Koroviev Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 Does anyone know of homeschooling resources that are both liberty minded (like freedom project) but are not chalk full of religious views? Or really any homeschooling resources that aren't catering to religious the religious view? I'd really like to find some good resources for a classical education but it seems like every one I come across focuses on teaching christian points of view. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNES_You Posted June 22, 2016 Share Posted June 22, 2016 You could start here: http://www.secularhomeschool.com/content/I am not sure how liberty minded the site is, but it could direct you to specific curriculum. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thus_Spake_the_Nightspirit Posted June 23, 2016 Share Posted June 23, 2016 I'm working on developing a secular, Trivium based curriculum, but it's nowhere near ready. However, the resource I've liked best of the ones I've used so far is "The Trivium: The Liberal Arts of Logic, Grammar, and Rhetoric" by Sister Miriam Joseph. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koroviev Posted June 24, 2016 Author Share Posted June 24, 2016 great resources, just what I was looking for Thanks guys! anyone else who has resources keep 'em coming. @Thus_Spake_the_Nightspirit keep me posted my 7 week old may be able to use it in a few years Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoomharp Posted June 24, 2016 Share Posted June 24, 2016 Our daughter is grown now, so hind sight is 20/20. But for what it's worth... We always went by what was the best for our child's learning style, which meant frankenstein-ing the curriculum together. I understand the appeal of a packaged curriculum. I really do, but we chose to piece it together. There is SO much out there to choose from these days. We went through three math programs (ouch- $$) that did not suit her before settling on the DVD based Math-U-See (later supplemented with Khan Academy and my husband's expertise - mathematician) and now she is an engineering student at college. We took the advice of an experienced homeschool friend and focused on reading rather than writing for her creative writing skills ("leave her writing alone until she is at least 12") and she ended up doing NaNoWriMo five years running and has completed over 10 novels. We discovered that her engineering mind loved diagrams and so we went through the entire Analytical Grammar series, which is mostly sentence diagramming with increasing complexity. I had no idea she would like that! Our science curriculum was all over the place: unit studies, library materials, field trips, documentaries, and eventually online courses for AP work (thinkwell.com is good). We joined a homeschool co-op that offered all kinds of classes, where she took Forensics, Electronics, Chemistry, and many other courses. We started French about 7 times, eventually finding Powerspeak and getting the 2 years credit she needed for highsch. graduation. When she was a Junior she fell in love with Latin and took that on her own. She loved Geography and we did all kinds of workbooks, games and actual travel. For history, we used Story of the World which, though Christian, is a fair and interesting series. That one we did in read-aloud style, from age 8 to 11 - so fun! P.E. was real instead of the forced nonsense my husband and I had to put up with in school. In our state she could have gone part time to the public school to participate in team sports, but she was always more interested in individual sports. We made sure she had opportunities to pursue any athletics she liked. She learned to ski, ride a horse, shoot an arrow, ride a bike, swim, etc. It was up to her what to pursue because we wanted her to be an adult who likes to move and play. During her high school years we did a lot of Great Courses (dvd courses), taking the whole year to go through a series. (US History, Human Health, Music Appreciation, History of Art, several others). I didn't do a lot of testing, but would write up little quizzes just to see if she was paying attention. lol Yes, she was. I worried that colleges wouldn't accept Great Courses as legit. classwork, but they did. We gave up on many, many materials that didn't suit her: General science course book (too boring), Vocabulary builder workbooks (she already knew the words, thanks to reading a lot), Spelling books (again, not needed). This is why I am glad we didn't buy a packaged curriculum. Those materials are great, I'm sure. But each child learns each topic in their own way. I saw packaged curriculum as a modified version of public school, and we wanted her not just to learn but to learn how to find your favorite methods of learning. That way, she can continue learning throughout life. I hope this is helpful and not just me rambling on and on. Overall, I recommend being as open minded and flexible as possible. Then when your child(ren) reach(es) high school age, start documenting everything and prepare the child for SAT Subject Tests (Barrons test prep books were very helpful) if they are college bound. "Teaching to the test" is not tons of fun, but takes very little time in the efficient world of homeschooling. (And we found she was basically ready without additional instruction anyway.) Those subject tests prove that you are not just giving out "mommy grades." (We did not use grades until high school btw.) Outside verification is very important to college admissions boards. Also record and document any high school level work done in 7th & 8th grades, which can be substantial for homeschoolers. For grades, I documented what my grading system was and used the grade-point-to-letter-grade system that the local university used. Her high school transcript was 10 pages long, so full of accomplishments and activities! With all the confidence I have in how we approached homeschooling, it wasn't until our daughter got into a tough and competitive university program that I really embraced that confidence. Until then, I just knew she was a smart, happy, confident person with a great personality and a kind heart. But even that alone wouldn't be a bad outcome, would it? Then when she got admitted I wanted to yell to all my negative family members and the homeschool naysayers, "now you can go f- yourselves!!" All the best to you and your family! Thanks for letting me rant and rave. