(Part 3) Top products from r/homeschool

I'm preparing to start my daughter in homeschooling (US) for high school this fall, and I've been researching and using some of the resources available to figure out what will work and won't. I haven't solved all of her courses yet, but I'm happy to share what I'll be trying:

For math: KhanAcademy.org

It's structured both by grade level (U.S.) and by topic. What I like about it most is that there is no 'grading', just mastery of topics. You can freely bounce from topic to topic as your interest and ambition desires. It's perfect for a student who may have weak spots in early education to catch up at their own pace. I recommend starting from the beginning and working through 8th grade as a great way to get up to speed for high school levels. Warning, though - this may take a couple of weeks (2-4) depending on how far behind he is, and how much time is spent each day.

You can sign up as a 'teacher' or 'parent', and monitor the student progress, with some pretty detailed reports to support individual tutelage when and more importantly, where required, and to make sure they're meeting any minimum time requirements you might set.

It seems the most comprehensive site in terms of what it is teaching and has a fair system for its topic mastery values. Has great progress tracking tools.

Cons: the teaching videos are often long-winded and can be boring to get through, but they are thorough. I personally prefer to learn from text, which Kahn does provide if you do the practice questions and ask to be shown all the 'hints' on how to solve, but it's different than reading about a subject. Will be using mathisfun.com as a supplement, along with expii.com (overly ambitious, unfinished project, it seems).

Kahn Academy also does Science/History/Economics courses, but I haven't tried them yet, so can't evaluate.

For English, I've been customizing a starter course based on the Foundation course from EasyPeasy. While they have a heavy religious aspect at EasyPeasy, they do a pretty comprehensive job in designing courses.

The Foundation course is geared toward self-discovery, character development, learning how to learn, and then presentation. I'm most fond of the Reading Comprehension quizzes, however - and they will be a daily exercise in every English class until 12th grade reading level is reached (the top level at this site, I believe).

For World History, I've decided to start with McDougal Littell World History It has some of the best reviews of any high school level textbook, and while I may use Kahn in addition - I believe reading vs. video learning is a more effective learning method (though I'm fine to find if I'm wrong after trying them both out - pulling up BBC documentaries on Netflix is easy.)

So, those are the three courses I've set in stone. Still working on the Science course, and PE/Health. She wants to learn French, so that's set, but I haven't yet prepped a 'course' for it, and she'll want art & music as elective - of which art I can wing it (me, Architect), and my wife can do the music (college vocal minor).

I think one of the best places to start is the [The Read Aloud Family] (https://www.amazon.com/Read-Aloud-Family-Meaningful-Lasting-Connections/dp/0310350328/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1542344569&sr=8-1&keywords=the+read+aloud+family) by Sarah MacKenzie. She is a homeschool mom of five and her recommendations for books are great but she also has insight into ways to incorporate books into your routine. My husband actually got the book first and suddenly all these fantastic picture books showed up on hold from the library. I asked him where they came from and he told me about the Read Aloud Family book.

The library is your friend here. If you buy too many things you'll be swimming in books your child will never wants to read again. I would recommend really working your local library system. Look up lists. Put things on hold. Take her a few times a week to check things out.

We discovered that picture books are great to read over breakfast. Even our 11 year old loves them and many of them incorporate into his science curriculum. It creates peace and joy in the middle of what could be a harried routine and one of our favorite things that homeschooling has introduced to the family.

We do chapter books at night. My five year old LOVED Charlotte's Web and Bunincula. We have started Mr Popper's Penguins but honestly no one's that into it at the moment. Winnie the Pooh is a huge favorite.

Check out School Library Journal's booklists for recommendations. I also utilize the Amazon "customer's also bought" recommendations (which I then input into our library website.)

Recent favorites: I AM BAT by Morag Hood, The Rules Of the House by Mac Barnett, Have You Fed The Cat by Michele Coxon and Fruit Bowl by Mark Hoffman.

Books don't teach virtues, parents do.

