Continue reading »]]> There are many parents who invest a lot of time in searching for homeschool curriculum and then making the selection. This is so because they do not have a proper guideline as to what key factors they should have and prioritize when selecting a homeschool curriculum for their child.

However, it is important to withhold some significant factors that can have an incredible impact in such an endeavor. The first and foremost thing that you need to keep in mind is the duration of homeschooling. If it is going to be a temporary venture, you can borrow homeschool curriculum material from the nearby local schools. And yes, if it would be long term one, it is important to consult an expert who shall provide the important curriculum material as per his/her age and grade.

It is important to take into account all legal education laws of the existing state you are living in since that would help selecting any particular curricula for your child.

You can have a check on HSLDA, Home School Legal Defense Association, in United States that can further help you with any queries pertaining to homeschool curriculum. They may provide you with all legal information concerned with homeschooling in the US and other countries as well.

Your faith and your religious standing matters a lot in this area since you might want some modifications in the conventional curriculum for your child. Hence, it is recommended to keep your faith in the forefront as well. A majority of the resources are for Christians, but there are of course other religions.

It is important to take into account all legal education laws of the existing state you are living in since that would help selecting any particular curricula for your child, especially about the subjects that would be mandatory to be taught to all the students.

In homeschool teaching, it is important that the curriculum is selected in accordance to the sole goals and objectives of the child, affiliated with his/her education. Also, there are many homeschooling methods, and it is important to select one to determine adequate selection of homeschool curriculum.
Elaborating on various homeschool methods, they are inclusive of a variety of methods. Some of the easily available are: Charlotte Mason, Montessori, Relaxed, Virtual, Waldorf, Unit Study, Literature Study, Textbook/Workbook, Montessori, Classical, Thomas Jefferson etc. It is important to give priority to individual potential of your child and then build a pyramid of his homeschool curriculum.

When you have chosen a particular homeschooling method, you can search some programs that might be helpful for the course. This can be done via online browsing, participating in forums and having conversations/discussions with homeschoolers. This shall help you with more ideas pertaining to modern day homeschool curriculum. There are many homeschool curriculum fairs that might take place in your vicinity and you can attend them to have a close look at the materials. You may even ask further questions about the materials and have better enhancing ideas.

All this would help you choose an adequate scheme of studies for your child and you can acquire the curriculum once you have made a selection you feel would grant worthy education to your child.

About the Author:

Do you want best homeschool curriculum for your children? Smantha Watson suggests that, for comprehensive information, visit her recommended site http://www.child-central.com

Continue reading »]]> Each year, more and more homeschoolers are graduating and moving into the world. Many choose to take their education further and attend college. The good news is that more and more colleges have altered their admissions policies and are accepting, even actively recruiting children. There are also a large group of homeschool graduates who chose to not attend college and head directly into the work force. The question is though, how are they doing?

Homeschoolers who have made the jump into the workforce are getting good feedback from their employers. The national food chain, Chick-fil-A® is so pleased with their homeschooled employees that they actively recruit them. Characterizing homeschoolers as smart, ambitious and very driven, recruiters are pleased with their high level of loyalty and diligent work ethic.

Characterizing homeschoolers as smart, ambitious and very driven, recruiters are pleased with their high level of loyalty and diligent work ethic.

Employers have discovered that the same work ethic that brought homeschoolers through their education carries over into their careers. In fact, homeschoolers seem to view work as simply an extension of their education. Children are being described as self-starters who are reliable, creative, intellectually prepared, and read voraciously and watch television less.

Most people are aware of the axiom, “it’s who you know.” Because homeschooling is a relatively new phenomenon, there may not seem to be a huge “gold old boy” network out there for them to exploit. The truth is that homeschooling is a tightly knit community with more and more of its proponents in positions of influence, and this community can be very effective at finding jobs. There are however, plenty of pointless bureaucracies and short-sighted managers out there to make prospects difficult. In some companies, employment is dependent upon a diploma that is certified by the state or the possession of a General Equivalency Diploma, or GED.

