Why does homeschooling cost so much?

Question

The only cheap place I've found that friends of mine are using is Bob Jones. Any other suggestions? We are military and low income.

Answer 1

ACE is low cost (40.00 a month for every subject) but not great if you are using  it for young children.

Sonlight while is a bit more expensive is more of a long term investment. You can use it for 2 years if you get the combo cores (example core 1+2). It can cost about 1000 but since you use it for 2 years it works out to be about 500 a year. Also if you have more than one child you are home schooling you don't have to buy it again. You can scan the pages into the computer and print them as you need them. That way you have the worksheets new for each kid. So if you only have to buy it once and use it for 2 years then again for each child I think the higher price is worth the expense. We are using our tax refund to buy it for the rest of this year and next year and probably the next.

I know how you feel about the cost since we are low income as well that's why we look at Sonlight as an investment.

Answer 2

Here are some tips for making homeschooling more affordable:

http://www.successful-homeschooling.com/...

Answer 3

You are paying for intellectual property.  There are always cheaper ways to go.  You just need a guide to make sure you are on track, or you can get lost in the maze.  

An easy way to create your path is to follow a set of standards.  Do a search for currculum standards in your state, or perhaps use the ones from the DoDEA website.  www.dodea.edu (click on curriculum).  The standards will be listed individually, by subject and grade level.  Now you have a check list of what you want to teach.  Since you are homeschooling, you get to decide when and to what level your child meets that standard.  When they meet one standard, start on the next one.  You can search the internet for the materials you need to meet the standard, as needed.  Sometimes you will need more, sometimes less.  

You can ask your local school if they have old textbooks if you prefer.

Here's a list of materials that you can use online too.

There is one resource that I use that helps me make sense of everything out there and helps me align resources to state and national standards.  You can get a free month to check it out and then decide if that's all you needed or if you want to purchase it for a year.  It's www.inetlibrary.com It has a curriculum designer to match standards, if you want to go that route.  



You can use the Google free document creator to have your student get work to and from you without loosing it, http://docs.google.com, or you can download a free office software at http://www.zoho.com/virtual-office/, or http://www.openoffice.com



Here are some things to get you started, although I'm sure you will find many others.  What it sounds like you could really use is a mentor support. If you are in Texas, check out www.smoothingtheway.com  A great group of people that have volunteered to support each other through meetings and other things.  



I have the deepest admiration for parents that see when there needs to be change and take it into their hands and hearts to make it happen.  



Free Math Curriculum - http://www.themathpage.com/



Free Science Curriculum - http://msnucleus.org/membership/index.ht...



Free History Curriculum - http://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/



Language Arts

Free Literature Guides - http://glencoe.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/007...

Free Vocabulary Lists - http://www.vocabtest.com/hs/

Free Online Books/Writing Skills - http://www.essex.ac.uk/myskills/skills/w...

                                             http://www.bartleby.com/141/index.html



Free Online Art Lessons - http://www.nga.gov/education/classroom/



Free PE Course - http://ce.byu.edu/courses/pe/99905207600...

                       http://www.mindbodysoul.gov.uk/teachersm...



Free Music Course -  http://cnx.org/content/col10208/latest/      



Free Foreign Language Courses -     http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/

                                                 http://www.word2word.com/course.html

Answer 4

I use Switched on Schoolhouse. It is a one time fee of about $264.00. That's a lot cheaper than Bob Jones too. Hope all works out for you.

Answer 5

You seem to only be looking at curriculum in a box.  There are lots of other options.  Buy used textbooks on Ebay, trade with other homeschoolers, do unit studies, look at wkbks available at bookstores.  Many companies are marketing to homeschoolers now especially younger ones.  Just go look at Barnes and Nobel or Borders to see some options. Homeschooling is not expensive unless you make it that way.

Answer 6

Ours is free. We designed our own curriculum, and used the public library to fill up with books. We even got our saxon math texts all through the public library. We take free classes through the coop and reduced classes through our museum memberships.

The only expense we have is school supplies, but you'd have to buy those anyway if you were going to a public school. Oh, and i guess our memberships to the zoo and museums, but we'd have those regardless.

Answer 7

have you tryed the k12 program?  I'm looking into it for my son. I'm in Ohio and here thier local website is http://ohva.org/

Here are a list of public schools that use the program, they are free and even provide a computer and printer for child use! - http://www.k12.com/getk12/index.html

Answer 8

The cheap way is to not use a formal program.

Most homeschoolers I know don't use an all-in-one curriculum package, so please don't think you actually need one.

Check out the book "Homeschooling on a Shoestring" for more ideas. You really, really, really need to purchase very little. The resources are there to be helpful, but they're not necessities.

ADDED: Have you heard of Old Fashioned Education? http://oldfashionededucation.com/

Answer 9

The really affordable (and high quality) way to educate your children is to send them to school on base or in public school. If you opt out, it will cost you.

