Requirements may vary depending on your location. Be sure to consult with your state laws.

Good news: in the U.S., credits are based on the simple Carnegie Unit system, which tracks time spent learning. One Carnegie Unit equals ~120 – 150 hours of study in a subject. Traditionally in public school, this equates to a class meeting for ~45 minutes per day, five days a week, over ~36 weeks  Homeschool is the same. Important: “time spent” does not mean “reading the lesson.” Rather, it includes discussion, note-taking, lecturing, watching movies, having class debates, reading, field trips, etc…  With homeschool, there is ebb and flow (some weeks may be heavier on one subject, etc.).  This is normal.  You can fairly estimate your child’s time. 

E.g. If you typically school for ~4 hours/day (splitting subjects evenly) and 5 days/week, your school year is complete in ~36 weeks [4 hours daily / 6 subjects =.7 hrs/subject * 5 days * 36 weeks = 120 hours = 1 credit in all 6 subjects]. 

Some parents school 2 hours each morning, break for math hour, then finish with an hour of independent reading/project time, etc.  This is 4 hours/day.  In each homeschool, it looks different.  Do calculations to get a general estimate, then follow your own routine.

Credits = Time spent throughout the year
Grades = Work quality, comprehension, and retention.

Each product page has amazing information you can reference for the transcript information for each unit. No guessing!  We took care of it.

Many colleges value cross-curricular and interdisciplinary learning—the kind that helps students read deeply, think clearly, and connect ideas across subjects.  A traditional textbook format is not required for students to be well prepared.

“Our faculty and researchers collaborate across school and departmental boundaries, and we encourage the same interdisciplinary focus among our graduate students.”
— Yale University

“The interdisciplinary approach to teaching and research is prevalent throughout the University, mixing scientists and humanists, engineers and social scientists…”
— Princeton University

Campfire builds these same habits. Students aren’t just exposed to information; they work with it, explain it, and use it. If your student is aiming for specific programs, you can always add targeted supplements (such as lab hours, outside reading, or additional writing), just as families do with any curriculum.

Traditional textbooks follow a linear format: Chapter 1, Chapter 2, and so on. One might cover zoology before botany, but another will do the reverse.  Think of choosing Campfire units as selecting “chapters” for your school year, allowing you to cover multiple topics in a sequence that fits your goals.

Still, students must grasp the basics—like atomic structure—before moving on to more complex topics such as chemical bonding. Campfire doesn’t stray from this logical progression or depth; instead, we enhance it. Our approach combines spiral and mastery learning. Each unit begins with foundational lessons that support the specific content being taught. This makes it ideal for both newcomers to the topic (providing the foundation they need) and those revisiting it from another angle (providing review before building upon).

As students progress through the unit, they move toward mastery, deepening understanding and retention. This structure gives you the flexibility to choose which units to cover, while ensuring that essential ideas are revisited in varied contexts. This cross-unit reinforcement helps learners see meaningful connections and make long-term connections, just as knowledge works in the real world.

If your child is aiming for a degree or career in a science-related field, we strongly recommend encouraging that!  Regardless of which curriculum you use, we would urge a parent to get additional materials focused on that specific area of interest. For example, if your student is passionate about engineering, seek out books, documentaries, hands-on projects, and resources specific to that field. The same goes for biochemistry, medicine, environmental science, or any other path. If your student already knows what excites them, the best way to support their future is to feed that passion now—through deep dives, exploration, and real-world engagement… not by relying on curriculum alone.

NOTE: if your student is going into a chemistry-heavy career field, we recommend supplementing with a full-year chemistry program.  The student can simply complete the chemistry alongside their regular Campfire unit.

To a certain extent, yes. However, what matters most is context within the time frame. At Campfire, this is another area where we help students understand the bigger picture: why something happened, what led up to it, and how it connects to other events. That’s what makes history make a lasting impression. For example, our Holocaust unit doesn’t just start at WWII; we back up to WWI, because without that, the rise of Hitler doesn’t make sense. Textbooks might put things in chronological order (WWI before WWII and so on), but they can miss the most important aspects and connections that need to be made to ensure it is meaningful.

How much history do you remember from your own high school? Most people say, “Not much.” We never want that to be the answer for our students! We often bring in things others skip: actual diaries, declassified documents, and primary sources that make the past feel real.  

We also encourage a “Book of Centuries,” approach where students write down historical events into their own timeline book (you can buy them in many places). Every documentary they watch, every unit they complete… they add it to the timeline in the Book of Centuries. That way, they start to see even greater connections for themselves, like realizing the Wright brothers were testing airplanes while revolutions were happening overseas.  It shows a big picture progression from the beginning of time to present day.  It’s not just about memorizing dates or doing things in order; it’s about making history meaningful and understanding why the order matters. We are able to accomplish this with the way we write our units.

