Discovery K12 is a free, secular online homeschool curriculum platform offering 180 days of complete lessons for Pre-K through 12th grade across seven core subjects including reading, math, science, and history.
What is Discovery K12?
Discovery K12 is a free online homeschool curriculum founded by tech engineer Sheri Wells in 2013. Operating on a freemium model, it provides complete, self-paced digital lessons for students from Pre-K through 12th grade. The platform covers seven core subjects daily and serves families across all 50 states and over 75 countries. Parents function as the primary teachers while DK12 provides the structured curriculum and resources. It's worth noting that Discovery K12 is not a school and doesn't maintain official student records, so families remain responsible for their own documentation and compliance.
Key Takeaways
- Completely free core curriculum with optional $99/year Parent/Teacher Account upgrade
- Covers 7 subjects: Reading, Language Arts, Math, Science, History, Arts, and PE
- Secular and non-Common Core approach with emphasis on classic literature
- Over 20,000 lessons with videos, worksheets, quizzes, and eBooks included
- Parents maintain full responsibility for record-keeping and transcripts
What the Curriculum Includes
Discovery K12 delivers a surprisingly robust package for a free platform. You get 180 days of structured lessons across all core subjects, over 100 courses total, and access to a digital library with 100+ classic literature eBooks. The curriculum emphasizes research skills starting in first grade and introduces essay writing as early as second grade, with students completing two essays weekly tied to their reading content. Weekly spelling programs, 36 weeks of STEM projects, and supplementary courses like Spanish I, HTML Coding, and Personal Finance round out the offerings. Everything runs through a clean, web-based interface accessible on any device.
Free vs. Paid Features
Is Discovery K12 Right for Your Family?
DK12 works particularly well for budget-conscious families who want a complete, structured curriculum without religious content. The platform shines for self-motivated learners who can work independently with parental oversight. However, some parents describe it as more of an organized assignment list than a traditional textbook-based curriculum, which works great for some learning styles but may frustrate others. The writing-heavy approach and early introduction of research skills appeal to families prioritizing those competencies. Just know that success with DK12 depends heavily on parental involvement, as you're essentially using their materials to teach your own school.
The Bottom Line
Discovery K12 proves that quality homeschool curriculum doesn't have to break the bank. For families seeking a secular, comprehensive program that covers all the basics, it's hard to argue with free. The optional Parent/Teacher Account adds genuinely useful tracking and documentation features worth considering, especially for high school students building transcripts. While it requires active parental engagement and won't work for every learning style, DK12 deserves serious consideration from any family researching their curriculum options.
