Anyone? Id love to see your bookshelves and/or wishlists! I am very new to this!

Btw, nothing against christian homeschooling, just looking for something very well rounded :)

I am trying to find science books. I don't mind a bit of religion. What I find is all or none.  I am trying Singapore with my 6 year old daughter (Early Bird Start up Science) She is not reading yet so can't do the whole workbook. My 9 year old son does not like the book  (My Pals are Here) since so much of the plants and animals neither of us have heard of. It is difficult when they give a description and you don't have a clue what your looking for.  It does suggest you visit Singapore Bontinical Gardens. That is a bit out of the budget.  I am using Science Power Basics, biology with my 15 year. The reading level is lower then the work level. He can do it if he tries.

We're Buddhist homeschoolers here!  It can be quite a challenge to find secular materials, that's for sure.  If you need some help navigating, give me a shout.  I've looked at a lot of different kinds of curriculum so I would be able to recommend some if I knew what you were looking for.

For the record, I don't use that much curriculum.  We're mostly project-based, unit study here and we do mostly lapbooks.  I use Math-U-See for math and a few other workbooks here and there, but that pretty much does it for formal curriculum.

Wow! Buddhist homeschooling! How cool!!!

Here is something for you to take a look at - Calvert School.

http://www.calvertschool.org/home-school

Here is a link of reviews of Calvert Curriculum by homeschoolers that have used it.

http://www.homeschoolreviews.com/reviews/curriculum/reviews.aspx?id=53

They are very well known and used by non-christians and christians. They are not christian.

Sherry

Wow! Buddhist homeschooling! How cool!!!

Hehehehe, well we're Buddhist and we homeschool. 

I am a pagan homeschooler, LOL! I currently homeschool through the school district, using Explode the Code, Sing Spell Read and Write, and then your usual math and science, Mcgraw Hill and the like.

I can say, I did use some Calvert stuff, and I recommend you stay away from their music instruction, they use religious songs.

I agree on the lapbooking, and unit studies, I got a lot from Hands of  a Child, there have been some religious things that have popped up in there, but I just ignore those parts ;)

I LOVE Hands of a Child!!

Here in the school district I live in (in California) we have what's known as "charter" schools.  These can be privately run, or there are even some through the public school system.  They provide secular materials, such as used in public schools, to parents who choose to homeschool their kids.  They also offer extracurricular classes like art and science labs and foreign language, music where you can take your child for some "socializing" with other homeschoolers.  They also offer extras to homeschoolers, like supplies or will help pay for dance classes.  There are four that I know of in the area that we live, and each one does things a little differently.  But it's nice to be able to have that option, to find the charter school that works for your style of homeschooling and what your family's needs are. 

Is there anything like that in your area you could look into?

Most charter schools are publicly funded and therefore technically classified as public schools.  Many charter schools are very innovative in their structure and education style, up to and including letting parents educate their children at home.  The one catch is that you still have to do it their way.  If you want complete freedom to run your child's education, you're better off staying away from any publicly funded schools.  If you want a good education in a potentially innovative fashion and ok with the fact that they're publicly funded, charter schools may be for you.

The one point is that of the utmost importance is to research any potential educational option thoroghly and don't fall for any tricks offering free curriculum and school supplies.  Public schools are now attempting to woo homeschoolers with free materials, computers, etc. in exchange for enrollment in various education options they've designed, but the end result is the same - you're still under district and state control.  If you're ok with that, it's not a bad option.  Personally, I'm not so I shy away from all the virtual academies and charter schools, but I know that good ones exist.

One other point to consider is that while the state makes it really easy to school your kids at home, it can potentially place the rights of all homeschoolers in jeopardy.  The more homeschoolers that succomb to state control voluntarily, the more homeschoolers the state may try to bring under their control - regardless of how they homeschool their kids.  If one of your reasons for homeschooling is independence from state/district control, any option that is publicly funded and mandated will defeat your purpose.

If you are looking for secular science, we love Noeo science.

I can't say enough good things about noeo.   Love it, love it, love it.

Some curriculums are easier than other to gloss over the "religion" parts.  We use, without much trouble: Miquon, Singapore for math, Learning Language Arts Through Literature, Story of the World, and Noeo, Explode the Code, and pieces of others.

_Erica

If you visit your local Goodwill, etc.  people will sometimes put public school books in there.  I have a bunch that I got from there.  I still buy , or get from here, the ones I need.  Saxon math doesn't have anything to do with religion.

For Am. History, you could check out Joy Hakim's series on Am. History.  She does a good job in exploring different facets of history and is non-religious.  My local library has them - your's might as well so that you can check them out.

I'm a newbie, to both homeschooling and the forums here at PBS. We also use a secular curiculum, as we are a practicing Wiccan family. I intend to introduce all religions, but it's hard here in my little part of the Bible Belt to find packaged lesson plans that don't have a Christian twist to them.

Here's a site I love - it's www.edhelper.com . I get most of my plans from here, and the kids seem to love their unit studies!