Fiction books with Homeschooling in it?

[shawthorne44]

I just started to read the book Tangle of Gold.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/Tangle-Gold-Colors-Madeleine-Book-ebook/dp/B014FZUN16/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470058564&sr=1-1&keywords=tangle+of+gold

 

It is the third book in the fantasy series that I started in last summer's audiobooksync.com.    The teenagers in it are homeschooled.   It made me think that "wouldn't it be neat if I had a list of fiction books in which homeschooling happens".  There might be a thread on this already but I haven't noticed it and the thought of searching here for "homeschooling" and "books" is funny.  So, maybe people could add books they've run across where the kids are homeschooled?  These are my contributions.

 

 

1. Colors of Madeleine series.    Homeschooling mainly seems to be in the story to explain how the teenagers have so much time on their hands.  Nobody ever seems to do Math for example.   Since they are in England I guess they aren't doing Maths.  They seem to have a small co-op going where X adult teaches History on Y day of the week.  Parents are flaky.  For example, one of the kids just said that her mother is going to stop teaching "because it is boring".   But, I'm enjoying the books, and hey, there is homeschooling.  So, I'll have DD read the first one when she is of age.  
2. Picture book "This is My Home, This is My School".    Seems to have been a rigorous education, and it also shows the mom getting grumpy which is a good thing in my opinion.    Also, a decent picture book in general.  
   https://www.amazon.com/This-My-Home-School/dp/0374380201/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1470058979&sr=1-1

That picture book is one of the five I paid retail for in the last 10 years, just because of homeschool.   I can think of worse things than publishers noticing that adding a homeschooled kid to a book boosts sales by a small but noticeable amount.  

[Amateur Actress]

Schooled by Gordon Korman.

[EKS]

Surviving the Applewhites 

 

An Acceptable Time 

 

Skellig

 

 

 

[Chrysalis Academy]

Glory O'Brien's History of the Future - the main character's best friend is homeschooled, but as part of a flaky back-to-the-land movement, and it isn't portrayed positively - like, seriously un-positively.  There is lice. Of the nether regions.  :huh:    

 

Great book though! For an older teen - the protagonist is 17 and there is content that is R-rated.  Hence the lice.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Chrysalis Academy

[MeaganS]

Stargirl was homeschooled prior to the story starting. As was the little boy in Wonder. It doesn't happen in the stories, though, but does effect the characters.

[Kathleen.]

Nim's Island by Wendy Orr - Nim calls it island schooling

 

Charlie Goes to School by Ree Drummond from Pioneer Woman - a picture book series about her dog

 

☺

[Hilltopmom]

All chapter books for young teens or preteens:

 

The Homeschool Liberation league by Lucy Frank

 

Ida B by Katherine Hannigan

 

Homeschoolers, hippies, & heirloom tomatoes (or something like that, I think that's loaned out right now)

[Hilltopmom]

There are a few other picture books, more on the "I'm homeschooled & this is what our life is like" type, but no idea on the titles anymore.

 

Also, if you like audio stories, the family in Sparkle Stories (Martin & Sylvia) are homeschoolers. We loved those & can't wait for my new littles to be old enough to enjoy them!

[rebcoola]

I stumbled on this series one day its kind of fun A mom and her 2 homeschooled kids keep stumbling into murder mysteries.

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/bookseries/B018HB8668/kindle/ref=sr_bookseries_null_B018HB8668

[shawthorne44]

Oh, how wonderful!   

 

[Miss Tick]

Feed by M. T. Anderson is a dystopian YA novel and one of the main characters has been homeschooled. If I remember correctly, eventually it (indirectly) kills her, but life in the future is so bleak anyway that I still thought homeschooling was worth it.

 

Skellig by David Almond A boy finds a strange old man living in his garage whom he begins to suspect is an angel. Boy's friend is homeschooled.

[vonfirmath]

I just started to read the book Tangle of Gold.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/Tangle-Gold-Colors-Madeleine-Book-ebook/dp/B014FZUN16/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470058564&sr=1-1&keywords=tangle+of+gold

 

It is the third book in the fantasy series that I started in last summer's audiobooksync.com.    The teenagers in it are homeschooled.   It made me think that "wouldn't it be neat if I had a list of fiction books in which homeschooling happens".  There might be a thread on this already but I haven't noticed it and the thought of searching here for "homeschooling" and "books" is funny.  So, maybe people could add books they've run across where the kids are homeschooled?  These are my contributions.

