OnlineSchool.ca: Resources

Suggested Homeschooling Resources

Math

Writing

  • One of the areas that homeschoolers do not perform as well in is writing.  A strong writing program is very important.  Students need to have strong writing skills before high school.  By grade 4 students should be using something for formal writing instruction.
  • Writing Strands is written for homeschoolers and has been a popular resource for years. 
  • Institute for Excellence in Writing materials are popular because of the DVD componen and the strong writing instruction.
  • An easy program to use for the primary grades is Just Write from EPS; this is the one included in our resource packages:
  • If a student is in grade 7, 8, or 9 and needs help with writing use Put That in Writing.
  • My personal favourite is Classical Writing. The FAQs tell a lot about the program.  It does take a lot of parental time and it’s different from modern writing programs.
  • If a student is using Abeka they are probably getting enough writing instruction in their language arts.  Some people recommend using a formal program (like one of the above) in order to get a better quality of instruction – this wouldn’t be an issue until grade 6 or 7.  You may want to encourage students to apply what they’ve learned about writing to other areas of study so that they are producing more writing on a regular basis
  • If a student is using Rod & Staff they are getting quality writing instruction.  Now they just need encouragement to use their skills in other areas of study so that they are writing on a regular basis.

Grammar:

There are many, many good resources on the market.

  • Easy Grammar
  • Winston Grammar
  • Analytical Grammar (for grades 6 and up) 
  • Abeka and Rod & Staff are both very solid grammar programs (these two are not available from Cornerstone).

Spelling:

  • Spelling Workout is probably the most popular spelling resource used by homeschoolers.  It is often not a good fit for those who struggle with spelling.
  • Sequential Spelling is a good option for students who struggle with spelling.
  • Spell to Write and Read – quickly becoming a popular choice for teaching reading, spelling, and early writing.  This approach has helped students who struggle with spelling as well as those who struggle with reading.  It is a multi-grade resource taking a student from beginning reading skills to high school level spelling.  It requires a lot of parental time compared with other programs.

Reading:

Comprehension/Literary Analysis:

  • I love Teaching the Classics.  With this program you would never need to buy another “novel study”.  It teaches the parent (through a set of DVDs and a workbook) how to teach literary analysis from kindergarten through high school.  This approach relies on heavy interaction between the student and parent.  Did I mention that I love this resource?  The author is one of our key-note speakers for the April convention.
  • Progeny Press – probably the best Christian novel studies on the market. They actually get kids looking up scripture and applying Biblical wisdom to the books.  There are a lot of thinking questions in these studies.
  • If you have a student using an “all-in-one” type of language arts program I highly recommend adding one of the above resources.

Science:

  • Dr. Wile’s series, Apologia.
  • Considering God’s Creation is another good choice - This covers most of the Earth and Space and Life Science PLO’s from K to grade 5.
  • I really like Rainbow Science for the junior high years - This one needs to be ordered directly from the publisher.

Social Studies:

  • Story of the World – Learn world history chronologically with this lively narrative. The series is written for elementary grades but is also a great overview for older students.  With assignments and extra reading tailored to an appropriate grade level the SOTW series can be a great resource for grades 7 and 8 students to use.
  • Mystery of History is what I recommend for grades 7 and 8.  It is designed to be used by these grades without modification.  This program comes from a strong Christian perspective.  The reading is included and there are also assignments for each week. 
  • Donna Ward has some great resources for studying Canada
  • Kids Can Press also carries great books, I particularly like The Kids’ Book of Canadian Exploration. 
  • Tapestry of Grace is an excellent resource for studying history, geography, literature, philosophy, art, church history and Bible.  It’s a multi-grade resource.  There is a lot of US content after level 1 but that can be modified by substituting Canadian content.  This curriculum has four levels to move through from Ancient History to modern day.
  • Sonlight is a literature based program that integrates history, literature, and Bible.  They also carry great science materials.

Bible Study:

Family Resources

  • I think every teacher and parent should have a copy of Hold on to Your Kids
  • The Maxwells carry a number of resources on how to manage a homeschooling household, how to handle chores, and how to parent.
  • Parents and teachers will benefit from Teresa Moon’s book, Evaluating for Excellence, which includes a CD to print off the many forms in the book.
  • Creative Homeschooling for Smart Families is probably the best resource on the market for homeschooling a gifted child.
  • Debra Bell’s Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling is an excellent book for new homeschoolers or for teachers who are new to homeschooling. 

Second Language:

  • My favourite resource for second languages is The Easy French. It’s written to be used by homeschoolers and the author is a Francophone, Christian, homeschooling mom. There is also The Easy Spanish.
  • Many students are now doing Latin.  I like the Latina Christiana series.
  • Another great series is Latin for Children.
  • We offer online subscriptions to Rosetta Stone for about $98 per year.  This is great for immersion based learning but does need to be supplemented with some conversational phrases, cultural information, and (in the later years) formal grammar instruction.
  • Our online courses are great options for grades 9 and 10 especially if the parent is not confident with a second language.