Rating: 
Summary: A great jump-off place for beginners.
Review: After careful consideration of the question "why homeschool?" this book gently led me through the basics of how to get started, with generous examples from others who have successfully done it. After reading it cover-to-cover, I now find myself asking "why not?"This book doesn't give you the blow-by-blow of homeschooling, but it does give you great overviews of general styles, solid reasons to start the journey and lots of resources to consider for developing your own style. It's even got a great section on materials that have been reviewed for homeschoolers which, for me, helped clear some of the glassy-eye I got after one trip to a curriculum fair, and replaced it with solid recommondations on products I can really see myself using. The book is also full of coupons, the most interesting to me were the free trials of several homeschooling magazines. If you're even considering homeschooling, I would recommend this book as a great place to start.
Rating:
Summary: Found Very Helpful. Coupons are a Plus!
Review: Editorial review states that "use just a couple of them and the book pays for itself." Other reviews all mention the coupons. THEY EXPIRED 01/2001.
Rating: 
Summary: don't buy it for the coupons
Review: Editorial review states that "use just a couple of them and the book pays for itself." Other reviews all mention the coupons. THEY EXPIRED 01/2001.
Rating:
Summary: thankfulmom
Review: EXCELLENT resource!!! I ordered several books on homeschooling (including And What About College and The Well-Trained Mind). HOMESCHOOLING ALMANAC 2002-2003 is the BEST! This book provides information on assesing your child's needs and appropriateness for homeschooling PLUS loads of resources for packaged curriculums, online courses and distance learning/online home-school programs. This information allows students/parents to have the tools needed to individualize their instruction. A BIG THANK YOU to Mary and Michael Leppert!!
Rating:
Summary: Found Very Helpful. Coupons are a Plus!
Review: I am new to homeschooling and have looked to a lot of places/resources/people for information and advice. I had checked the 2000-2001 version out at my local library. I liked it so well I wanted one at home to reference at any time, as well as share with others. It has lots of information and resources from suppliers to support groups. If you do get the older version the cpns are expired, the 2002-2003 do not expire until 2002, and I believe some not until 2003.
Rating:
Summary: Legal and support sections inaccurate and out of date
Review: I definitely think that this is a good book for any parent to have for their children, regardless of homeschool, because it is a great resource on educational activities and resoures. The main problem that I have with the book is that it is obvious that the products that are listed were paid advertisements. For example, the author mentions "Hooked on Phonics" in the discussion session, but this product is not mentioned in the product section. Also, in the computer applications, most of them are Adobe products or kid specific games. Consumer education is a top priority for me, but Quicken and MS Money are not mentioned. Another item I did not like was the fact that the author implies that 100 years ago education was better, because a lot of parents homeschooled. Although Laura Ingalls had a great education, many children were forced to work by the age of 7 - 10. Look at the pictures of children in the coal mines, ads for Pony Expess "Orphans preferred", or read "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair. FYI, the whole reason that we have public schools today is because of "The Jungle". Child advocates wanted to get children out of the terrible working conditions, so they made it a law that all children under 16 were required to goto school. This is a very important piece of history that the book does not present.
Rating: 
Summary: Very good, but lacking some information
Review: I definitely think that this is a good book for any parent to have for their children, regardless of homeschool, because it is a great resource on educational activities and resoures. The main problem that I have with the book is that it is obvious that the products that are listed were paid advertisements. For example, the author mentions "Hooked on Phonics" in the discussion session, but this product is not mentioned in the product section. Also, in the computer applications, most of them are Adobe products or kid specific games. Consumer education is a top priority for me, but Quicken and MS Money are not mentioned. Another item I did not like was the fact that the author implies that 100 years ago education was better, because a lot of parents homeschooled. Although Laura Ingalls had a great education, many children were forced to work by the age of 7 - 10. Look at the pictures of children in the coal mines, ads for Pony Expess "Orphans preferred", or read "The Jungle" by Upton Sinclair. FYI, the whole reason that we have public schools today is because of "The Jungle". Child advocates wanted to get children out of the terrible working conditions, so they made it a law that all children under 16 were required to goto school. This is a very important piece of history that the book does not present.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful resource for homeschoolers
Review: I had the opportunity to review the book and also interviewed the co-author Mary Leppert for our website, homeschoolzone.com She took the time to share her views with us on the homeschooling movement and a bit about her personal life with her children. I really enjoyed the book and it has an easy to read style and is very useful. The coupon section will be very useful to homeschoolers on a shoestring which basically pays for the price of the book.
Rating:
Summary: Legal & Support Sections All Updated & Accurate
Review: I rely on the reviews of others when I buy books. After reading one review listed here, I was concerned that the information would not be reliable. However, upon reviewing the NEW edition, I discovered that the authors have not only updated the legal and support sections, but have updated resource info and even the discount coupons included in the book. As an old-time homeschooler, I can say that this stuff changes in the homeschooling world almost daily, and the authors deserve credit for staying abreast of the latest legal news as well as the constantly changing homeschool support group information. A big round of applause is deserved for keeping the resources up-to-date too -- which also changes with the wind. My favorite parts of the book are the "typcial day" and "curriculum" sections. Everyone who has homeschooled for any length of time knows there is no such thing as a typical day or a typical curriculum. We also know everyone assumes that there is. The Lepperts have provided a glimpse into what a typical day and a typical curriculum might be like. They are careful to let the reader know that one-size-does-not-fit-all. That's exactly what makes homeschooling such a wonderful choice for so many square pegs who don't fit the round holes of traditional schooling. This is a MUST READ for anyone considering homeschooling -- and the coupons are a nice plus as the discounts they offer really do help pay for the cost of the book!
Rating:
Summary: Legal & Support Sections All Updated & Accurate
Review: I rely on the reviews of others when I buy books. After reading one review listed here, I was concerned that the information would not be reliable. However, upon reviewing the NEW edition, I discovered that the authors have not only updated the legal and support sections, but have updated resource info and even the discount coupons included in the book. As an old-time homeschooler, I can say that this stuff changes in the homeschooling world almost daily, and the authors deserve credit for staying abreast of the latest legal news as well as the constantly changing homeschool support group information. A big round of applause is deserved for keeping the resources up-to-date too -- which also changes with the wind. My favorite parts of the book are the "typcial day" and "curriculum" sections. Everyone who has homeschooled for any length of time knows there is no such thing as a typical day or a typical curriculum. We also know everyone assumes that there is. The Lepperts have provided a glimpse into what a typical day and a typical curriculum might be like. They are careful to let the reader know that one-size-does-not-fit-all. That's exactly what makes homeschooling such a wonderful choice for so many square pegs who don't fit the round holes of traditional schooling. This is a MUST READ for anyone considering homeschooling -- and the coupons are a nice plus as the discounts they offer really do help pay for the cost of the book!
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