8th Grade Curriculum
One of the unique privileges of homeschooling is being there for each step of your student's development. You help them gain the wide range of skills they'll need in life, like self-motivation and the ability to follow a schedule and complete assignments without constant supervision. 8th Grade capitalizes on those skills to transition kids to more independent learning.
This year you have many options to study, but, it doesn't have to be overwhelming. Are you hoping to combine your student with a younger sibling? Are they ready for high school work? Are you looking to study cultures from the other side of the world? You can successfully use any of these as your history base for the year.
Choose your 8th Grade Curriculum
Sonlight offers multiple curriculum packages, each completely customizable to meet your family's needs. Start by choosing one of the three options below, and customize online as desired. Need help choosing? Chat with an advisor.
History / Bible / Literature Program (HBL)
Choose 4- or 5-Day
Each HBL program includes a year's worth of history, geography, Bible, and all required books, all connected with an award-winning Instructor's Guide. Start with an HBL program and add additional subjects.
The foundation of a Sonlight education.
- Instructor's Guide
- History/Geography
- Bible
- Read-Alouds
- Readers
- Required Resources
Available Add-ons
- Add Language Arts
- Add Spelling (1-6)
- Add Handwriting (K-3)
- Add Science
- Add Math
- Add Hands-On
- Add Electives
- Add Additional Items
15% OFF* Entire Package!
Includes:
SonlightCares™ $249 FREE
+ FREE SHIPPING
Lower 48 states
All-Subjects Package (ASP)
Choose 4- or 5-Day
Your complete homeschool year! This easy-to-order package contains everything you need to teach all subjects for one student for one year. Easily customizable online.
Everything In One Package. Total Peace Of Mind.
- Instructor's Guide
- History/Geography
- Bible
- Read-Alouds
- Readers
- Language Arts
- Spelling (1-6)
- Handwriting (K-3)
- Science
- Math
- Required Resources
Available Add-ons
- Add Hands-On
- Add Electives
- Add Additional Items
20% OFF* Entire Package!
Includes:
Sonlight Cares ™ $249 FREE
+ FREE SHIPPING
Lower 48 States
Build Your Own Package
Follow the steps in our SmoothCourse™ curriculum builder to create your own complete and personalized curriculum package. This guided tool will help you mix-and-match subjects to create the best curriculum for your learners.
Choose The Materials That Suit Your Needs.
- Instructor's Guide
- History/Geography
- Bible
- Read-Alouds
- Readers
- Add Language Arts
- Add Spelling (1-6)
- Add Handwriting (K-3)
- Add Science
- Add Math
- Add Hands-On
- Add Electives
- Add Required Resources
- Add Additional Items
BUILD A COMPLETE HBL OR ASP PACKAGE
Sonlight Cares ™ $249 FREE
+ FREE SHIPPING
Lower 48 States
*Percent off Retail Price. Preschool and Pre-K are unavailable as All-Subjects Packages as they have unique subjects specific to those age spans. A Sonlight History / Bible / Literature program includes a year's worth of history, geography, Bible, Readers, Read-Alouds, and an Instructor's Guide. An All-Subjects Package includes a History / Bible / Literature program, language arts, spelling (K-6), handwriting (K-3), math, science, and a Sonlight binder. Click here for the complete Scope and Sequence.
8th Grade Curriculum Packages
Put together a customized program or select the recommended everything-you-need package. Compare your choices and pick the path you want. Either way, a wonderful adventure in learning awaits you and your family. Both History / Bible / Literature Programs and All-Subjects Packages include complete eighth grade lesson plans, schedules, and notes in the included Instructor's Guide.
Start by selecting the 8th grade curriculum program that covers the history focus you'd like to use this year. Because you'll teach with real books, each Sonlight program works with a range of ages and allows you to teach multiple children together. View the full curriculum scope & sequence for additional information. Need help choosing? Chat with a homeschool Advisor.
8th Grade History / Bible / Literature Programs
Sonlight has found that good books are not limited to a narrow age range, therefore, for your 8th grade year of study, you have lots of options. You can choose from part 2 of lower-level American History; the Eastern Hemisphere; World History; the History of Science; or an in-depth look at American History from Columbus to the present. Any one of these programs will provide an excellent year of study. If you choose:
Intro to American History, you'll work through the 2nd half of American History, from the Civil War to the present.
In the Eastern Hemisphere, you'll have the opportunity to explore Asia, the Middle East, Africa and the South Pacific. A stand-out program from Sonlight, this one-year study covers a part of the world that a huge percentage of the world's population, and ninety percent of all unevangelized people, call home.
Ancient History, you'll examine the connected flow of human history, from creation through the 1600s; the 1600s to the present, or, a combined year from creation to the present around the world.
History of Science, you'll explore scientific thought throughout history and to the present, including different perspectives so your students can engage with a curious mind.
American History, you'll be going deeper into your study of American History. You'll get a backstage pass to see the players of our history as real people.
By eighth grade your student is likely ready to exhibit some independence, in that vein, you may remain as involved as you like, but if your students are ready, they can follow the Instructor's Guide and direct their own daily studies. If you choose one of our high school programs, such as Sonlight 100, the format of the Instructor's Guide shifts to separate parent and student guides, so your children are able to do their work more independently. The student guide replaces activity sheets and offers them a schedule, as well as notes, information, and questions for them.
Start with the History / Bible / Literature program of your choice and add additional subjects. History / Bible / Literature programs can be used with multiple children. All History / Bible / Literature programs include a 15% discount off of retail.
