What are the best books and things to use when homeschooling??

Question

My mother has taken my siblings out of public school because of bullying and such and shes going to homeschool them but she hasn't had the time to do anything and its been over a month. I was wonder what the best way to go about homeschooling and what I should use to teach my siblings (1st and 4th grader) and what the best things to teach them are.

Answer 1

for a good math program try the "Saxon" program, They have math books all the way up to 12th grade

Answer 2

For the complete newbie who needs to get started somewhere, I strongly suggest ordering these books from B&N or amazon because they contain all lesson plans, standards, and such.  May not be the best but a darn good start.  Then get the following:

  

Making the Grade: Everything Your ___ Needs to Know

basic supplies like paper pencils scissors etc. from Walmart

library cards  and make a weekly visit a habit

big calendar to remind you of everything

a notebook to document lessons, attendance, etc

schedule some outside activities through the city or similar

get some educational dvds and software programs

Most importantly connect with other homeschoolers and keep expanding your horizons with new ideas and better material.

Here are some neat websites with lessons:

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.ht...

Answer 3

Here are some traditional programs:

http://www.abeka.com

http://www.bjupress.com

http://www.aop.com

http://www.aceministries.com

http://www.rodandstaffbooks.com

Some programs I like are:

http://www.winterpromise.com

http://www.fiarhq.com/

http://www.mfwbooks.com/

These are a bit more teacher intensive though.

Answer 4

Saxon math has a great set of books for all math levels.

Answer 5

Because they are close in age choose some books around their learning level to read.  Lets pretend you choose Tom Sawyer.  Read to the younger one and have the older one read a few parts here and there.  Pick words from the story for spelling/phonics.   Let's say for the younger one you create a list of words with a "ck" ending.  Rock (from the cave), rocket, pick, picket (fence that Tom painted), sock, stockings, etc.  Have the younger one practice phonics this way and learn to add plural (s, es, ies) to words or other endings (et, ed, ing).  You can choose a different group every week.

You can study geography and science to go with any novel.  With Tom Sawyer, you would study the Mississippi, Caves,  types of rocks (sedimentary, igneous, metamorphic), steamboats, animals of the region, etc.  You can create writing assignments to go with any book too. Have the older child write a letter from Tom to one of the other characters of the book.  Or have the younger child create a set of three sentences about the book.

You do need a math curriculum for the older child.  I would suggest Saxon just because I like it.  For a first grader, you can wing it with just having them practice +,-, fractions, etc with games.

These ideas can work with any books.  If you are using books that are written for the older child, you should try to find other books about similar topics to go with the study for the younger child to practice reading.  Any little book about a boat or cave would do for Tom Sawyer.

Your Mom does need to be involved unless you are much older than your siblings.  You can help them, but a parent should be overseeing their education.  Homeschooling requires caring parents who take the time to make sure their children are provided a good basic education.