I have been asked a few times about our homeschooling. Specifically, resources to help others. I figured I would post some of the sources I use here on the blog in one place. That might help others a bit. And, when I was deciding to go down this path, I was in need of guidance, too!
When I first started thinking about homeschooling, I was a bit overwhelmed. I had no experence whatsoever! But, homeschooling isn't something that is hard to get into. It allows you to determine your own schedule, which for our life, is perfect. There are a big handful of other reasons I decided to homeschool, too. But, the one I seem to like the most is that we have control over our schedule.
One thing that I am making sure to do is go along with what Indiana requires, since that is where I "live". I pay taxes there, that is my permanent address, and when the time comes, that is probably where we will move. So, depending on where you live, check on what the requirements are.
A friend of mine sent me several links to homeschooling curriculums and out of those I picked a curriculum from Timberdoodle Co. I liked that they were a family owned company, the customer service is excellent, and they pull different books by all sorts of publishers instead of feeding you their own line of books. Not that other companies are bad. I just preferred Timberdoodle. The curriculums seemed well-rounded and everything was there for you. Although, you are not forced to buy the entire curriculum. You can pick and choose what you want.
TIMBERDOODLE CO. WEBSITE
Here is a direct link to the curriculum packages: CURRICULUM PACKAGES
Timberdoodle already calculated how many pages of each book we need to do each week in order to get through the school year. I keep a spreadsheet for each week for each girl and mark what we have done. That serves as our "attendance" since that is what Indiana requires. It isn't anything fancy. It just shows what pages we have done.
Once I get around to buying some binders (and fun paper), I plan to organize each girls' school work like this.
One site that has become a wonderful resource for many different areas of my life is Pinterest! Everyone loves Pinterest. I have a homeschool/kids stuff board. Feel free to take a look!:
HOMESCHOOL/KIDS STUFF PINTEREST BOARD
One site I tend to use often, for printouts, is EDUCATION.COM. They have a wide variety of printouts for whatever subject you want. And, it is FREE!
Another site that the girls love to use is STARFALL. Most of it is free! And, it is simple enough that I just open the site and let the girls have at it! It works on letters, numbers, math, words, etc. When I need the girl to be quiet for a little bit, I send them to this site. :)
There are tons of homeschooling blogs out there. I'm sure a search on Google would lead you to them. There is one that I read regularly. Confessions of a Homeschooler! She offers a lot of free printouts. Also, she sells addition ones that look great. Just check out her site.
I use BASIC HANDWRITING FOR KIDS to print out lined paper when practing letters. We mostly use the little chalkboards when practicing writing. But, the girls like to have worksheets occassionaly.
I saw this site listed on one of the homeschooling blogs that I ran across. She listed this site, BRAINPOP, as a resource that she wouldn't want to do without. I have yet to check it out. It looks like it covers all sorts of subjects. There is a subscription involved for most of the site. But, they do offer some free stuff! BRAINPOP FREE STUFF! Just wanted to pass it along.
Here are some other sites for purchasing curriculums or individual subjects. These sites were recommended by a friend. Most of them I haven't looked at thouroughly. I just wanted to pass them on.
MATH U SEE
BOB BOOKS
EXPLODE THE CODE
ZOO-PHONICS
HANDWRITING WITHOUT TEARS
SONLIGHT
KUMON BOOKS
If you have any specific questions, feel free to ask. I'm, of course, not an expert, as we just started homeschooling this past year. But, if you are wanting to start out, I know everything can feel a bit intimidating.
Or, if you have any suggestions of things you do in your own homeschool that seem helpful, I would love to hear about them.
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