We've homeschooled for 13 years. I co-founded a homeschool group and buy for the group's library. I purchase many books every month and read even more than I buy. If I had to chose what two books I wouldn't be without, my choice would be two authored by Rebecca Rupp, this book and The Complete Home Learning Source Book. In our homeschool group the comment I hear most from other parents about homeschooling is "I'm just not sure we're on track". Home Learning Year by Year provides the information parents need to guage if they are covering what their child needs to learn. I'm a believer in letting the child's abilities set the pace but by using Rebecca Rupp's book, I have now made a checklist of what I want my children to cover and I have confidence that we're on track. If you don't homeschool your child, you'll still want this book. As a former special education teacher, I remember parent meetings where parents were lost about whether their child was being taught what he/she needed to learn. Home Learning Year by Year can guide parents in taking charge and making good choices for their child's education regardless of whether that education takes place in the home or in a classroom setting. The book gives the most complete listing of education goals grade by grade I've seen in any book. Ms Rupp suggests resources for each grade and its apparent to me that her suggestions and her goals have been carefully researched. Home Learning Year by Year: How to Design a Homeschool Curriculum from Preschool Through High School
I was looking for a book that had just checklists of what to teach when- for example, when a child is finished with first grade in a public school what do they typically know. What I got was a book that had this information and much more. It lists one thing that kids should be able to do (identify colors and mix them to make new colors) and then provides some resources or books that will help teach this concept. To get the information I wanted I am forced to wade through the references and suggestions. That is why I rated it four stars. I think I'd like to have a checklist at the end of each section that has just the expectations of each grade. However, I'm not sorry I bought this book. I have a feeling that as time goes on I'll refer to it more and more. Great resources. There are a variety of books and webpages that are given in this book as places to look for more information. I have looked at many of these references and found them to be high quality.
I agree with the previous reviewers - this book is a great little resource. It begins by telling you that all kids are different and how that one of the great things about homeschooling is that you can adapt to your child's personal needs. That being said, for those of us interested in a guide to what types of things are generally covered at what ages, this is very helpful. I appreciate several things about this book - it does cover all ages preschool through grade 12. It gives some specific comments about what is expected - for example: identify pennies, nickels, dimes, quarters, and dollar bills; recognize dollar and cent signs under money and measurement for kindergartners. It also gives information about books and resources to help the parent and student. It does not, however, dictate how the child should be taught (ie Grade 3 month 2 do the following, the progress to X in month 3). As the children progress (mine are only 4 and 2 at this point, but I look ahead of course!) this infomation gives you broad headings to cover as ideas - for example in Grade 10 History: Western Europe in the nineteenth century. Topics include the Napoleonic Wars, the Congress of Vienna, the growth of democracy, the Revolution of 1848 and the British Reform Laws, the unification of Germany under Bismark, and the unification of Italy under Garibaldi. Subjects covered include math, history, literature, grammar, art, music, foreign language, health and physical education, sciences geography (this is not necessarily an all inclusive list).
This is my first year homeschooling, and we are using a fairly eclectic curriculum - meaning, I pick and choose from various materials and curriculums to teach my children. While I absolutely love the freedom this approach gives our family, there are times when I feel a sense of panic and think, "Homeschooling seems too easy! I must not be doing it right! Am I really teaching them what they need to know, or am I deluding myself?"
Then I just pick up this book before bed and read the subject guidelines for each grade, and I immediately feel better. "Well, yes, I am covering that; no, I haven't done that yet but I will; hmmmm, I still haven't figured out when to teach that and it does seem important, etc..."
I also have the "What Your 1st Grader Needs to Know" books by - is it Hirsch? - and I definitely prefer Rupp's book, as it is far more succinct and provides better resource lists.
This book has received much less publicity than it should have. It is an excellent resource that takes you from preschool through highschool using the "normal" standards schools use and citing resources you can obtain (most through your library) to help your child learn what they should. Instead of textbooks (some are recommended especially for math), the author recommends quality books, games, websites to make learning the adventure it should be. Excellent. I'm so glad I bought it.
As a homeschool mom as well as author of homeschool materials, I feel it is important to make sure that I cover all the bases and don't leave anything out. I've seen a lot of scope and sequences, but most of them are so vague, they don't tell me anything. Home Learning, on the other hand, is extremely detailed. It also has high standards, rather than being watered down education. I know that if we cover what is listed in Home Learning, that we'll be right where we should be and doing even better than what is expected in the public schools. It's not the kind of book you read once and pack away. It's a book that you keep pulling out again and again.'
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