Homeschooling Almanac, 2002-2003: How to Start, What to Do, Where to Go, Who to Call, Web Sites, Products, Catalogs, Teaching Supplies, Support Groups, Conferences, and More!

Rating:
Summary: Waste of money...
Review: I was completely disappointed when I purchased this book. Most of the information in it is out dated. The contact information for the homeschooling services was inaccurate. I wasted a lot of time looking up the correct phone numbers and web addresses for many of the companies listed. I think the authors should update their information or people are going to start thinking that they're just out to make a quick buck.

Rating:
Summary: Waste of money...
Review: I was completely disappointed when I purchased this book. Most of the information in it is out dated. The contact information for the homeschooling services was inaccurate. I wasted a lot of time looking up the correct phone numbers and web addresses for many of the companies listed. I think the authors should update their information or people are going to start thinking that they're just out to make a quick buck.

Rating:
Summary: The bottom line
Review: This book was absolutely wonderful and full of information for persons like myself considering homeschooling. What I found most unique about this book was that it gave examples as to what was wrong with public/private/parochial schooling without bashing them. Also, it delved right into the negative factors of homeschooling, honestly but without overpowering. After reading over 6 books about homeschooling, I am purchasing this one because it offered the most help, as well as a clear and concise listing of available resources. The author did a fabulous job of including his and her experiences, as well as that of others. It strove to answer questions without being preachy, which can hardly be said for so many others. Again, these resources were listed, and helpful information was given about most. Anyone considering homeschooling should purchase this book, and forget most of the rest.

Rating:
Summary: The bottom line
Review: This book was absolutely wonderful and full of information for persons like myself considering homeschooling. What I found most unique about this book was that it gave examples as to what was wrong with public/private/parochial schooling without bashing them. Also, it delved right into the negative factors of homeschooling, honestly but without overpowering. After reading over 6 books about homeschooling, I am purchasing this one because it offered the most help, as well as a clear and concise listing of available resources. The author did a fabulous job of including his and her experiences, as well as that of others. It strove to answer questions without being preachy, which can hardly be said for so many others. Again, these resources were listed, and helpful information was given about most. Anyone considering homeschooling should purchase this book, and forget most of the rest.

Rating:
Summary: Good resource book
Review: This is a good resource book. As far as helping you individually in your homeschooling it's not a good book. But telling you were to go for help it is great.

Rating:
Summary: You Don't Have To Lose Your Kids To The Gang At School.
Review: This is an almanac rather than the kind of book read straight through. Now that falling educational standards, crime, and political subversion are putting your children at risk, here's a book to introduce the general idea of home-schooling as a viable option. There are also support organizations listed in case you seek more extensive consultation, and their numbers testify to something revolutionary being afoot in education. Also included are color photos of the many imaginative products that you or your designated teacher might find appropriate, and each is organized under the subject being taught. I live in California, where I already give free consultations on how to build the alternative communities known as Little Europes, so I used this almanac to look up the specific legal restrictions my state has on the home schooling aspect. I discovered this widely respected alternative is actually legal, and that no one has to come into conflict with the authorities as long as they or their designated teacher is accredited. The Lepperts were motivated by their own traditional values to create this book, so readers can be confident someone examined the products personally, recommending only what was free of the left wing political agenda now turning our public schools into microcosms of the troubled third world.

Rating:
Summary: You Don't Have To Lose Your Kids To The Gang At School.
Review: This is an almanac rather than the kind of book read straight through. Now that falling educational standards, crime, and political subversion are putting your children at risk, here's a book to introduce the general idea of home-schooling as a viable option. There are also support organizations listed in case you seek more extensive consultation, and their numbers testify to something revolutionary being afoot in education. Also included are color photos of the many imaginative products that you or your designated teacher might find appropriate, and each is organized under the subject being taught. I live in California, where I already give free consultations on how to build the alternative communities known as Little Europes, so I used this almanac to look up the specific legal restrictions my state has on the home schooling aspect. I discovered this widely respected alternative is actually legal, and that no one has to come into conflict with the authorities as long as they or their designated teacher is accredited. The Lepperts were motivated by their own traditional values to create this book, so readers can be confident someone examined the products personally, recommending only what was free of the left wing political agenda now turning our public schools into microcosms of the troubled third world.

Rating:
Summary: Why the Almanac is a perfect gift for families
Review: We would like to mention that our book contains over $1000 worth of valuable coupons focusing specifically on homeschooling families, but can be useful for regular school families, too. We have assembled products from many providers who are normally not known to family-users, but rather, supply materials to schools or professional teachers. By using our book, a family can find a lot of great arts & crafts, science and software products that would normally be unavailable to them. The coupons also provide free copies of the major homeschooling publications so that a family who is not necessarily committed to the homeschooling idea yet can check into the options and teaching philosophies available to homeschoolers. We think that our book makes a great gift to any family that is concerned with the education of its children.

In addition to those considering homeschooling, it is also a great book for veteran homeschooling families. It contains eight interviews with real parents (and one homeschooler who is now a college student). There is a superlative foreword written by David Colfax, trailblazing homeschool dad of three sons who attended Harvard/Yale in the 1980s, after having been 100% homeschooled. The interviews provide an insight into what real homeschool families do each day and how they handle the inherent problems and might switch from one teaching philosophy to another. This is particularly helpful to those who are currently homeschooling and might wish to switch from unschooling to the Charlotte Mason approach, for example; or from strict school-at-home to the more relaxed unschooling approach. All of these philosophies are covered in depth in the Almanac, too. We would like to invite you to purchase our book and hope you enjoy it and benefit from it. Happy Homeschooling! Michael & Mary Leppert

Rating:
Summary: Legal and support sections inaccurate and out of date
Review: While this book does have some helpful resources it's summations of the laws and support groups is out of date and incomplete. So let the buyer beware regarding those two issues. Benefit from the information in the rest of this book but most certainly do not rely on it to be an authority of homeschooling laws and support in the state in which you live. Do exactly as the authors indicate--check with local homeschoolers before you begin. You'll be better off finding those laws and groups via the internet than relying on this book.

Hopefully the authors will make corrections in subsequent issues as they have been encouraged to do.