>>>>Can you recommend a certain book or website that helped you with high school credits?<<<<I bought myself one high school book a year, and considered it part of my curriculum expenditures. I started with Barb Shelton High School FormULA, and it was pretty good. She leans a lot on the unschooler approach – less structured approach, I should say. Lots on how to write up your high school experience after the fact, a lot about learning naturally in high school. She does seem to like forms, though. I always thought it was interesting that someone who was so into what appeared to be a go-with-the-flow style in curriculum would be so uptight about recordkeeping! She has tons of forms and stuff, lots of intricate stuff on how to make grades. I didn’t use that stuff. But her overall theory of “write it after you do it” was helpful. She has a very VERY personal writing style – like she’s just emailing you.
I also liked Mary Schofield’s book The High School Handbook. She had some great course descriptions that I used a LOT in writing my own. It was a little less scary than Shelton’s book, because there were fewer forms to fill out. She has quotes from a variety of homeschoolers using different techniques, but her advice is more concrete and straighforward, as if she’s a textbook homeschooler. I got a lot out of her book.
Cathy Duffy’s High School Curriculum Manual is good for choosing curriculum, and deciding what courses you should have. She doesn’t go into the construction of a portfolio.
And I love Cafi Cohen’s book on College Admission.
Blessings,
Lee
The HomeScholar
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Melissa says:
Those are great recommendations I’ll check into. Do you recommend anything in particular as far as a software or actual book that you record the grades in?
July 18th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Kitty Miller says:
I am reading Cafi Cohen’s book now, based on an earlier recommendation. It has been very encouraging.
Kitty
July 18th, 2009 at 4:37 pm
Lee says:
Hi Melissa,
I actually used paper and pencil to record my grades. I wrote them on paper and kept them in my binder. Have you seen my short video clip on “Tubbies, Cubbies, and Binder Queens?” Here is the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wwebIBNAcg0&feature=channel_page
I was very frustrated with the different kinds of software, because I couldn’t get it to do exactly what I wanted it to do, so I can’t really give a recommendation on that. I will say that it’s more important to KEEP records, then what system you use to keep them.
I hope that helps!
Blessings,
Lee
July 18th, 2009 at 5:40 pm
Amy says:
Thank you, Lee, for mentioning Barb Shelton’s book. It seems her book would be a good match for my family, as we operate closer to the unschooling approach than to the school at home approach. I think I may understand why she might use lots of forms. If a school at home approach were used to study, say, U.S. History, then a textbook might be the only curriculum used for that course. Documention of this could be brief. An unschooler’s approach to the study of U.S. history, however, might involve reading biographies and other books, viewing documentaries, visiting museums, doing additional research, etc. Thoroughly documenting all that would likely require more time and effort, hence, more forms. Thanks again!
-Amy
July 23rd, 2009 at 9:38 am