Exploring Government (Notgrass)

Exploring Government is a one-semester high school course from Notgrass History. The publisher lists its subjects as U.S. Government and English and says the course teaches how federal, state, and local governments work and explores contemporary issues, with special emphasis on the Biblical basis for government and on the U.S. Constitution. The course consists of a lesson and assignment book, a companion volume of readings titled We Hold These Truths, and four assigned books by or about American political figures.

Last updated: 2026-10-06 · Every Homeschool Editorial Team

At a glance

Method	Lesson book with daily assignments, primary-source readings, assigned literature, and a weekly project
Worldview	Christian; the publisher says the course is taught from a Christian worldview and that it has no formal statement of faith and no denominational bias or agenda
Grades	High school; the publisher says the course can be used in 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade
Formats	Books: the lesson book and We Hold These Truths, a Student Review Pack, and a Literature Package
Cost tier	Standard
Parent intensity	3 (the publisher says the student can read the lessons and follow the instructions independently and that parents can be involved as much or as little as they wish)
ESA-common	The publisher's state funding page lists ordering instructions for programs in 15 states
Publication history	Exploring Government first published in 2006; current 4th edition 2023; Notgrass History's About page gives 1999 as the year it began developing curriculum
Website	notgrass.com

Our scoreboard (1-5)

Criterion	Score	One-line reason
Academic rigor	4	The course description lists a thorough study of the U.S. Constitution and a significant number of original source documents and essays
Ease of teaching	4	Instructions and assignments are in the lesson book, and the publisher says a focused high school student can direct his or her own study
Content quality	4	The anthology includes selections ranging from the Twelve Tables of Roman Law (c. 451 bc) to essays dated 2023; the lessons cover federal, state, and local government
Flexibility	4	Each Notgrass course stands on its own; the English component can be dropped and assigned books substituted
Value for money	4	Curriculum Package $70.00; Bundle with review pack and literature $155.00 (shop prices, October 5, 2026)
Worldview scope	2	Taught from a Christian worldview, with special emphasis on the Biblical basis for government
Visual/design	3	The publisher describes its curriculum as including full-color photographs and illustrations; the 4th edition adds many new photographs, illustrations, and charts
Support resources	3	Guide for Parents and Answer Key and downloadable checklist, grading chart, and project ideas; a video walkthrough; phone and email contact

Who the publisher is

Notgrass History states that it exists to glorify God by producing materials centered in His Word that help parents train their children to honor God with heart, soul, and mind, per its About page. The same page gives 1999 as the year it began developing homeschool curriculum, and describes Ray Notgrass as the president of the publishing company and a lead curriculum author, and Charlene Notgrass as overseeing curriculum development and a lead curriculum author. The course description page credits the Exploring Government text to Ray Notgrass, and the video walkthrough page names him as its author.

Notgrass lists five high school courses. Per its FAQ on course order, Exploring World History, Exploring America, and Exploring World Geography are year-long courses, while Exploring Government and Exploring Economics are half-year courses. The same page says each course includes a volume of original sources, a Student Review Book, a Quiz and Exam Book, and a Guide for Parents and Answer Key. Per the credits FAQ, Exploring Government provides one half-year of government and one half-year of English.

On faith, Notgrass says all of its curriculum is written from a clearly Christian perspective. Its statement of faith FAQ says the company has no formal statement of faith and promotes no particular creed or confession, believes in the inspiration and authority of the Bible, has no denominational bias or agenda, and generally quotes the New American Standard Bible. For Exploring Government, the course page describes the curriculum as Biblically grounded.

The core pedagogy

Per the course page, Exploring Government has 75 lessons in 15 units of five lessons each, designed to be completed in one semester at one lesson per day for 75 days. Each lesson lists its assignments, and each unit opens with an introduction page that gives an overview of the unit, the lessons in it, and a suggested project. The U.S. government credit involves reading the lessons, reading the primary source documents in We Hold These Truths, and completing hands-on projects; the English credit involves several writing assignments and the assigned literature.

The course description lists the following topics: Biblical teachings about government and leadership, definitions and historical examples of different forms of government, the background to the American constitutional system, a study of the U.S. Constitution and the workings of the federal government today, state and local government, the revenue and budgeting process, international relations, specific issues government faces today, and ways the individual citizen can be involved. The publisher's scope and sequence PDF outlines thirteen topics, from the Biblical basis of government through Congress, the president and executive departments, the Supreme Court, amendments, state and local government, taxes and spending, and international relations to contemporary issues (economics, immigration, health care, education, and abortion) and citizenship.

Signature mechanics: (1) A lesson book that carries its own instructions. Per the publisher's FAQ, each lesson includes the text to read and the assignments for that day. (2) Primary-source readings in We Hold These Truths. The anthology's introduction says it includes ancient, medieval, and American colonial documents; foundational documents of American government; letters, speeches, and opinions by political figures; and modern essays and commentaries on government, with each reading assigned at the end of the appropriate lesson. (3) Assigned literature. The literature FAQ lists four books by unit: Mornings on Horseback by David McCullough (Units 1-4), The Autobiography of Calvin Coolidge (Units 5-6), Born Again by Charles Colson (Units 7-11), and God and Ronald Reagan by Paul Kengor (Units 12-15). The course description calls these two biographies and two autobiographies or memoirs of American political figures. (4) A weekly project. The course description says the student completes a project each week, either an essay or another creative project related to the study of government.