 

I'm about halfway through last year's book.  Having a hard time getting through it/wanting to finish

 

I know I read another book with a homeschooled boy (And the youngest girl).  The main character moves into an apartment building and sort of accidentally joins a spy club and the boy he is in the club with is homeschooled (And his sister stays home too so he won't be alone).  The kids have odd names because their family lets them name themselves.

 

[letsplaymath]

Math fiction that features a homeschooling family. Not books (yet), but still fun:

• The Mathematical Adventures of Alexandria Jones

[Ellie]

Little Women, although it is only mentioned in passing, when Marmie withdraws Amy because the teacher whacked Amy's knuckles for bringing some sort of sweets to school.

[Lori D.]

Here's a big list -- although it's labeled as homeschooling and unschooling, I see a number of books in there that I am scratching my head over trying to figure out where the education at home comes in… Teach Beside Me blog: Books With Homeschool Characters.

 

Here's another big list from the blog of WTMer NanceXToo: Books Featuring Homeschooled Characters.

Edited August 1, 2016 by Lori D.

[blue plaid]

Liar and Spy by Rebecca Stead is the book vonfirmath mentions. Great book!

[vonfirmath]

Liar and Spy by Rebecca Stead is the book vonfirmath mentions. Great book!

 

Thank you! I was wracking my brain trying to figure it out.

 

[shawthorne44]

This one looks particularly appealing: (from the blog link)

Baby Kong
by Scott Stroud

"Mom is determined to have a productive day homeschooling the kids but in her way stands Baby Kong! Set on destroying everything in his path, including Mom's sanity, Baby Kong rampages through the house. Thankfully, Mom has a few tricks up her sleeve. "

(Ages 4-8. Based on Christian principals with several references to God)

[Um_2_4]

Wright on Time is a series about a RVschooling family. I just started reading the 1st one out loud today. DS12 said it was a "good little story" LOL.

[rebcoola]

Oh also James Patterson has a series for kid's  Treasurer Hunters where they live on a boat and are homeschooled.

[mommyoffive]

Thanks.  I am going to look into these.

[Dmmetler]

The protagonist of the Midshipman's Hope series was homeschooled until entering the Naval Academy, and it comes up in flashbacks. It's not a light read, though (it's kind of like Ender's Game with a young military officer forced to make tough decisions.), and the homeschooling was definitely on the fundamentalist side.

 

DD has decided that Ron and his siblings were obviously homeschooled before attending Hogwarts because Molly just seems like a homeschooling mom (and obviously, they didn't attend a Muggle school, since Ron has no clue how to manage things in the Muggle world).

[vonfirmath]

The protagonist of the Midshipman's Hope series was homeschooled until entering the Naval Academy, and it comes up in flashbacks. It's not a light read, though (it's kind of like Ender's Game with a young military officer forced to make tough decisions.), and the homeschooling was definitely on the fundamentalist side.

 

DD has decided that Ron and his siblings were obviously homeschooled before attending Hogwarts because Molly just seems like a homeschooling mom (and obviously, they didn't attend a Muggle school, since Ron has no clue how to manage things in the Muggle world).

 

The Hope Series is REALLY good.

 

But my husband, who leans toward depression, has found it is not a good series for him to reread (past the first book).  It sends him into a depressive spiral in sympathy with the main character.

 

[fdrinca]

I just started to read the book Tangle of Gold.  

 

https://www.amazon.com/Tangle-Gold-Colors-Madeleine-Book-ebook/dp/B014FZUN16/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1470058564&sr=1-1&keywords=tangle+of+gold

 

It is the third book in the fantasy series that I started in last summer's audiobooksync.com.    The teenagers in it are homeschooled.   It made me think that "wouldn't it be neat if I had a list of fiction books in which homeschooling happens".  There might be a thread on this already but I haven't noticed it and the thought of searching here for "homeschooling" and "books" is funny.  So, maybe people could add books they've run across where the kids are homeschooled?  These are my contributions.

 

 

1. Colors of Madeleine series.    Homeschooling mainly seems to be in the story to explain how the teenagers have so much time on their hands.  Nobody ever seems to do Math for example.   Since they are in England I guess they aren't doing Maths.  They seem to have a small co-op going where X adult teaches History on Y day of the week.  Parents are flaky.  For example, one of the kids just said that her mother is going to stop teaching "because it is boring".   But, I'm enjoying the books, and hey, there is homeschooling.  So, I'll have DD read the first one when she is of age.  
2. Picture book "This is My Home, This is My School".    Seems to have been a rigorous education, and it also shows the mom getting grumpy which is a good thing in my opinion.    Also, a decent picture book in general.  

   https://www.amazon.com/This-My-Home-School/dp/0374380201/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1470058979&sr=1-1

That picture book is one of the five I paid retail for in the last 10 years, just because of homeschool.   I can think of worse things than publishers noticing that adding a homeschooled kid to a book boosts sales by a small but noticeable amount.  

