South African Homeschool Curriculum

Welcome to our complete list of Footprints South African homeschool curriculum programmes in English, designed by us, Wendy and Shirley, two experienced homeschooling moms, to simplify and put joy into your home education journey.

Click here to view our products in Afrikaans.

Our literature-based unit studies feature homegrown stories and local heritage that inspire a love for learning, while building strong family bonds and meeting age-appropriate academic requirements.

Our curriculum packages are created for flexible, multi-level learning, so you can easily use a single package with children of varying ages within the target age group. Best of all, they are non-consumable. You buy the package once and you can use it with multiple children at the same time, or save it to re-use with younger siblings later on.

Footprints Products in English

Explore more information about our core packages in English below, organised by age groups, to find the perfect fit for your family. The links in the table below will take you to each product’s sales page, where you can read a full description and download sample pages.

Footprints CurriculumTarget Age / Phase
Barefoot Days Volumes 1-3 Ages 4–8, Preschool / Foundation Phase
Little Footprints – South Africa in StoriesAges 4–8 Preschool / Foundation Phase
Footprints – The Early Years Ages 8–14 Intermediate / Senior Phase
Footprints – The Last Century Ages 10–16 Intermediate / Senior Phase
Footprints Nature Quest Ages 8–16
Robben Island

Ready to Order? Select the Products in our Online Shop Below

Ages 4-8 Years, Preschool/Foundation Phase

For children aged 4–8, we offer two story-based, Charlotte Mason-inspired programmes: Little Footprints and Barefoot Days Volumes 1-3 (with its Afrikaans twin, Kaalvoetpret). These gentle unit studies use beautiful story books to explore a variety of child-friendly themes. While our main goal was simply to foster a love for learning, they naturally align with the national Life Skills requirements for the Foundation Phase. You can read more about Barefoot Days and CAPS.

Beyond the lessons, these programmes serve as a practical mentor manual, or “Mommy manual” as one of our customers described them, packed with the collective wisdom we have gained from over 20 years of home educating our own ten children.

Recommended products

Ages 8-16 Years, Intermediate/Senior Phase

Footprints – The Early Years and Footprints – The Last Century (with their Afrikaans counterparts, Voetspore 1 and Voetspore 2) turn South African history into a captivating adventure through engaging, living storybooks. Instead of memorising dates and isolated facts, your children experience our nation’s colourful past through the eyes of characters who lived it.

To round out your natural science studies, Footprints Nature Quest invites learners to explore South Africa’s unique ecosystems, flora and fauna.

Instead of juggling different programmes for every child, these multi-level unit studies make it easy to gather your children together to learn as a family, helping you weave subjects together naturally while inspiring a lifelong love for our local heritage.

Together these three curriculum products comply with the prescribed content of the Curriculum and Assessment Policy Statement (CAPS) for Social Sciences and Home Language. You can read more detail at Footprints en CAPS and Footprints Language Arts and CAPS.

Recommended products

Rooted in South Africa, Built for Our Children

In 2002, after homeschooling our own children for about six years, using excellent imported materials, we found that their knowledge of their own heritage and environment was lacking and so Footprints on Our Land was created to fill the need for a homegrown South African homeschool curriculum.

Our vision was to create a South African homeschool curriculum that would help our children become proud citizens of South Africa, that would help them to understand and appreciate the good in our country as well as its problems, and that would encourage them to play a role in building a bright future for our nation. We wanted our children to learn about their unique family and cultural heritage, as well as discover and respect the rich backgrounds of others across our diverse nation.

Since then, we’ve created a series of ten different Charlotte Mason-style, literature-based South African homeschool curriculum packages for various age groups, in both English and Afrikaans.

A Solution to the Stress and Struggles of Homeschooling

Are you burning out trying to keep up with the demands of a school-at-home programme?
Are you exhausted by children staring at online schooling screens all day, while the joy drains out of your homeschool?

87% of homeschoolers are stressed, only 13% are flourishing

A South African homeschool consultant reported that 87% of the 8 000 families she has counselled are trying to replicate school at home and are suffering from frustration, boredom and burn-out. The other 13% have found more creative ways to educate their children and are having a significant impact on their communities.

Our Footprints programmes allow you to be part of that 13% who are truly enjoying their homeschooling experience. Instead of dry textbooks, endless worksheets or hours spent glued to online schooling screens, our literature-based unit studies use rich, captivating storybooks. You read together, discuss big ideas and explore South African heritage naturally, without the stress of traditional classrooms or digital burnout.