How a week runs

The publisher says what the student is to do each week and each day is outlined in the lessons, and that the student can read the daily lessons and follow the instructions independently, with parent involvement as much or as little as desired (course page). For the writing assignments, the publisher gives a target of two to three pages of typed, double-spaced text (500-750 words) for most of the writing assignments in its high school courses.

The Student Review Pack contains lesson review questions and literary analysis, a Quiz and Exam Book with weekly quizzes and three government exams, and a Guide for Parents and Answer Key with grading suggestions, notes on the literature, and answers (course page). The publisher says the high school Student Review books have no space for written answers, so students answer on separate paper. On testing, the publisher's FAQ says quizzes and tests should not be the only graded component and that families may use the test questions as conversation starters or writing prompts, or give open-book tests.

What they do exceptionally well

Primary sources assigned alongside the lessons. The anthology's table of contents lists the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, The Federalist Number 2 by John Jay, the Constitution of the United States, Magna Carta, the English Bill of Rights, and Supreme Court cases including McCulloch v. Maryland (1819), Wesberry v. Sanders (1964), and Kelo v. New London (2005), alongside speeches, letters, and modern essays. The introduction says the collection is meant to give access to significant original documents and to other people's opinions and ideas so the reader can develop informed thinking about government.

A self-contained structure. The publisher describes the course as open-and-go with minimal parent prep, usable with one child or several, with instructions inside the lesson book (course page).

Scope beyond the federal level. The publisher's course description includes state and local government, the revenue and budgeting process, international relations, and ways individual citizens can take part in government.

An optional English half-credit. Used as written, the course carries one half-year of English (literature and composition). The publisher says the English component can be dropped for families that already have an English curriculum, and that another book can be substituted for any assigned title.

What they do poorly

Faith is part of the course design. The publisher says the course is taught from a Christian worldview and places special emphasis on the Biblical basis for government. Notgrass has also stated that it has been encouraged to produce versions of its curriculum without the strong Bible emphasis for public schools and has not done so (standards FAQ).

Perspective of the readings. The anthology's introduction says several entries come from Imprimis, the monthly speech journal of Hillsdale College, which it describes as presenting conservative thinking. The publisher's Look Inside page links the anthology's table of contents for families who want to review the selections before ordering.

Not designated AP or honors. The publisher says its courses are not officially designated as honors or AP courses, though not necessarily incompatible with those designations, and that it did not design the curriculum to align with the College Board AP standards. The honors and AP FAQ also says Notgrass has received reports from parents whose students did well on AP exams after using its curriculum. Families aiming at the AP U.S. Government and Politics exam should confirm the exam's requirements with the College Board, as the publisher advises.

Court cases in the anthology. The anthology's table of contents names three Supreme Court cases: McCulloch v. Maryland, Wesberry v. Sanders, and Kelo v. New London. The scope outline lists the Supreme Court as a topic, and the 4th edition's description says it added lessons related to decisions of the Supreme Court.

Who it fits / who it doesn't

• Pick Exploring Government if: the family wants a one-semester U.S. government course taught from a Christian worldview with emphasis on the Biblical basis for government and on the U.S. Constitution; wants a lesson book that carries its own daily instructions; wants primary-source readings assigned alongside the lessons; wants the option of an English half-credit built from four assigned biographies and memoirs; or is teaching more than one student with the same course.

• Skip Exploring Government if: the family wants a course that is not taught from a Christian worldview, or wants a course officially designated AP or honors.

Cost honest assessment

Per the Notgrass shop as of October 5, 2026, the Exploring Government Curriculum Package (the lesson book and We Hold These Truths) is $70.00. The Student Review Pack is $15.00, and the Literature Package of four books is $75.00. The Exploring Government Bundle, which the publisher recommends and which combines the three, is $155.00. The bundle page says all items are available individually. Prices change; check the product pages before ordering.

The Curriculum Package page says the package does not include review or test material or the recommended literature, so a family may want the Student Review Pack and the Literature Package. The publisher says families that already have an English curriculum can drop the English component. Students write in the Quiz and Exam Book, and the course page says extra copies can be bought as needed when more than one student uses the course.

ESA eligibility notes

Notgrass's state funding page lists ordering instructions for programs in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming, and says the company takes no position for or against the existence of these programs. The state pages differ. The Arizona page says Notgrass is a registered vendor with orders placed through a separate ClassWallet store, the Florida page says orders are placed through the Step Up for Students website, the Utah page says orders go through the Odyssey Parent Portal Marketplace, and the West Virginia page directs families to a browser extension called TheoPay. The Idaho page says that program is closed to new applications. Because each program sets its own approved-purchase rules, ESA-funded families should confirm with their state program before ordering.

Alternatives

• Hillsdale College Constitution 101 / American Heritage (free online), a family would choose Hillsdale's free online courses over Notgrass for lecture-based instruction from university faculty and no purchase cost, though without a printed textbook structure.
• BJU Press American Government, a family would choose BJU over Notgrass for a more conventionally structured textbook-and-teacher-edition format with video instruction available through the BJU Press Online platform.
• iCivics (free) or Thinkwell American Government, a family would choose iCivics or Thinkwell over Notgrass for secular government instruction without religious integration, suitable for families wanting a tradition-neutral civic education.