How to choose K–5 workbooks and curriculum: a friendly guide
There has never been more choice for teaching kindergarten to grade 5, whether you homeschool, want extra practice after school, plan summer learning, teach a class or tutor. That's good news, and it can also feel like a lot. Search for "the best curriculum" and you'll find a hundred opinions, each sure of itself.
Here's ours: there is no single best workbook. There are many good publishers, each one does something well, and the right choice is the one that fits your student, your budget and your home. To help, we put ten of them side by side, with every figure linked to its source, on our workbook comparison page. This post walks through how to use it.
Start with six questions
1. What language does your family learn in? If you speak Spanish or Portuguese at home, or want your student to keep up in two languages, that narrows the field quickly. Most K–5 publishers work in English only. A few offer some books in Spanish, and UpOnly offers every subject in English, Spanish and Portuguese.
2. One subject, or all of them? Some publishers focus on one subject and go deep. Math Mammoth and Singapore Math are both math programs that many families love. Others, such as Spectrum, The Good and the Beautiful, BJU Press and UpOnly, cover several subjects so you can teach a whole grade from one place.
3. Print at home, or a printed book? Printable PDFs arrive the moment you buy them and can be printed again for extra practice or a younger sibling. Printed books and kits come ready to use, and some families prefer not to print at all. Timberdoodle goes furthest, shipping a whole year of books, games and hands-on materials in one box.
4. A full program, or extra practice? A full-year program teaches every lesson in order. A practice workbook is shorter and sits alongside whatever you're already using. Kumon and Evan-Moor are known for short daily practice; full programs like Math Mammoth or The Good and the Beautiful run around 400 pages per grade for math.
5. Do you want answer keys included? Some publishers put the answers in every book. Others sell them separately or put them in a teacher's edition. Neither is wrong, but it changes what you buy.
6. What's your budget for the year? The range is wide: from free PDFs (The Good and the Beautiful offers its language arts and math courses free) and $2 workbooks from K5 Learning, to complete grade kits that cost several hundred dollars.
What each publisher does best
We wrote a short, generous summary of each publisher on the comparison page. In one line each:
- BJU Press: complete, Bible-integrated courses with teacher editions and video options.
- Evan-Moor: focused daily practice, skill by skill, plus financial literacy and social-emotional books.
- K5 Learning: low-cost PDF workbooks with answers, for practice on one skill.
- Kumon: short, step-by-step practice that builds speed and accuracy.
- Math Mammoth: thorough, mastery-based math with answer keys included.
- Singapore Math: the concrete-to-pictorial-to-abstract approach to number sense.
- Spectrum: affordable, widely available grade-level workbooks.
- The Good and the Beautiful: beautifully designed courses, with free PDFs of language arts and math.
- Timberdoodle: hands-on grade kits with everything chosen for you.
Where UpOnly fits
We made UpOnly for families and teachers who want printable workbooks in every subject, in more than one language. Each grade has eight subjects: math, reading, English and writing, science, history, life skills, entrepreneurship and psychology for kids. Every book comes in English, Spanish and Portuguese, with an answer key and a free sample to try first. We also have interactive flashcards for times tables and division that read every card aloud.
That makes UpOnly a good fit for bilingual and English-learner families, for parents adding practice after school, for summer learning with our Prepare books, and for teachers and tutors who need ready-to-teach lessons. It isn't the only good choice, and many families combine us with another publisher.
Mix and match
You don't have to choose just one. A few combinations parents tell us work well:
- A full-year math program, plus UpOnly for science, history and life skills.
- Short daily practice books for fluency, alongside a full curriculum.
- An English curriculum at home, plus UpOnly's Spanish or Portuguese editions so a student keeps up in both languages.
See everything side by side
The full comparison table covers subjects, grades, languages, printable options, answer keys, free samples, flashcards, page counts and prices, with every source listed. It's our opinion, based on our team's research of public information, and we update it when publishers change their products. If you spot something out of date, email support@uponlylearning.com.
Whatever you choose, the best curriculum is the one your student actually works through, a little every day.
Common questions
What is the best workbook or curriculum for elementary school?
There isn't one best choice for every student. The right fit depends on whether you want a full program or extra practice, one subject or all of them, print or printable, your budget, and the language your family learns in. Our comparison page puts ten publishers side by side so you can decide.
How does Math Mammoth compare with Singapore Math?
Both are well-loved math programs. Math Mammoth is mastery-based and sold as a PDF for $42.50 a grade or in print, with answer keys included. Singapore Math teaches through objects, then pictures, then numbers, and is sold as printed sets, such as Dimensions Math Grade 3 for $152. Many families choose by teaching style and budget.
What's the difference between Spectrum and Evan-Moor?
Both are published by Carson Dellosa. Spectrum workbooks are grade-level practice books across many subjects, about $10 to $15 each. Evan-Moor focuses on short daily practice, with answers usually in a separate teacher's edition.
Is there a bilingual Spanish and English curriculum for K–5?
UpOnly offers every subject from kindergarten to grade 5 in English, Spanish and Portuguese. Math Mammoth and Kumon offer some books in Spanish, and BJU Press offers a course that teaches Spanish as a language.
Can I use more than one publisher?
Yes, and many families do: one publisher for math, another for reading or science, or the same lessons in a second language. Use whatever helps your student most.