Living Books

The thing I loved best about Sonlight curriculum as a child, was their use of "living books" that brought history to life, rather than being limited to a dry textbook. Many homeschooling families enjoy this approach, and as I searched for the "perfect" curriculum this year, I found that many companies are adopting this philosophy of learning. Now, I am bound and determined to instill a love for reading into my children, and I want to follow this model as close as possible by using quality read-alouds, and early readers of historical fiction and biographies to supplement my history curriculum. 

The reason Sonlight curriculum can be quite costly, is because you get SO MUCH from them. I am grateful that my mom saved most of the books from our years of Sonlight curriculum, and I am always on the hunt for other ways of collecting quality books at a reasonable price. What's nice, is that books lists can be found from a number of sites and discounted books can also be found in a number of ways. Here are some examples I use:

The local library (duh, guess this should be a no brainer!) 

Open Library - A huge on-line collection of ebooks that you can check-out for free! 

A Book in Time - Book lists in chronological order and by age/grade level 

Heart of Dakota Book Store - Lists of books by age level and topic that correspond with their curriculum 

Christianbook.com - I order a lot of stuff through them 

Amazon.com - Also a place I frequent for new and used books 

Sonlight.com - Book lists like this can be found for all their core programs 

Redshift.com - A long list of books in chronological order with levels noted and links to movies that are also based in the noted time periods

Linked-Up Here:

My Top Picks

I was in the process of compiling a list of homeschooling resources for a friend, when I thought, why not utilize this for a blog entry? So here ya go, a collection of some of my favorites (just off the top of my head)!
 General Information:
Information Network for Christian Homes
Home School Legal Defense 
The Well Trained Mind

Curriculum:
Sonlight Curriculum
CBD Homeschool Store
Calvert School

Conventions:
INCH Convention - MI

Blogs:
Confessions of a Homeschooler
Living Life Intentionally

Educational Games:
Starfall
PBS Kids

Specifics:
Power Glide: French
Power Glide: Spanish
Key Curriculum Math
Apologia Science
Explode the Code: Phonics and Reading
Italic Handwriting
Saxon Math
Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons


Must Reads:

Natalie is Reading

So Proud of My Little Girl!

Natalie turned 5 in November and since then, her reading has just taken off! Having observed that Natalie's learning style and personality are a lot like mine, I was excited to use the exact same book that my mom used when teaching me how to read. I purchased a new copy of the book "Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons" off Amazon. The first reader book "Sun Up" was the very first book I remember reading as a child, and my mom had saved it all these years!

 

My name written inside - Natalie thinks this is so funny! 

This is the best early reader book EVER! 

Before I knew my mom still had this one, I had been searching high and low for an early reader that really was an EARLY READER! I wanted a book that truly was easy to read - predominately words that she could sound out - to build her confidence by being able to read a complete book on her own. She breezed through this and is eager to start the next one.