Complete Idiot's Guide to Homeschooling

Rating:
Summary: Not as good as I was hoping
Review: By the time I received this book, I had already done all my research from the internet. This book is really very basic. It's helpful for the ULTIMATE beginner to homeschooling. But for anyone who knows anything beyond the mere basics, I wouldn't really recommend it.

Rating:
Summary: Complete Idiot's Guide to Homeschooling
Review: Complete sums up the book. I have read 20 books on homeschooling in the last 2 weeks and have found this one to be informative, comprehensive and knowledgeble in all areas. I have used it to surf the web and gain more information on areas that raised my interest.

Rating:
Summary: Review
Review: Great book. All the information you need compliled in one book. Great resource for people considering home schooling as well. Thanks for such a great book.

Rating:
Summary: Loved this book!!!
Review: I am just starting my learning adventure with homeschooling and this book has really helped with my confidence and understanding. It is very detail on the different learning styles, and "teaching" styles. I would recommend this book to any one who mentioned homeschooling, whether just starting out or beginning to "burnout" this book can be of great help.

Rating:
Summary: Loved this book!!!
Review: I am just starting my learning adventure with homeschooling and this book has really helped with my confidence and understanding. It is very detail on the different learning styles, and "teaching" styles. I would recommend this book to any one who mentioned homeschooling, whether just starting out or beginning to "burnout" this book can be of great help.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasently informed, but desiring more.
Review: I appreciated Marsha's vast knowledge of various types and styles of homeschool. This has helped me to understand how other types of homeschool styles might work, or not work for me. For example I have strictly been a curriculumn - paper oriented teacher/mom. But I was able to gain insight to the 'unschooling' approach and unit study approach which has enlightened me greatly. The author also provided phone #'s, addresses, websites, and books, in case the reader desired more in depth information. In conclusion, this book did introduce me to some new concepts to the homeschool approach, however, I wished it would have gone into further detail rather than just an introduction. Marsha Ranson briefly discusses many aspects of homeschool, but the book reads as more of a reference type book rather than a how to book.

Rating:
Summary: Pleasently informed, but desiring more.
Review: I appreciated Marsha's vast knowledge of various types and styles of homeschool. This has helped me to understand how other types of homeschool styles might work, or not work for me. For example I have strictly been a curriculumn - paper oriented teacher/mom. But I was able to gain insight to the 'unschooling' approach and unit study approach which has enlightened me greatly. The author also provided phone #'s, addresses, websites, and books, in case the reader desired more in depth information. In conclusion, this book did introduce me to some new concepts to the homeschool approach, however, I wished it would have gone into further detail rather than just an introduction. Marsha Ranson briefly discusses many aspects of homeschool, but the book reads as more of a reference type book rather than a how to book.

Rating:
Summary: Never Fear - Homeschooling is here!
Review: One useful occupier of my homeschooling resource bookshelf.

Upside: Explains briefly for those who can't take a lot of time the whys and wherefores of homeschooling. Finding the right philisophy and approach(es) to use, how to locate support groups and resources, it's all there. Not preachy, academic or laden down with long-winded interviews or religious baggage.

Downside: Some illustrations and one recurring character logo in particular are a bit off-putting. Nonwhite people are drawn with wierd slash-penstroke skin shading, and the cartoonish faces often seem exaggerated and inappropriate. This guide may be aimed (tongue-in-cheek) at "Complete Idiots", but I found the presentation to grow tiresome, bordering on annoying.

IMO the subject, homeschooling, needs to be treated a little more respectfully. One hopes that the cartoons and flash of the "Complete Idiots" format might be toned down in subsequent editions, and that the publishers would find another illustrator and/or editor.

That said, this is a good, accessible resource for prospective homeschooling parents.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent resource for this 'newbie' homeschooler
Review: This book really helped lay things out clearly and in a way that made sense to us. We recently decided to homeschool our 5 year old daughter and everything seemed completely overwhelming.

Reading the Idiot's Guide was instrumental in being able to regroup and get an idea of what we needed to do next!

We strongly recommend this book to anyone considering or new to homeschooling!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent resource for this 'newbie' homeschooler
Review: This book really helped lay things out clearly and in a way that made sense to us. We recently decided to homeschool our 5 year old daughter and everything seemed completely overwhelming.

Reading the Idiot's Guide was instrumental in being able to regroup and get an idea of what we needed to do next!

We strongly recommend this book to anyone considering or new to homeschooling!