Best Homeschool Literature Curriculum for High School

This is part of a series on homeschool literature curriculum for high school students. If you have younger students, check out our other posts in this series: Best Homeschool Literature Curriculum for Middle School and Best Homeschool Literature Curriculum for Elementary. 

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Our top picks for the best homeschool literature curriculum for high school:

Literature is an important aspect of a well-rounded education and can provide numerous benefits for students. First and foremost, reading and studying quality literature can help students develop critical thinking skills. Students learn to analyze and interpret a text, to understand characters’ motivations, and to consider the larger themes and messages conveyed. Studying literature can also help students develop empathy and better understand other cultures and perspectives. By reading about characters from different backgrounds and experiences, kids will expand their worldview and better understand the complexities of human experience. This can help them develop more open-mindedness and compassion. And last, but not least, reading good literature can improve students’ writing skills, as exposure to different writing styles and techniques will benefit their own writing abilities, expand their vocabulary, improve their reading comprehension skills, and generally expand their creativity.

If you are looking for a good high school literature curriculum to use in the homeschool setting, you’ll find several great options. In this article we’ll tell you about four of our favorite programs. If you’re looking specifically for homeschool poetry curriculum, check out our article Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for high school. You may also be interested in checking out our reviews of high school language arts (link), English (link), and writing curriculums for homeschoolers!

Learning Language Arts Through Literature, Common Sense Press

If you are looking for a wonderful high school literature program that will also serve as a complete language arts curriculum, consider Learning Language Arts Through Literature (LLATL). This is a popular homeschool program available for grades K-12. The high school program is designed to help students develop their reading, writing, and critical thinking skills through the study of classic and contemporary literature. The program includes a variety of literary selections, such as novels, short stories, poetry, and drama. Students will receive a complete language arts education with this program, including literary analysis, grammar, punctuation, vocabulary, and critical writing skills.

The LLATL high school program is called the “Gold Book” and includes four different year-long courses, which may be taken in any order and chosen according to the interests of the student. The course options are: 

  • World Literature: this course explores world literature, from ancient writings to the 20th century. Units include Early Literature, Epic Poetry, Medieval-Renaissance, Enlightenment-Romanticism, and 20th Century. Students will also need to purchase or obtain from the library the following titles: A World Literature Anthology, Common Sense Press; The Odyssey, Homer; No Fear Shakespeare, Romeo and Juliet, William Shakespeare; The Little Prince, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry; and Cry, The Beloved Country, Alan Paton. 
  • American Literature: this course explores classic American literature, with units focusing on short stories, novels, essay-writing, and poetry. Students will also need to purchase or obtain from the library the following books: Great American Short Stories, eds. Wallace and Mary Stegner; The Mentor Book of Major American Poets, eds. Oscar Williams and Edwin Honig; The Old Man and the Sea, Ernest Hemingway; The Pearl, John Steinbeck; and The Red Badge of Courage, Stephen Crane.
  • British Literature: this course delves into the greatest writings in the British language, from the poetry of Wordsworth and Tennyson to the novels of Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. Students will study both poetry and novels and learn critical essay-writing skills. Students will also need to purchase or obtain from the library the following titles: Frankenstein, or, The Modern Prometheus, Mary Shelley; Emma, Jane Austen; A Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens; The Time Machine, H. G. Wells; Animal Farm, George Orwell; and A British Poetry Anthology, Common Sense Press. 
  • Literary Criticism: this course will do an excellent job of preparing students for college-level writing. Different types of literary criticism will be introduced, and students will learn critical essay-writing skills. Students will learn how to effectively write a college essay, a memoir, and essays of several lengths and types. Along with the course book, students will need to purchase or obtain from the library the following titles: A Literary Criticism Anthology, Common Sense Press; Tuesdays with Morrie, Mitch Albom; Starship Troopers, Robert Heinlein; The Trial, Franz Kafka; No Fear Shakespeare, Macbeth, William Shakespeare; and The Count of Montecristo, Alexander Dumas. 

Overall, LLATL is an excellent literature program for homeschooled high school students that will provide a complete language arts education and adequately prepare them for college level writing and literary criticism. 

Memoria Press Literature Guides

Another popular option for homeschool literature curriculum is the literature guide series offered by Memoria Press. Memoria Press specializes in Classical Christian curriculum, and their literature guides are among their most popular products. These guides are designed to help students develop their reading comprehension and analysis skills, are easy to follow for both parents and students, and can be mixed and matched for a customized and flexible unit study approach. 

Memoria Press literature guides are available for a variety of classic literature selections, including novels, plays, and poetry. Each guide includes a brief introduction to the author and the work, as well as a synopsis of the plot. The guides also include vocabulary lists and study questions that are designed to help students understand and analyze the text. The study questions are carefully crafted to guide students through the text, helping them to identify important themes, motifs, and symbols. The questions encourage students to analyze the language and structure of the text as well as the historical and cultural context in which it was written. 

