Encyclopedias

[tenoraddict]

We have a set of 1989 World Book Encyclopedias. I can’t remember how we acquired them, but we have only used them once in the past 3 years. I have a 3rd, 6th, and 9th grader. Do you experienced homeschoolers with older children think we should keep them? Have you used encyclopedias frequently enough to warrant giving up precious bookshelf space for them?

Thanks,

Becky

[Kathleen in VA]

We have a set of 1989 World Book Encyclopedias. I can’t remember how we acquired them, but we have only used them once in the past 3 years. I have a 3rd, 6th, and 9th grader. Do you experienced homeschoolers with older children think we should keep them? Have you used encyclopedias frequently enough to warrant giving up precious bookshelf space for them?

 

Thanks,

Becky

 

It really depends on your family situation/space needs. There's so much info available online now and it's so much easier to just type something in google, that encyclopedias seem superfluous. Otoh, I learned much of what I know by being distracted by something in an encyclopedia near the topic I was supposed to be looking up. As a kid, I would sit and read and read and read them, being drawn from one article to the next. The pictures and graphs would catch my eye and before I knew it I was sucked in to another article. That usually doesn't happen online - you look up what you want to know and then you're done.

 

It sounds a little like you're needing a reason to clear them out because you need the shelf space and that's ok. But if I were you, I'd spend a little time sending the kids to the encyclopedias when they need to know something instead of checking online first. See what happens - if they get lost in them - or if they just get what they need and close them up. Also, most of the information in encyclopedias doesn't change, so even though yours are a little outdated, there is still plenty of useful information in them.

 

Some of my fondest memories of homechooling include the many times one of my children looked up from an encyclopedia and exlaimed, "Hey, Mom, did you know that.....???" --- followed by some new fascinating tidbit they had just discovered.

[amy g.]

I wanted to get rid of mine, but my friend convinced me that when life as we know it comes to an end, and there is no electricity or internet, I'll be so thankful that I have encyclopedias to homeschool with.

[Spryte]

I have been tempted to re-home ours, too. But... Every time I get close, I catch DS with one in his hand, looking something up. Yesterday it was hypnotism. (Can you guess what I was doing last night? Neither can I - I was hypnotized! :tongue_smilie:)

 

For the time being, we are going to hang onto ours. For the reasons mentioned above. And I will make a point to send DS to the encyclopedia for info, and maybe even include them in our weekly scavenger hunts (we work scavenger hunts into our lessons, to spice things up). Just the act of looking information up that way will be good for our kids, on some levels, too. It's another research skill, albeit a dying one.

 

If you have space, maybe give it a chance. But if you're really pressed for space... I think it's okay to let them go, too.

[tenoraddict]

We're getting our house ready to sell, and are in the process of packing things up to give away or put in storage. Everything must find a home! I'm really torn on the encyclopedias. A few years ago we gave away a set we never used, but then somehow inherited this one...so maybe that means we're meant to have encyclopedias in the house. :confused: Maybe I'll just have to be more purposeful about getting the boys to use them.

 

Thanks.

[KidsHappen]

I got rid of ours because they were basically just taking up space. No one ever used them. But if anything ever happens to the internet then I will surely regret it.