Hellobee Boards

@mrbee: we don't but a few years ago when I was having 2nd thoughts about public school for DS I found this website

http://www.k12.com/

@Torchwood: I was homeschooled using Sonlight curriculum and actually there's been lots of controversy because Sonlight references Old Earth creationism quite a bit. They don't seem to side with the YE side. That said, they definitely favor creationism over evolutionism. I think the curriculum is very solid though and may be something worth looking into regardless of religious views - the focus on literature is incredible and that could easily be taught without the religious aspects.

I'm also really impressed by a lot of the offerings on Timberdoodle.com - it has a cheesy website name but they offer a lot of great resources for all age groups.

The Well Trained Mind forum would also be a great resource.

@Torchwood: You know, the thing I do like about Sonlight is that the books they recommend/put in their cores come from so many different points of view - some religious, most not. I know what you're talking about with the distortion of American history -- and I don't think that's necessarily present in ALL of the books they recommend. I can't say that they don't do a bit, because it's been years since I was homeschooled, and I just looked at the cores and they have changed a bit from what I remember but it still seems like an excellent selection.

My husband and I are considering homeschooling because the public schools around here are awful and private school will never be a reality for us. We've thought about this a lot and even though my oldest is just 2, I've already been researching and TBH I've come to the conclusion that there isn't one homeschooling curriculum that will meet all of our needs. We will likely have to mix and match a bit -- I know we will definitely incorporate some Sonlight because I credit them with my love of reading and my critical thinking skills. We will also (and do) incorporate some Montessori resources and will definitely be adding a STEM component. And that's what I love about homeschooling! It allows us to tailor the curriculum to what would be best for our students at that particular time while also allowing us to structure our days so that we can fit in extra curricular activities and socialization in various settings.

@mrbee: I thought about it some more, and if your plan is definitely to transition back into the school system, you might want to look at Calvert. I don't use it, but I recall that it was historically designed for people doing pretty much exactly what you're doing--moving abroad and wanting to keep pace with the school system. They offer transcripts just like any regular school, as I recall.

http://www.calverteducation.com/curriculum/lower-school

If you think you might want to keep going with HS, then the Well-Trained Mind and Holt are excellent resources.

The common core standards by grade and subject can be found online in pdf form. Obviously this won't tell you how to teach something but it will give you a good idea of what kids in a typical public school will be expected to know starting in kindergarten.
For how to teach in an exploratory, project, and arts based way for the younger kids, I *love* aneverydaystory.com. She's a homeschooling mom from Australia. And now that her son is kindergarten aged, she's been showing the links between this type of learing and the curriculum standards.