 

This book is so similar to our homeschool experience that I sent a copy to my MIL so she could "get" what it is we do. I don't think she get's it...yet...but it helps. (Bonus points for the NOT Instagram-and-Pinterest worthy home!)

[Farrar]

One I didn't see mentioned is Every Soul a Star by Wendy Mass. Great book with some homeschooled characters.

 

The Applewhites books are the one mainstream published book I've read that is:

* clearly, explicitly homeschooling (not like Nim's Island where other schooling isn't an option or historic when home education was more common)

* happening during the course of the book

* positive toward homeschooling

* not a "returning to/starting school" plot

 

Everything else I know of is a homeschooled character starting or now in school  or isn't the main character or is kids on an adventure and homeschooling is just to explain that they are being educated amidst their adventure life. Which is *fine* - those are great things too. But there is really a dearth of (not self-published) books that are explicitly about homeschoolers.

 

[Hilltopmom]

Oh we love Wendy Mass & have not read that one yet! Thanks.

I own, but haven't read the Applewhites- will put in our reading pile:)

[EmmaNZ]

The Railway Children

[vonfirmath]

Everything else I know of is a homeschooled character starting or now in school  or isn't the main character or is kids on an adventure and homeschooling is just to explain that they are being educated amidst their adventure life. Which is *fine* - those are great things too. But there is really a dearth of (not self-published) books that are explicitly about homeschoolers.

 

Maybe because homeschooling is just a way of "doing life"?  You don't see many books about setting the table for dinner or putting a dinner on the table, even though that is common experience for everyone. It is background in a book about something else.

[shawthorne44]

But, there are a great many books about going to school and being in school and set exclusively in school.   

Although, I'm not particularly concerned about it being the focus.  Just that it is mentioned as happening, so that it won't seem to my child that she is almost the only one who is homeschooled.   

 

DD just turned 6 and it has already came up several months ago.   I was reading her ANOTHER picture book about school and she said "Why don't I go to school?"   I said, "Those kids go to Public School.  It is like the co-op you go to on Friday mornings.  Except that parents can't be there, and you have to stay there ALLLLLL day for 5 days a week, and you rarely get to play".   She was OK then with the idea of homeschooling and when people ask she says she "goes to school on Fridays".   

 

I wasn't making up the 'rarely get to play' thing.   Several other parents have said that recess is short, K is mostly seat-work, and the younger kids are forced to get extra instruction after-school and INSTEAD OF recess.   The parents of one of DD's K-level friends rarely see her on weekdays during school.  When she gets home, she feels the need to decompress in her room alone until dinner, then after dinner she does homework.  

 

But, because of that one question, I want to salt her reading material with books where homeschooling happens.  

[Sebastian (a lady)]

The protagonist of the Midshipman's Hope series was homeschooled until entering the Naval Academy, and it comes up in flashbacks. It's not a light read, though (it's kind of like Ender's Game with a young military officer forced to make tough decisions.), and the homeschooling was definitely on the fundamentalist side.

 

DD has decided that Ron and his siblings were obviously homeschooled before attending Hogwarts because Molly just seems like a homeschooling mom (and obviously, they didn't attend a Muggle school, since Ron has no clue how to manage things in the Muggle world).

 

The Midshipman's Hope series are so horrible after the first book.  I read all but the last and each one was drearier than the one before.  

 

I really disliked the tone of these books.

 

ETA:  I was a Naval Officer and understand the non sebi sed patriae ethos.  I still didn't like these books.  Too realistic and quite depressing.

Edited August 2, 2016 by Sebastian (a lady)

[Sebastian (a lady)]

Some of Robert Heinlein's stories mention homeschooling style education.

 

Have Spacesuit Will Travel - the father realizes the level of math and science instruction and takes on the son's education himself (I think he hands him a stack of books and asks him questions afterwards).

 

The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - education on the moon colony is whatever one person knows that another is willing to pay to be taught.  (This book is not a juvenile story and includes a complex group marriage.  I didn't hand it to my kids until they were older teens.)