What Is Your Favorite Book On The Topic of Homeschooling

[kalphs]

What is your favorite book on the topic of homeschooling?
Karen Andreola's "Charlotte Mason Companion" and "A Pocket Full of Pinecones", Susan Schaeffer Maculay's "For the Children's Sake" and Charlotte Mason's "Original Homeschool Series."

[jenn&charles]

Most of the books I read, I did so years and years ago and so I don't remember the titles.
The current crop of books I have on my shelf that I enjoyed are The Well Trained Mind and Teaching the Trivium.
I am not a classical homeschooler, but I did enjoy both of those books.
I have only read bits and pieces of Charlotte Mason's material online. I like it, but I never make the time to read more.
I really should though because I really like what I have read so far and it matches a lot of what I've done over the years.

I think Jimmie should write a modernized little handbook of how to do C.M.'s stuff without having to read the original books, LOL.
Most of what I've learned about C.M. I have through Jimmie's example/blog/squidoo stuff, etc.

[pigpensma]

Hands-down favorite is Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto, not exactly a hsing book, as far as being about a particular philosophy or a how-to book, but it's really inspiring and very applicable to hsers.

I also enjoy John Holt's books such as Teach Your Own, and found a lot of wisdom in A Charlotte Mason Companion, For the Children's Sake, A Charlotte Mason Education and More Charlotte Mason Education by Catherine Levison, The Well Trained Mind, The Three R's by Ruth Beechick, Homeschooling for Excellence by David and Micki Colfax, and have found a lot of fun ideas in The Ultimate Book of Homeschooling Ideas by Linda Dobson. Not necessarily a hsing book, but I've found Jim Trelease's Read Aloud Handbook to be invaluable.

[JennyBenny]

I enjoyed A Sacred Foundation - The Importance of Strength in the Homeschooling Marriage by Michael Farris & L. Reed Elam and Beyond Survival by Diana Waring.

[Susan Mik]

I like "Homeschooling - Take a Deep Breath...You can do it" and Cathy Duffy's "100 Curriculum Choices".

Sue

[akwildflower]

...Well Trained Mind, Charlotte Mason Companion, Linda Dobson's books (esp. the Ultimate Book of Homeschooling ideas--gives me creative ideas)...and I REALLY enjoyed and was recently rejuvenated with Homeschooling 101 by Mark and Christine Field. Joyce Herzog's book, Timeless Teaching Tips--was also helpful, too.

[JennyMaine]

LOL - I came here to start a thread on this topic. . .and here it is!

A few of my all-time favorites are:

When Homeschooling Gets Tough by Diana Johnson (Hands down, best book I've read on homeschooling.)

Homeschooling at the Speed of Life by Marilyn Rockett

A Survivor's Guide to Homeschooling by Luanne Shackleford

Educating the Whole-Hearted Child by Clay & Sally Clarkson

Gaining Confidence to Teach by Debbie Strayer

As you can see, I like the books that keep homeschooling attainable for the average family. When I pick up a homeschooling book which is profiling kids who are brain surgeons at age 12, I drop it as quickly as possible!

My current read is, "High School @ Home: You CAN Do It!" by Diana Johnson. I'm so impressed with how this book is laid out, I don't think anyone would need more than this for charting a course for high school. There is a chapter for each subject area, such as Science, and a breakdown of some of the different curriculum you could use for each class. I've been reading and researching about homeschooling since my daughter was a toddler, and I'm learning things in this book I didn't know! An example is that Lifepac Selects might be a good choice for my daughter's World Geography course. Why? Because it is a compilation of Lifepacs from 7-12 grade levels but it counts as a high school level course -- perfect for my struggling learner. Who knew?

[JennyB in NC]

I loved "the Relaxed Homeschooler" by Mary Hood and "Educating the Whole-Hearted Child" by the Clarksons.

[Mandy in TN]

The very first book that I read about homeschooling was Karen Andreola's Charlotte Mason Companion. I guess it sold me on the idea.

Not exactly a book, but very helpful when I began homeschooling, the SL catalog and old forums gave me good book lists and people to bounce ideas off of. (I hope these forums do the same for others.)

Then I read TWTM. It helped me think more critically about curriculum choices and ultimate goals.

Another book that I enjoyed was How to Get Your Child Off the Refrigerator and on to Learning by Carol Barnier.

There was another book, but I can’t remember the name. It was a collection of stories written by different homeschool families about their experiences homeschooling.

Mandy

[Mrs. Lilac]

I loved "So You're Thinking About Homeschooling" by Lisa Whelchel. I recommend it to SO many people- it's a great intro into some of the reasons to homeschool, and it explores the many different ways that people do it in their individual families- really made me feel like we had so many options and we could definitely make it work. Also, one of the best explanations I've seen of "socialization."