Every year around this time, we start the great End-of-Year Planning. What are we going to use from last year, what will work better for a certain child this year, etc. etc. I go through the non-consumable books and see if they're still holding up, and make lists of what I think we need for the next year. Of course, we also pray about what God would have us do for our children and what will get our family closer to our educational and spiritual goals. I know that some families have a certain curriculum or method and they stay pretty die-hard to that. Our "school" and our likes/dislikes are still evolving however. As our oldest enters his 4th grade year, we're still trying to find a better way to do some subjects.
We lean towards a Charlotte Mason-type education, with lots of living books and nature studies. We also use some textbooks and workbooks for educating our children. I am increasingly realizing that all of our schoolbooks do not need to come delivered in a fancy UPS box, all shrink-wrapped and ready to go. As much as I like getting those brightly colored packages at my doorstep, (and I really, really like getting them) I was really convicted by something I read recently in this guest post at Freehomeschooldeals.com.
"Is God in control of everything? I know you’re thinking, “Yes, God is omnipotent.” But do you really believe that God is totally sovereign over every detail of your life? Is He sovereign over your homeschool and the materials you have to teach your children?
Of course, the right answer is yes, but sometimes our actions prove that our faith is lacking.
For example, evaluate your contentment. Are you content with what you have to teach your children? Do homeschool catalogs send you into a depression of self-pity as you see all the great books and DVDs that you just can’t afford?"
Wow, content with what I already have? That struck a chord with me. (You should pop over there and read the rest of what Jimmie from Jimmie's Collage had to say.) One of her best tips was to "Shop Your Shelves Instead of the Catalogs". I thought that was a great starting point and was blown away by the unused books and curriculum I found hiding out on my bookshelves! I found no less than 10 workbooks that I can use next year for Caed's 1st grade work. I also found science books and materials that I had completely forgotten about, and they'll work great for our Creation Science next year. Basically, we have a lot of materials that I've already acquired (mainly through paperbackswap.com) that will work great for us next year!
So, here's some great websites that I've been digging into as I search for free (or mainly free) resources for school.
Five J's: Lots of free printables and articles about free curriculum.
Freehomeschooldeals.com: As she puts it, "Bargains, Goodies, FREE stuff and more..." I go to her site daily to check on the free amazon Kindle downloads available. She goes through the free deals and posts the ones that are family-friendly and appealing to homeschoolers. (Which is a good thing, because there are lots of free non-family-friendly Kindle books offered from time-to-time. Yuck.)
AmblesideOnline.org: A complete Charlotte Mason curriculum laid out for you, and an online email support group as well.
Dadsworksheets.com: TONS of math worksheets!! Over 7,000!
Donnayoung.org: Lots of printables, especially for the planning stages and organizational tools for moms.
Homeschool Creations: This is a new one to me, I can't say I've explored it in-depth. But from what I have seen, it looks like a great website for the hopeful FreeSchooler.
(I just made up that name. You can use it. ;-))
Got any other ways to home-educate for free? Feel free to share them!
1 comment:
This is great! Many of these I have not seen...I look forward to checking them out. Thanks for the tips! :)
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