Comments on: See Pigs Fly. Fly, Pigs, fly!

By: LadyGunn

LadyGunn — Sat, 18 Feb 2006 11:58:52 +0000

My siblings & I were all homeschooled. We used a combination of ABeka & Bob Jones with Saxon Math. (My brothers & I used to plot what we would do to John Saxon if we ever got hold of him.)

We were north of Topeka and never ran into any problems but if you ever do, you can contact the HSLDA – Home School Legal Defense Assoc.

By: Linoge

Linoge — Thu, 16 Feb 2006 23:29:27 +0000

Depending on the age of your children, Calvert School ( http://www.calvertschool.org/ ) may do the trick for you. Basically, they send you all the books, all the papers, all the notebooks, even all the pencils, you will need for a year’s worth of schooling. You teach your child, and then send Calvert School the tests, which they grade and send back to you. Unfortunately, they only cover from K to 8th grade, but, speaking from experience, they work pretty well. Best of luck!

By: Hope Corizzo

Hope Corizzo — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 18:52:17 +0000

We started out pulling topics off the web that interested us and were season appropriate. I was schooling both ds- 1st grade and dd- pre-k and K. I stumbled on k12.com. EXCELLENT. I cannot say enough. Very well rounded and offers different ways to teach a concept. Plus, it was really fun. Hope

By: She Who Will Be Obeyed!

She Who Will Be Obeyed! — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 12:18:23 +0000

Around my blogroll…

Kate at Electric Venom is going to Home School her son. Go over and wish her good luck! I admire anyone with the planning skills and dedication to home school. I never could have done it, I’m too much of……

By: Beth Donovan

Beth Donovan — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 12:05:14 +0000

Good luck with the homeschooling, Kate. There are quite a few families in the area that do homeschool – I met one family a few years back where the mom home schooled her 8 children.
They came to the barn one day so I could teach them about a little about horses and caring for them.

If there is anything I can do to help you out, please let me know – I still can’t believe we’ve not gotten around to meeting you!

Also, I have a new cell phone that work has provided me, so the number you do have is never answered!

The only thing that bothers me about home schooling is that Bob Jone’s University really hates Catholics, and I hope that doesn’t come through in their curriculum.

By: Venomous Kate

Venomous Kate — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 03:09:32 +0000

In Kansas, it's up to the school district whether to permit homeschoolers to participate in the public school's extracurricular activities. I'm under the impression (though I haven't yet researched it) that the Ft. LV school district is open to this, since our local fundamentalist home school co-op has a PE-related event scheduled at one of the schools on post. Right now, we're planning on unenrolling our boy at the end of the month. (I need the intervening time to get the house organized, prepare my lesson plans, and stock up on sleep before making this major life-shift.) Meanwhile, I've ordered the Bob Jones series to get us through the rest of the school year. I also lucked out and found SchoolZone's Big Kindergarten Workbook for $6 on Wal-Mart's bargain shelves today. (Yes, that was my big accomplishment of the day... and I was thrilled!) I've also found a co-op about 30 minutes from here that has weekly bowling activities for the kids, bi-monthly gymnastics classes, monthly playdates at the park, regular "Mommy's Nights" and various summer activities, including camping trips. It's coming together, I think.

By: EdWonk

EdWonk — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 02:21:14 +0000

I think that no matter what curriculum that you choose, it’s important that both of you are comfortable with it. After all, the world’s best curriculum is ineffective if both student and teacher don’t embrace it.

Here’s another consideration. Depending on your jurisdiction, homeschooling children are often able to take advantage of the public school system’s extra-curricular activities (sports, dances, academic competitions, etc.) and I believe that in all districts homeschoolers may enroll whatever summer enrichment programs are offered.

We’re looking forward to hearing more.

By: Blog Jones

Blog Jones — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 01:54:49 +0000

When I was being home schooled my parents first used the Bob Jones University curriculum (bjup.com) then switched to the A Beka Books program (abeka.com).

The best math curriculum I’ve encountered is the Saxon Math series of books.

By: RightWingDuck

RightWingDuck — Wed, 15 Feb 2006 00:24:26 +0000

We home school our child. We are with something called the California Virtual Academy. However, it’s known nationally as K-12. Its the Bill Bennet program. We’re happy with it. They provide a lot of wonderful materials and a very solid education in the basics.
Initially, our biggest concerns were regarding the socialization aspect of it – but she has enough activities to keep her busy.

By: Kevin

Kevin — Tue, 14 Feb 2006 16:35:47 +0000

We’ve been homeschooling for 12 years now. We use a smorgasboard approach, with material from different soures for different subjects over time. The one part that has been constant is the use of Math-U-See for mathematics up through Geometry and Algebra. The good thing about MUS is its focus on teaching the principles behind math versus rote memorization.