Ochorus for homeschool families
A free library of Christian classics for your homeschool
Living books from twenty centuries of the church, free to read on any device. Bunyan, Augustine, Müller, Hudson Taylor and George MacDonald, with many classics retold in editions for children and for teens.
- books
- 295
- sermons
- 251
- reading plans
- 36
- languages
- 10
One story, three reading levels
Many classics come as a children’s edition, a teens edition and the full text, so readers of every age can read the same book, and a child can grow into the original.
For children
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The Pilgrim's ProgressJohn Bunyan12 chapters · 16 min readFor teens
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The Pilgrim’s ProgressJohn Bunyan12 chapters · 44 min readThe original
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The Pilgrim's ProgressFrom This World to That Which Is to ComeThe Pilgrim's ProgressJohn Bunyan22 chapters · 9 hr 7 min read
For children
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The Life of TrustGeorge Müller12 chapters · 16 min readFor teens
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The Life of TrustGeorge Müller12 chapters · 38 min readThe original
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The Life of TrustThe Lord's Dealings with George MüllerThe Life of TrustGeorge Müller28 chapters · 12 hr 59 min read
Printable leader’s guides
A week-by-week guide to each of these books for children and teens: a summary for the leader, a memory verse, questions with their answers and an activity, one chapter a week. Print it, or lead from the screen.
Plans to read together
One short reading a day. Start on the same day and everyone reaches the same chapter together, each reader ticking off their own progress as they go.
Family Devotions: The Pilgrim’s Journey
24 days·~1 min/dayFive-minute family devotions for children and the grown-ups who read with them, about three and a half weeks of nights. Read one short chapter aloud: first Bunyan’s pilgrim on the road to the Celestial City, then Spurgeon’s pictures from the farm. Each ends with a prayer and three questions to talk about together.
Day 1 ·The Pilgrim's Progress (For Children)
Family Devotions: Heroes Who Trusted God
36 days·~1 min/dayFive weeks of five-minute family devotions: true stories of three people who trusted God for everything, read aloud one short chapter a night — George Müller and his orphans, Hudson Taylor on his way to China, and Amanda Smith, born into slavery, who prayed for a pair of shoes. Each ends with a prayer and three questions to talk about together.
Day 1 ·The Life of Trust (For Children)
Family Devotions: Brave and Faithful
36 days·~2 min/dayFive weeks of five-minute family devotions: the true stories of three brave women, read aloud one short chapter a night — Mary Slessor, the Scottish mill girl who rescued twin babies in Nigeria; Pandita Ramabai, who built a home for India’s widows and girls; and Corrie ten Boom, who hid Jewish neighbours in the war and learned to forgive. Each ends with a prayer and three questions to talk about together.
Day 1 ·Mary Slessor (For Children)
Start a reading group
Choose a plan and the day you begin, then pass on the link. Everyone who opens it is on the same day of the plan. Nobody needs an account, and nothing about anyone is collected.
Why homeschool families use Ochorus
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A free living-books shelf
Classic Christian books for history, literature, biography and Bible. No curriculum fees and no subscriptions, for one family or a whole co-op.
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The same story at every level
Many classics come in a children’s edition, a teens edition and the full original. Brothers and sisters can read the same story together, each at their own level.
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A schedule already made
Reading plans set out one short reading a day, including five-minute family devotions. The notebook keeps highlights and notes, and prints.
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Read-aloud built in
Any chapter can be read aloud with Listen: for read-aloud time, for a young reader following the words, or in the car.
Good places to start
Read-alouds for little ones
Stories to share at the kitchen table or at bedtime.
Middle and high school
The teens editions, and the classics older students are ready for.
Living books for history
Read the history of the church from the people who made it.
“How precious it is, even for this life, to act according to the word of God!”
Ways to use it in your homeschool
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Church history from the sources
Read Augustine’s Confessions, Athanasius’ On the Incarnation and Foxe’s Book of Martyrs alongside your history lessons, with the author biographies for background.
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Missionary biographies
True stories of George Müller, Hudson Taylor, Mary Slessor and Samuel Ajayi Crowther, many retold for children and teens.
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Co-op book clubs
Every family can read the same book at no cost. Share one link and meet to talk it over.
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Morning time
Open the day with a family devotions plan or a reading from Spurgeon’s Morning by Morning.
Meet the writers
The lives behind the books: each one has a full biography, with the books and sermons they left.
Pass it on
A message ready for a bulletin, a group chat or an email. Copy it as it is, or make it your own.
Questions
Is Ochorus really free?
Yes. Every book and sermon on Ochorus is free to read, with no paywall, no subscription and no ads. The classics themselves are in the public domain, and Ochorus is a ministry, not a business.
What ages is Ochorus for?
All of them. The children’s editions are written for younger readers and for reading aloud together, the teens editions for older children, and the full originals for older students and parents.
Are the children’s editions faithful to the originals?
Each young-reader edition retells the classic in simpler words, keeping its story and its message. Every edition’s page links to the others, so a reader can move up to the teens edition and the full text when they are ready.
Can we read without an internet connection?
Yes. Use Download on a book’s page to save it for reading offline, and some books can also be downloaded as free PDF and EPUB files.
Can our co-op or association share Ochorus with families?
Please do. Link to this page or to any book, plan or writer. If you would like to talk about using Ochorus with a larger group, contact us.
Start this term’s reading
Browse the editions for young readers, or pick a reading plan to work through together.