Where do I get my books?

Choosing a curriculum is Step 5

  1. Learn
  2. Notify the State
  3. Join a local support group
  4. Join NCHE

 

Step 5 • Decide on Curriculum and Resources

You will need to decide on a philosophy of education before you decide what curriculum and resources to use. A wide variety of resources is available. The closer your choices fit your family’s philosophy and style, the more successful you will be. Most families piece together their own curriculum by picking and choosing the best for their family from different publishers. It is usually best to start small and add later. To get a firsthand look at the a large variety of materials, attend NCHE’s Annual Conference and Book Fair. Our conference features about 90 vendors of curriculum and educational materials. A brief description of the most commonly used curricula and resources is provided below. For a more detailed and comprehensive description we refer you to:

Curriculum Approaches

Below are four common curriculum approaches**. The four corresponding letters will be used as a descriptive tool in the Commonly Used Curricula section that follows.

 A Traditional and Conventional Text Books: Uses graded textbooks for each subject; most commonly used approach in institutional schools.

 B  Early Academics: Stresses reading, writing, and arithmetic skills at an early age; uses workbooks, visual aids, and manipulatives.

 C  Workbooks or Programmed Learning: Workbooks are consumable books with questions or projects included and condensed instructions. Programmed is step-by-step sequence of small units of facts which provide immediate feedback.

 D  Unit Study: All subjects center around a common theme and different ages can be involved with the same theme. Units do not include a math or language program, therefore, these need to be added.

Commonly Used Curricula

A Beka (800) 874-BEKA

 

Accelerated Christian Educators (800) 925-7777

 

Advanced Training Institute (630) 323-2842

Curriculum approach D

Alpha Omega (800) 622-3070,

 

Bob Jones (800) 845-5731

 

Calvert (410) 785-3400

Christian Liberty Academy (847) 259-4444

 

Clonlara (734) 769-4515

 

Konos (336) 887-2045

 

Sonlight Curriculum. (303) 730-6292

 

Other Sources for Math
Other Sources for Phonics and Reading
Other Sources for Language Arts
Other Sources for Science
Miscellaneous
Catalogs

Most homeschoolers acquire their resources by attending a book fair or by ordering from a catalog. The NCHE Annual Conference and Book Fair offers the opportunity to view and purchase many of the homeschooling resources that are available. It is one of the biggest book fairs east of the Mississippi. Most of the resources are also available through catalogs. Many of the catalogs have descriptions of the resources.

 

And now, on with the journey...

  1. Learn
  2. Notify the State
  3. Join a local support group
  4. Join NCHE
  5. Decide on Curriculum and Resources
  6. Plan
  7. Subscribe to magazines and newsletters

 

Note: North Carolinians for Home Education does not officially recommend nor endorse any materials or schools or agencies listed. This list cannot represent the entire spectrum of educational materials.