Home School Curriculum - How to Choose the Right One

Exactly how do you go about choosing the best curriculum? There are several things you need to take into consideration while choosing the best books to teach your children at home. Let's look at these one at a time. Is it easy for you to teach? This question isn't meant to insult your intelligence - really - it isn't! What I mean by "is it easy to teach" is are the instructions clear? Do they make the teacher help section easy to understand. Is it clear how to teach using their curriculum? If you have the time and access to the curriculum, sit down and go through one lesson just like you're going to teach it. This will give you an idea about how it "flows" and if it is going to be easy to use or make you want to pull your hair out! Does it look fun for your children? You are homeschooling your children to give them a good education. BUT...let's have a little fun while we're at it! When you see a curriculum that is boring...the lessons are excessively long...they contain worksheet after worksheet...this probably means that your children aren't going to like it. While school doesn't have to be all fun - and it won't be - there's no reason to make it pure drudgery either. There are going to be many times when your children won't want to do school no matter how fun you make it and they don't always have to like it, but I highly recommend always trying to keep learning as fun and interesting as possible. Look for curriculum that is bright - has great pictures or photography - and looks interesting while still being educational. It's out there...you'll find it! Does it fit the "learning style" of your child? This is very important. One of the greatest benefits of homeschooling is that you can tailor your teaching to how your children learn. You want to make learning as easy and as enjoyable as possible. To do this, you need to discover your child's learning style. Does your child learn better by listening? He's probably an auditory learner. Does your child learn better by watching? She's probably a visual learner. Does your child learn better by doing? He's probably a kinesthetic learner. Choose a curriculum that fits this learning style. Do you need to teach several age groups at the same time? If your family is like most homeschool families, you have several children. This is great and it is very possible to teach several children at one time - it just depends on the subject. Some subjects are easier to teach to different age groups - like history or science. Some subjects are impossible to teach to different age groups at the same time - like math or spelling. Is it too time consuming? A curriculum is too time consuming if you are going to have to spend an hour every night before you go to bed trying to figure out what you are supposed to teach your kids the next day. Some homeschool programs get so complicated with their schedule and will include multiple books - teacher's book, teacher's answer book, teacher's quiz book, teacher's quiz book answers, teacher's test book, teacher's test book answers...all for one subject! You get the picture. I've seen this many times. For one subject, the teacher has six books - the child has one. When you are shopping for curriculum, this should send up a red flag. Teaching your children isn't that complicated. When you see homeschool curriculum that is this overloaded with books, it means they are trying to sell you as many books as possible. Keep looking. How much teacher preparation is involved? This goes hand-in-hand with "Is it too time consuming?". Choose curriculum that takes minimal preparation time. Look for clear and easy teacher instructions. There's nothing wrong, of course, if you want to spend time putting together projects for your children - like lapbooking. These can be great learning opportunities. Just make it an exception rather than the rule. In other words, it should be something you do that is "extra" - having school shouldn't depend on whether or not you spent hours putting together a lesson. Does it fit your budget? Because homeschool families are often one-income families, you need to decide on a budget for your homeschool - and stick to it. Buying curriculum is FUN!!!! Homeschool moms tend to love books. Don't let this get out of hand. Remind yourself when you are tempted to overspend on "just a few more books" that you could be using that money to help with the bills, or to use in other homeschool materials, or how about a fun field trip? Does Anyone You Know Recommend It? One of the best ways to find good curriculum is to ask homeschool moms for help and recommendations. Ask around. See if anyone you know has used the curriculum you are considering and see what their opinion is about it. Just remember that their teaching style is going to be different from yours and their child's learning style is going to be different from your child's. Take all of these things into consideration before you buy. Before you Buy When deciding on which home school curriculum to buy, remember to take each of the above factors into consideration. Check our homeschool curriculum reviews to help give you some extra tips, suggestions, and recommendations on what will be best for your family. For honest home school curriculum reviews by a homeschool mom with 16 years of experience, visit http://www.home-schooling-haven.com/home-school-curriculum.html Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Debra_Proctor Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2106180

