How to Buy Used Homeschool Curriculum

October 12, 2012 by

Homeschooling curriculum can be expensive, how can we homeschoolers save money on curriculum? Buying used materials can be a great way to save money on books.

Before you go searching for your curriculum, do some research, know what you want ahead of time. You also need to determine which editions you will use. Publishers may have come out with a new edition for your curriculum and now publish a new teacher’s manual. Older copies will often sell for less, at least they should. If you are purchasing a curriculum, it is best to make sure that the seller has the whole package including the teacher’s manual or that it can be easily found.

Check with your local homeschool groups, they may hold annual used book sales, or there may have an email group where you can list things for sale or to buy. [Read more...]

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Homeschool Kindergarten Curriculum

September 8, 2012 by

Kindergarten can be both exciting and scary as you realize that you will be the one who is primarily responsible for your child’s education. What should you teach your child in kindergarten?

I think the focus of kindergarten should be learning to read, letter formation, and math. Anything else that you want to add is great but the focus should be getting your child to read, writing and math. If your child can read, this will allow them to do everything else so much better. By learning to read and write, these skills will then be transferred to science or history later on. It doesn’t mean, you don’t do any science, you can of course do as you please, but I think the focus should be on the basics. [Read more...]

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Language Curriculum – How to Find the Best one

September 5, 2012 by

What language will you be studying in your homeschool this year? French, Spanish or Latin perhaps.

Languages are a great way to expand your child’s knowledge and give them a sense of global awareness. It exposes them to other cultures and if they continue on to be fluent speakers, it can open up more job opportunities in the future.

Younger children can learn other languages more easily if they are exposed to it earlier. Read stories, listen to songs, and watch DVDs in those other languages to expose them to it. Children don’t necessarily need to do book work in order to learn another language, particularly if you are only interested in learning to speak another language. [Read more...]

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Homeschool History Curriculum

September 1, 2012 by

Are you looking for a great homeschool history curriculum? What do you need to consider first?

Do you need a Christian or secular program? This should be the first question you ask yourself when you are looking for a history curriculum.

What time period will you be studying? Do you want to focus on Canadian or U.S. history? If you will be homeschooling indefinitely, you can determine what you would like to study and plan ahead, if you will be homeschooling for a short term, it would probably be best to stick to your country’s history first. [Read more...]

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Language Arts Curriculum – Literature

August 28, 2012 by

Do you need a great reading or literature curriculum? Do you really need one?

When I say literature or reading curriculum, I don’t mean teaching reading as in phonics, what I’m referring to are reading or study guides to test comprehension and promote discussion.

In public schools, children are often asked to complete book reports to let teachers know that they have in fact read the book. As a parent, you will definitely know whether or not your child has read the book or not. What about comprehension? How about having the child complete an oral narration? [Read more...]

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Language Arts Curriculum – Spelling and Vocabulary

August 24, 2012 by

Are you looking for the best way to teach spelling and vocabulary? What is curriculum is available to your students?

How would you like to teach your children spelling and vocabulary? There are several ways to teach using either workbooks, lists, or dictation.

Once I child is reading well, I like to focus on spelling, I don’t think it is worth doing very much beforehand. If your child is reading well, they can focus on how to spell rather than figuring out how to read it and then spell it which can be quite tough. [Read more...]

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Language Arts Curriculum – Grammar

August 16, 2012 by

Are you looking for a great language arts curriculum for grammar? What do you need to consider in a grammar curriculum?

Different homeschool methods have differing opinions on when and how to teach grammar to children. Charlotte Mason suggests waiting until forth grade and using a more natural approach to grammar study while classical educators support the memorization of grammar terms in the early elementary years.

You need to decide which method will work best for your children. [Read more...]

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Language Arts Curriculum – Writing

August 12, 2012 by

Are you lost in terms of teaching writing? Maybe you have a reluctant writer on your hands, how can you find the a great language arts curriculum for writing?

Writing for me is the most difficult to teach because it encompasses so many things. The writing mechanics, grammar, vocabulary and spelling. When I say writing, I’m talking about writing curriculum, I’m not talking about penmanship but once a child is beyond that how can you get your children writing well?

To begin, I like to start a child off with copywork. The child is able to model grammatically correct sentences and will hopefully transfer this into their own writing. This is where I like to begin before they start free writing. I would never discourage a child from writing their own stories for fun, but I want to dedicate some time to writing proper sentences. [Read more...]

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Classic Composers Study

August 8, 2012 by

A classic composers study will help round out arts in your homeschool. Do you want to design your own composer study? This is a great way to study music appreciation.

Charlotte Mason advocates using composer and artist study in your homeschool. Even if your children don’t play a musical instrument, they can learn to appreciate classical music.

The study of a classical composer is easy to implement into your own homeschool.

  1. Pick a classical composer to study
  2. Find 6-8 famous music pieces
  3. Find books about the composer – non-fiction and living books

When choosing your composer, it is a good idea to choose a composer based on the era in history you will be studying in your homeschool. This is a great opportunity to tie everything together with your history curriculum and artist study, if you choose to do one. [Read more...]

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Homeschool Preschool Curriculum

August 1, 2012 by

Do you have a preschooler to teach this year? What should you look for?

Once your children are 3 to 4 years old, they are ready to learn. This may mean different things to different people. Learning does not mean that you need to get a stack of books to have your child work through. At this age, hands on learning works the best and is the most fun.

If you have older children, I find that preschoolers are more eager to learn just like their older siblings. They take pride in working on their own school books, even if it a coloring book. You can take advantage of this, make things fun and keep them engaged. You can instill a life long love of learning. If you take the joy away from discovery, you will get resistance. [Read more...]

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