A GED has been described as a test that dropouts can take to be given a second chance at a formal education, making GED holders the equivalent of dropouts. This situation is hardly the equivalent to a high school diploma and an employer who demands that of a homeschool graduate clearly show his ignorance or bias.

Because of their homeschool background, they are ready for the uncertainties of a changing economy, the ups and downs of the business cycle, and are prepared to deal with bosses, customers, and all of the other people in the business world. Homeschool graduates are as prepared as any high school graduate and may be more suitable for an uncertain future. Students are raised as individuals, not farmed out of institutions for plugging into the workforce.

About the Author:

Mimi Rothschild is a homeschooling mother, writer, children’s rights advocate, and Founder and C.E.O. of home education company Learning by Grace, Inc. She and her husband of 28 years reside with their 8 children right outside Philadelphia, PA.

Rothschild launched Learning By Grace, Inc. because she believed that our nation’s public school system has failed parents and students. Learning By Grace, Inc. offers online education through a multimedia-rich curriculum to PreK-12 children across the country and throughout the world. An accomplished author, Rothschild has written books regarding education published by McGraw Hill and others. Her Daily Education News Feed consists of articles and essays dealing with alternative learning methods.

Continue reading »]]> Homeschooling has proved itself with the excellent academic achievements of homeschooled children. It is obvious that great care is taken by the homeschooling parents to do the best they can to ensure their children’s work is of a high academic standard.

Homeschooling is, however, not only about academic achievements.  Nor is public schooling all about it, either.

Education is a complete package, with a big part of it, being effective subject instruction and achievement.  During the education process, children learn other valuable skills that are just as important as academic achievement.

Structure and Routine

The school system is structured and follows a specific routine. Children get use to the idea of deadlines for projects and assignments and the negative repercussions if deadlines are not met. This is a vital learning process preparing children for adult life and careers. In homeschooling parents should be aware of this and make sure that children are treated the same as they would have been in a formal school situation. It is very easy to have a less structured situation in homeschooling and if the parent is not strict about this it can later become a problem.

Strict Parent-Teacher

Teachers in public schools are objective and treat all the children the same. Children can be very manipulative and teachers are use to this. A parent will always be less objective where his or her own child is concerned. It is human nature and there is nothing wrong with it. A parent that is also the teacher of the child will have to be vigilant and learn not to give in to children’s manipulation. This is one of the first things the parent-teacher must learn to have a successful homeschool.

Goals

Learners in public schools are exposed to a variety of subjects. The more variety they have the better informed choice they can make about the subjects they want to major in. These subjects will have to be chosen with the focus on the career path they want to follow.

Socializing and extra-curricular activities

In public school children are automatically exposed to this. The parent responsible for homeschooling will have to ensure that the homeschooled child have the same opportunities he or she would have had in a public school.

It is very clear that most of the responsibility to make homeschooling as good as any other form of schooling rests on the parent. If the parent is ready for this and takes everything into consideration before homeschooling starts, there is no reason why homeschooling can’t be good. It will even be better that any other form of schooling with all the other positive things a child gains from homeschooling.  A caring parent is better than a caring teacher. One-on-one teaching is always better than fighting for attention with 20 or 30 other kids. Family bonds are tighter and the school day would be shorter leaving time for other fun activities.

About the Author:

Allan Tan is the co-founder of Free Online Homeschooling. He provides more helpful information on Negative Effects Of Homeschooling and Free Homeschooling Curriculumthat you can read up in the comfort of your home on his website.

Continue reading »]]> Homeschooling is not as predictable and subtle as you would think it to be. In fact, there does exist a downside to homeschooling that most parents never consider, but should be fully recognized before going down the homeschooling route. Even though homeschooling will be better for some kids rather than others, some things need to be thought about before you start teaching your child from home.

