Homeschool resources and curricula
I know, I know, after all my posts about curriculum not mattering, it feels a little contradictory to now post a list of resources and curricula that I have found helpful. Well, after watching H. head into the studio, grab one of the books of the shelf, and process to work through it, I realized that much of what I have on my shelves is because I read about them somewhere. And what I have on my shelves has been useful. So, I am making a list. It is not going to be an orderly list because I was never going to write this. It is going to be a free-association list as I think about the things that we have used. At least the ones I can remember. I am also not going to link to anything. You can pick your favorite homeschool store to buy from. I would always encourage you to buy from family run stores to help keep them in business. Some work very hard to review and search out new resources.
So in no order what so ever.
Draw-Write-Now - This is a multi-volume handwriting series that has both instructions for drawing and handwriting text to match the picture. Each volume covers a different subject. I like them because it helps provide practice in following step by step instructions. My children have liked them because they like drawing the pictures.
Family Math - This is a single volume that is filled with different types of math games that are appropriate for all levels. It also has some useful pages which can be copied in the back. I like to pull this out when text books are just not cutting it for a particular child.
Chicago Review Press books - These are amazing if you are looking for any type of topical study matter and can be found on a wide variety of subjects. On my shelf I have Abraham Lincoln for Kids, The Civil War for Kids; Leonardo da Vinci for Kids; Shakespeare for Kids to name just a few. There is information to read and activities to do in each chapter. They are exceptionally well done.
The Build it Yourself Series by Nomad Press - These are very similar to the Chicago Review Press books and I may like them even more. The Silk Road in this series was our main text when we spent time studying that topic. There are quite a few other titles.
The Everyday Science Sourcebook: Ideas for Teaching in the Elementary and Middle School - For someone who often bases what we are learning off of what we've read, this book is extremely helpful. You can look up just about any science related topic and find all sorts of hands-on experiments and projects to go along with it.
Rod and Staff - This is a Mennonite publisher of pretty traditional non-consumable textbooks. They are faith based and rigorous. I use them for both math and grammar. By the time you finish the sixth grade grammar book in this curriculum, you will have covered more grammar than I ever did in my supposedly gifted education. It is so rigorous that I only have a child do a fraction of the exercises on a page. It would be completely overwhelming, in my opinion, to try to do all of them or even half. I also skip every other grade. The curriculum spirals heavily and there is a lot of repetition and review. Skipping helps to mitigate that. I've never had an issue with something being missed. Do not expect a lot of bells and whistles in this, and also be prepared to create your own hands-on manipulative-based learning to teach the concepts. And for the grammar... just go ahead and buy the teacher's edition, too. You'll be glad you did. Well, unless your education included more grammar than mine did.
Math manipulatives - I strongly suggest every homeschool have two types: Cuisinaire rods and Unifix or Math-Link Cubes. You can teach math without them, but it is so much easier with them. The Cuisinaire rods also have books you can get filled with puzzles and games which use the rods to solve the puzzles.
Explode the Code - This is what I have used to teach all eleven of my readers to read. It is phonics based and solid. Plus, it is an inexpensive consumable book. Teaching phonics doesn't have to be expensive. Some of the price tags for various phonics programs blow my mind. I would begin with the three volumes which teach the basic consonants. They are Get Ready for the Code; Get Set for the Code; and Go for the Code. I have only had one child work their way completely through the entire series because once they are reading, I see little purpose in killing it with workbooks. One child did need some more practice with matching sounds with writing, so I had that child continue.
Simply Charlotte Mason Picture Study Portfolios - I love these! Inside each portfolio are 12 very nice reproductions of a single artist's work. There is also a booklet giving a brief history of the artist as well as suggestions for how to use the reproductions to do a picture study using Charlotte Mason's ideas. My children have loved doing these, and as a result of such careful looking at each picture, have really come to know quite a few artists. I keep adding to my collection as the publisher creates new ones.
