Home Schooling Help Please?

Question

We are planning on home schooling our 5 yr old daughter.We have looked at many sites on the web.But would like some input from someone who has home schooled & can make a recommendation.We prefer a religious based one, but any good program would be helpful. Only serious responces please.Thank you.

Thank you to all for answering, everything has been helpful.

To selfteachingworks - The Robsinson Self-Teaching Method seems like a great suppliment to whatever I choose.

To cool muslim - The someschool super center looks like a good site & I a still looking through it.

To Jessie P - School Specialtiy Publishing is a great resource. And thanks for the advice about a support group, we have one.

To DW411 - I really like edhelper.com, that is a great site. I found lots of printables there.

To gluppy - I like sonlight, but it is a bit expensive, but thatnks

To schnikey - Good insight & suggestions.I haven't had checked all the sites yet,but thanks.

To MomOfThree -We have looked at AOP LifePac's & are thinking about those.

To homeschoolingmom - Cathy Duffy's boook is great, I like her Christian Educators' Curriculum Manuel & Rainbow Resource Center looks good.Also thanks for the info on reselling.

To homeschoolingauthor - Learning By Grace site looks good, I'm still looking at it.

It's hard to pick a winner as all your answers have been very helpful. I'm still trying to decide who's was best - because they were all good and I'm still looking at the different sites.

Again thanks to all of you for your help. :)

We have been really thinking about PACES, is anyone familar with that?

Answer 1

I have educated at home my 4 children since birth. We used many different materials for the first few years.
My favorites are:
Flashcards (all functions + - x / ) for beginning math and Saxon Math level 54 through Calculus.
I love "The First Reader" by Phyllis Schlafly of Eagle Forum for phonics based teaching and the companion writing workbook for hand-writing practice. This book coupled with the McGuffey Readers makes a great foundation for reading.
We also use the Robinson Self-teaching Method (Curriculum on 22 cds) for all of the students in the family --- kindergarten through high-school. The math and the CD's include everything we need for a complete education for every child; every year. I only had to buy the cd set ONE time for $195 and can use it forever.
Along with a good set of encyclopedia, dictionary, Bible, and computer and printer we have everything we need to keep the children busy in their studies for 4 to 6 hours each day.

RC is a curriculum that was compiled with the Christian student in mind. The man responsible for RC is a Christian father and he was suddenly left with the responsibility of raising 6 children alone when his wife passed away.

RC doesn't dictate how to "teach" the Bible but it is morally sound and Christian-user friendly. Learning to study according to the RC directives teaches the child to think and to reason for him/herself from an early age.

Answer 2

There are several good curriculum homeschool programs available to you. Most of them will have a sample page on their website or will send you samples of their curriculum if you call them.
It is important that you also decide on the denomination, or the depth of the religious inclusion in the program. Do you want religion in all the areas, literature, science, social studies etc, or just for the religion lessons and a non-religious literature base?

Once you know this, you can then do a narrowed search on the web for homeschool curriculum.
There are several catholic programs, there are lots of evangelical, or protestant suppliers, there is also homeschool materials for the Jewish faiths and others. Even some good Mennonite books.

There is so much, so do not buy a bunch of expensive stuff, be picky, some books are hard cover, with color photos, some are soft cover with simple line drawings, but read samples if possible and feel free to return products you do not like. You can try things and see which ones are best for you and your daughter. You can fine tune it as things go on. I have included a few links to start with.

Be sure to be well-balanced and open.

Answer 3

This may seem like a simple question, but my experience has been this: the curriculum that everyone RAVES about is the one that makes my boys run screaming in tears away from.

There are lots of good sources for curriculum reviews. Start with Cathy Duffy's, "100 Top Picks for Homeschooling" as well as her website. Talk to some homeschoolers in your area and see if they will let you borrow some materials short term, just to try them out. Rainbow Resource Center has reviews of thousands of products (their catalog is over 1000 pages long!), however, you have to remember that they're trying to sell it to you, so they have to make it sound at least good.

And remember, if you buy something and it doesn't work out, you can always re-sell it on eBay or Amazon.com or VegSource or CraigsList (if there's one where you are). These are also great places to get used curriculum.

Answer 4

We have Homeschooled out three children for 8 yrs. now. The oldest graduated this past June and the younger two are in 7th & 5th Grade. I never used a "curriculum" for my kids until they were in 2nd grade. The things they are learning at 5 years old are so basic, I was able to find ample resources on the internet i.e. free printable worksheets, to carry them through. Try taking a look at www.edhelper.com I still use this site a lot. I've paid for the membership(I think it was $19.99/yr), but I find that it is well worth it. They have so much that you can print from your computer. Along with worksheets use flash cards for numbers, ABC's, and library books along with worksheets on learning how to begin writing the Alphabet, numbers, shapes, counting, order recognition, sequence, colors etc.

Answer 5

We use a variety of materitals, but the majority of what we use comes from School Specialty Publishing. They are very reasonable and carry both religious and secular items.

I have steered clear of the boxed curricula sets because they are so expensive and I've heard that one does not get their money out of them. That's just what I have heard, don't know if it's true.

I would definitely find a support group, so that you can co-op with other families and have pay groups.

Good luck!

Answer 6

I personally like Alpha Omega Publishing (AOP) Lifepac and Switched on Schoolhouse. They even have a preschool program called Color Phonics. I like it because it is good quality and affordable. They also offer an Academy if you are interested in getting teacher assistance.

Answer 7

Learning By Grace, Inc. is the leading provider of online Christian homeschooling programs.

Go to www.LearningByGrace.org to find a program that’s just right for your needs.

Learning By Grace, Inc. was founded by homeschoolers who understand your needs.

Learning By Grace, Inc. also manages:

www.TheGraceAcademy.org
www.TheJubileeAcademy.org
www.TheMorningstarAcademy.org (Private, Christian online school that gives diplomas)
www.TheNarniaAcademy.org (FREE 20 lesson course on The Chronicles of Narnia)
www.RadioGrace.org FREE streaming Christian radio station online

Answer 8

I recommend Sonlight http://www.sonlight.com --you can get a free catalogue.

I don't actually use Sonlight myself because I prefer creating my own thing and mixing in my children's interests, but if I wanted a complete program, that's the one I would choose. I know some people who purchase the teaching guides they want and they try to make do with library books or very few purchases.

I know a few people who use Sonlight and they absolutely love it. I don't know anybody who hasn't liked it.

Answer 9

Hey if your interested in complete prepackaged curriculum then check out this website below. you get to choose either secular or religious. Good Luck!!!