Homeschooling Elementary

Nebel's Elementary Education at Amazon.com
If you were to ask me to recommend just one reference book to guide you through homeschooling the elementary years I'd recommend Nebel's Elementary Education. Keep reading and I'll tell you why.

I started out homeschooling when my daughter was due to enter 5th grade and I bought "What Your 5th Grader Needs to Know". However, I could not read that book without feeling overwhelmed and questioning the way it dictates what a child at a certain age should be learning. That approach makes no sense to me - kids are not all ready for the same facts at the same age, never mind the fact that in my mind homeschooling, especially in the elementary years, is really not about learning facts! Needless to say at that point I just headed off from books that attempted to explain what I should do educationally with my daughter and made my own path.

A couple of years later an experienced homeschool parent recommended Nebel's Elementary Education to me. She told me that it contains everything you need to know to homeschool your kids through the elementary years. Well, that sounded like a bit of a stretch, but I was intrigued enough and the price was right enough for me to get myself a copy.

So what exactly is in this book? Here is a quote from the introduction, "Nebel's Elementary Education's beginning lessons in all subject areas are designed to tie into" a child's existing knowledge or experience "and build on it incrementally and systematically. All lessons begin by first drawing students' attention to be cognizant of what they already know or have experienced and then guiding them to make further observations through demonstrations , hands-on activities, or real-life explorations. Finally they are drawn, through interactive discussion, to integrate the new lesson with the prior knowledge or experience and thus expand their structure or understanding." In other words we're helping kids to learn and build on their knowledge through observing and interacting with the world around them!

Well, I could write all morning about this book and barely cover a fraction of it. However, it's time to get to homeschooling for the day. If you are curious be sure to leave me a comment or question. You can also read a review at About.com and see more of what it's about at Castlemoyle.com.

Homeschoolers' Guide to the Galaxy is an Amazon.com associate site. See more books on homeschooling elementary at Amazon.com.

I Love to Read and I Love My Usborne Business

Can you imagine a day without books? A day without reading? If you're a bookworm like me you may wonder how you'd get through. Of course, now I have the internet - I could spend hours reading on here - but somehow that can't replace the magic of a good book. Don't get me wrong, if you don't love books that much, I still like you. My husband rarely reads anything other than manuals, forums and internet news, but I still think he's a great guy! Naturally when I was looking for a business to make my own, books were the first thing I thought of. The Usborne books business is the one I chose.

I LOVE my book business. There are many reasons. I get to read a big pile of children's books and it's part of my job! I get many, many discounted books, which is much better than paying full price; my children have a wonderful Usborne home library full of fantastic books that I paid very little for. I can pay myself for sharing these wonderful, engaging, colorful, and interactive books with others. I am my own boss and I choose my own hours and how much I earn. I get to give away books - I love giving things to people. I enjoy the thrill of hearing that a child learned to read or count because of Usborne books. I am promoting literacy in my community and beyond. My colleagues are other moms who love books - some of them are now among my best friends. And of course, I do actually have the option to work for the little or big extras or essentials, like homeschooling items, trips, activities for my kids, or to buy groceries.

Here's a quote from my son, who has clearly joined the ranks of bookworms, "Life without books is dirt."

Happy Reading and I hope you enjoy a good book today. Let me know what books your kids love.