Spiral Learning
At Campfire, we introduce concepts, like “adjectives,” in one unit (leveled, for different ages), then revisit them in new ways across future units. For example, one unit might focus on speech and presentation skills while weaving in adjective use; another might explore sentence structure through note-taking, essays, or bedside communication. Sometimes it’s a deep dive into grammar.  Other times it’s applying that grammar in creative writing or real-world tasks, like writing a volcanologist’s report. This repeated exposure in different contexts helps students truly understand and use what they learn rather than just memorize it. Because topics are always revisited, you can start with any unit, in any order.
Mastery Learning
At the same time, many Campfire units are built to go deep, helping students master a single skill, like creative writing, public speaking, or adjective usage. We don’t just introduce a topic and move on; we stick with it long enough for students to feel confident. Then, that same concept reappears in future units, giving students fresh opportunities to apply what they’ve mastered. This blend of mastery and spiral learning is what makes Campfire flexible and effective.  We also believe in a “less is more” philosophy. For example, we believe students make greater progress by spending 20 focused minutes each day refining a specific skill than by filling out 60 minutes’ worth of repetitive worksheets with less effort, to check a box.  Because of this, you’ll notice we place less emphasis on repetitive drills or diagramming exercises than many traditional curricula. Instead, we focus on meaningful practice that leads to real understanding and lasting skill development

NOTE:
If your child is already behind or struggling in language arts or spelling, etc., we encourage you to supplement with another ELA-specific program for 15 – 20 minutes a day.  Utilizing the extra help alongside Campfire’s approach will ensure the student is brought up to speed much more quickly and can participate in our ELA approach.

Leveled Structure
The Growing and Advanced Guidebooks share the same main lesson content. The difference is in the sidebars—color-coded and tailored by age. Families often relate it to reading the same Bible translation, where one has deep apologetics notes and the other has gentle prompts and kid-friendly commentary on the text.  It’s the same core text, just age-adjusted insight.  Furthermore, Campfire’s Core Connections Companion has shared information among all age groups, but is then enhanced with Elementary, Middle, and High School sections.  It’s designed to move at your child’s pace. If they need more support, they can revisit the earlier level of a lesson. If they’re ready for more challenge, they can jump ahead to a higher level. This built-in flexibility means you’re never stuck on one path. You never have to purchase multiple “student workbooks” or guess where to place your student.  Students can strengthen skills when needed or stretch themselves when they’re ready, all while reinforcing both spiral and mastery learning.  In this same way, the whole family can learn together at the same time, at their own level. 

We’ve heard that from a couple people, too, but it’s almost always from someone who only looked at one unit. That’s like reading a single chapter from a textbook and believing the whole thing is incomplete. Campfire units are built like individual, in-depth chapters. When used across the year, they cover subjects thoroughly—often with more depth, relevance, and engagement than traditional textbooks. Comparing a single unit to an entire year’s curriculum isn’t just unfair, it misrepresents how Campfire is designed to work. 

Also, as we said above, we don’t follow the same structure as a traditional textbook. Textbooks try to overwhelm with volume (often leading to a retention rate of 20 – 40%).  They try to cover every possible subtopic (like every species of fungi).  On the contrary, Campfire focuses on depth, application, and interconnected learning.

NOTE: if your student is going into a chemistry-heavy career field, we recommend supplementing with a full-year chemistry program.  The student can simply complete the chemistry textbook alongside their regular Campfire unit.

This is when you can use our Unit Credit Match!  Click here to find the credit matches for SCIENCE. Click here for HISTORY/GEOGRAPHY or SOCIAL STUDIES. Click here for ELECTIVES/CTE.   Each page will tell you which units to purchase to accomplish your goals–right at a glance.

Some of our earliest units were created before Campfire had today’s full Core Connections structure. They were designed to be single subject with a mini version of Core Connections added as a courtesy.  As such, they deliver strong learning and are loved by many families.  Many parents love using these for the lighter months or single subject focus, as it still covers all of your school subjects but offers more flexibility and relaxed pace.  In newer units, you’ll see more of the integrated Core Connections depth and the clearer “all-in-one” framework. If you want to preview the current style before buying, start with our free samples.

Yes. We do not currently offer courses in subjects such as math, typing, or foreign languages. Additionally, our chemistry-focused units are still in development. Future releases will expand our offerings in these areas.

If you’re working through a unit that doesn’t include Core Connections—such as Financial Stewardship—you have two main options:

Single-Subject/Elective Use: Use the unit as a subject-specific elective. Complete your regular curriculum (such as a standard Campfire unit or any other curriculum/books of your choice), then spend about 20 minutes a day on the single-subject unit.  Alternatively, you could reserve Mondays through Thursdays for your core curriculum and use Fridays for electives.

Standalone Use: Still use the unit as a comprehensive, all-in-one curriculum by incorporating the suggested extensions within the unit itself. For example, Geography does not have a Core Connections Companion, but its built-in learning extensions allow you to cover ELA, science, history, geography, economics, and cultural exploration, etc., expanding as deeply as you would like.  You can also create your own extensions, such as, “Write an essay about…”, “Create a presentation on…”, or similar cross-subject activities, as desired.