Harbor and Sprout: A Certified Teacher’s Review (2023)

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Have you heard of – or thought of using – Harbor and Sprout’s curriculum?

Harbor and Sprout’s digital curriculum is a faith-neutral unit study that focuses on one specific topic each month. As a certified teacher and homeschool parent, I’m always looking for interested curriculum pieces. Keep reading for everything about Harbor and Sprout!

All subjects are included (science, nature study, history, geography, language arts, writing, music, art, and math) although the authors advise parents to supplement with an additional math program.

Homeschool Curriculum We Use and Love:

✔️ Language Arts: ​Blossom and Root​
✔️ History: ​The Curiosity Chronicles​ (5% off code: HOMEGRAD)
✔️ Hands-On Elem. Human Bio: ​Doc Robin’s School of Pre-Med​
✔️ All Level Science: ​REAL Science Odyssey

Harbor and Sprout is advertised for ages 3-12 and is a “family style” approach.

Harbor and Sprout’s digital subscription is an affordable option for homeschool families looking for a faith-neutral curriculum. One month’s subscription starts at $25.

What is Harbor and Sprout?

Harbor and Sprout is a digital monthly unit study homeschool subscription. Members receive digital products for a reoccurring monthly fee. At the time of writing, it costs $25 a month to become a subscriber.

It’s digital, so you won’t receive anything via the mail. In order to get the most out of their very visual product you will want to have a reliable color printer and will need to purchase colored ink frequently.

Who is Harbor and Sprout for?

✅ Families who enjoy monthly subscription boxes

✅ Homeschoolers who value the woodland, nature-study aesthetic

✅ Fans of unit studies

✅ Families around the world, not just the US

✅ Families who prefer digital materials that they print at home

✅ Almost unschoolers or very relaxed homeschoolers with elementary aged kids

Are you considering homeschooling, but need help withdrawing your child, sending a letter of intent, and more?

➡️ Click here to see how I can help you 1-on-1.

Harbor and Sprout is NOT ideal for…

❌ Families who want curriculum that’s leveled by specific age/grade/ability

❌ Homeschoolers who want a robust math curriculum

❌ Homeschoolers who want explicit reading instruction

❌ Homeschoolers who value curriculum content over appearance

❌ Homeschoolers who do not want to print their own materials.

❌ Strictly academic homeschoolers

What style is this Curriculum?

Harbor and Sprout is an eclectic unit study style curriculum that’s designed for the whole family.

The company offers a morning basket subscription as well, which is a popular practice of Charlotte Mason homeschoolers.

The creators mention that Waldorf, Reggio, and Montessori methods all influence the curriculum as well.

Your Questions about Harbor and Sprout

Harbor and Sprout includes science, nature study, history, geography, language arts, writing, music, art, and math.

The authors recommend spending about 15 minutes for each year of the child’s age on the content every day. (5 years old = 1 hour 15 minutes).

You will most likely want to supplement with another math product as Harbor and Sprout seems only to include one lesson per week. It also doesn’t have explicit reading instructional material.

What age is Harbor and Sprout for?

The creators claim that their monthly subscription is appropriate for ages 3-12.

Each digital box is divided into 4 levels of activity with increasingly involved tasks; Explorers, Investigators, Adventurers, and Discoverers.

If you’re concerned about your older kids not getting what they need academically, you could invite them to enjoy Harbor and Sprout with younger siblings but then select additional curriculum designed specifically for their advanced needs.

Is Harbour and Sprout secular?

By the creators’ definition Harbor and Sprout is neutral rather than secular or religious.

The curriculum does not contain faith based material however they invite customers to supplement with other religious pieces to fit their family’s values.

Earth’s origins are approached from a scientific perspective in a ‘respectful way’. Dates are mentioned in terms of Common Era rather than BC/AD.

From this description I believe that this program is appropriate for both secular and religious families outside of the Christian faith.

This program would probably not be ideal for a Christian family is looking for a creation-centric science curriculum.

Who are the creators behind Harbor and Sprout?

Harbor and Sprout is the brain child of 13 contributors. Combined they have many years of experience homeschooling.

From the site: Our team is comprised of talented writers and artists who are college educated and mindful of the need to seek out a wide worldview. 

Their team’s collective expertise related to curriculum includes:

⭐️ Former Chicago public school teacher, Erika. Erika has her master’s degree in education and is raising trilingual children.

⭐️ Lindie, with a PhD in psychology

⭐️ Claire, with a BA in Primary Education

⭐️ Stephanie, a 2nd generation homeschooler (represent!)

⭐️ Rebecca with over 30 years of experience in the childcare industry

⭐️ Jacqueline, with degrees in research and teaching

⭐️ Amber, who has worked in the field of educational publishing

The team seems like a great group with a ton of homeschooling experience. However, as a certified educator, I value formal academic training in the curriculum’s targeted subjects. A majority of the group has some kind of formal education training although Danielle Hansen, the founder of Harbor and Sprout, does not.

Is this a full curriculum or is it meant as a supplement?

Harbor and Sprout is designed to be a full curriculum for students ages 3-12. It is not meant as a supplement, but rather as the core of your child’s education. They do recommend that math is supplemented with an additional, subject specific curriculum.

If I were to add Harbor and Sprout to our homeschool program, I would use their monthly subscription to supplement our grade specific subjects.