What to Look For in a Homeschool Curriculum

Making the decision to homeschool a child is never an easy one for a parent to make. For some, the decision to homeschool a child is based on the fact that they were homeschooled themselves, or oftentimes the result of a negative experience or disillusionment with the local public or private school curriculum. Whatever the reason, it is imperative that parents take the time to consider the curriculum that is best for the needs of their child. In order to find the program or approach the will best serve the academic needs of their child, parents have to consider everything from the individual learning style of their child to specific topics covered as part of the curriculum, Choosing the right homeschool curriculum doesn't require an advanced degree, but it does require careful thought and consideration. Homeschoolers should exercise patience and avoid becoming overwhelmed with the multitude of choices. Parents should consider factors such as learning and teaching styles, grade level, number of students being taught, religious affiliation, topics covered, and cost and overall value, among other things, when selecting a homeschool curriculum. o Consider the needs of the child - It can be very difficult for parents to separate their own needs from the needs of their child. Remember to keep the child's needs first when selecting a curriculum. Understand how the child's likes, dislikes, learning style(s), cognitive levels will affect the curriculum you select. o What teaching style do you prefer - There is room in homeschooling for the parents too. Since parents will be the one's doing the teaching and putting the curriculum into effect, it is important to consider the individual teaching style that a parent prefers. Parents should consider the amount of involvement and control that they want to have over their child's instruction. Does a parent want the program to do the teaching for them, or do they want to be able to exercise more control and have more input into the style of teaching that is used? o What is the child's cognitive level - A child's cognitive levels should also be taken into account when selecting a homeschooling curriculum. If the program selected is too advanced or to easy, it may prove ineffective to a parent's efforts in educating their child. o What topics should the curriculum cover - The specific approach that a curriculum program takes is also an important factor for parents to consider. What topics does the program cover and do those topics fit in with a parent's individual academic philosophy? In addition, parents should consider if a curriculum has a religious skew to it, if it is relevant to the issues of the day, and whether or not the curriculum can be used over time and with more than one student. o Cost and value - By far the biggest consideration that parents have to make when selecting a homeschooling curriculum is the cost and value of the program. Is the program a simple guide, or is it more extensive. An extensive curriculum may require the purchase of additional materials. Does the program include consumables or can many of the items be reproduced? If the program or curriculum ends up not fitting in with the needs of a child, can it be re-sold? o Is the curriculum aligned - Parents should take great care to determine if the curriculum they are choosing is aligned with state or government agencies and whether or not is was developed by an accredited agency. This can prove to be very beneficial when a child begins to apply for admission into colleges and universities. One of the highest quality, accredited homeschool curriculums and offers parent support and training is Laurel Springs School. Laurel Springs School is an accredited, college prep private school offering distance learning programs and teacher services for students in grades K-12. Laurel Springs uses web-based communication tools, a standards-based curriculum, and personalized instruction to offer students the highest quality home education experience based on your child's learning style. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Julie_Jackson Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/1621218

