I forgot to add that money is kind of an issue as well. Some of these curricula and online school services cost almost as much as the parochial tuition. We are hoping for something reasonable to get us started.
Been awhile since I was homeschooled, but my parents used Seton's program the first year or so. After that they realized it didn't take much to assemble a curriculum. I have no idea what Seton's costs would be these days, though!
Dave is the keeper of the homeschool ping list! Should be able to get some discussion going. ;-)
a family thing that is still educational is horticulture/agriculture. it teaches science, and there are farm groups that have pre-packaged curriculum that is usually within state guidelines . start by calling your state farm bureau.
How old are your boys, by the way?
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This is what I use for my boys..I really like it due to they still have a teacher for every class on DVD...so they feel they are part of a classroom......my boys loved it. :)
God Bless
http://www.abekaacademy.org/
We used Seton math but Abeka for everything else. My daughter liked it.
Do you have the time?
Ping
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Dear a.c.t.32,
"They have attended a parochial school for the past two years, and while they are probably better off than if they were in a public school, we think we can do better."
You can.
Advice: Well, we use the Calvert School curriculum. It's pricey, as homeschooling goes, but we like it.
sitetest
I also vote for ABeka
and have heard good things
about Calvert School:
http://www.calvertschool.org/engine/content.do?BT_CODE=CES1512
We're into our 4th year homeschooling and just ordered A Beka again - we've used it all along and like it well enough that we haven't seen fit to seek out changing our base.
I homeschooled my kids from grade school all the way thru high school. We used the ACE (Accelerated Christian Education). It is a program designed specifically for homeschooling, and I thought it was great. It's been over 5 years ago that my last child graduated, so I'm not sure on the current prices. It was very reasonable at that time, about $400 per year per student. Rose has just this past summer started her children on this program, she will be able to give you current prices.
Good luck in what ever you choose. Homeschooling has blessing you never even expect, and was the most wonderful thing. You can't imagine till you do it. I wish everyone would at least try. With a program like ACE, IMO, there is no reason for any parent not to be able to homeschool.
Becky
i know you'll get lots of advice as far as curricula goes, so i won't even try to suggest any to you... i do want you to realize that you will "miss something" in teaching your children... there is no way you could possibly cover EVERYTHING! and you may lay awake late at night sometimes wondering if you are doing "enough." most of us fall into that... institutionalized education is all most of us know, so we find ourselves comparing what we are doing to our own schooling experiences...
teach your children "HOW" to think as opposed to "WHAT" to think... teach them to how to learn, to love learning, and they will learn to learn on their own... this is what you want them to leave your homeschool with... then if you missed something that they need, or they want (and you will miss something) they will know how to find it, get it, learn it when they really need it...
i am all for alternative schooling, and i get excited when another family decides to pursue alternative education... my best to you and your family!
Before you get too wrapped up in curriculum and trying to get a tremendous amount of book work accomplished, try to get a copy of "The Simplicity of Homeschooling" by Vicki Goodchild and read it. I always give new homeschoolers who ask my copy to read so they don't try too hard to reproduce traditional schooling at home.
If you are really willing to look at education in a totally new way, read Linda Dobson's book, "The Art of Education." It helped me realize that I cannot cover *everything* and that my kids are learning all the time, even when I am not teaching them - sometimes especially when I am not teaching them!
My two homeschool graduates are both in college on significant academic scholarships. We were not complete unschoolers with them but we were definately relaxed....
Before you get too wrapped up in curriculum and trying to get a tremendous amount of book work accomplished, try to get a copy of "The Simplicity of Homeschooling" by Vicki Goodchild and read it. I always give new homeschoolers who ask my copy to read so they don't try too hard to reproduce traditional schooling at home.
If you are really willing to look at education in a totally new way, read Linda Dobson's book, "The Art of Education." It helped me realize that I cannot cover *everything* and that my kids are learning all the time, even when I am not teaching them - sometimes especially when I am not teaching them!
My two homeschool graduates are both in college on significant academic scholarships. We were not complete unschoolers with them but we were definately relaxed....