Homeschool parent with a question, re: Penn Foster?

Question

I homeschool my children, the older two are in grades 4 and 2 and my youngest is an infant. My 4th grader just turned ten years old, and strives to be a vet.

I see a lot of questions in this category about Penn Foster (mainly from people trying to cheat, it seems) and I decided to check out their website. I saw some things that interested me, and was just wondering if anyone has ever used this program? Any feedback would be appreciated.

I requested some free information, and I think I would like to contact them about the possibility of purchasing some of their materials without enrolling in their programs-just some things I would like to use for my daughter. She is an "advanced" student and most of the materials geared towards her age range is dumbed down. Do you think they might allow me to do this?

Answer 1

My understanding of Penn Foster is that you sign up as a student (high school or above)  and that's it.

If you'd like a good look at more advanced materials she could use, the Sonlight catalogue http://www.sonlight.com has a ton of stuff to choose from from all grade levels. You can also purchase teacher's guides. For science, you might look at Apologia or Real Science 4 Kids.

Answer 2

For an advanced learner, go to the Hoagies Gifted site and check out their links and input:

http://www.hoagiesgifted.com

I would steer clear of Penn Foster.  Try some other online class options instead:

Apex:

http://www.apexlearning.com/

K12:

http://www.k12.com

Florida Virtual School:

http://www.flvs.net/

NorthStar Academy:

http://www.northstar-academy.org/......

UNL Independent Study High School:

http://nebraskahs.unl.edu/index.shtml......

Center for Distance and Independent Study:

http://cdis.missouri.edu/

Answer 3

I don't think they will sell you their materials but you can still contact  them maybe they can offer you  an idea on where to get the best materials for your daughter.

Answer 4

do your research.  best place to buy school books is at amazon.com.  if the books that pent foster has intrest you, find out what they are and buy them at amazon.com.  it will be much cheaper for either a new or good condition text book.  the school makes money off the school and even if they do sell you the book you will get it for a much higher price.

Answer 5

Some other homeschool catalogs that you may want to check out for materials are:

http://www.timberdoodle.com

http://www.rainbowresource.com