Intro to American History: Year 2 of 2
History / Bible / Literature E
Experience America's history from the 1850s on.
Age Range: 10-13
Grade Range: 5-8
Intro to American History: One Year Condensed
History / Bible / Literature D+E
Journey through all of American history with this condensed program.
Age Range: 10-13
Grade Range: 5-8
Eastern Hemisphere
History / Bible / Literature F
Journey across the mysterious East and glimpse God's heart for the world.
Age Range: 11-14
Grade Range: 6-9
World History, Year 1 of 2
History / Bible / Literature G
Witness the rise and fall of ancient empires.
Age Range: 12-14
Grade Range: 7-9
World History, Year 2 of 2
History / Bible / Literature H
Explore the ever-changing world of the past 500 years.
Age Range: 13-15
Grade Range: 8-10
World History, One Year Condensed
History / Bible / Literature W
Journey through the highlights of world history with this condensed program.
Age Range: 12-14
Grade Range: 7-9
History of Science
History / Bible / Literature J
Discover scientific inquiry of the last 4000 years.
Age Range: 13-15
Grade Range: 8-10
American History
History / Bible / Literature 100
Uncover the rich treasures of American history.
Age Range: 13-15
Grade Range: 8-10
8th Grade Homeschool All-Subjects Package
All-Subjects Packages offer the convenience of an all-in-one boxed curriculum but provide the flexibility of customization for your specific needs or multiple children. And you get all that for a 20% discount!
8th Grade Curriculum
All-Subjects Package H
Explore the worldwide transformation in daily life since the 1600s.
Title: World History, Year 2 of 2
Age Range: 13-15
8th Grade Curriculum
All-Subjects Package J
Discover scientific inquiry of the last 4000 years.
Title: History of Science
Age Range: 13-15
Additional 8th Grade Subjects
A Sonlight All-Subjects Package comes with everything that you need for a complete school year. However, if you choose to purchase a History / Bible / Literature program only, you may want to add additional subjects to complete your year.
Science
You have several options for Science during your 8th grade year and we recommend matching your History / Bible / Literature level to your Science level.
If you choose History / Bible / Literature H General (included in the 5-Day, 8th Grade All-Subjects Package), you will study Apologia's General Science (Science H). Science H provides a wonderful overview of the entire range of scientific inquiry. This course is designed for use by homeschoolers and includes topics like a brief history of science; the scientific method; how to interpret experiments; the distinction between science, applied science, and much more. It is written with the interests and concerns of evangelical Christians at the center.
If you choose History / Bible / Literature J (included in an alternative 8th Grade All-Subjects Package), you will study Science J - Physics, Electromagnetism, & Waves. Science J brings the astonishing History of Science concepts into your home and provides an excellent foundation for future engineers, architects, mathematicians, physicists, and inventors.
It's often easiest to match your history and science levels together, but you can mix and match and still get our best discount of 20% when you add all of the subjects to make an All-Subjects Package. Browse other available Science programs and see what you could discover.
Math
Sonlight includes Math-U-See's Algebra 1 in our 8th Grade All-Subjects Packages. Algebra 1 covers topics like graphing, simultaneous equations, exponents, polynomials, and unit multipliers. Your student will learn about commutative and associative properties, the order of operations, solving for an unknown with one variable, the distributive property, the slope-intercept formula, and finding the slope-intercept formula with different givens among other things.
Math-U-See is included in Sonlight's All-Subjects Packages, but you can customize as desired.
Learn about all 8th grade math curriculum options and what topics eighth graders need to master.
Literature & Language Arts
This year in 8th grade, your children will have many opportunities to develop into well-rounded writers with a blend of grammar, mechanics, and creative instruction. From haiku to the research paper, from gerunds to participles, from writing a superb literary hook to avoiding fragments, students gain tools to become more effective communicators.
At this level, Language Arts instruction and assignments are linked to the History / Bible / Literature program, which means that every assignment reinforces what your children are learning about as they read.
With the start of high school levels, such as Sonlight 100, we no longer study just Language Arts, and, it's no longer tied to our History. Our Language Arts study is now under the title of Literature.
As we move away from grammar work and general writing instruction, the focus this year is now literary analysis, comprehension and deeper thought questions. What do symbols mean? Was this character right or wrong?
Your student will learn literary terms, words like foreshadowing and character development, even as they think through the ethical questions. They will continue to have writing assignments, along with some instruction.
Hands-On
Help reinforce and document your students’ History studies and provide evidence of learning. This lap book both increases your students’ understanding of history and offers evidence of learning ... plus it makes learning fun!
We provide all of the instructions and materials so your child can independently build their own history book. Our lap books are specifically designed to complement Sonlight’s history programs and they are scheduled as optional activities for our History / Bible / Literature levels D, E, G, and H.
Both programs include the unique items that you need to perform the hands-on experiments and student exercises included in each program.
Electives & Enrichment
Once you've picked out your essential homeschool subjects, add some additional enrichment that's both fun and educational. Sonlight offers a wide range of electives, enrichment products, and hands-on activities to round out your school year. Choose from art, music, foreign language, STEM, puzzles, games, computer programming, just great books and more.
Other Products
Consumables
Teaching more than one student and need extra activity sheets? We've got you covered. Shop all consumables here.
Required Resources for an 8th Grade Curriculum
Required Resources are essential for first-time Sonlighters. These are necessary products for your school year and are included in Sonlight All-Subjects Packages, History / Bible / Literature Programs, and Science packages by default. Visit SmoothCourse™ to remove Required Resources from your 1st grade curriculum package.
Shop all Required Resources here.