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thus_Spake_the_Nightspirit Posted June 25, 2016 Share Posted June 25, 2016 great resources, just what I was looking for Thanks guys! anyone else who has resources keep 'em coming. @Thus_Spake_the_Nightspirit keep me posted my 7 week old may be able to use it in a few years Well, it will probably be a good five years or more til completion! I also just remember there is the Ron Paul Curriculum. I have not yet looked into it (on my to-do list), but I have seen it recommended elsewhere. I have no idea how complete a curriculum it is or what it includes, but might be worth looking into. http://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoomharp Posted June 27, 2016 Share Posted June 27, 2016 I just remembered a part of our homeschooling that I think was of supreme importance. It slipped my mind because it is a negation rather than a resource. Don't watch TV! TV news sucks, TV shows promote conformity and shallow values, and all the commercials are sure to put a dent in any child's IQ. Beware of PBS as well, and make sure any "educational" programs are not propaganda. We occasionally turned on weather channel, and we watched special events such as the Olympics, Rose Parade, etc. We always hit "mute" during the commercials and I told our daughter directly, "commercials make people stupid." We had "movie night" every week, but that was always dvds and videos. Watching TV regularly inhibits reading, creativity, critical thinking, and physical vitality. You will be amazed at what your children think of to do -- and enjoy! -- if the TV is not on. Good luck! 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buford T. Justice Posted October 15, 2016 Share Posted October 15, 2016 Not curriculum-based but be sure not to miss John Taylor Gatto's work, especially "The Underground History of American Education." I've gone ten years as a homeschooler without a set curriculum, except occasionally in math. Imho the idea of curricula works against the self-organizing principle of homeschooling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsayers Posted October 15, 2016 Share Posted October 15, 2016 I've gone ten years as a homeschooler without a set curriculum Without a curriculum, aren't you referring to unschooling? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buford T. Justice Posted October 16, 2016 Share Posted October 16, 2016 Set curriculum as in prepackaged -- I find my own books. Bugs me how many people choose homeschool for the freedom of it and then hand that freedom right back to a curriculum company. But to each their own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoey141 Posted October 18, 2016 Share Posted October 18, 2016 Not curriculum-based but be sure not to miss John Taylor Gatto's work, especially "The Underground History of American Education." I've gone ten years as a homeschooler without a set curriculum, except occasionally in math. Imho the idea of curricula works against the self-organizing principle of homeschooling. Thank you for mentioning Gatto's work. Love it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spartacus2017 Posted May 27, 2017 Share Posted May 27, 2017 I don't know that these are liberty-minded per se, but I found these after slogging through tons of homeschool resources while specifically avoiding Christian-mindset curricula. Nothing against Christianity, but when my kid's science textbook answers every science question with "Because God made it that way! Isn't God grand?" then that's not acceptable. Math: Saxon Math Homeschool kits History: Story of the World by Susan Wise Bauer English: The Well-Trained Mind series by Susan Wise Bauer Be very careful of the Learn Our History series of DVDs that focus on US History. I am a US attorney who has studied deeply our political system, and more often than not these DVDs get it wrong in the worst Statist kind of way. Hope this helps somewhat. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marias Posted May 7, 2018 Share Posted May 7, 2018 6 years ago I finished school, but not at school. I'd rather say, entirely out of the school, I studied at home. Many will find it strange, but I liked it, homeschooling, when no one forces you to do tasks that you do not want to do. When mum is always beside, and the atmosphere at home disposes to positive thoughts. Willingness to learn new things only increases! Now I'm 23 years old, studying at university and working as a writer. I'm helping kids with their homework, essays, and other tasks. So, to start, I recommend you to check https://www.parents.com/kids/education/home-schooling/the-best-homeschooling-resources-online/ , there you can find best homeschooling resources online. But don't forget about lots of excellent books, like this https://www.amazon.com/Everything-Homeschooling-Book-curriculum-environment/dp/1605501352. If you want, you can check out my blog, it's also about studying but for adult children. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Existing Alternatives Posted May 31, 2018 Share Posted May 31, 2018 Have you seen Ron Paul's Curriculum? Sounds very liberty-minded. I'm very new to Homeschooling, so I can't comment on quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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