In addition to the study questions, Memoria Press literature guides include writing assignments and projects that help students develop their writing skills. These assignments teach students a variety of writing types, such as literary analysis, persuasive writing, and creative writing.

Memoria Press literature guides can be purchased individually or as part of grade-level sets. The ninth-grade set covers Beowolf, Sir Gawain & the Green Knight, The Hound of the Baskervilles, and A Mid-Summer Night’s Dream. The tenth-grade curriculum explores Romeo & Juliet, The Scarlet Letter, Julius Caesar, and Pride & Prejudice. There are no specific literary selections after grade 10, but students in this older group can instead choose from the many secondary-level literature guides available on Memoria Press’s website.

Overall, Memoria Press literature guides are a valuable resource for homeschoolers who want to help their students develop their reading comprehension, analysis, and writing skills while studying classic literature. The guides are well-designed and easy to use, and they provide a thorough and engaging study of each literary work.

Sonlight High School Literature Programs

Another fantastic option for homeschool high school literature is Sonlight’s literature programs. These courses are designed to help students improve reading comprehension and develop their analytical and writing skills through the study of classic and modern literature. Students read a variety of literature selections from different genres, including poetry, drama, and fiction. Grammar and vocabulary lessons are integrated into this program, and students complete a variety of writing assignments including literary analysis essays, research papers, and creative writing projects. These courses provide a complete language arts curriculum.

There are six Sonlight literature courses available at the high school level. A student need not take all of these courses, nor do they need to be taken in order, but do pay attention to the grade level suggestions provided for each course. The courses are: 

  • American Historical Literature (grades 8-10): this course explores American literature through a historical framework. Titles explore a range of themes, including Americans moving West, the Alaskan Godl Rush, the Jim Crow South, Iroquois life, and much more.
  • Classical Literature (grades 9-11): this course explores some of the greatest titles in the English language, many of them by British authors, through a chronological framework. Titles include Jane Eyre, Oliver Twist, Robinson Crusoe, and many more.
  • 20th Century World Literature (grades 10-12): this course covers a range of important literature, including fiction and poetry, in the 20th century from both American and European authors. The Great Gatsby, Brave New World, the poetry of Robert Frost, and much more is explored.
  • American Literature (grades 11-12): this course considers some of the greatest classics in the American literary canon, including historical novels alongside poetry and more contemporary writings, such as the history writing of David McCullough and the social science writing of Malcolm Gladwell. This is an overall excellent course for teaching American literature to older high school students.
  • World Literature (grades 11-12): this course explores literature from ancient to modern times, including authors from four different continents. From Homer’s The Odyssey to Shakespeare’s King Lear to Cervantes’ Don Quixote, the selections in this course will represent the best of world literature for the avid high school reader.

Sonlight’s literature programs are straightforward for both students and parents, including a teacher’s guide with detailed lesson plans. Overall, this is a comprehensive and engaging homeschool curriculum that can be used as a standalone curriculum or as a supplement to other language arts curricula.

Windows to the World – An Introduction to Literary Analysis, Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW)

Another popular option for teaching high school literature in the homeschool setting is Windows to the World, published by the Institute for Excellence in Writing (IEW). This program is designed to help high school students develop their analytical and writing skills through the study of literature. The course is organized into 15 chapters, each focusing on different literary themes and tropes. Students read relevant literary selections and learn how to critically analyze and write about these themes. The curriculum is designed to teach students how to analyze literature using a variety of literary techniques, including plot analysis, character analysis, and theme analysis. Students will write literary analysis essays and research papers along with creative writing assignments. In addition to the literary analysis and writing exercises, the curriculum also includes grammar lessons and vocabulary exercises that are designed to help students improve their writing skills.

The Windows to the World curriculum is flexible and can be used as a standalone curriculum or as a supplement to other language arts curricula. This program is suitable for all levels of high school and can be purchased in both print and digital formats. Overall, the IEW Windows to the World curriculum is a valuable resource for homeschoolers who want to help their high school students develop their analytical and writing skills through the study of literature. The curriculum is well-designed and easy to use, and it provides a thorough and engaging study of each literary work.

Conclusion

Literature study is an important part of a complete language arts education. Be sure to check out our other articles on high school language arts curriculum for homeschoolers: Best English Homeschool Curriculum for High School, Best Homeschool Writing Curriculum for High School, Best Language Arts Homeschool Curriculum – High School, and Best Poetry Homeschool Curriculum for High School. If you have younger students, check out Best Homeschool Literature Curriculum for Middle School and Best Homeschool Literature Curriculum for Elementary.