prioritized shopping list; how to use library

Ok, here is my 2 cents.    I have very little homeschooling money, so this is what we did.

For Math – we use MEP.  It is totally free except for your paper and ink, and is a fantastic program.  You may want to check it out to see if you think it will work out for you.  There is a yahoo group for MEP homeschoolers that is helpful.  Another good free math option, done on the computer, is Khan Academy.  It has videos on how to do things, and then it has an exercise path of problems you follow.  When you get 10 right in a row, it suggests another lesson.   We use it for a change now and then

I got a Kindle for my birthday, and it is wonderful for an inexpensive homeschool!  We are doing Ambleside Online… modified… and so many of the books are available for free as an ebook!  It is definitely worth the money for the Kindle.  

For Library use, our library has an Online website to do things like set holds and renew books.  I have a list of the books that I haven’t been able to get elsewhere, and I request them shortly before each term starts (for the term).  I can kind of tell ahead of time if there is likely to be a wait or not by the number of copies of the book and whether they are all checked out or not.  Occasionally a book hasn’t gotten in before I need it – I just hold off on it until we get it.  I can renew up to 5 times, for 3 weeks each – so that gives us about 18 weeks with a resource…. unless someone requests it on me.  Last year, someone kept requesting one of our books, so we would have it for 3 weeks, they would have it for 3 weeks… after a couple of times, I bought a copy of the book. LOL.    I have occasionally, once all my renews were gone, had to take the book back, and re-request it.  

So for me – here is my list.

Math – use MEP and/or Khan Academy – if you think it will fit your family.  Otherwise buy something

Handwriting – I bought Peterson Directed Handwriting (the new pdf files – and we did the cursive first option.)  Best handwriting course I’ve ever seen, and inexpensive.   Has a totally different method from the “trace this letter” approach, which I am seeing good results with.

Kindle – if a lot of the books you want are available in ebook… buy it!  Honest!

Drawing – I really like the “Draw Write Now” series.   “Drawing with Children” is another great resource

For Books in general – History “Spine Books” that are used over a long period of time are better to own than borrow.  For instance, if I personally saw “Great Canadian Lives” for sale cheap, I would buy it in an instance, as I plan to use it for about 4 years.  I do have a digital version, but it is a book with a lot of colour pictures, so it is one that is nice to have an actual book.  (Fortunately our library system has about 10 copies!)   And that brings me to the other recommendation – when books have nice colour illustrations (because the Kindle is B&W).  For instance, the copy of Pinnochio had beautiful full-page colour illustrations on every other page.

I hope that helps!

After I read over your questions again, I realized I didn’t answer them completely. Sorry about that.

Your first question was regarding owning vs. borrowing. Ideally, I would LOVE to own all our school books. Unfortunately, this isn’t feasible because of budget and space. I do not live in a high-density homeschooling area, so borrowing books from friends is pretty much a no-go as well. The way I decide which books to buy and which ones to borrow from the library is based upon how long we will use the resource, how expensive it is on the market, the availability at the library, and if I believe it is a resource my children might want to read again at some point. For example, I tried to borrow Anna Comstock’s Handbook of Nature Study from the library. My library didn’t have it, and it was impossible for them to obtain through inter-library loan (ILL). I knew it was a resource we would use from K-12, so I bought it new on Amazon for $18. Not a bad investment at all. 

There are other books that I know we will need longer than the six-week checkout time allowed by my library. I must buy those as well, because once you pay late fees, you’re practically buying part of a book anyway.  For books that I know the children will want to read over and over, I try to purchase as many as I can. Books that aren’t read repeatedly, like The World’s Greatest Artists/Composers, are borrowed. I learned those books were easier borrowed than bought. 

Currently, we are reading as many of Arthur Scott Bailey’s The Tale of … books. Those are pretty expensive to buy, first because they are rare books and second because we trying to read 10 or more this school year. My library is obtaining whichever ones they can through ILL. Even my library is having trouble finding them!

Your second question about using your library without driving yourself nuts… I’ve said it on this forum before, and I’ll say it again: Make friends with your librarian and the library will never drive you nuts. Our librarians know our entire family by first name. When I walk in, one of them immediately goes to the back for whatever stack of books is already on hold for me. They keep up with our term dates so that we have the resources we need as on time as possible. Become friends with your librarians! Ask them how willing they are to help homeschool families. Ask them if you can e-mail them a list of resources for them to pull and hold for you so you don’t waste time searching for the books you need, only to find your library doesn’t have them. I e-mail my librarian at least weekly, sometimes more. Take your library cookies or muffins. Spoil them and let them know how much you appreciate them, and they’ll spoil you.

Pertaining to your third question about the history modules… We are in Module 1 right now. You can download a sample of Module 1 from this site, but I’m not sure to what lesson it goes. For the first few lessons, all you need is a Bible. We are only on Lesson 27, but so far, I have used Then & Now Bible Maps (I purchased the pamphlet, not the book), Child’s Story Bible, and Oxford First Ancient History. I ordered Boy of the Pyramids through PBS, purchased the Exodus and Numbers Commentaries for Children from Amazon, checked out Pyramid by David Macaulay from the library, and somehow, my hubby miraculously obtained a copy of OFAH as it was going out of print.

There. Now I hope I have helped a little more than my first response. I guess I need to start reading the entire question and not just the bullet point!

Blessings,

Lindsey

You might want to ask grandparents to give some of the school books as gifts. My mom likes it when I give her a book list for the kids – and I always remind her that I prefer second-hand books. The used books are easier on the budget and are also a good way to re-use/recycle items.

Even if your library is used heavily by homeschoolers, that doesn’t mean they will be checking out the same books that you want. I find that the “living books” aren’t necessarily the most popular books in the library. Many homeschoolers are checking out the “Captain Underpants” type of books. 🙂

My local library has a very generous renewal system and I can often keep books for months on end. I use the online system to research and reserve the books from home. The trick is, imo, to keep track of what you have checked out and return the books on time. Fines add up quickly if you use the library a lot (don’t ask me how I know this!).

I find the library a great source of non-fiction books for the early years. There are many, many books available about science, history, etc. The nice thing about the library is that you can go in person and browse the books to make sure they are appropriate – sometimes it’s hard to do that with online purchases. And, in the early years, you’ll want to focus on nature studies in your local area, and that is very easy on the budget – just get outside. You can also visit local parks, nature centers, historical sites, etc. that are usually free or low-cost.

I give you encouragement – it’s entirely possible to homeschool on a tight budget (I’ve done it myself!). Best wishes to you as you plan the upcoming year. (I’m impressed that you are so organized!)