TruthQuest History - This is billed as a history curriculum, but that is now why I buy it. I find it rather weak and too conservative to use as a curriculum, but it is an excellent resource. Inside each volume are lists and lists and lists of hundreds of books... real books, interesting books... about practically every subject that would fall under that period. For instance, I grabbed Age of Revolution III (America/Europe 1865-2000), opening at random, I have book related to Henry Ford, John Holland (who evidently created the modern submarine), and Joseph Lister (from where we get 'Listerine' we're told) to name a few. I find it incredibly useful for planning the reading for our unit studies. Do I agree with everything written in it? No, but then I'm not handing it to my children, either, and I'm thoughtful enough to vet each book as a part of my research. It is a fabulous starting point, though. I also like that it can be used from early grade school through high school.
The Ultimate Geography and Timeline Guide - This is another resource that can be used for an entire homeschooling career. There are so many ideas packed in here about creating maps and timelines and teaching geography. I love it, and have used it often. If you are unsure about teaching geography, reading through this will inspire and excite you. (And if you are thinking of creating a timeline, I strongly recommend the spiral bound blank timelines that Miller Pads and Paper sell.)
Big Book of Books and Activities by Dinah Zike - This is another book that I have used often. I like to find different ways of having my children document their learning other than just writing things down. Sometimes we have done lap books, other times we have made posters, and still others have created miniature books. Many of those ideas I have borrowed from this book. It will help you see a whole world of possibilities for documenting what a student has learned.
Much else of what we have used has either been a curriculum that was needed for a specific topic for a specific child (for instance Horizon Math was great for a while when I had a couple of children who needed a bread from Rod and Staff) or just plain old books. Charlotte Mason would call them living books. To list them all would be nearly impossible. If I could add a few more items that I think are incredibly helpful for homeschooling they would be: a library card, a laminator, white boards and dry erase markers, and a stack of empty file folders.
The library card seems pretty self-explanatory, I hope. With access to a library full of books, you wouldn't actually need to buy anything. The laminator? Well, I like to laminate stuff. It makes things sturdy and reusable, which is helpful in a multi-child home, and you can use wet erase markers to draw on laminated items and reuse them. White boards and dry erase markers are things I use nearly every single day during school time. I write out things for people to copy, I use them to demonstrate things, I write out problems to do, dates for the timelines, etc. I also find that when a child is struggling with something it is often easier for the child to use the white board. Somehow being able to erase it makes it less scary to try. The mistake will be far from permanent and that can make trying and making a mistake okay. Finally, the file folders. We use them when we create lap books, but I also have used them to create games and activities for our school day. If you look up file folder games you will have enough to keep you busy for years. Plus, they're just helpful for keeping track of the parent supplies of homeschooling.
So in no order what so ever.
Draw-Write-Now - This is a multi-volume handwriting series that has both instructions for drawing and handwriting text to match the picture. Each volume covers a different subject. I like them because it helps provide practice in following step by step instructions. My children have liked them because they like drawing the pictures.
Family Math - This is a single volume that is filled with different types of math games that are appropriate for all levels. It also has some useful pages which can be copied in the back. I like to pull this out when text books are just not cutting it for a particular child.
Chicago Review Press books - These are amazing if you are looking for any type of topical study matter and can be found on a wide variety of subjects. On my shelf I have Abraham Lincoln for Kids, The Civil War for Kids; Leonardo da Vinci for Kids; Shakespeare for Kids to name just a few. There is information to read and activities to do in each chapter. They are exceptionally well done.
The Build it Yourself Series by Nomad Press - These are very similar to the Chicago Review Press books and I may like them even more. The Silk Road in this series was our main text when we spent time studying that topic. There are quite a few other titles.
The Everyday Science Sourcebook: Ideas for Teaching in the Elementary and Middle School - For someone who often bases what we are learning off of what we've read, this book is extremely helpful. You can look up just about any science related topic and find all sorts of hands-on experiments and projects to go along with it.
Rod and Staff - This is a Mennonite publisher of pretty traditional non-consumable textbooks. They are faith based and rigorous. I use them for both math and grammar. By the time you finish the sixth grade grammar book in this curriculum, you will have covered more grammar than I ever did in my supposedly gifted education. It is so rigorous that I only have a child do a fraction of the exercises on a page. It would be completely overwhelming, in my opinion, to try to do all of them or even half. I also skip every other grade. The curriculum spirals heavily and there is a lot of repetition and review. Skipping helps to mitigate that. I've never had an issue with something being missed. Do not expect a lot of bells and whistles in this, and also be prepared to create your own hands-on manipulative-based learning to teach the concepts. And for the grammar... just go ahead and buy the teacher's edition, too. You'll be glad you did. Well, unless your education included more grammar than mine did.
