Deciding How to Homeschool

My husband and I knew we wanted to homeschool almost from the beginning; by the time our first child was two years old we had decided to educate him ourselves.  Having both worked in the public school system, there wasn't a doubt in our minds that we wanted better for our son, and any other children we might have in the future. Early childhood was easy enough.  We simply spent lots of time reading, singing, doing simple crafts, and learning letters and numbers.  As the time grew near to start a more formal curriculum, however, I started to get nervous.  I wasn't at all sure what I had in mind; I knew I wanted to foster my son's imagination and curiosity, and make learning as exciting and enjoyable as possible for him.  I also wanted him to have a more "rigorous" education than I felt the public schools would provide.  I wanted to challenge him, push him, and give him the sort of solid educational foundation that would carry him through to college.  The internet was awash in homeschooling methods and theories, the most popular of which seemed to be "unschooling".  I liked the idea of following my child's interests and indulging his curiosities, but when I tried to picture sending my unschooled son off to college one day, I was uneasy.  I found it difficult to believe that any kid would develop a curiosity or passion for, say, algebra!  The last thing I wanted was for my son to one day decide he wanted to be a doctor or an engineer, only to discover that he was not prepared for the higher education.  I wanted a program that was both flexible and enjoyable, but also demanding.
Finally, after a lot of frustrating research, I found the first edition of The Well-Trained Mind in my local library.  (This was almost ten years ago, and the book wasn't as well-known and popular as it is today.)  As soon as I started reading, I felt I was on to something.  By the time I finished, I knew I had found what I was looking for and I immediately purchased a copy.  Ever since, The Well-Trained Mind has provided the backbone of our homeschool curriculum, and I recommend it highly to all homeschooling families, no matter your personal educational philosophy.  The book provides an educational outline, from first grade through twelfth, for giving your child a classical education.  Though not a curriculum in and of itself, due to the book's popularity, there are now plenty of companion materials such as workbooks and textbooks if you choose to use them.  The author also suggests many other books for each subject and grade level, and of course parents can choose their own, or add to and subtract from the curriculum as they see fit.  The program is utterly customizable, while still providing a framework that gave me confidence in the foundation I was laying for my son.  I hope your family finds this book as useful as we have!  As for The Well-Trained Mind's companion materials, so far we have used:


and


We intend to continue using Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Bauer's materials for both history and grammar. Click on any of the books above to find out more about them and where you can purchase them. Happy homeschooling!