The first thing you need to know is that your child’s education lies in your hands. If your child doesn’t display that skills that kids their age should be showing, then your skills as an educator will be frowned upon. So it’s your responsibility that you teach your child everything they need to know at their age, and that they understand that the material that they have learned.

One of the drawbacks to homeschooling on your part is the amount of free time that you will have to give up for homeschooling. This includes, time with friends, free time for yourself, and even time with your kids. Even though you will be spending time with your kids while teaching them, the amount of free time having fun will be dramatically cut short.

While this may frustrate you at times, you should know that this is an inherent part of the job. You will have to be patient with your child as they continue to learn and develop, and will have to accept the downside of homeschooling as well as the good.

Another thing that you will have to consider is that your career may be put on hold. If you do decide to take up homeschooling and your career is put on hold, then the family’s source of income will more than likely be left up to one parent. This may lead to stress and arguments over finances, and affect your abilities as a homeschooling parent. You will have to learn how to live on a budget, and will have to get used to living on low means.

Of course all of this is negated if one parent makes a considerable amount of income, but if they don’t, then the scenario above applies.

Proper preparation is necessary so that means you have to be on your guard at all times to be their for your child.

Another thing you need to know is that rest breaks will have to be cut to virtually zero. You can’t just decide not to teach your child today simply because you’re feeling down. You have to do the job everyday no matter if you’re feeling bad or feeling good – just like a regular teacher.

When you assign homework, you have to help your child also because even though you are the teacher – you will also have to play parent when your child needs a helping hand. This means whenever your child is around, you have to be there to help. There are very little breaks as your child needs you for assistance at virtually all times.
You have to make time for your child to get out and mingle also. You can’t keep them in the house all day and expect them to clear their minds everyday. You have to introduce them to other kids so that they can play and go have fun. This is an integral part of homeschooling – you have to figure out how they are going to meet and greet with other kids.

All of these thing need to be considered when homeschooling your child. Proper preparation is necessary so that means you have to be on your guard at all times to be their for your child. With a little patience and determination, it should be a piece of cake. Good luck with your homeschooling endeavors.

Adrian Hargray – About the Author:

Learn homeschooling tips you can use to teach your child at home successfully. To learn more, visit the following website for more details: http://www.instant-downloadz.com/parentshomeschooling.html

Continue reading »]]> If you home school your children, you will quickly realize how important printable homeschool worksheets can be. If you are trying to develop a curriculum for your home-schooled child, you may be able to save a lot of time and money by using free online home school worksheets. However, while they can be a helpful tool and seem like an attractive alternative to a homeschool, they do have a number of limitations.

There are numerous online resources that offer online worksheets that you can download and use for your children’s homeschooling for free. They cover practically all subjects under the sun. Different homeschool worksheets are available that are suitable for all types of curricula, and they can help enhance what you are teaching.

Aside from helping you assess your child’s comprehension of a subject matter, printable home school worksheets also provide something for your child to do while you work on other things. This means that you can be free to run your home while teaching your child at the same time, because the worksheet simplifies the homeschooling job for you.

Home schooling can be expensive and difficult to implement, especially on a tight budget. If money is tight, homeschool worksheets that you can get for free can take the place of a textbook. The worksheet will be able to teach pretty much the same things that a textbook will, and yet you won’t have to spend hundreds of dollars on books. Although some worksheet resources charge a small fee, you will be able to access thousands of printable worksheets that you can use for homeschooling.

Home schooling can be expensive and difficult to implement, especially on a tight budget. If money is tight, homeschool worksheets that you can get for free can take the place of a textbook.

Different worksheets are available for different areas of study at home. If you know what your child will be learning for the year, you can already find worksheets for homeschooling on that particular topic.

In choosing a worksheet, it is important to review the source and check the material. Ensure that the material and answers are accurate. Evaluate the worksheet by completing it yourself. The worksheet should provide information clearly and accurately. Make sure it is exactly what you need to homeschool your child.

