shinyhappypeople Posted November 23, 2010 Share Posted November 23, 2010 The Professor B thread piqued my curiosity. What do you think are the "sleeper hits of homeschooling"? I'm talking about less well-known but high quality programs and products. Obviously, my vote goes to McRuffy math. Love it :grouphug: Anyone else want to play? :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted November 23, 2010 Share Posted November 23, 2010 IEW's poetry memorization with the CD's. Simple and easy yet high quality, plus it lasts several years. Oh yeah, and my kids love it! :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ereks mom Posted November 23, 2010 Share Posted November 23, 2010 BJU Math for K through 6 (but I don't like their high school math) Evan-Moor's History Pockets Live & Learn Press Lapbook CD's for Apologia science courses (WOW!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted November 23, 2010 Share Posted November 23, 2010 We just got our McRuffy 1st grade Color Math in the mail yesterday. Beautifully done.....like all of McRuffy products. Sooooo.........I would also vote for McRuffy. But, not just their Color Math.....also their SE Phonics and even their Science. Another good one, that I don't think is widely known (at least not talked about much), is Valerie Bendt's Reading Made Easy. Really great program that lives up to its name. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
julikins Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 One of my favorites is History for Little Pilgrims from Christian Liberty Press. I absolutely love how it brought a clear understanding to my DD of God throughout history from the very beginning (Creation) until now. It gave a good basis for understanding what in the world history is for a K'er or 1st grader. Loved it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Another good one, that I don't think is widely known (at least not talked about much), is Valerie Bendt's Reading Made Easy. Really great program that lives up to its name. :iagree: Dd2 just finished RME this week. I used different aspects of it for each of my girls, and they both love reading. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UmmiSays Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I would say McRuffy also! I have used and am still using various subjects for grade K-2. They have been a great hit with excellent results. Peace, Candace Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I think these are the best deal going for phonogram cards out there, especially if you already own "The ABCs and All Their Tricks." It also comes with a chart with rules: Phonics Made Plain Also, Marcia Henry's Words for combined Spelling/word root vocab. Her new version lets you print multiple worksheets, making it easier to use and justify the cost if you have more than one child. Spelling Plus is starting to catch on, but is still not widely known, it's easy to use, has rules, can be used for all elementary grades, and focuses on the 1,000 most common words. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in Neverland Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 (edited) well it is not a sleeper any more but when we first started using it ...it was. Life of Fred math is AWESOME. Edited November 24, 2010 by Heather in NC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sagira Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 (edited) Maybe not much of a sleeper anymore, but two years ago when I started using BFSU it was. We really like this K-2 science program here, and I'm buying the second volume for grades 3-5. http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d.html/ref=redir_mdp_mobile/180-6642928-5301848?a=1432706101 Gosh, ElizabethB, those spelling/phonics look really good! Edited November 24, 2010 by sagira Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I don't know that I would call them sleepers, but they were more popular amg my "generation" of homeschoolers than the younger moms starting out: Landmark books American Heritage Jr Library books Signature books (and various other titles published around the times of these series) I absolutely love them and they are the foundation of a lot of my elementary/middle school history studies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2squared Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 IEW's poetry memorization with the CD's. Simple and easy yet high quality, plus it lasts several years. Oh yeah, and my kids love it! :001_smile: :iagree: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2squared Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 Another good one, that I don't think is widely known (at least not talked about much), is Valerie Bendt's Reading Made Easy. Really great program that lives up to its name. :iagree: I love this program! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 IEW's poetry memorization with the CD's. Simple and easy yet high quality, plus it lasts several years. Oh yeah, and my kids love it! :001_smile: :iagree: This is what I was going to post. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OregonNative Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 We LOVE Evan Moor's History Pockets (we are using Ancients with STOW1) and Literature Pockets: Caldecott Winners. What a great thread!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patchfire Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 They aren't designed for homeschoolers, but because of their reading level and layout, I have to put in a plug for the Complete Idiot's Guides (and the ... for Dummies, but I prefer the former). Dd is using the Complete Idiot's Guide to Music History this year and you cannot beat the bargain. The text is easy to outline, and there are suggestions for listening in it as well. We're looking at using a few more in the upcoming years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChemMommy Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 The Killgallon materials for sentence composing. My high schooler is reading it "for fun, mom". But they also have an elementary and middle school program. