How do you make homeschooling easy, fun, and efficient?

Homeschool gets easier when the work, the checking, and the records live in one place. Homeschool Packets is a set of personalized K–8 packets a homeschool dad first made for his own kid: a relaxed tone, a Max & Nib comic on page one, and enough structure to get the day done.

Answer keys, included

Every packet comes with a full parent answer key, organized by day, plus score boxes (Score: __ / __) so results can feed that child's report card. Checking work should be quick. Open-ended writing is yours to review — we do not invent a grade for an essay.

Try a free sample: sample questions and the answer key.

Attendance that fills in as you go

Each weekly packet covers five school days. Friday pages include a compact Week N attendance block (date range, Monday through Friday, subjects, and estimated minutes). A running attendance log PDF adds up days and hours by subject, with a year-end summary. The school-year model is 36 weeks × 5 days = 180 days.

When you upload finished work in the parent portal, that day can be marked present for that child. You can also check boxes and initial by hand. Siblings on one family plan each get their own log — records are keyed by family and child, not by name alone.

This is a recordkeeping tool, not a legal form. Many states ask families to keep attendance; the rules vary. Check your state, and see our laws-by-state overview.

Download a sample attendance log · How records work

Report cards you can actually edit

Quarterly cards (Q1 packets 1–9, Q2 10–18, Q3 19–27, Q4 28–36) and a year-end card can auto-fill the child's first name, grade, subjects, packets completed, estimated hours, and skills covered. Suggested letter grades come from scores you record. Every grade field stays editable. If you have not entered scores yet, grades stay blank so you can fill them in yourself.

Upload a photo, scan, or filled PDF of finished pages when you want help scoring. When an answer key is available, objective items can be scored automatically. Open-ended writing is flagged for parent review. You can override any grade. Photos are graded in memory and not stored; only scores are kept.

Download a sample report card

Fillable PDFs on an iPad, tablet, or computer

We recommend printing and writing by hand when you can — it slows the work down in a good way, and finished pages can go on the fridge. Every packet also includes a fillable PDF, with light-blue answer fields, so the same lesson works on a screen.

How to fill a packet on an iPad

1. Save the fillable file (the name ends in -FILLABLE) from your email into the Files app, or open the attachment and choose Save to Files.
2. Open the PDF in Files. Tap a light-blue answer box and type, or use Apple Pencil with Markup to write.
3. Tap Done or the back arrow so the answers save in the file.
4. If you do not see typeable fields, open the same PDF in the free Adobe Acrobat Reader app, fill the fields, and save.
5. Print later if you want a paper copy, or upload the finished PDF — or a photo of printed work — in the parent portal.

Apple documents form filling in the Files app in its iPad user guide. If typeable fields do not appear there, the free Adobe Acrobat Reader app is a common backup. The same fillable files work on Android tablets and computers in any app that supports PDF form fields (Chrome, Firefox, and Adobe Reader are common choices).

Try a fillable sample PDF

If you are just looking at homeschool options

You do not have to buy a curriculum the same week you start. A practical order is: look up your state's rules, withdraw your child if they are enrolled in a school, file any required notice, then pick a level and a simple plan you can keep. Our how to start homeschooling guide walks through that, and homeschool laws by state points you to official sources. This is not legal advice.

In California, many independent homeschool families file a Private School Affidavit (PSA) with the California Department of Education. Independent-study charter programs are another path, with their own instructional-fund rules — see our California charter funds guide. Families in other states sometimes use education savings accounts; that is covered in ESA and state funds.

If you are tired of screen-heavy practice

Some families come here after a stretch with skill apps or math games. If that is you, we wrote fair, factual comparisons — no dunking, just format and official prices:

• What's a good IXL alternative for less screen time?
• What's a good Prodigy alternative that isn't a video game?

Plans

Monthly, cancel anytime: $7 for one subject, $25 for any four, or $40 for all eight. Packets arrive by email as PDFs.

See plans Tell us about your learner

Related: Attendance and report cards · Free printables · Worksheets by grade · Sample schedules

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