I need help home schooling is it ok to use my own ciriculum? it is so expensive2 purchase ciriculum for 4 kids

Question

home school mommy needs help

Answer 1

Unless it specifically says otherwise in your State's own regulations, then yes it is perfectly okay to put together your own curriculum to use. We're unschoolers so we manage fine with no curriculum.

PS Why do so many Americans (not just you!) want to spell it 'ciriculum' when it should be curriculum?

Answer 2

depends on where you live..

Answer 3

Specifics differ from state to state, but in most states you CAN put together your own course of study using various free resources.  The library, the internet, etc.

You didn't mention your state so I can't be more specific than that.

You also didn't mention your children's grade levels.  It is easier to put your own curriculum together for Elementary age students than High School students, so if you can only afford to buy a purchased curriculum for one student make it the oldest.  Don't let him or her write in the books and the others will be able to use them when they get older.

Also try http://www.vegsource.com/homeschool/  to find lots of used homeschool materials at discounted prices.  This is better than e-bay because e-bay doesn't let people sell Teacher's Editions.

EDIT-------EDIT-------EDIT

I didn't think to add this until now, if you decide to put together your own course of study, this is a good resource to guide you along the way:

http://www.worldbook.com/wb/Students?cur...

Answer 4

Please purchase one to make sure you at least have CURRICULUM spelled right.

There's a lot that goes into home schooling. Get help.

Answer 5

you can choose a curriculum, but you have to be very careful to make sure that it meets your state's standards for what your kids should be learning

Answer 6

It depends on the requirements of your state.  Where I live no specific curriculum is required.  A lot of people use the library as well as other sources and don't buy boxed curriculum.  Search the internet there are all kinds of free things available.  I would find a local homeschool group and see what they do...they will be the best source of info for your area.

Answer 7

In my state it's OK to use your own curriculum. If you want to stay in line with what is being taught in the public schools just get a copy of your state's frameworks. You can usually find these in your state's board of education's web page. Some refer to them as SLE's. For curriculum help try the internet. There are hundreds of lesson plans available at no charge.

Answer 8

It is fine to use your own curriculum, and I understand that it would be quite expensive to purchase curriculum for 4 children.  I am a single mother of one child and know how expensive curriculum can be.  If you want to create a curriculum according to your state's public education standards, please click on the link below:

http://www.letshomeschool.com/state_core...

If you are not interested in teaching according to the state public school standards, I would suggest that you check out a book from the library on how to create a homeschool curriculum.  Following the guidelines in the book, you can create your own curricula for your children.

I hope this is helpful.

Answer 9

With most States you don't have to buy any specific curriculum, the system likes to be a bully and make parents think that they can't homeschool unless they spend yea so much on a prepackaged program.

Check your laws and visit the school board page for your state for what they are learning each year (that is your guide) and then go with your gut. Give yourself a budget and try to stick to it. Second hand books are not bad to use and if you get a workbook that does multigrades, you can make it last longer by using page protectors (slip the page they are working on in the protector, use a dry erase maker and do the work), invest in a printer/copier/scanner (Lexmark 1200 is pretty good and  cheap)....get your books from places like Amazon.com in the used section or the Thrift store or even the Flea Market. You can also get stuff out of the Library in the children's section to use for school. Field Trips count as a school day and you can check you Newspaper for the weekly Calendar for things that are happening around town, museums that are offering Freebies or Free days. Many museums even have lessonplans online or will give you something if you ask (they love homeschoolers) and some even offer programs JUST for homeschoolers (age and grade level factor in).

I live in Fl, so I don't have to follow anyone's lead or requirements. For math we use Ray's Arithmetic (150 yr old proven math system that goes thru College), McGuffey Reader's and Speller and then I sprinkle liberally with whatever catch's her fancy for everything else. I use Books on CD's when we are in the car that I found at the Dollar Tree, Jumpstart computer programs and educational TV (Mythbusters, How It's Made, Science channel, History Channel). We are going to a Rennassaince Faire (that's how it is spelled :p) which revolves around the reign of Elizabeth I in the year 1560, so her history this week and next  is for that time period (dress, food, manners, speech).

This just gives you an Idea. You CAN do it, you WILL be good at it and you WON'T mess your child up.

PS...mine's in 3rd grade and wants to be a Palentologist (try that 5 times fast)..can spell it, tell you what it is AND what it involves

Answer 10

Homeschoolers are free to use their own curriculum. You do need to research the laws of your state as they vary widely, but you are not tied to buying expensive curriculum packages.

It's important to do your research, though.

Answer 11

You have to check local laws.

NY for example requires you show your syllubus and it must meet, letter for letter, the state requirements.

CA requires the method be accredited.

Generally, though, that's how homeschooling works.  You devise a method that works.

Remember they need the essentials especially if college is a goal.  If college is not a goal the goal has to at least be the GED test and they will have to take the GED to get most jobs.

So they need an understanding of English and Grammar and Math through Fractions and some VAriables (pre-algebra) and light geometry (figuring out areas of rectangles and circles) and history and Earth Science to pass the GED

They need a solid background in Algebra, Geometry, Trig, Biology, Earth Science, Chemistry or Physics, World and Local History, English Grammar, Art to be college ready.  In some instance foregin language, but only for private colleges.