Homeschool worksheets have pros and cons that depend on the type of material the worksheet deals with. One advantage is that worksheets are very handy if you want to give your child something to do. Some types of worksheets are very easy to grade and can be completed without much input from you. Worksheets can also give you a good idea of how much your child was able to understand of the subject matter.

While worksheets for homeschool can assist in home schooling, they cannot take the place of a proper homeschool curriculum. One disadvantage they have is that they often focus on one subject area only, without integrating the whole curriculum. They can also be simplistic and give the impression that the student understands more than he actually does.

So, free homeschool worksheets that you can print are available online: Some of them may be excellent, but you will have to make sure that they are accurate and suitable for your curriculum or child.

Continue reading »]]> Henry ward Beecher once said, “The mother’s heart is a child’s class room”. This is quite true. Being a mother, you can teach your child through the process of homeschooling. This is one of the best options if you want your child to be safe from the dangerous public situations and inculcate strong family bonds in him or her.

For moms, this is the most exciting and rewarding journey to play the role of both as a mother and teacher. These days quite a number of such homeschooling moms could be found in church and towns. However, there are certain steps to follow, not only to be successful in homeschooling, but also prove to be beneficial for the mothers.

Here are some homeschooling tips for mothers, to help guide them through the process of teaching.

Be clear with your approach:

First make a firm decision to opt for homeschooling and you should have a strong reason, why you opted for it. There could be many reasons such as safety of your child, individual attention in academics, religious or philosophical. You should be very much clear with your approach, before you plan out for your homeschooling program of your own and execute the program to guide your children in the right track.

Update yourself with homeschooling programs:

Usually education laws change and vary in different towns and states. It would be better if you can consult the local school district authority to know the basic requirements of the homeschooling programs in your area. Some of the schools may require a strict curriculum, whereas others may specify particular subjects to be covered.

Be flexible and patient:

Till now you were playing the role of a mother, but now having decided to homeschool your child, you become a teacher as well. It is a very difficult job, as some moms could be pushovers. But, on the other hand the teacher’s qualities in you would expect excellence, as the target or goal is productive education.

Discuss with other homeschooling parents:

Internet or the local community groups are the best way to find other homeschooling parents. Parents can meet to discuss about the kids’ science projects, field activities and seek support and advice. However, once there is a get together, new ideas may open up to adopt new process for homeschooling. You can discuss various homeschooling approaches or methods, which could be implemented and prove to be effective. This kind of discussion or get-together can also help to broaden views and the social life circle, which would help the kids too to interact with other home schooling kids.

A working relationship could be developed:

Try to develop a working relationship with your child by sitting together and setting the goals. This will make him feel more attached to the studies, as you are also working with him.

Be organized and fix a time and place for studies:

You must have noticed that those who have home offices have a specified area or place to conduct business. There is no involvement in family activities during the working hours. Similarly, when you start a homeschooling, its better to keep a specific place for kids, where they can study at the fixed time. The place should be well lit, neat and clean. A secluded area in the home would keep away any kind of distraction. Or the kids may not be able to concentrate and develop interest in studies.

Design a method to evaluate your child:

There are programs, which are set to evaluate the child either yearly or quarterly wise. This includes an oral test, project report, test, or anything as per the criteria of the programs.

There are children who have succeeded in achieving the best results and these are the same children raised by a homeschooling mother. Follow the above mentioned tips and you could train your child to be the best, as you are able to provide not only the academic knowledge, but also to induce moral and spiritual values.

About the Author:

Kris Koonar advises you to get a High School Diploma from a fully DETC accredited school. Citizens’ High School offers Homeschooling programs in all 50 United States that can be signed up online. Phone and email support at all level. Sign up for more information on Diploma Programs Here. http://www.citizenshighschool.com/chsinquiry.htm

Continue reading »]]> Today education is one of the best parts of our life to live a wealthy life. In order to online homeschooling is also a wonderful option for many parents as well as all their children especially for those parents who afraid about the security of their child. In fact, online homeschooling can make the process more interesting as well as funny for your child and also offer a solid support system to them.

