Homeschooling Favorites


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~~This section is going to be a work in progress as I start listing all our favorite books and curriculum that we have used over the past years.  ~~
We use many different things with our schooling and it would take me forever {okay not forever but a long time} to type them all up.  These are just some methods and curriculum that we have had great success with.  :)  I am not affiliated with these companies, I am simply just showing what we have used with success so others can see some more homeschooling options.  I believe that there is no “right” program.  You have to find out what works for you child and then go from there.  Nor is there one “complete” program.  I find that if I want a full well rounded curriculum for Victoria I have to use more than one book/workbook because using just one does not cover everything.
Math: 
 We love Saxon Math and are currently using the homeschool edition.

History
I use the state standards textbooks {buy them used to save lots of money!} as a base so that I can make sure that I cover all the points and vocab. 
 History Pockets by Evan~Moor, unit studies with library books as supplemental material, and Brainpop/Brainpop jr.
Interactive 3D Maps: American History by Scholastic

Science: 
I use the state standards textbooks {buy them used to save lots of money!} as a base so that I can make sure that I cover all the points and vocab. 
 Unit studies based on state standards using the computer, experiments, library books as supplemental material, and Brainpop/Brainpop jr.

Phonics: 
 When we did phonics we used Explode the Code.  Now we use Bananagrams for kids as a mind bender with some phonics thrown in.

Grammar:
  Evan~Moor’s Language Fundamentals and Daily Language Review

Spelling:
  Evan~Moor’s Building Spelling Skills &  Spelling City online{you put in your spelling words and then play games to learn your words}

Handwriting: 
 Handwriting Without Tears for print and for cursive, my daughter is a lefty and it worked wonderful for her.

Vocabulary: 
 Vocabulary from the Classical Roots or pulling words out of her reading comprehension.  When we use Vocab from the Classical Roots I make each lesson take three weeks by adding in more activities, creating flashcards, and playing vocab games.

Writing:  
The Just Write Series was fun, simple, and very straight forward.  This year we are using some of the Evan~Moor books for story writing and then learning how to write different types of paragraphs and papers.

Reading: 
 I used Flash Kids reading comprehension workbooks when Victoria was little for a year and then I decided that I would switch to creating my own reading comprehension.  I will read the novel before her, make up my own questions, and then give her a quiz for each chapter.  She and I have loved this method and it gives us another bonding moment where we can talk about the books in depth together as she is reading it.

Drawing:  
Mona Brookes books: Drawing with Children and Drawing for Older Children and Teens.

Sign Language: 
 A great introduction book with fabulous photos of real kids doing the signs, Sing Language for Kids by Lora Heller

Piano: 
 Now, I don’t know how to play the piano at all….well at least I didn’t until I began to teach Victoria.  Now I am learning along with her because the program is so simple and easy to use.   My First Piano Adventure is the first part of the series, Level A, B, and C.  Then you move onto Piano Adventures.

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