Sonlight A vs BookShark A Homeschool Curriculum Comparison

When we first started with our homeschool journey, I was looking for a curriculum package that was open and go, mostly non-consumable, and filled with great books. Even though we only have two kids, I wanted to save money by reusing as many materials as possible. I very quickly narrowed it down to Sonlight and their sister company BookShark, two very popular literature-based homeschool curriculum companies. In order to better understand the differences between the two product lines, I compared the book lists of the level I was considering.

I first posted this curriculum comparison on my blog 6 years ago, updated it a few times, and it still gets many visitors every day. The following comparison of Sonlight’s History, Literature and Bible A, BookShark’s Reading with History A, and their corresponding science programs is current as of April 2021, according to information on their websites.

The big change this year is that both companies completely revamped their science programs for their lower levels. BookShark switched around some books between different science levels which has resulted in the level names being a bit skewed compared to Sonlight. Even though their history and language arts programs are called level A, BookShark’s level B science is the book list that lines up with Sonlight’s level A science. In this level, Sonlight added 10 new read aloud books.

This post may contain affiliate links. See my disclosure.

Sonlight vs BookShark Homeschool Curriculum

Some people describe BookShark as a secularized version of Sonlight, but it isn’t that straight forward. Some people think BookShark is simply Sonlight’s 4 day program without the religious books. Comparing their book lists shows that that’s not the case either.

Sonlight offers this level as either a 5 or a 4 day a week package. BookShark’s program is a 4 day program. The 5 day Sonlight program has the most books in each category, so I’ll show which of those books are missing from the 4 day Sonlight program and/or BookShark’s program. I’ll also note any books added to BookShark that aren’t found in Sonlight. All pictures are of the BookShark materials from 2014, which I own.

History Books

Wild Places – not in Sonlight 4 day
Game on in Ancient Greece – not in BookShark
The Good News Must Go Out – not in BookShark, religious
Return of the White Book – not in BookShark, religious
Mary on Horseback – listed as History for BookShark but as a read aloud for both Sonlight programs
Johnny Appleseed: The Story of a Legend – listed as History for BookShark but as a read aloud for both Sonlight programs
The Story of Exploration – only in BookShark

Read Aloud Books

In previous years, there hasn’t been a huge difference in read aloud books. Sonlight introduced a new lower level last year and 10 new read aloud books this year. This has resulted in quite a few differences in the read aloud book lists for these levels.

The Apple and the Arrow – not Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
In Grandma’s Attic – not in BookShark, religious
The Family Under the Bridge – not in BookShark
Mary on Horseback – listed in History for BookShark
Johnny Appleseed: The Story of a Legend – listed in History for BookShark
Adventures with Waffles – not in BookShark
The Ordinary Princess – not in BookShark
The Berenstain Bears Dollars and Sense – not in BookShark
Sled Dog School – not in BookShark
Cool Beans – not in BookShark
Book Uncle and Me – not in BookShark
The Bill Martin Jr Big Book of Poetry – not in BookShark
Mrs. Piggle Wiggle – not in BookShark
Astrid the Unstoppable – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
The Kitchen Madonna – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
The Story of Dr. Doolittle – only in BookShark
The House on Pooh Corner – only in BookShark
Little House in the Big Woods – only in BookShark
Beezus and Romona – only in BookShark
The Arnold Lobel Book of Mother Goose – only in BookShark
The Llama Who Had No Pajama – only in BookShark
Richard Scarry’s Please and Thank You Book – only in BookShark
My Father’s Dragon – only in BookShark
Dolphin Adventure – only in BookShark
Dolphin Treasure – only in BookShark
A Grain of Rice – only in BookShark
The Boxcar Children – only in BookShark
James Herriot’s Treasury for Children – only in BookShark

BookShark 1st grade readers

Readers Books

Sonlight and BookShark offer 4 different levels for the readers in these programs. Level K is the same for each program. As mentioned above, the recent changes with Sonlight’s new level created quite a few changes with the readers. Many of the same books are offered by the two companies but in different levels.

1st Grade Readers

Little Bear – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
A Fly Went By – not in BookShark
The Bravest Dog Ever – not in Sonlight 4 day

2nd Grade Readers

Hill of Fire – not in Sonlight 4 day
Wagon Wheels – not in Sonlight 4 day
The Big Balloon Race – not in Sonlight 4 day
The Beginner’s Bible – not in BookShark, religious
Daniel’s Duck – not in Sonlight 4 day
The Fire Cat – not in Sonlight 4 day
Surprises – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
Riding the Pony Express – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader
The Sword in the Tree – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
Third Grade Detectives #1 and #2 – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader
Prairie School – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader
The Long Way Westward – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader
The Long Way to a New Land – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader
Clara and the Bookwagon – only in BookShark, listed as Sonlight 3rd grade reader

3rd Grade Readers

BookShark doesn’t offer this level of readers as a customization option for this level of History package on their website. However, you may be able to call them if this is what you need.

Prairie School – listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
The Long Way Westward – listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
The Long Way to a New Land – listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
Clara and the Bookwagon -listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
Keep the Lights Burning, Abbie – not in BookShark
Third Grade Detectives #1 and #2 – listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
Tippy Lemmey – not in Sonlight 4 day
Third Grade Detectives #10 – not in Sonlight 4 day
Tornado – not in Sonlight 4 day
Third Grade Detectives #4 – not in Sonlight 4 day
A Question of Yams – not in BookShark
Riding the Pony Express – listed as BookShark 2nd grade reader
Lumber Camp Library – only in BookShark
Encyclopedia Brown– only in BookShark
Marco Polo – only in BookShark

BookShark Science level A

Science Books

Again, both companies made major changes to their science programs for younger kids. BookShark also moved books between levels. BookShark Science B now lines up with Sonlight Science A. It will be interesting to see if they get back on the same track in the future.

Hooray for Inventors – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark
What Do People Eat? – not in Sonlight 4 day or BookShark

So, there you have it! As you can see, the differences between the three programs are not simple enough that we can make broad generalizations. Taking a close look at the book lists helps to see how these programs differ. No matter which option you choose, you can use this comparison post to find other fun books that you may want to add to your bookshelf!

Sonlight B vs BookShark B Curriculum Comparison

Sonlight C vs BookShark C Curriculum Comparison

Sonlight D vs Bookshark D Curriculum Comparison

Sonlight E vs BookShark E Curriculum Comparison

Our 1st Grade Homeschool Curriculum Lineup 2018-2019

4th Grade Homeschool Curriculum Lineup

2nd Grade Homeschool Curriculum Lineup