The online environment is one of the best resources for homeschooling including course of study, curriculum, educational games, online tests, online tutorial and occupational training. A large number of institutions are taking advantage of the wide array of online homeschool programs that are being offered. Online learning allows the children and families access to specialized teachers and materials and greater flexibility in scheduling.

Many parents choose a homeschool program for their kids because of convenience and flexibility it offers.

Basically, homeschooling is an approach that takes the advantage of today’s technology. It has gained much popularity over the last decade. And many parents choose a homeschool program for their kids because of convenience and flexibility it offers. Online homeschooling takes the pride in giving thousands of graduates around the world. It is totally web based and there is no software in this program to install, it gives your child freedom to learn anywhere if there is an internet connected computer available.

Indeed, online homeschooling can provide a complete learning solution for almost all the subjects that your child chooses. It is a convenient educational program that teaches your child with fun. It is useful, especially for those children too who are disabled or otherwise limited in their ability to travel as well as an ideal option for those parents who don’t have time to spend with their children and they will get the benefits of online homeschooling but still become a teacher to work with them.

Furthermore, advantages of online homeschooling are almost unlimited, but the most important is the avoidance of constantly having to buy new textbooks: your children learn by watching videos, participating in interactive exercises and having opportunities to express their creativity. This strategy gets your children involved themselves in the educational experience and let them become no longer a passive consumer but an active participant.

Online homeschooling brings the elements of external interaction and time bound study into a homeschool environment and it also provides a more varied learning experience than a parent can provide at home. Your child can attend the class sessions live or review those sessions immediately using audio and video on demand technology.

Therefore, online homeschooling is an innovative way to educate your child as it allows you and your child access to specialized teachers and materials and greater flexibility in scheduling.

Continue reading »]]> With the current economic downturn which indicates that 80% of jobs lost were held by men, it is not surprising that at least some homeschooling families are embracing the lifestyle of dad as the primary educator. One census showed the number of full time, stay-at-home male educators was more than 140,000 in 1998.  There are certainly many more homeschooling dads now. As this article is being written by a woman, I cannot profess to have the male perspective on this subject, but I do think that it’s important to look at ways that fathers, even if not full time educators, can actively engage in the homeschooling lifestyle of the family. Here are some suggestions:

I do think that it’s important to look at ways that fathers, even if not full time educators, can actively engage in the homeschooling lifestyle of the family.

Sharing an educational philosophy/approach with spouse

It is so important for parents to be emotionally, intellectually, and spiritually committed to a homeschooling lifestyle. If one parent is indifferent, or worse, unsupportive of a certain method of homeschooling, it creates difficulties for the whole family. Even a father that is gone from home all week needs to be in fundamental agreement with the homeschooling methods and philosophy used to homeschool his children. Both parents are teachers either directly or indirectly and it is important that the children experience a feeling of parental agreement even if the mother does all of the formal teaching. The father can read articles or even books that may be relevant to the methodology or philosophy of his homeschooling family.

Monthly reviews/presentations

Another way that a father can feel more a part of homeschooling is to be part of a periodic review or presentation of the material that has been recently covered in homeschooling. This could actually be a festive occasion with a chance for some singing, poetry reciting, and of course academic work presented to dad and reviewed by dad. Not only does dad get a chance to hear and review the work, the children also have a chance to review and prepare for the presentation.

Sharing ideas informally at meals and on weekend field trips and projects

Most fathers are still able to share a daily evening meal with his children and have time with them on the weekends. This can be a great time for discussion of ideas, to ask questions, and to plan weekend field trips that the whole family can enjoy. Dad’s input should be sought out in areas.  It can lead to interesting weekend projects together with the children. It’s important that families create these sharing times and embrace the opportunity to learn together.

Family read aloud

An often cherished tradition is a family read aloud in which dad can choose a great book and read aloud each night before bed. Some dads really get into this, taking on different voices for different characters. Of course this can also be a time for spiritual renewal and reading aloud from whatever sacred texts or special books are important to your family.

