light.
Oak Meadow
Oak Meadow offers high-quality, comprehensive math and science courses for all grade levels with an option to learn virtually. As an accredited distance learning program, it’s a genuine alternative to traditional schooling that will keep your kid on track.
Cost: Varies according to what options you choose.
Pros: As stated above, this is an academically solid program. It also has very customizable, a la carte style sign-up options. It’s accredited, and there’s teacher support.
Cons: It ain’t cheap. If you want to enroll (as opposed to doing independent-style distance learning) it’ll be in the neighborhood of private school tuition. Also, if you opt for the live classes, your kid will likely end up with time-zone issues if you’re anywhere besides North or South America.
CTC Math
CTC Math is a popular option for part-time worldschoolers who have a foundational program they follow at home, but want to keep their kids’ math skills sharp while on longer trips.
Cost: About $30 a month
Pros: Perfect for light-duty skills upkeep while traveling. A nice way to kill time in airports, on buses, ect.
Cons: Not intended to be a complete, holistic program. If you are traveling for months or a full school year, this alone will not keep your kid up-to-speed at grade level.
Outschool
Outschool isn’t a curriculum. It’s more like a marketplace for teachers. You can enroll in classes or you can opt to hire a tutor for almost any subject.
Cost: Average of $10-$30 an hour.
Pros: It’s fairly affordable, and you can pick and choose what you want. Works best in combination with another learning option (like to fortify lessons from Khan Academy) or to focus on specific math subjects. You can also easily try several teachers/tutors to select a good fit for your child.
Cons: As far as I can tell, there are almost no formal requirements for teachers (they do have to pass criminal background checks, reside in the US, etc., but that’s about it). The quality of the classes varies a lot for this reason. Be careful when selecting a course to look at reviews.
Openstax
Openstax is an online platform offering freely accessible high school and university-level textbooks across diverse subjects such as Mathematics, Science, Economics, Finance, and Accounting.
These resources are peer-reviewed and openly licensed.
Pros: Used in conjunction with an online tutor, this would be an excellent option for high school-level college math prep. Ideal for kids who are self-motivated, math-oriented students.
Cons: Openstax is a textbook resource. It offers no classes, and you’d need to acquire teacher support elsewhere. It’s only for higher math subjects.
ChatGPT
If you have very strong math skills and want to build your curriculum from scratch, you can use ChatGPT to give you a rough outline and then fill in the gaps yourself.
Here’s an example prompt:
[ChatGPT] “Outline a 30-week introductory course for Grade 2 math. Cater it to a student who is working slightly above average in multiplication, but struggling with fractions and word problems. Include suggested resources and pace it for 3 lessons per week.”
Obviously, you can customize this any way you want.
Pros: It’s free, and customizable, and you can alter the coursework according to your needs at any time.
Cons: Not the best option for higher-level math. Best for parents with professional teaching experience. Also, of all the options on this list, this approach requires the most time and planning on your end to do it well.
