One of the biggest findings was that there was not difference in results if the homeschooler was taught be a certified teaching parent, or a parent without certification. They made sure to emphasize that this does NOT mean that public school teachers should not be certified. But it DID mean that there would be no benefit to requiring that homeschooling parent become certified to teach. The reasoning for this is that homeschool teachers are self selected – these people already WANT to teach their kids.

There are many links in the “Table of Contents” just to the left of the article – don’t miss them.
http://www.hslda.org/docs/study/rudner1999/Rudner1.asp

They went all around the classroom picking up clues. Other students noticed their behavior and started swarming around them to find out what was going on. The disturbance got out of control and Mr. Burgess demanded to know what was going on. There were recriminations and denials and counter denials. In the end we were all to return to our seats and continue with our institutionalized instruction. But the fun had been had.

Is it possible to get some educational value out of something so fun as a scavenger hunt? Check out these ideas:
http://www.homeschoolbytes.com/homeschool-activities/scavenger-hunt-ideas-for-homeschool-fun/

 http://statexploration.com/?p=5

 Check out what they put together – especially if you are doing something with U.S. History with your students this year.

 - – Michael

First of all, I´d like to put your mind at ease about choosing the perfect curriculum. If you have a lousy year of it, it´s OK. Your kids will learn anyway and you can pick something different next year or even switch halfway through the year, and there is nothing wrong with that. When I was homeschooled, my mom switched companies on a yearly basis with me . . . I was the experiment, she´d try a new curriculum with me and then if it worked, she´d use it with my sisters. By the time I hit sixth grade, I had done books from about 10 different companies and yet still scored higher than school kids on equivelency tests, so it obviously didn´t hurt anything!

Also, not all homeschool curriculums are good at all subjects. You might want to use one company for Math, while doing something else for Science, for example. If the company you like doesn´t have an art program, add one in from somewhere else. That´s the beauty of homeschooling . . . you can custom fit the education to your kids . . . they can even be using different books each, if you want!

So, that being said, how do you actually go about picking which curriculum to use? Here are some pointers.

• Ask around. If you have friends who homeschool, ask what they recommend. If not, go online, join a community and ask them. But don´t just ask if they like the program, ask WHAT they like about it, what the downsides are, so you can get a clear picture.
• Do some research. Check for reviews online. This isn´t always the most accurate way to determine which curriculum is good, since you will probably find a mix of good and bad, but if something is getting overwhelmingly positive reviews, chances are it´s good.
• Get your hands on a copy. Ask your friends if you can take a look at their books. This is a great way to decide whether or not you really want to invest in a curriculum.
• Go for second hand. If you still aren´t that sure, look into getting the books second hand and keep the cost down. If it doesn´t work out, then you won´t be out that much money.

Those of you homeschoolers who have experience in this area, what was important to you when choosing a curriculum? Which one(s) did you decide on?

The first thing to remember is that anything a child is forced to do is probably going to end up on his “not interested” list and reading tends to be something that we parents push. By letting reading be something fun and non-stressful, you`ll find that your child is far more interested.

1. Read to your kids. The number one best way to get your kids interested in reading for fun is to read to them. Pick up a fun chapter book and start reading a chapter a day with them. Good books to start with include Beverly Cleary`s Ramona series for younger kids, C.S. Lewis’ The Chronicle of Narnia for slightly older (from 2nd grade onward), and John White´s Archives of Anthropos series. All are excellent, entertaining and draw the child into the story. Then, leave them hanging. If you read a chapter book, you`ll notice that most chapters end with a cliffhanger. Stop right there and leave the book in a convenient place. Ten to one, at some point, your kids will start sneaking looks at the book!
2. Give them a reason to read. If a child has no good reason to start reading, he probably won´t bother. With my tutored students, I used to brainstorm reasons with them. Things like reading a map while traveling, figuring out where in the world you want to go, reading street signs, etc. Baking cookies or making pizza is a great way to prove that there is a good reason to cook . . . have the child read the recipe!
3. Make it interesting and fun. When reading is only something you do while sitting at the kitchen table with a dull school book, why would you bother reading for fun? In fact, reading might not seem like anything fun, at all, more of a chore! You can have a lot of fun with it though. Try the recipe idea above, or write out a scavenger hunt list, create a treasure hunt with written clues, or write out a Monster Menu (what they´d serve in a Monster restaurant) or a Fairy Menu, for a less gross version.

Do you have any tips for getting kids to enjoy reading? Share them in the comments.