Homeschool teaching

For fathers that are able to do so, it is a wonderful experience for children to learn academic subjects directly from the male role model. There are going to be some areas where dad’s expertise and knowledge can be directly shared in an organized teaching format. This may have to involve some juggling of what may be your “normal” school times but you’ll find it well worth the opportunity to work with dad. Another option is having dad teach a portion of a subject that is relevant to his expertise or interest. Areas of science are excellent for this type of teaching since experiments or focus areas can be carved out of a larger subject for dad to teach. Some teaching opportunities may come up at specific times of the year.  For example, if you prepare your own taxes, tax time might be a good time for dad to teach a lesson on the taxation system.

There are going to be some areas where dad’s expertise and knowledge can be directly shared in an organized teaching format.

Everyone in our time-sensitive society should practice slowing down to enjoy the fruits of our labor, even while we are laboring! Fathers can feel more in sync with the family if they take the time for sharing and reviewing and by participating in  informal discussions with the family that form the heart of learning and living together as a homeschooling family.  To read articles written by and specifically devoted to homeschooling fathers, visit www.homeschooldads.com.

About the Author:

Jennifer K. Gray is the Director of Operations for LessonPathways.com. Lesson Pathways is an innovative online curriculum created entirely from INTERNET RESOURCES, making it easy for educators to use educational resources and links, with limited pre-planning time!

Continue reading »]]> One of the daunting tasks that faces any homeschooling family is the search for a homeschool curriculum to use. There are so many options out there, but one thing I have noticed is that the majority are religious-based and can be very costly.  What if I do not want to use a religious-based homeschool curriculum or I am on a strict budget, what do I do?  Initially homeschooling was started by religion-focused families who wanted to have their faith be the center of what was being taught in their child’s classes.  Today you find many other religions also homeschooling their children.

If you are on a tight budget while homeschooling you really have to think out of the box sometimes in order to reach your goals.  An expensive homeschool curriculum is not always an option.

If you are on a tight budget while homeschooling you really have to think out of the box sometimes in order to reach your goals.  An expensive homeschool curriculum is not always an option.  If you have a computer in your home with internet access that may be all you need to develop your own homeschool curriculum.  Granted it may take you a little longer to put the lessons together but this way there is more meaning for the child in learning this lesson.  As well as being able to tailor it to your child’s learning ability, since no two children learn the same.

It is a good idea to start with laying out what subjects you will be teaching, then develop them down to sub-categories to make it easier.  For example the main subject is Science, my sub-categories could be:  Earth, Chemistry and Biology, from which you could even develop down into further sub-categories in order to easily split them up for the year.  As a parent you will also learn along with your children some of the subjects you may have forgotten about when you were in school.

After laying out your subjects do some research online on each of the sub-categories, you may find worksheets or games or even full lessons to help you teach the subjects.  A little work up front can go a long way in helping your homeschooler learn!

Picking a homeschool curriculum does not have to be a task to dread; by creating your own you can make learning fun for your children to keep their interest peaked.  Developing your own homeschool curriculum can be fun as well as challenging, but in the end it is rewarding too!

About the Author:

Randy and his wife have been homeschooling parents for 10 years. Randy is the lead educator in their homeschool, while his wife works outside the home.  Randy is one of our lead writers at Homeschooling Professor.

Continue reading »]]> It can be a financial challenge to make the commitment to stay at home in order to homeschool your children. This is especially true if you and your spouse have been used to a two-income lifestyle. The most important factor in budgeting for homeschooling is that it is a team effort. You and your partner need to work together. This team effort, combined with creativity and commitment, will create a successful homeschooling lifestyle.

Here are some guidelines to follow for a successful budget:

1. Financial Planning, A Team Effort

You and your partner should support each other in order to make the transition from a two-income to a primarily one-income family. Homeschooling is a real commitment and the budgeting required can be tough, but it is worth the effort. Begin by putting your family finances down on paper or use a financial spreadsheet program on your computer. You need to be precise and honest with yourself about your expenses.

