Still looking and need advice! Help!
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Still looking and need advice! Help!
My daughter will turn 5 in May and I am trying to decid what is the best program to start her on. I have looked at the online academies/schools and have talked to several mothers who say "just pick the curriculum that best suits your child". Quite frankly I have no idea what would best suit her. I like the idea of getting the curriculum and the lesson plans all put together but I don't know if it's worth the cost. I am intimidated and confused. Can someone please offer me a little more constructive advice than "pick what fits your child best". Thank you! One more thing, is it important that she be a part of a program that is accredited? Does it matter mor the older she gets?
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Helpful Book
I am planning to begin homeschooling my children in the fall, and this book was very helpful to me. 100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum by Cathy Duffy
It helped me figure out my boys' learning styles and which curriculums would best fit those styles which has narrowed down my choices.
I don't think the accredited part is as important with a younger child, but you will need to ask someone who has actually been homeschooling for a while to be sure.
It helped me figure out my boys' learning styles and which curriculums would best fit those styles which has narrowed down my choices.
I don't think the accredited part is as important with a younger child, but you will need to ask someone who has actually been homeschooling for a while to be sure.
Thank You!
These have been really useful tips, thank you for taking the time to give me some direction. I deffinitely feel more confident knowing that other people know how I feel. Especially the first time I want to have things laid out for me so I know what to do everyday, I'm just not comfortable with the thought of me having to decide everyday. I'm afraid I won't get it done or it won't be enough, so thank you for the tips. I am open to anymore that anyone wants to offer!
I too am doing this for the first time this fall and I was very scared of the idea of coming up with stuff daily. I went ahead and got the Alpha Omega lifepac and I have gone through them already and now I am reassured that I can do this. It seems easy enough and it lets my dd go at her own pace, which was one of the main reason I am wanting to homeschool in the first place.
Good luck on choosing, I know how tough it is.
Nancy
Good luck on choosing, I know how tough it is.
Nancy
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getting it done
I'm almost done with Benjamin's 2nd grade, not that I'm, an expert, but we've been at this since Kindergarten. This is how we keep track of what we need to do in the kitchen table part of our day: I've made a pocket chart out of two pieces of poster board. One I cut into strips and attached with staples where I could reach, and brads where I couldn't. Then I labled 3x5 cards with each daily assignment: practice occarina, write out ayers list words, write a sentence, do 2 math pages, read a book to Mom, ect. Each morining we pray, then arrange the cards in the bottom strip. If I know that we have errands, co-op, or a field trip, I put out fewer cards. When we complete the assignment, we move the card up to the done pocket. If we don't get everything done, then I see the cards left over from yesterday, and we do those things first the next day. This helps Ben to know how much longer "school' will be, since he is shaky on the clock still, and I don't get discouraged with constant,' are we done yet Mom?" It also gives us a feeling of acomplishement when we see those cards in the done row.
This doesn't help you choose what to buy of course, but an acountability/celebration chart is one way to know you are doing something.
Do you have homeschooling friends? Drop by their house and see what they use, especially if they have kids that seem like personality twins to yours. Many families will start putting bags of used homeschooling goodies in your car when you aren't looking once they know you are starting out - old Lauri puzzles have to make way for microscopes sometime!
You can also experiment this summer to see what sort of lessons click with your students. When the neighborhood kids get bored, they might let you experiment on them too.
This doesn't help you choose what to buy of course, but an acountability/celebration chart is one way to know you are doing something.
Do you have homeschooling friends? Drop by their house and see what they use, especially if they have kids that seem like personality twins to yours. Many families will start putting bags of used homeschooling goodies in your car when you aren't looking once they know you are starting out - old Lauri puzzles have to make way for microscopes sometime!
You can also experiment this summer to see what sort of lessons click with your students. When the neighborhood kids get bored, they might let you experiment on them too.
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Doesn't have to be so confusing!
I'll agree that choosing curriculum can be confusing. But it doesn't have to be that way. You need a simple guidebook that will help you sort things out. There are three basic methods, to start with - structured with the full set of books and teacher's manuals, unschooling where the child pretty much learns what he wants, and a watershed group of the rest of us who plan schooling and then get whatever materials we need. This last method is not as hard as it might seem. I have free articles at my site that help in planning which is the very most important step in homeschooling this way.
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