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Kristi's Homeschool Corner

Last updated on February 2, 1999

HI! Welcome to my little homeschool corner of the web. Sit back and relax for a few minutes while I share with you a bit about our homeschool experience.
You may have noticed from my main page that we have two boys Adam, who is 9-1/2 and Jared, who is 5-3/4. We have been homeschooling since Adam was in preschool, and it has been a great experience for all of us. Adam & Jared have been learning by leaps and bounds, and so have I! We are just beginning with Jared, and are using "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" and "Alphaphonics" interchangeably. They are both great books, but I found that by combining both of them Jared is learning to read more readily.

One of the best things I have done for myself has been to join a homeschool e-mail list called Train-Up-A-Child. I have been a part of this list for more than 2 years, and it has been great. It is like an on-line support group. There are all types of homeschoolers on the list, some just starting out, and some that have been at it for years. I have found it an invaluable source for educating me about the different curriculums and styles of homeschooling. There is always someone on-line to answer questions you may have or just to share in your triumphs or trials of homeschooling.

Click to subscribe to Train-Up-A-Child.

The first few years with Adam our curriculum changed dramatically. The 1997-1998 school year was our first year to use Sonlight curriculum. I think that we may have found the perfect curriculum for us!!

I think the most important thing in choosing a curriculum is finding one that fits your child's learning style and your teaching style. Even if you find the curriculum that works great for your child, if you don't enjoy teaching it, it just won't work.
Discover all about learning styles, by reading a book written by Cynthia Tobias called "The Way They Learn". Here are a couple of web sites on learning styles to get you started.
Learning Styles Links

Learning Styles

Here is the curriculum that we are using for the 98-99 school year:

Adam is using Sonlight 4th Basic, Sonlight 4th Science and Sonlight 4th year Language Arts.

We have change the LA program to fit our school better. We have added Grammar Songs which is used with Sonlight 3rd year and Daily Grams . We have chosen Getty & Dubay Italic for our handwriting and we do not do spelling, dication or creative writing on a regular basis. I use the The Natural Speller as reference and Adam also enjoys playing spelling games from the Spell It Deluxe CD Rom.

Adam's math program is Moving with Math.

Jared is using Sonlight Kindergarten Basic with the advanced Language Arts and Readers. We have chosen to used the "old" Sonlight LA program which includes Alphaphonics and the Merril Readers. Jared also used Getty & Dubay Italic and Explode the Code Books 1, 2 & 3.

Science for Jared is Sonlight Kindergarten Science, which we are actually using with both boys right now. Science is not my strong subject, so in order to not have to do two science programs at the same time, we have decided to do the K science program first and then both boys will move onto the 4th year science when this one is done.

We have the Prairie Primer and will use that through the summer, (maybe!). We have added a lot of interesting books from the library to read this year too. There are many books available that go along with the theme of our Sonlight year.

We read to the boys a lot, so Sonlight is the most logical choice for us since so much of it is reading great books.
The basics of 3rd level Sonlight which we used last year are the beginnings of US History-1850 and 4th year is a continuation of 3rd year. In the past year we have learned about people such as Columbus, Pocahontas, Daniel Boone, George Washington, Ben Franklin, Squanto & more. Our science last year covered mainly Botany & Zoology.

If you are looking for curriculum at a discounted price, Home Schooling Daily has an extensive list of used curriculum sites. I have bought quite a lot of our books and curriculum used and have been pleased with everything that I have received. It is a great way to save money on your curriculum.
Used Curriculum Sites by Homeschooling Daily

You can also join the TUAC-CURRIC-SWAP e-mail list which I help moderate.

Click to subscribe to TUAC-Curric-Swap

People that don't homeschool often ask, "why do you homeschool?" or "what about socialization?". I have found a web page that answers some of the most common questions asked of homeschoolers.
Answers to Objections about Homeschooling
If you are not a homeschooler, and just happened to come upon my page, I encourage you to go to the "objections" page. I think that it will answer a lot of your questions. If you are all ready a homeschooler, this may help you know how to respond if you are faced with these questions.

Go back to my home page, Kristi's Homeschool Site!
If you would like to e-mail me about anything you have seen on my web page or just to "talk" about homeschooling, send e-mail to Kristi. I would love to know if you have decided to join the TUAC list!

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