Where to start homeschooling? At the library!

August 18, 2013

Is there too much writing or too litte? Either could turn a child away from a book, but learn your child's preferences and you have a key to finding the right resources. — Is there too much writing or too little? Either could turn a child away from a book, but learn your child’s preferences and you have a key to finding the right resources.

How do you start homeschooling? Start homeschooling in the library! If at all possible get a library membership and learn how to use it fully. Know if and how to order books in from other libraries. Find out if you can reserve and renew books online.

If your town or city has a university library, particularily one with an education program, look into getting a library membership there too, as some education departments will have curriculum library and helpful teachers resources. I’ve been able to borrow resources such as an Alaskan math curriculum explaining mathematical concepts in the context of Yup’ik culture, teachers guides on using tangrams and geoboards, as well as preview many textbooks.

Sometimes, even an adult's textbook can be interesting if you sit and discuss the charts together. — Sometimes, even an adult’s textbook can be interesting if you sit and discuss the charts together.

Learn your child’s tastes in books. Does too much text on one page overwhelm your child? Does your child like charts and graphs? Are there styles of artwork that disgust or scare your child? I know there are children out there who will willingly gather books from all over the library but my children get intimidated by the huge shelves and tend to stick to one spot. It is easier for me to gather up some books to bring to them than to try to herd all three of them around the whole library with me, but doing this means I need to know what types of books will work for them. Don’t limit yourself to the children’s sections. Look in the adult nonfiction section for coffee table books with an abundance of pictures and charts. I also like to get adult books out on whatever topics they’re studying so that I can learn a bit extra to share with them.Whether you decide to purchase a complete curriculum, allow your children to unschool or find a balance somewhere in between those two extremes, libraries can help fill in the cracks. When we’ve needed breaks from our curriculum we can learn math from library story books. There are sometimes older treasures like Many Luscious Lollipops: a book about adjectives Ruth Heller, that can reinforce concepts learned in other curriculum. There are books about figures of speech and children’s jokes.

Homeschooling is a wonderful adventure, if you’re ready to learn alongside your children. There’s so much to learn.

2 Comments

Susanne

August 19, 2013 at 7:41 am Reply

Yes indeed at the library!
Pingback:

September 5, 2013 at 11:59 am

401st Carnival of Homeschooling | The Informed Parent

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Christy's Houseful of Chaos

21 hours ago

Everything will go through a couple more rounds of proof reading but I'm starting on laying out my book anyway.

My tentative layout suggests if I do the book as 8.5" x 11" it will have approximately 45 lessons of 2 - 3 pages each. Most lessons consist of reading and then a couple of follow up activities. Sometimes the activities are to look up a particular painting or poem related to the story. Sometimes the activities are to research a certain topic online. Sometimes they are questions to answer.

I have some blank spaces at the end of lessons. I debate adding illustrations. I could use old artwork that is in public domain but then everything will be a different style. That could show some of the breadth of styles done over the centuries but I don't really have space or expertise to do a proper commentary on the style changes.

Or I could hire someone do to some illustrations, so that they all match in style.

Or I could add other exercises to do in those blank spaces. I could have vocabulary exercises or places where I do in depth analysis of just one or two verses.

There is so much to decide and I hate decisions! Yet I am incredibly happy to be working on this and to be able to see a path to the end. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Christy's Houseful of Chaos shared a post.

2 days ago

Here's another good meme about thinking about things differently.

[Image description: two columns, one labeled problem focused and one labeled solution focused. Bossy becomes "natural leader, visionary." Defiant becomes "holds strong beliefs, bold, determined." Demanding becomes "knows what they want, outspoken." Dramatic becomes "expressive, passionate." Fearful becomes "cautious, careful." Fussy becomes "has strong preferences." Hyperactive becomes "energetic, enthusiastic, on the go." Impulsive becomes "spontaneous, instinctive." Oppositional becomes "advocates for a different perspective." Rebellious becomes "is finding their way." Stubborn becomes "persistent, determined, steadfast." Talkative becomes "enjoys communicating." Tattletale becomes "seeks justice, respects rules." Unfocused becomes "multitasks, pays attention to many things." Wants attention becomes "seek connection."]There’s always a positive way to phrase something. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Christy's Houseful of Chaos

2 days ago

One of my kids has spent days pouring over the rules - both official and fan made - for Settlers of Catan and the various expansions. We are about to begin what he first called "Catan Eternity" but then rebranded as "Catan Ultimate" when he realized that spending eternity at a game is not necessarily appealing. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Christy's Houseful of Chaos shared a photo.

3 days ago

Did I share this before? I can't remember if I did, but I think it worth sharing. I know their are parents who are worried about having their child diagnosed with a learning disability or developmental disorder because they "don't believe in labels" but all too often the child just ends up with other labels instead: slob, bully, know-it-all, dummy, etc. It is better to understand what is going on.
At the same time, understanding won't necessarily mean everything changes. The goal isn't to label a child in order to find the best way to make the child "seem normal." There's that weird space where one has to try to help a child (and adult) gain the skills to do what they want in life (including learning how to clean, prioritize everything, and have the social skills to interact), but at the same time we need to learn to accept that those skills aren't the be-all-and-end-all. We need to celebrate and value even those with untreated ADHD, while at the same time making sure they have access to the treatment and assistance they want. ... See MoreSee Less

View on Facebook

Christy's Houseful of Chaos

3 days ago

Washable notebooks? I'm curious. ... See MoreSee Less

Saving Time and Paper in Our Homeschool With Rocketbooks

thedeliberatemom.com

Homeschool with Rocketbooks?! Yes it's true! Come find out all the creative and clever ways that we use Rocketbooks in our homeschool!

View on Facebook