More Harbor and Sprout Questions

Here are the answers to the most commonly asked questions about Harbor and Sprout’s open and go curriculum.

What subjects will be included each month?

• Handbook with planning pages, book list, differentiated lesson plans, and character kit
• Science
• Nature Study
• History
• Geography
• Language Arts
• Writing
• Music
• Art
• Math (will need to be supplemented for more academic rigor)
• Nature Activities
• Wellness & Quiet Time
• Writing & Language Arts

What is the Explorer Toolkit?

The Harbor and Sprout Explorer toolkit is designed to help you get the most out of your daily exploration. It includes explorer gadgets, maps, posters, and a field notes journal. The field notebook has lots of templates to help you record what you’ve learned and make sure that your notebooks are organized.

The $18 extra, the toolkit includes:

-Explorer gadgets—the perfect size for small hands to grasp and manipulate

-Maps—helpful for exploring the world around us

-Poster sets—great for displaying information about a topic

-Field notes journal—filled with lots of templates to help you document your explorations

Pricing for Harbor and Sprout

Before purchasing Harbor and Sprout you should join their email list and get their freebie folder. It contains hundreds of pages that you can explore with your kiddos to see if this curriculum would be a good fit for your family.

What are my pricing options?

At the time of writing this post, the basic monthly subscription starts at $25/month. You receive one credit redeemable for one item of your choice each month.

You may pause, skip a month, or cancel at any time. You can purchase 12 credits up front but there isn’t a cost savings.

If don’t want to commit to a monthly subscription, you can purchase past individual units on their own.

They also have a morning basket subscription that is currently $12 a month.

Harbor and Sprout Discount Code

Want a discount code for Harbor and Sprout’s monthly unit studies? My recommendation is that you join Harbor and Sprout’s email list and follow them on social media. This is where you’ll be able to stay on top of their sales.

Harbor and Sprout Loyalty Program

Harbor and Sprouts is a loyalty program that rewards you for going the extra mile by signing up for their email list and referring friends to their site.

They also send you a discount code when you opt in to the loyalty program. It appears to be a regular email sign up without any further requirements.

Harbor and Sprout Unit Studies

Unit studies are themed based and cover a diverse variety of subjects.

Past units:

• paleontology
• chemistry
• beekeeping
• forensic science
• aviation
• astronomy
• oceanography
• botany
• geology
• engineering
• visual arts
• forestry
• homesteading and sustainable living
• meteorology
• tropical ecology
• human body science

Are you considering homeschooling, but need help withdrawing your child, sending a letter of intent, and more?

➡️ Click here to see how I can help you 1-on-1.

Harbor and Sprout Paleontology Unit

Harbor and Sprout’s paleontology unit is a comprehensive look at the science of dinosaurs, as well as the people who study them.

First, your kids will learn about fossil formation and stratigraphic columns, which are maps that show layers of rock and their relative ages. Then they’ll visit the Isle of Skye to see some of Scotland’s most famous fossils. They’ll also look at how paleontologists study dinosaurs and other fossils on Antarctica’s Baltic Coast.

For language arts, you’ll cover nouns and homophones as well as etymology. In writing assignments you’ll put theory into practice and descriptive paragraphs about what it might have been like for a dinosaur to live in those environments.

History lessons include resources on Mary Anning. You’ll also get an overview of how paleontology research has changed over time as well as what kinds of moderns tools are used today to study fossils.

Harbor and Sprout Morning Baskets

For $12 a month, you receive a digital package that comes with a variety of activities including clip cards, number recognition games, word puzzles, threading activities, and more.

You’ll find printables about themed topics ranging from tropical ecology to aviation and beekeeping.

Some boxes also come with a playdough mat so children can practice their fine motor skills as well as match up pictures with corresponding words or numbers on the mat itself.

Harbor and Sprout Chemistry

If you’re looking for a Charlotte Mason style unit study to teach your kids about chemistry, look no further. This product is written for students aged 3 through 12. The authors have created a differentiated path in order to make the entire box appealing to varying ages.

The unit study covers States of Matter, Understanding Water States, the Periodic Table and more.

At the end of each lesson plan is a “Family Read Aloud” section that tells you which book to read aloud with your children as part of their learning for the day.

The Chemistry Unit Study includes planning pages and stories, poems, and field guides that you can use as you teach your kids about matter and its properties.

Homeschool Curriculum We Use and Love:

✔️ Language Arts: ​Blossom and Root​
✔️ History: ​The Curiosity Chronicles​ (5% off code: HOMEGRAD)
✔️ Hands-On Elem. Human Bio: ​Doc Robin’s School of Pre-Med​
✔️ All Level Science: ​REAL Science Odyssey

Recap: Harbor and Sprout

Harbor and Sprout is a homeschooling resource that provides monthly unit plans for all grades. The monthly units are heavy on worksheets and one-use printables. The style is beautiful but perhaps designed more for parental appreciation than kids.

If you were to print off everything it would require a TON of color ink. The recommended book lists for the month are massive (20-30 books), which is great if you have access to a well-stocked library.

I appreciate that no where in their curriculum do they attempt to teach harmful history such as the Thanksgiving myth or colonization. I am reassured by their explicit commitment to diversity and inclusion.

All together, Harbor and Sprout might be a good fit for unit study homeschoolers who want all the planning done for them but for academic homeschoolers it might seem lacking in substance.