vIn my recent article about how to homeschool my child, I discussed the first secret I usually share with homeschoolers. Homeschoolers need to lay a foundation that matches their faith & beliefs. In this article, I will discuss the importance of using books, real classics, in all subject areas. Living books with a real message are the best way to homeschool your children.
Secret # 2: Books
My kids will laugh at this.
I love reading.
I love literature.
I love books.
So I really want to use books more than textbooks. If there is a good book to teach a particular subject, I encourage you to use that instead of a textbook.
I was a public school teacher for 6 years and always dreamed of having class sets of books we could read together and discuss. A class set of books costs money and I never did get those class sets of books.
At the beginning of homeschooling my children, good books were something very important to me.
We started homeschooling in elementary school ages, around 3rd and 5th grade. So we began reading some of the great classics at that age. I’ve loved reading children’s literature because I didn’t read all those books growing up. I wasn’t even a reader when I was growing up.
I’ve become an avid reader now. In fact, my family teases me when we go on vacation, and I’m packing my suitcase. Steve looks at me, and says, “you’re taking all those”.
I respond, “Last year we were gone for 2 weeks, and I read 4 books. I’ve got to have enough to keep going”.
I didn’t want to go to a bookstore and buy new ones. Last year we went to Costa Rica, and I wasn’t going to buy anything in Spanish anyway. Books are just fantastic.
In homeschooling, we try to center all our language arts on books. All our history, government, and even some science and math are centered on books.
You may be saying to yourself, “You use regular books to teach math.”
“Yes, I do!”
When I discovered Sir Cumference and the Round Table, I thought that was the coolest story. What’s so cool about it? It teaches a math concept through a story about a knight, his damsel and his young son. You probably thought you could only use textbooks for teaching math. Not necessarily! You can use real storybooks to teach math concepts like geometry, Pygathorean theorem or concepts of circles.
Beyond math, you should be reading literature & history books with your child. This includes read aloud time and individual reading on your child’s reading level. As you read books with your children, be sure to write & talk about what you are reading. I will cover this in an upcoming article.
Kerry Beck encourages homeschool parents in how to homeschool my child. You can get her free report about 5 Simple Strategies To Homeschool The Best & Easy Way at http://www.HowToHomeschoolMyChild.com.
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