Don't Tell the Children: Homeschoolers' Best-Kept Secret

The Horn Book Magazine ^ | September, 2008 | Sherry Early

[Fiji Hill]

This article is an eye-opener. Although it dates from 2008, it remains timely.

[JRandomFreeper]

The greatest gift ever given to me, besides salvation, was my mother teaching me to read at age 4.

Thanks, mom.

/johnny

[mmercier]

Those who have children should give them a copy of “Websters Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language” and a copy of the Holy Bible.

Neither of my copies appear to have ISBN numbers on them, but they are easily available.

Books and reading are the key that turn civilization and understanding. The Bible and the dictionary are perquisites to understanding the rest of what manifests.

Books will matter more when the lights go off.

[GraceG]

[ Books will matter more when the lights go off. ]

And Homeschooled kids will fare far better than their urban union institutional learning system drones.

[Fiji Hill]

Those who have children should give them a copy of “Websters Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language” and a copy of the Holy Bible. Neither of my copies appear to have ISBN numbers on them, but they are easily available.

The ISBN for the dictionary is 13: 9781571456915. On the Barnes and Noble website, you can find the ISBN of the Bible of your choice.

[mmercier]

Nature works through a scattershot mechanism.

Those who fare best are randomly distributed throughout.

Not because I say so, just because that is the way nature works.

[Pure Country]

Our homeschooled daughter entered college at the age of 16 and had an eye-opener the first full day of lecture classes. She came home and shared with us that, “They just stand up there and tell you what you need to know! They just tell you!” She had never taken part in a lecture class and was used to doing all her own learning via books. She was dumbfounded to say the least. We just laughed at her.

[Cold Heart]

Going to be some good sales on books as all the book stores start closing down. Get em while you can.

[backwoods-engineer]

Good article. I have two homeschool kids: the youngest (daughter) loves to read (and write), and the oldest (my son) does not like to read. I read to my son more than my daughter, although I read to both quite a lot. My son does have dyslexia, but so does my daughter, to a lesser degree. Son is 18 now. He will read when he has to (car repair manuals), and has good reading comprehension, but just doesn't like to read.

Any ideas? Do you think he will read more when he gets older? He spends a lot of time chasing girls and cars (well, one particular of each) these days.

[achilles2000]

A book has a difficult time competing with a pretty girl...or a fast car, for that matter, at least until you are too old for the girl or the car ;-)

[elisabeth]

I agree that learning to read and then reading for enjoyment and learning is the most essential component to an education.

Now that my daughter is in kindergarten, the thing I miss most is the hours we used to sit and read together.

On a different topic, I wish there was some research on homeschoolers that was NOT done by Brian Ray. I feel like it is not totally impartial when a big homeschool proponent seems to provide 90% of the research on the topic.

[Fiji Hill]

My son does have dyslexia, but so does my daughter, to a lesser degree. Son is 18 now. He will read when he has to (car repair manuals), and has good reading comprehension, but just doesn't like to read. Any ideas? Do you think he will read more when he gets older? He spends a lot of time chasing girls and cars (well, one particular of each) these days.

Here are some sites that might be helpful:

• The Young Adult Literary Services Associationn (YALSA) offers some suggestions and resourses for reluctant readers

• Additional resources can be found at AdLit.org

• If he likes graphic novels, this article in Library Journal my be of help

• This article in Scholastic is aimed at middle school students, but may still be helpful.

Books that might helpful include:

• Reading Rants: a Guide to Books that Rock! by Jennifer Hubert (New York: Neal-Schuman, 2007). A guide to teen fiction listing books according to genre. Information about each book includes a synopsis of the story, the target audience, the message, and "why it rocks."

• Making the Match: The Right Book for the Right Reader at the Right Time, edited by Teri J. Lesesne (Portland, Me., Stenhouse, 2003) offers advice on motivating young readers.

• Value-Packed Booktalks: Genre Talks and More for Teen Readers by Lucy Schall (Santa Barbara, Calif.: Libraries Unlimited, 2011) has not yet been published, but is due out in April and will be up to date as to what literature is available.

• Radical Reads 2: Working with the Newest Edgy Titles for Teens by Joni R Bodart (New York: Scarecrow, 2010). The follow-on to Radical Reads: 101 Young Adult Novels on the Edge (New York: Scarecrow, 2002) by the same author discusses "radical" books that should pique teens' interests.

These books were written for librarians and may be difficult to locate, but you can find them in your nearest library by using Worldcat (http://www.worldcat.org)

[Fiji Hill]

I wish there was some research on homeschoolers that was NOT done by Brian Ray. I feel like it is not totally impartial when a big homeschool proponent seems to provide 90% of the research on the topic.

Try the Education Resources Information Center (ERIC) at http://www.eric.ed.gov/. This is a prestigious and a very user-friendly site. I typed "homeschooling" into the search box and retrieved nearly 200 hits.

[TASMANIANRED]

I figured out when I was about 4 1/2...if you can read...all information is available to you.

[ichabod1]

I learned to read, and got waterproofed at about that same age. Those are two of the greatest things a parent can do for their child, you are right.

[backwoods-engineer]

Thanks for the resources! I’ll check them out.

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

Have you considered magazines, like car magazines? I would assume his difficulty reading is what puts him off, so perhaps shorter stories/articles might help.

Another idea is to watch a movie produced from a great book, then he might be interested enough to read the book and pick up more of the characters and story line. We all know movies rarely capture the entirety of a good book.

[My hearts in London - Everett]

My daughters didn’t like to read either due to a confusing mix of phonics and whole word when they were young. You have to find something they are really interested in to get them to read. For my daughters it turned out to be romance fiction and Harry Potter. (Hey, whatever it took! Even period romance fiction has words that need to be sounded out and/or researched.) Now they’ve expanded their topics of interest, which include a love of learning about all types of history, and have gotten better and spelling and comprehension in the process.

[elisabeth]

Great suggestion! Thank you.

[Fiji Hill]

My daughters didn’t like to read either due to a confusing mix of phonics and whole word when they were young. You have to find something they are really interested in to get them to read. For my daughters it turned out to be romance fiction and Harry Potter. (Hey, whatever it took! Even period romance fiction has words that need to be sounded out and/or researched.) Now they’ve expanded their topics of interest, which include a love of learning about all types of history, and have gotten better and spelling and comprehension in the process.

I had a similar experience. I was taught to read through the look-say method, begining with Dick and Jane books and then more advanced primers such as Through the Gate by Elizabeth H. Bennett (New York: Silver Burdett, 1945) and Down the Road by Nila B. Smith (New York: Silver Burdett, 1946). However, I enjoyed reading comic books. My parents didn't approve of them, but I am thankful that they allowed me to read them, because they inspired me to start reading on my own. I later graduated to mystery stories, beginning with The Secret Under the Sea by Gordon Dickson (New York: Scholastic, 1960) and series fiction, such as the Hardy Boys, churned out by the Stratemeyer Syndicate.

By the time I was a teenager, I had developed weird literary tastes, and was reading Way of a Fighter (New York: Putnam, 1949), the memoirs of 14th Air Force commander Clair L. Chennault, the fictional The Great Pacific War: a History of the American-Japanese Conflict of 1931- 33 (New York: Houghton Mifflin, 1925), and Up Ship! by C. E. Rosendahl (New York: Dodd Mead, 1931), on the US Navy's airship program. Today, these books are collector's items, worth beaucoup bucks.