You will also need to remember to budget for less frequent expenses like car repairs and insurance. Make sure you pay your bills on time so you don’t incur late fees. You can even calender in reminders on your computer for paying bills on time. Until you have your monthly budget running smoothly, you may need to communicate together weekly to make sure the expenses are addressed. I also recommend that you use a debit card instead of a credit card to pay for expenses unless you are really disciplined enough to pay off your total credit card bill each month. The last thing you want is to be on the wrong side of compound interest from credit cards!

2. A Weekly Budget, A Team Effort

The biggest single weekly expense for a family is usually food. You should create a reasonable weekly budget for groceries. You should try to cook at home most of the time, and meals out should be a welcome, but occasional treat. Take the time to actually read those cookbooks and find healthy but inexpensive recipes on line. You will probably find that you become more health conscious in the process. You might even want to start your own vegetable garden. Learn to buy in bulk, use coupons, and comparison shop. The generic brand at a supermarket will generally be comparable but less expensive.

Another area that can be a problem for some is clothes shopping. Look for the clearance specials, shop at discount stores, or even thrift stores and budget a clothes allowance if spending in that area can be a problem for you.

A second big expense is weekly gas for the car. Do you need two cars? Perhaps not. Can you make one trip into town with effective planning instead of two? Another area that can be a problem for some is clothes shopping. Look for the clearance specials, shop at discount stores, or even thrift stores and budget a clothes allowance if spending in that area can be a problem for you. Be sure that your children’s expenses like music lessons or sports are budgeted for each week.

3. Working From Home, A Team Effort

In a time of economic uncertainty, you may need to support your partner by bringing in some money yourself. One way to do this is to work from home. You might start an inexpensive home based business, sell items on E Bay, write freelance articles, or even hold frequent garage sales?

There are many money-making opportunities out there, especially internet based ones, that can help you support the team effort to homeschool your children. It might be difficult at first to adjust to the extra demand of work hours from home, but if you work as a team then you can create a rhythm that everyone in the family can support.

4. Saving Money on Homeschooling, A Team Effort

Often only one person in the couple is primarily responsible for organizing the family’s homeschooling lifestyle, but it still takes a team budgeting effort to make it successful. There are many ways you can save money on your curriculum materials. First, make good use of your local library. Start in June by figuring out what books your library has that will help support your curriculum for school that next fall.

If you need to purchase an individual book, consider getting it used on line at Amazon or Half.com.

Second, find out where you can attend homeschooling curriculum swap events or sales or do this informally with homeschooling friends whose children may be a bit older and so willing to pass on materials to you. If you need to purchase an individual book, consider getting it used on line at Amazon or Half.com.

Last but not least, use the vast resources of the internet for a very inexpensive or free way to obtain homeschooling materials. There is a wealth of information on the net and one of the best new resources that I know for homeschoolers who want to find inexpensive and well-organized curriculum for their children is a new subscription based resource called Learning Pathways. You can sign up for a reasonable fee on a monthly or yearly basis and receive a well-organized curriculum that covers all subject matters for the elementary years organized in year-long Guided Journeys and weekly Pathways using materials that are at your fingertips on the net. It is a great idea and may completely adjust the way we look at purchasing curriculum.

Remember that if you really want to homeschool your children, there are ways to do it. These ways will inevitably involve budgeting your overall finances and your weekly spending. They may require that you support your partner by working from home. There are also inexpensive ways to get curriculum materials for your homeschooling. Creativity and ingenuity are hallmarks of a successful homeschooling family and you and your children will benefit from the conscious planning and creative effort that result in a happy and prosperous homeschooling family lifestyle.

About the Author

Jennifer K. Gray is the Director of Operations for LessonPathways.com. Lesson Pathways is an innovative online curriculum created entirely from INTERNET RESOURCES, making it easy for educators to use educational resources and links, with limited pre-planning time!