Answer 10

Make your own curriculum.   Buy used text books.  Use the library.  Use free internet sites.

If you think your kids need to learn what the government says they need to learn, go to your state's public school website and see what the students in each grade are learning.   That would give you some ideas even if you decide not to follow their scope and sequence.

Our biggest expenses are internet access and gas to go to the library.

Answer 11

Depending on that age level you are talking about, it can be as expensive or inexpensive as you want. I go to a homeschool converence every year and buy quite a few second hand books. Also ebay can have some good deals - but read this discriptions carefully.

If you want, email me and let me know what age group and I can give you some links.

I spend about $150 a year per child on everything.

Answer 12

Homeschooling does not have to be expensive.  There are inexpensive options like devising your own curriculum, buying used books, using library books, etc.

Currently, I am reading a book I got from my local library, and I would recommend it to you.  It instructs you on how to create  your own homeschooling curriculum:  "Home Learning Year by Year:  How to Design a Homeschool Curriculum from Preschool Through High School."  The author's name is Rebecca Rupp.  You can get this book used for $6.00 off amazon.com:

http://www.amazon.com/Home-Learning-Year...

If you want to buy a school in a box curriculum, the least expensive one I know of can be purchased through Christian Liberty Press.  You can purchase by grade level, by subject, or an entire curriculum for the school year; the link is below:

http://ebiz.netopia.com/clpress/

Also, for next year (their cut off date for requests is August 15th), you may want to obtain books through "The Book Samaritan," a Christian organization that gives used books to homeschoolers; below is the link:

http://www.booksamaritan.com/

There is also an online group for homeschoolers who want to request/give away curriculum:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HSEduFreeM...

I hope this is helpful.

Answer 13

We save money by not going through umbrella schools or school-at-home programs. We just use the library and the internet as our main resources. The only money we really spend at the beginning of the year is on general supplies-- paper, glue, notebooks, pencils, crayons, etc... we save the bulk of our budget for things like classes that might come up at a co-op or community center, field trips and things like that.

Answer 14

homeschooling cost alot because you are taking school home with you that is why and the books aren't free

Answer 15

I'm getting home school for free? .It might be cause i have agoraphobia its fear of leaving my house.

Answer 16

public school systems will pay about the sames as home schoolers do, only you pay for the public schools in taxes to the government so they will not say how much they pay

Answer 17

I don't spend much on supplies. I go to library sales and watch for sales at teacher supply stores. I use the library whenever I can.

Answer 18

Depending on where you live, the state may offer a computer-based homeschooling for free, with internet access reimbursed and a free computer. I Ohio, it is called E-Cot. You would have to check it out, but your state may offer it.

Answer 19

Check on post/base and around the community for a local homeschool support group.  Depending on where you are stationed, I understand that there may not be great libraries and the postage may be high since some supplies will not ship to an APO address.  I suggest that you search for other home schoolers in your area and see what they are using.  There really is more than BJU.  As others have mentioned, it also depends on the ages of your children.  If you have preschoolers, there are free online sites like www.letteroftheweek.com  There are also often better deals to be found through larger homeschool supply companies like www.rainbowresource.com or www.rocksolid.com  Rubbing elbows with other home schoolers in the flesh can give you a better idea of what is out there for less money.  Mostly, pray.  If God desires you to home school, the means to do so will be provided.  Trust Him and use this as an oppportunity for Him to grow your faith!  Ask others if they have any free home schooling materials or know of any used materials someone might sell for a reduced price.  You know how it is with military moves.  Sometimes you just have to sell stuff.  ;)  Ask around and have your friends put their feelers out, too.  You might even look on Ebay.  What you need is available atwhat you can afford.  Research as best you can and know what you want.  Then let people know what you need and seek the Lord to provide it.  We were military for many years and are now civilian but we have always had the homeschooling materials we wanted, no matter how tight the budget.  

Hoping to be encouraging,

S :)

Answer 20

Another thing [that I don't think the other posters have mentioned] is to see if there is a local hs support group, then go to it and meet people and say that you need to buy books for grades ____ and don't have much money.  Don't be embarrassed to be honest like this.  I have donated to hs'ers in need like that before, and 'most' hs'ers have a book here and a book there that they'd donate, and that might really help you out.  Even if they don't donate, knowing you don't have much money could cause a price reduction.  Also, many hs groups have used book sales during the year, so that might be an option for you.  If you need books in grade 8 or 9 please let me know and maybe I can help you, unless you're stationed overseas.

Answer 21

You don't have to enroll in an official program, most homeschoolers go it alone and their parents make the transcripts on a word processor.  Colleges accept those transcript all the time, especially if they are backed by good SAT or ACT scores.  

When you go it alone, you spend a lot less.  Instead of spending $1000-$2500 on tuition and then still needing to buy the books and supplies, you just buy the supplies, and in fact can get a lot of what you need at the library.