Overview - Homeschooling Curriculum Options

There are probably as many different homeschooling curriculum options as there are homeschool students. Families make curriculum choices depending on their comfort level with homeschooling, and also the subject matter. Many families feel more comfortable creating curriculum for the early grades, while many feel greater ease using prepackaged curriculum for subjects they're less sure about, such as biology or geometry. Packaged Curriculum Homeschooling families new to homeschooling, often start off with a prepackaged curriculum. Many companies offer a prepackaged curriculum. Explore the different offerings and try to evaluate the curriculum and see how it fits your family. Do you want a religion-based curriculum? Choose one that reflects your religious values. Are you a busy parent juggling the homeschooling of two or three children? You probably want to choose a curriculum that doesn't require a lot of parent involvement and provides teachers. Try to evaluate how your child learns. Is your child a visual learner? Is your child a kinesthetic learner? Is your child an active learner and self-motivated or does your child need more direction? Preview the curriculum activities with your child in mind. Many areas have homeschool curriculum stores where you can preview many different curriculum options. Many act as places where you can sell your used curriculum materials and buy new ones. This helps keep the cost down, but does limit your options. Reputation and Accreditation Parents can make curriculum choices based on the reputation of the curriculum publisher. Reading reviews from other homeschool parents helps to evaluate whether or not, the program is right for your family. Networking and talking with other homeschool families is a great way to get first hand information of what has worked for them and why. Traditional schools are accountable through a process of accreditation. Outside agencies provide oversight and evaluation of the schools curriculum and practices. Homeschools are not required to be accredited and many homeschool parents don't want any kind of oversight on the curriculum they choose for their family. But often parents and students worry about the high school transcripts and how college admissions boards will look at them, if they don't come from an accredited school. But things have changed now, there is the option of working with an accredited distance learning school whom provides the accredited curriculum and teach support. Distance Learning More and more people are turning to the Internet for their homeschooling curriculum needs. Many schools are offering online classes for students at all grade levels. These distance learning schools are often a great resource for homeschool families. Students enjoy the online community aspects of taking online courses. Parents often feel secure because they have previewed the curriculum and they know their student is learning in a way they find to be beneficial while having the support of a teacher. As students get to the high school level, distance learning becomes an indispensable tool. Students can take high-level classes, such as honors classes and online Advanced Placement courses, and receive credit from an accredited institution for them. Often, if the high school student has a strong interest or talent in a specific subject area, colleges will offer online classes to high school students for credit. To learn more about a quality, distance learning homeschool please visit Laurel Springs School. Laurel Springs School is an accredited, college prep private school offering distance learning programs and teacher services for students in grades K-12. Laurel Springs uses web-based communication tools, a standards-based curriculum, and personalized instruction to offer students the highest quality home education experience based on your child's learning style. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Julie_Jackson 0 Comments | Leave a Comment Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2052501

Early Childhood Curriculum

Early childhood curriculum, early reading programs, and numerous other kinds of preschool curriculums created to develop smarter babies and toddlers, flood the market today. All in an effort to get your money... Yes, at the end of the day, companies behind these early reading programs, infant curriculum, and various other curriculum kits, want to do two things. Of course they want your money, and if they want to stay in business, they also want to deliver on their promise to help your baby or toddler learn to read, learn math skills, or even develop "perfect pitch" with toddler curriculum on music. As parents of five, including our baby angel, Elisio, we have over ten years of experience finding the best toddler curriculum available. In fact, we are still looking for fun homeschool curriculum, creative curriculum, and preschool curriculum ideas to actively engage our children and help them develop as individuals who love to learn! As parents, I believe we all want the best for our children. Finding the Best Toddler Curriculum So how do we know when we have found the best early childhood curriculum? The best curriculum makes learning fun, in the context of love and joy! Effective preschool curriculum does not replace you as your child's teacher, it actually provides you with more bonding time between you and your baby or toddler. Some of the best curriculum is not necessarily expensive either. In fact, some of it can be very inexpensive and sometimes even FREE. Some examples include: 1. 5 x 8" index cards used to print "word cards" for teaching your toddler to read, as outlined in the popular book Teach Your Baby to Read by Glenn Doman. There is probably a copy of this book at your local public library for FREE! 2. FREE library books with "real world" images for expanding your child's background knowledge. 3. FREE library books that are filled with rhyming phrases, such as the popular Dr. Seuss series, for developing your toddler's phonemic awareness or simply the ability to recognize rhyming sounds and word patterns. Why is Early Childhood Curriculum So Important? According to the latest research on infant brain development, conducted by the Institutes for the Development of Human Potential, we know that babies and toddlers learn faster and easier the younger they are when we give them the opportunity to learn something new. That is why, selecting the best preschool curriculum is so important early in your child's life. When shopping for early childhood curriculum, it is so important to get your questions answered first. Of course, as a parent, getting your questions answered by other parents is the way to go. Infomercials, and the companies behind the best marketed preschool curriculum, will do their best to tell you what you want to hear. Rule # 1: Always talk with a parent who has successfully used the preschool curriculum before purchasing anything...Ask them how the curriculum helped them achieve their desired results. Toddler Reading Curriculum...that works! More and more information on early childhood curriculum focused on "baby reading," is becoming accessible, as parents are proud to share their results on YouTube videos, blogs, and even entire websites that center around baby reading. Parents are also happy to share preschool curriculum ideas about the various early reading programs they have used to successfully teach their babies and toddlers how to read. Click the link above, or visit You-Tube and see what can be accomplished with your baby or toddler when using effective early reading curriculum. Love...Learn...Play More than anything else, know that if you openly express your love for your children, read and play with them daily, and discover creative curriculum and preschool curriculum ideas that increase the time you spend teaching them, your children will benefit for a lifetime! "Spreading Literacy Worldwide" "Believe It Baby!" Steven Van De Walle Download FREE Animal Coloring Pages [http://www.elisios-preschool-activities.com/animal-outlines.html] and get FREE access to many more preschool curriculum ideas and activities... Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Steven_Van_De_Walle Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6669446