For example, my 3.5yo daughter has hit the princess stage really hard, and so she's obsessed with Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty and all that Disney nonsense.

So the other night, we were lying in bed and she asked me, "Dad, why is the witch (in Rapunzel) greedy?"

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"She kept the flower and didn't share it," she replied.

"You're, right. Perhaps nobody taught her to share when she was little," I said.

"Why did she take Rapunzel?" she asked.

"She didn't want to share the magic hair either," I told her.

"Why?" she asked, using her favorite word.

"She wanted to keep it for herself," I said, "Maybe if she had taught other people the song, then she could have used the hair or the flower to help many people, but she didn't. She was greedy. So she lost the flower, and then she lost Rapunzel, because she was selfish."

(long pause while processing....)

"The witch is not a good person," she declared... and then went to sleep.

The witch in Rapunzel created a problem for my daughter. Because in the movie, the witch seems nice and treats Rapunzel kindly and Rapunzel even calls her "mom". So at first, my daughter could not figure out why the witch was "bad", because "moms are good". The actions of the witch at the end were very upsetting to my daughter and she's been processing it and asking lots of good questions about it to help her place it within her worldview and value system.

So between the book and the movie, we've been having an ongoing discussion about people's motivations, the consequences of their actions and how sometimes people are not what they seem and they can be deceptive, greedy or selfish (and that these traits are not good, and we should strive to be honest and giving).

So the inspirations for teaching values can be found in almost any book or movie. We just have to be mindful of those opportunities and in-tune with our kids and the moral dilemmas they are currently processing. Then our role as parents is to provide feedback and guidance to help them see the right/wrong course of action.

I have found that "values books" often tend to be a bit too preachy, and this can turn kids off. The stories in those books are often a bit boring and too contrived, and kids quickly pick up on that. I have found that it's better to just pick up good books with good stories, and then find the learning opportunities within the pages of well-written children's literature.

For example, right now, my daughter is obsessed with a book called "Lucia and the Light" because the girl in the book has a white cat, and so do we. So when we read that book, my daughter insists that I read it with her name, not "Lucia" and I have to call the cat "Mun-kaow" because that's the name of our cat. The girl in the story is very brave and clever, so I'm very happy that my daughter identifies strongly with her. The trolls in the story are pretty scary, but when I get "scared" reading that part, my daughter holds my hand and says, "Don't worry Daddy, I will protect you."

There's nothing preachy or "values-orientated" in that book, and yet my daughter is still learning to be brave and clever and protective of others and we reinforce that with our actions and words throughout the day, "Oh? You can climb that tree? You are strong and brave like Lucia!" To which she says, "Yes, I am."

Congratulations on giving homeschooling a try! Kindy is a great time to get started.

As far as staying motivated - I would say the best way to do that would be to find a homeschooling style (or styles) that fits your family. Pulling out textbooks when everybody would rather go for a nature walk is a guaranteed way to kill the motivation.

Homeschool groups can work well too. Group field trips and get-togethers can put some wind in your sails. Blogs, Facebook, and YouTube communities are also great places to get ideas.

If you are concerned with staying on task, make sure to check with standards for your region. There are also lists by grade that can help you lay out some guidelines for what needs to be getting done. You can check out resources like Core Knowledge Sequence

http://www.coreknowledge.org/download-the-sequence

or Home Learning Year by Year

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/0609805851/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1486338581&sr=8-1&pi=SL75_QL70&keywords=home+learning+year+by+year

I hope some of that helps. Good luck!

Wow, Austen is not easy. There is a huge amount of cultural context which can make it hard to understand especially with her writing style. I did my college thesis on the adaptation to the movie and miniseries.


Some resources which might help:

• The Annotated Pride and Prejudice: A Revised and Expanded Edition
  
  
• Jane Austen: The World of Her Novels this is a bit advanced, and more of a history book, but it could be useful.
  
  
• Free Audio Book
  
  
• The 1995 BBC miniseries with Colin Firth and Jennifer Ehle is a pretty faithful reproduction of the novel and along with the annotated version could be very useful.