You can get all of this from borrowed or used books.

Language from those cassette tape courses yu can find used (Spanish).

Answer 12

Try Ebay, you can get alot of great books at really reasonable prices.  Also try used book stores, librairies or public school auctions for great places to get cheap materials.

ADDITIONAL: I checked out Blessed suggestion for discounted material as I had never heard of this website.  Seems like a  good source, but I'm not sure where she got the impression that Ebay does not allow teacher manuals.  I just did a search and came up with 618 hits for teachers manuals and have ordered and recieved several teacher manuals with tests and answer keys myself.  Just thought I should let you know.

Answer 13

Go to www.Caliva.org

Its a free online home schooling. They have other states as well

Answer 14

You did not mention what state, county you are in.

Answer 15

Four kids!!! Wow!  You are a devoted Mom!  Kudos to you!

Buying a "canned" curriculum is a trap that we all fall into. Not only is it expensive, but caters to the institutional mindset. Good for you to move from it!  Check the resources from your state for laws and local home school groups/co-ops/museums for opportunities.  

We have home schooled for 5 years now and write our own curriculum.  It is demanding, but this allows us the ability to utilize a different scope (depth of learning) and sequence (order of learning) than the traditional school counterparts.  This way you can partake of events in your area and other opportunities, internships, and the like that otherwise you would miss out on.

It also helps when you read and utilize from several different books and resources.  This allows your child to be exposed to different learning approaches and develop the ability to discern which texts are most accurate.  Your children can help design the curriculum, which includes them and gives them more of a feeling of involvement and personal gain.  You can make unit studies around almost every topic that there is – that ties in to topics of interest cross categorically (math, history, art, literature, etc.)

These are some books that come in handy:

"The Well Educated Mind", by Bauer

"The Well Trained Mind", by Bauer and Wise

These books deal with the classical education style which allows you often to teach different ages the same information with different depths.

"Home School Your Child for Free", by Gold

This is an excellent work with over 1,200 resources to draw upon!  It has terrific websites.

The Charlotte Mason approach also is cost effective and fun!  That gives you art and nature as mediums for the different subjects.

As bothersome as it may be, examine state standards and the curriculum from the schools, this is normally available at the library.  This is not to fit you into the institutional mindset, but to see the tangible comparison of what the counterparts are doing, and often is quite empowering to see!!!

Explore the museums around you and Department of Conservation...  They often have freebies - resources, memberships, and cost effective unit studies.  See about setting up a co-op so that other's strengths and abilities can be tapped.

See if there are resources in your area similar to:

http://www.bookrescue.org/books/default....

This allows you, for a nominal fee, access to hundreds of text books (14 per student to take per visit) that schools have donated.  Often, we have found brand new ones that are newer editions that what they have in the local schools!

I hope that this information helps.  You deserve relaxing and rejuvenating experiences....   Good Luck to you!  Feel free to contact me if you need more information!  Your children are blessed to have you as their Mother!

Answer 16

In the state where we live, we can.  We pick up used books at thrift stores and yard sales.  We have purchased from homeschool stores that sell used curriculum.  We use the library and we use free online resources.

I would suggest that you do a Yahoo Group search for a group in your area.  Homeschool people love to help other homeschoolers.  Request help from one of the many homeschool support groups online and you should receive lots of advice and suggestions.

Learning is a wonderful, lifelong journey.

Please feel free to email me to keep me updated on your success.  You will learn as you teach your children.

Answer 17

Actually, that's the way homeschooling was done for hundreds of years - there were very few textbooks 200 years ago.

As you can tell, the answer to this depends largely on where you live.  I'm not aware of any states that have a "set" curriculum for homeschoolers, but some may have an "approved list".  So start with your state homeschool association (Google "(your state) homeschool").  Contact them to see just what your state requires.

There are a few resources for developing your own curriculum and we use the library for much of our schooling.  See if your library has anything by Charlotte Mason or Karen Andreola, or _The Well-Trained Mind_ by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer.  Theses books offer tips for developing your own curriculum (although TWTM often recommends "curricula", they do include other resources commonly available at the library, such as reading lists).  You might also take a look at Ambleside Online ( http://www.amblesideonline.org/ )

Are you following a particular philosophy, such as classical, unit studies, or unschooling?  If so, there may be other resources for creating your own curriculum, such as _The Latin-Centered Curriculum_.  

It may be the only thing you need to buy (if you just have younger kids) is a phonics book.  Math and science can be done using items/activities you think up.  History (and science) can be done using "living books" from the library, rather than textbooks.  For writing, you can have them copy sentences from great literature (Charlotte's Web to Dante's Inferno, depending on their ages).  Grammar can be done by "deconstructing" great literature.

One of my best sources for "activity" ideas is the local teacher store.  I go about once a month to browse through the different supplements and get ideas.

Try to find a homeschooling group in your area, too.  People are often willing to lend or sell (cheaply) their used materials.