Great Gifts For Kids

What things make the best gifts for kids? That, of course, depends upon the individual children. Consider a child's age, location, interests and friends before purchasing any gifts. Why consider friends? Friends have much to do with what your children will do. Don't try to buy friends for your child, but what may be popular with one child may not be popular with others. If your child's friends aren't interested in the gift you choose, it may sit idle while the children search for other things to keep themselves occupied. Of course, children aren't always out playing with friends. When kids are at home, books are an important resource. In fact, books are some of the best gifts for kids. An educational gift is always a good choice. An early interest in reading can do much to help a child in school and to obtain a lifelong interest in learning. You don't have to concentrate only on works of nonfiction to help a child learn. Get books that interest your child-books rekindle a love of reading. If your child likes fiction, get fiction. Children learn more than you might think even from imaginary tales. Not only does reading help them learn, but it ignites a desire to continue to peruse other works as they grow older. As you choose books, consider award-winning works. As a parent, you may still need to do a little of your own screening, but award-winning books generally are considered the best of the best. Within reason, gifts that require interaction are better for developing the mind than those that don't. When gifts require no interaction, children tend to rely on emotional responses rather than critical thinking. When no analysis takes place, intelligence lags. Gifts that involve interaction, such as video games, are probably better for the brain than DVD movies. There are many popular video games on the market, and many are very affordable. If you decide to purchase video games for your child, opt for those that help them learn or stay physically active. Video games that provide a steady diet of theft, killing, and other illegal or immoral acts can give your child less compunction for similar activities in the real world. If you are considering a video game for your child, check out the Wii gaming system. Some of the games available for the Wii, such as Outdoor Challenge, require running, jumping and other activities than can help keep your child in good physical condition. It is an especially great way to keep them entertained on rainy days when they can't get outside. Anything that gets your child out of a chair and running around outdoors helps to improve physical fitness. Outdoor sporting equipment can develop both your child's mind and body. Obesity in young people is largely due to inactive lifestyles. Baseball, basketball, hockey, and other rigorous sports help develop stronger bodies, mental acuity and hand-eye coordination. Choose sports equipment that will interest your child. Not all children love baseball. Not all children love basketball. However, there is usually some sport that will interest your children enough to get them outside and running around. Even hopscotch is better than sitting in front of a television five hours a day. You could buy land in each of the 50 states for kids too. Okay, simply one square inch in any or all of the states. They'll receive a deed to each piece of their property and be able to mount them on the wall confirming their ownership. If given with a piece of history from you, each square inch of land brings a special meaning to your child. By the way, they cannot build on their one square inch of land, and it holds zero investment potential, but they do not have to pay taxes on it, nor upkeep it either and the novelty of it all is absolutely a great gift for any child. Some excellent sites to check out for the best gifts for kids as well as educational gifts for children include http://www.veryclevergifts.com, findgift.com, and gift.com. Scott Moger is an Internet entrepreneur and author who has been published internationally. His book on Internet marketing includes chapters on how to find great birthday gifts for kids as well as educational gifts for children. The book also features a novelty gift site which offers free land in the USA to all visitors. Earlier Mr. Moger held top management positions at Columbia Pictures, ABC TV, and 20th Century Fox TV and has represented Miramax Films and Warner Brothers TV. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Scott_Moger Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/2463965