“Lekker” Local Literature

By using our comprehensive teacher guides, we lead you into delight-directed learning that is tailor-made for home education.
Instead of stories about bears, baseball and snow at Christmas, your children will enjoy literature that has a local flavour. You’ll learn about biltong, baobabs and “Bokke”, exploring our own rich heritage right from your sunny South African living room.

In contrast with many curriculum suppliers, we are two homeschooling moms who know the real-life ups and downs of managing a home education. Between our two families, we have raised ten children, so we understand the many hats you wear as a spouse, mother, home organiser, driver and teacher.

That is why Footprints programmes are built to save you time and energy, simplify your life, build your confidence and restore peace to your home.

Watch this 4-minute overview of some of our South African Homeschool Resources

“You cannot go wrong. My boys LOVE the stories. And you can research the topics as much as you want. There are no time limits, you work at your own pace… It’s very hands-on… definitely our favourite part of our homeschool day.”
~ Candice S.

The Benefits of a Footprints Curriculum

1. Children Fall in Love with Stories

Our clients tell us repeatedly how much their children love the stories in our South African homeschool curriculum. Unlike dry textbooks that present factual snippets in an uninteresting way, our historical fiction, biographies and reference books bring history to life. Instead of just memorising facts about figures like Jan van Riebeeck, Shaka Zulu or Nelson Mandela, your children get to know them through the eyes of characters who lived alongside them. What an exciting way to learn!

“I am so THRILLED to see my son excited about BOOKS.”
~Colleen, Komga, Eastern Cape

2. Family Bonds and Sibling Relationships Flourish

Footprints keeps moms calm and promotes strong sibling relationships through multi-level learning. Children of various ages can learn together from the same story and core lessons. This simplifies your daily routine and keeps your family learning as a unit, rather than juggling multiple individual grade-level curriculums.

3. Saves You Money, Time and Frustration

All the preparation, planning, and sourcing of relevant books has been done for you, so you will have everything you need when you need it. You will not need to dash around gathering obscure supplies from the library, pharmacy or craft store. Our lessons rely on rich literature and everyday household items you can easily grab on your regular supermarket run.

4. Fast, Local Shipping

No more waiting months for your homeschool packages to be shipped from overseas. We are based locally, so your parcel arrives quickly and without international shipping hassle, though we do ship abroad on request for South African expat families too!

5. Simple Pricing in South African Rands

You pay directly in South African Rands. You do not have to worry about fluctuating exchange rates, dollar conversions, or hidden international transaction fees.

6. Ongoing Personal Support for Moms

We do not just ship you a box of books and leave you to figure it out alone. When you order your Footprints package, you get access to our online Footprints community. As moms who have homeschooled for over two decades, we are always available to offer advice, practical tips, new ideas and encouragement whenever you need a helping hand. We invite customers to our Footprints Whatsapp and the private Footprints Facebook groups to offer this after-sales support. Here you can also meet other Footprints families and be a part of the online Footprints community.

Since we first launched our South African homeschool curriculum series in 2003, we have served hundreds of families and our reputation as a supplier of uniquely South African resources is growing. By 2005, we had expatriate South African families in over 15 countries abroad using our various products and we have now lost count and stopped counting countries!

“It has been a special journey for us as a family as it has been the start of our homeschooling journey as well. I have to share with you something which I have been aware of ever since we started with Footprints which was October last year.

Life IS sometimes stressed and pressurized, but I was always aware, whenever I bent down to find the Footprints manual and the current book we were busy with, of a strange feeling of peace. Maybe it was due to the relief that we would now all be working with material that we all enjoy and derive pleasure from.

I like to think that it is also due to the prayer that has gone into the Footprints program and the fact that you both walk closely with God. It has been a special experience; the heroes and heroines and families have become our friends; we identified very strongly with many of them.”
~ Pam, Sedgefield

South African Educational Board Games

South African History Lapbooks

Have questions before you order?

Choosing the right homeschool path doesn’t have to be overwhelming. Get in touch with us for personal guidance on selecting the best South African homeschool curriculum package for your children.

We know that no one chooses home education because it’s easy, but rather because we believe that it’s worth the investment of time and energy into shaping our children’s lives.

If you could use a little reassurance, perspective, and peace in your inbox, sign up today, because sometimes, the smallest words of encouragement are exactly what keep us going.

Join the Footprints community and get your Nurture Nuggets today, packed with tips and advice from moms with over 25 years of home education experience.
Sign up today, so you don’t miss the next issue.