Home Schooling...Help Please!!!

So after "discussing"(heck, she's seven, so I make the choice but let her feel like she's a part of it)it with my daughter, we've decided to start home-schooling in the fall.

Being fairly ignorant on the whole subject, I'd really appriciate any advice on the subject I can get...Curriculums, scheduling, finding ways for her to interact with other kids.

I do not deny that Saxon is an excellent program for preparing a student to take tests and do very well on them.

What I was saying is that it is unlikely to teach you mathematical reasoning. Depending upon how far you want to go in Math, physics, chemistry, or engineering, you will eventually need to learn to reason, instead of just know how to solve a problem.

Saxon is a very popular program with homeschoolers, and with some private schools too. The main reason for its popularity is that those who use it according to the Saxon method do so well on standardised tests.

By all means, potential home schooling parents should look into a program that has been so successful -- especially if they cannot locate Miquon or Singapore Math.

Dr Wile even refers to Saxon levels to help parents determine if their children are ready for a particular science course. When I asked him how to place a child who did not use Saxon, he looked at me a little surprised (that is how popular the program is), and asked me if we used something else. When I answered yes, he smiled and said how lucky my children were.

I am so glad that you feel successful after using the program. BTW, how's your geometry?

My geometry's great; I still remember all the formulas for volume and surface area, and used to be able to do sine/cosine/tangent calculation in my head. I had no problems in math until a bad teacher in Calc 3 set me up for problems in Linear Algebra later. I'm a comp sci grad student and I credit Saxon with giving me the solid mathematical background I needed.

Most people don't need mathematical reasoning. They need to be able to do the math. Algebra itself is mathematical reasoning anyway, just memorizing rules won't get you through more than the first few books of Saxon.

If your kid's an arty type, or just hates repetition on principle, Saxon may not be the thing. Otherwise the drill-and-repeat approach, gradually adding in new topics, works well. I tried video lectures for other subjects and my mind wandered, that's just how I learned. For me and my learning proclivities, Saxon was the best choice.

Congratulations! You won't regret this decision... I recommend FiveinaRow It is a literature based learning system - you can start as early as 4 or 5 with (Before Five in a Row). It is a very well rounded program and lights a fire (instead of fills a bucket). Instills a love of learning which is so important for later years!

Find a good support group in your area. You will do fine!

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