We have snap circuits too, those are great. Also, LEGOS! I have an engineer minded dude, too, and he's loved Legos his whole life. I have big 6 foot table with drawers for organizing, set up in his room for him to build on. We don't have robotic Legos, but those are a thing, too, hope to get some for him soon. If you're in a bigger city, you probably have a First Lego League your son can play on, they often do stuff with robotics! As far as books, idk, what's he interested in? "The Way Things Work" by David McCauley is a cool book. So is this one:https://www.amazon.com/Basher-Science-Engineering-Riveting-Buildings/dp/0753473119/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=23W3GNNF2QZDC0REKGZ3&ref_=zg_bs_3250_17

I understand the techniques proposed by Lockhart, and he has a good book out Measurement that illustrates some of his techniques.

I'm trying to address the same problem in a fundamentally different way. There are elements of discovery in my stuff, but it is more focused on presenting the development in a historical context.

Lockhart's method is great for high school students who have a teacher devoted to the method and who is steeped enough in the mathematics to lead the discovery. I think there is value in both.

Read whatever you can get your hands on about it. :) Two of my favorites were The Unschooling Handbook (http://www.amazon.com/The-Unschooling-Handbook-Childs-Classroom/dp/0761512764/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1408927620&sr=8-1&keywords=the+unschooling+handbook) and this How to Homeschool guide: http://www.time4learning.com/homeschool/how-to-homeschool.shtml

Good luck! :)

My son is similar though younger. He enjoys books on architecture like the book cathedral
Cathedral: The Story of Its Construction https://www.amazon.com/dp/0395316685/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_SP2MAb9P0DY50

and a recent one on bridges that shows how every different type of bridge in the Portland /Vancouver area was made.
The Big & Awesome Bridges of Portland & Vancouver : A Book for Young Readers and Their Teachers https://www.amazon.com/dp/0978736567/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_DU2MAbYFKBWHB


I have architectural blueprints from a family member that I'm going to let him copy or trace soon.

I give him Lego challenges. Www.dameoftheden.com/block-challenge/

I'm looking forward to seeing him grow, little engineers are fascinating!

Without a doubt, Reading Reflex is a must have.

As he grows, I'd highly recommend looking into "Institute for Excellence in Writing". While that sounds a bit far-fetched for a youngster, they are an invaluable resource for teaching kids proper diction and grammar. Their founder, Andrew Pudewa, is an excellent speaker and I would absolutely say that, if he's in your area, you must go listen to one of his talks.

In general,

1. Don't try, by which I mean the following: If you have to try to be friends with someone, they might not want, or just might not have time, to be friends with you. Good friendships often come easily and then have to be maintained by both people.
   
   
2. Know your worth and don't give time to anyone who doesn't value you.
   
   
3. You can always walk away from a bad situation.
   
   Read https://www.amazon.com/Friends-Influence-People-Teen-Girls/dp/0743272773
   
   Read it skeptically and don't assume you have to use everything in it. It just might be a helpful start.

I enjoyed Homeschooling for Excellence https://www.amazon.com/Homeschooling-Excellence-David-Colfax/dp/0446389862 and Project Based Homeschooling https://www.amazon.com/Project-Based-Homeschooling-Mentoring-Self-Directed-Learners/dp/1475239068/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=project+based+homeschooling&qid=1557432686&s=books&sr=1-1

This is the curriculum we use.

This book has been really helpful too.

I have a book called Einstein Never Used Flashcards that's been helpful in understanding how their brains process information.

Yes I co-wrote it with my mom. Here is a link for it on amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/RV-Travel-Budget-Mother-Roadschooling/dp/0692825738/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1495040793&sr=8-1&keywords=rv+travel+on+a+budget

This series was what my mom had me do in the summer’s to supplement what we did during the school year. Maybe it could help you!

You might like Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong.

If you haven't read it yet, you might consider The Well-Trained Mind. It's view is that you should not do much too early -- you may kill off any love of learning before it has a chance to sprout.