Math manipulatives - I strongly suggest every homeschool have two types: Cuisinaire rods and Unifix or Math-Link Cubes. You can teach math without them, but it is so much easier with them. The Cuisinaire rods also have books you can get filled with puzzles and games which use the rods to solve the puzzles.
Explode the Code - This is what I have used to teach all eleven of my readers to read. It is phonics based and solid. Plus, it is an inexpensive consumable book. Teaching phonics doesn't have to be expensive. Some of the price tags for various phonics programs blow my mind. I would begin with the three volumes which teach the basic consonants. They are Get Ready for the Code; Get Set for the Code; and Go for the Code. I have only had one child work their way completely through the entire series because once they are reading, I see little purpose in killing it with workbooks. One child did need some more practice with matching sounds with writing, so I had that child continue.
Simply Charlotte Mason Picture Study Portfolios - I love these! Inside each portfolio are 12 very nice reproductions of a single artist's work. There is also a booklet giving a brief history of the artist as well as suggestions for how to use the reproductions to do a picture study using Charlotte Mason's ideas. My children have loved doing these, and as a result of such careful looking at each picture, have really come to know quite a few artists. I keep adding to my collection as the publisher creates new ones.
TruthQuest History - This is billed as a history curriculum, but that is now why I buy it. I find it rather weak and too conservative to use as a curriculum, but it is an excellent resource. Inside each volume are lists and lists and lists of hundreds of books... real books, interesting books... about practically every subject that would fall under that period. For instance, I grabbed Age of Revolution III (America/Europe 1865-2000), opening at random, I have book related to Henry Ford, John Holland (who evidently created the modern submarine), and Joseph Lister (from where we get 'Listerine' we're told) to name a few. I find it incredibly useful for planning the reading for our unit studies. Do I agree with everything written in it? No, but then I'm not handing it to my children, either, and I'm thoughtful enough to vet each book as a part of my research. It is a fabulous starting point, though. I also like that it can be used from early grade school through high school.
The Ultimate Geography and Timeline Guide - This is another resource that can be used for an entire homeschooling career. There are so many ideas packed in here about creating maps and timelines and teaching geography. I love it, and have used it often. If you are unsure about teaching geography, reading through this will inspire and excite you. (And if you are thinking of creating a timeline, I strongly recommend the spiral bound blank timelines that Miller Pads and Paper sell.)
Big Book of Books and Activities by Dinah Zike - This is another book that I have used often. I like to find different ways of having my children document their learning other than just writing things down. Sometimes we have done lap books, other times we have made posters, and still others have created miniature books. Many of those ideas I have borrowed from this book. It will help you see a whole world of possibilities for documenting what a student has learned.
Much else of what we have used has either been a curriculum that was needed for a specific topic for a specific child (for instance Horizon Math was great for a while when I had a couple of children who needed a bread from Rod and Staff) or just plain old books. Charlotte Mason would call them living books. To list them all would be nearly impossible. If I could add a few more items that I think are incredibly helpful for homeschooling they would be: a library card, a laminator, white boards and dry erase markers, and a stack of empty file folders.
The library card seems pretty self-explanatory, I hope. With access to a library full of books, you wouldn't actually need to buy anything. The laminator? Well, I like to laminate stuff. It makes things sturdy and reusable, which is helpful in a multi-child home, and you can use wet erase markers to draw on laminated items and reuse them. White boards and dry erase markers are things I use nearly every single day during school time. I write out things for people to copy, I use them to demonstrate things, I write out problems to do, dates for the timelines, etc. I also find that when a child is struggling with something it is often easier for the child to use the white board. Somehow being able to erase it makes it less scary to try. The mistake will be far from permanent and that can make trying and making a mistake okay. Finally, the file folders. We use them when we create lap books, but I also have used them to create games and activities for our school day. If you look up file folder games you will have enough to keep you busy for years. Plus, they're just helpful for keeping track of the parent supplies of homeschooling.
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