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I don't know that I would call them sleepers, but they were more popular amg my "generation" of homeschoolers than the younger moms starting out: Landmark books American Heritage Jr Library books Signature books (and various other titles published around the times of these series) I absolutely love them and they are the foundation of a lot of my elementary/middle school history studies. I found "The Wright Brothers" at a local thrift store, we enjoyed it so much I bought a bunch of the Landmark books from Alibris. I wish people here had talked about them more! Of course, my kids are young enough that we still have years to enjoy them, so I found them soon enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIch elle Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 EPS used to sell it. http://sternmath.com/index.php We used K-3 for grades K-2 with homemade manipulatives & boards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 The Killgallon materials for sentence composing. My high schooler is reading it "for fun, mom". But they also have an elementary and middle school program. :iagree::iagree::iagree: This was the first program that came to mind. More information on it can be found here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 The Killgallon materials for sentence composing. My high schooler is reading it "for fun, mom". But they also have an elementary and middle school program. I've always wondered about these books. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violet Crown Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 I don't know that I would call them sleepers, but they were more popular amg my "generation" of homeschoolers than the younger moms starting out: Landmark books American Heritage Jr Library books Signature books (and various other titles published around the times of these series) I absolutely love them and they are the foundation of a lot of my elementary/middle school history studies. :iagree: I knew there was some reason I liked you. Besides the excessive obsession with grammar issues.;) Ah, I will never forget the thrill of discovering the Landmark Exploits of Xenophon in perfect condition in the Goodwill book bin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nd293 Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Mosdos Literature - I first heard about it on a similar thread to this. It is secular, but openly values-based (from a Jewish company), offers a strong literature programme, is easy to use and both dd10 and I love it. Once a week ds3 goes to a morning playschool, while dd and I hole up at MacDonald's and do the week's Mosdos lesson. Definitely my favourite part of the homeschool week! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Ariel really enjoyed using Jolly Phonics. Being a British program(me) it's not so popular here, but it has a lot of hands-on stuff (coloring worksheets, games) that appeal to my visual and hands-on kiddo. CIMT's Mathematics Enrichment Programme is also awesome, though it's not really a sleeper anymore. We're transitioning our main curriculum from using Right Start, which my mom found difficult to teach, to MEP, which we have mostly used as a supplement. I love the thinking skills it encourages and seems to have just enough practice for my child. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
woolybear Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Lessons from History--very concise, mainly biographical sketches. It's a good starting point for older kids and just enough info for younger. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 We really like the (critical/creative thinking) stuff from Tin Man Press. I think I originally heard about it here, but I don't see it mentioned very often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BatmansWife Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 We really like the (critical/creative thinking) stuff from Tin Man Press. I think I originally heard about it here, but I don't see it mentioned very often. :iagree: Tin Man Press books are excellent. When my oldest two were younger they couldn't get enough of those books (I collected quite a lot of them). Now I'm starting them all over again with my youngest and she loves them too. Definitely books your kids will BEG to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lauracolumbus Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 My kids love Figuratively Speaking. They've learned quite a bit of literary analysis from it. Laura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homeschooling6 Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 We are liking Saxon Phonics. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plain jane Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 The Killgallon materials for sentence composing. My high schooler is reading it "for fun, mom". But they also have an elementary and middle school program. Absolutely!!!!! First thing that popped into my head too. We're doing the elementary level book right now (Sentence Composing and will get into Story Grammar shortly) and I can't say enough great things about these little books. Wow. I guess they're made for the PS market but boy am I ever glad they made their way into my homeschool. :thumbup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FO4UR Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 We really like the (critical/creative thinking) stuff from Tin Man Press. I think I originally heard about it here, but I don't see it mentioned very often. :iagree: Funny, quirky stuff.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Mosdos Literature - I first heard about it on a similar thread to this. It is secular, but openly values-based (from a Jewish company), offers a strong literature programme, is easy to use and both dd10 and I love it. Once a week ds3 goes to a morning playschool, while dd and I hole up at MacDonald's and do the week's Mosdos lesson. Definitely my favourite part of the homeschool week! I looked this up, and I see it's on the expensive side. Do you use both the student and teacher's edition, or just one or the other? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alphabetika Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Complete-a-Sketch books from Insight Technical Education. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom0012 Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Absolutely!!!!! First thing that popped into my head too. We're doing the elementary level book right now (Sentence Composing and will get into Story Grammar shortly) and I can't say enough great things about these little books. Wow. I guess they're made for the PS market but boy am I ever glad they made their way into my homeschool. :thumbup: I've had the Sentence Composing book sitting around for a year. You are all inspiring me to give it a try. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michele B Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 This is a great thread! Keep it going! :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.