Finding Nemo: The History for Kids Parties

Finding Nemo was inspired by a combination of a trip to an aquarium, memories of growing up by the ocean, and the writer's own experience of parenting challenges. Finding Nemo tells the story of life in the Great Barrier Reef, and how Marlin a widowed clownfish parent sees his son (Nemo), get scooped up by a diver that requires him to go searching for him. Marlin feels he has to go after Nemo, not only because he is the only remaining child Marlin has, because Marlin is a big overbearing. Marlin realizes that Nemo has a deformity, known in the film as the Lucky fin, and that others can be mean to Nemo because of it. Nemo, because he wants to be accepted by his schoolmates, tends to rebel against his father's wishes. It is during one of these rebellious moments that Nemo gets himself scooped up and the adventure of Finding Nemo has begun. Marlin teams up with Dory, the forgetful sidekick who helps Marlin accomplish the ultimate rescue of Nemo, but not until after both Nemo and Marlin have some pretty wild adventures. The storyline of Finding Nemo is good for children to view because it affirms the importance of listening to parents and authority figure. In addition, the studio made a concerted effort to keep the basics surrounding the ocean life and fish characteristics as close to realistic so as to make Finding Nemo a good learning experience for children to experience. In 2003, when it was released Finding Nemo became a huge hit, grossing over three-quarters of a billion dollars. In addition, Finding Nemo won Oscars for the best animated film and had three additional Oscar nominations. The company that produced Finding Nemo, Pixar, sold the movie to Disney studios. There are many rumors that a sequel will eventually be released. Meanwhile, kids and parents today still can't get enough of the cute little clownfish, making a Finding Nemo party an excellent choice. Mrs. Party... Gail Leino is the internet's leading authority on selecting the best possible party supplies (http://partysupplieshut.com), using proper etiquette, and living a healthy life while also teaching organizational skills and fun facts. The Party Supplies Hut has lots of party ideas with hundreds of free coloring sheets, printable games, and free birthday party activities. Over 100 adorable Party Themes (PartyThemeShop.com) to fit your birthday celebration, holiday event, or "just because" parties is at the Party Theme Shop. Party themes include cartoon characters, sports, movie, TV shows, luau, western, holidays, and unique crazy fun theme ideas. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Gail_Leino Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/335088

Best Way For Kids to Learn - Books Vs the Internet

I know that seems like such a loaded title as there are so many variables to take into account such as the age of the child, what they want to learn, where they want to learn and so on. But you're reading this article to get a little insight so here goes. On the subject of age a child is never too young to learn. Research shows that infants are formidable learning machines whose brain doubles in size from birth to 5 years. They don't need books or the internet to learn, they just do it naturally. Take talking for example, they learn this effortlessly, and if exposed to many languages while small, a child can learn many with ease, all without the internet or books. Another consideration is what you want them to learn. For example if you would like your children to learn to love nature and respect our environment you can teach them by example. If they see that you never litter, you treat animals kindly, you support wildlife programs and so forth they will follow. Conversely if you don't care about things like that, they can also learn to have an uncaring attitude all without the internet or books. What about kids learning school subjects like Maths, English, Science or History? Which medium would be more helpful, books or the internet? Well, both have their place. Nowadays in many schools computers are replacing books and the keyboard is replacing handwriting. In some schools teaching handwriting is optional sometimes replaced by typing instead. This familiarity with the digital world means it would be easy for kids to learn via the internet at school or at home. On the internet you can find a multitude of programs designed to help your child be successful in most school subjects. They often include an online tutor that can give your child one on one help. Your child can submit assignments online and get valuable feedback to help them improve. What about learning to read, which is the basis for all school subjects? I personally am a great believer in spending time reading books with small children, they can learn to read, learn about stuff they are interested in - like dinosaurs or insects- and at the same time you can strengthen your bond with them. But let's face it just as handwriting may be soon become obsolete for our kids, ebooks are fast replacing paper books. Amazon, the largest bookseller in the world now sells more ebooks than paperbacks and hard cover combined. So where does this leave us? With the latest ereaders of course. You can download heaps of books onto your child's ereader, and on some ereaders like the Kindle book reader you can even borrow books from your library. Your child will never run out of books to read, enjoy and learn from, or books for you to read to them. The movement towards all things digital is obvious and unstoppable. With ereaders both books and the internet can combine to give our kids a head start in this digital world. Visit us soon at http://www.enjoypress.com to find out heaps more about the Kindle book reader and where to buy Kindle. While you're there check out The Greener Choice Infographic that explains why ebooks are better for the environment than paper books. Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Celia_Hamilton Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6816511