HOME SCHOOL LEGAL DEFENSE ASSOCIATION (HSLDA)
(www.hslda.org)
Home School Legal Defense Association is a nonprofit advocacy organization established to defend and advance the constitutional right of parents to direct the education of their children and to protect family freedoms.
For well over two decades the Home School Defense Association has been defending the rights of parents in courtrooms as well as state legislatures. By paying a small yearly fee home-school parents are guaranteed representation should they encounter any legal difficulties with their home-school program.
I strongly urge all home-school parents to join the Home School Legal Defense Association. The Home School Legal Defense Association is our advocate for home-schooling at the local, state, and national level. They exist solely to defend our right to choose the best educational options for our children. Go to www.hslda.org for more information and to apply for membership to this valuable organization.
GREENLEAF PRESS
(www.greenleafpress.com)
According to their website Greenleaf Press is:
Resources for parents and children on Ancient, Medieval, Renaissance, Reformation, & Modern History, Literature & Art.
The ORIGINAL (and still the best) resource for teaching history chronologically.
Since 1989, Guaranteed 100% twaddle-free.
I have to agree with their assessment! I have been using Greenleaf Press’ history resources (including their Famous Men series) for approximately 15 years. I have taught my children history from their “Greenleaf Guide to Old Testament History” through their “Famous Men of the Renaissance and the Reformation.” I absolutely love Greenleaf Press!
As far as the concept of teaching history chronologically, you can go to: http://www.greenleafpress.com/aboutus/index.html to hear from the Shearer’s themselves how they came upon their philosophy. I also plan to address this topic in a future blog post.
I don’t know how many resources Greenleaf Press has on its website but I suspect it’s in the thousands. I encourage you to visit them and learn for yourself how history can and should be taught!
ROCK SOLID
(www.rocksolidinc.com)
Rock Solid is a family-owned curriculum provider that I have been purchasing from for over 10 years. Besides having a wide assortment of products, their prices make Rock Solid a resource that I go to again and again. I encourage you to browse their website. I feel certain you will find many resources to help you in your own home-schooling journey.
CHRISTIAN BOOK DISTRIBUTORS
(www.cbd.com)
CBD is another company I have been purchasing from for many years. They have literally thousands of products and produce specific home-schooling catalogs several times a year. You can peruse their products online, but I would also recommend that you request a catalog that you can review at your leisure. They also have online reviews of a number of products that can help you decide whether a product will be a fit for you and your family.
LIBRARY AND EDUCATIONAL SERVICES
(www.libraryanded.com)
Library and Educational Services is a wholesale company that sells to educators, including home-schoolers. The prices of their products are hard to beat. I encourage you to check out their website and sign up for their e-mails to get notification of their fantastic sales.
TOBIN’S LAB
(www.tobinslab.com)
Many home-schooling parents have concerns about being able to teach their high school students and adequately prepare them for college. As a home-school parent who has graduated two children from high school, who also now have college degrees, I can tell you it is possible. One great resource for home-schoolers in teaching their children of all ages is Tobin’s Lab. Tobin’s Lab has everything from books to charts to dissection kits. You can buy everything you need to conduct a biology lab from earthworms to fetal pigs. My daughter (a college student studying physiology at the time) dissected a fetal pig for my oldest son as part of his home “Anatomy and Physiology” course. (She found it fascinating; he got a little green around the gills!)
Tobin’s Lab has thousands of products and again, I encourage you to visit their website to see for yourself. I trust you will find them to be a valuable resource.
SCHOOL SPECIALTY INTERVENTION
(FORMERLY EDUCATOR’S PUBLISHING SERVICE)
(www.intervention.schoolspecialty.com)
I got turned on to Educator’s Publishing Service years ago (many years ago!) when my oldest son was struggling with reading (that is a long story that I will relate later in a blog post). A home-school friend recommended EPS’s phonics workbooks: Explode the Code. After just a few weeks with the Explode the Code workbooks my son was picking up books and reading them himself!
I have also used their vocabulary workbooks and particularly recommend their “Vocabulary from the Classical Roots” workbooks. They have dozens of products to help with a variety of specific goals you may have for your children in reading and math. While their workbooks are consumable they are also very affordable. I highly recommend you consider adding them to your curriculum.
