August 11, 2007: I can’t believe I’m doing this. I’m actually putting my homeschooling books up for sale at Amazon. After 9 years of homeschooling, I’ve reached the point where I’m comfortable with what and how I am/we are doing things. It’s time to get rid of the clutter. But I wanted to keep a list here, as these are things I check every year or so just to see where we are and if I wanted to change a few (okay, sometimes a lot) things here and there… BTW, these are great homeschooling guides/helps/how-to books. If you’re just starting out with homeschooling, some of these are must-reads. If you’ve been homeschooling a while, you might want a refresher or two, or need to rethink things/methods/materials….

For those who like the (some would say, neo-) classical approach, or would like to learn more about it, how it’s implemented in the home, etc.:

• Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum by Laura Berquist — contains curriculum suggestions for each grade level, divided into the 3 stages (Grammatical, Dialectical, Rhetorical). Useful for people who want things spelled out for them, or just a general idea of what to do when. The history booklists are indispensable esp. for Catholic homeschoolers — there are many booklists out there, but the choices here are unequivocally Catholic, and there are times when I want exactly that. CATHOLIC
• The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise — the book to use if you’re of the “I want to do everything!” persuasion. Might lead to burnout if you’re not careful though. Might not be the best choice for those homeschooling 4 or more kids either. Takes LOTS and LOTS of discipline and dedication to make this work. Great for picking and choosing, or if your goal is to cast a WIIIIIDE net. I like to look through it every few years or so to see if I’ve missed something that I REALLY want my kids to learn. DON’T read if you’re the type to get easily overwhelmed and would prefer simple choices.

  SWB seems to be a very organized person, based on what I’ve seen on TWTM, HOWEVER, I think one of the weaknesses of this book is its organization. There are many redundancies and you’ll find yourself going back and forth from one section of the book to another just to make sure you didn’t miss something. I think this book would actually be most effective if set up online like a searchable, telescoping database. You know, like how some stores have a narrow-down-your-options search capability. I’d love to do it for our homeschool blog but so far a WordPress plug-in hasn’t been written for it.

• Educating the Wholehearted Child by Clay and Sally Clarkson – a favorite esp. among Christian homeschoolers. By the time I bought this book I had already read and researched much so the part about homeschooling philosophies, etc. I didn’t get to use much. However, this would be perfect for a beginner homeschooler, esp. those wanting a Christian perspective. I mostly used this book for the list of home education resources and favorite book list in the appendices. The home education planning forms (daily/weekly/monthly schedules, home ed goals, Bible journal page, etc.) are also useful, though plain. You could copy them, or get ideas for making your own.

I’ll also be selling Latin Centered Curriculum by Drew Campbell and Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver de Mille — reviews later.

Books I won’t be selling, or at least, not yet:

• Climbing Parnassus by Tracy Lee Simmons — the book that helped me, finally — after years of pondering — to pinpoint exactly why I want a classical education for the kids. I’ve always wanted our homeschooling to be partly classical, but my “why” wasn’t defined as clearly as it is now. I’ll write about it one of these days…
• Real Learningby Elizabeth Foss — I found the CCM group (from which the 4real forum eventually branched out) in 2001, got to know the moderators and fellow moms, and then Elizabeth published her book (in 2003). We have many, many reasons for homeschooling, and it’s in this book and with the families that have embraced the Real Learning lifestyle that we’ve found much common ground. We share many of the same beliefs and practices on marriage, faith, family, parenting, etc. Elizabeth Foss and the families at 4Real have blessed us more often than I can count with their prayers, as well as their daily sharing of how to make this lifestyle work. If you can afford to buy only one book on homeschooling, make it this one. You won’t regret it. It contains the “hows”, the “whys”, and yes, booklists too. I guess I should mention Charlotte Mason — she’s the one who said “Education is an atmosphere, a discipline, and a life.” That’s what we believe.

I’ll be making a booklist page as well, which I’ll link here.