K 12 Free Homeschool
From LoveToKnow Home School
K-12 free homeschool materials may be easily found on the Internet and locally if you know where to look. Free books and supplies can help your budget go further, especially if you are teaching multiple grades at home. If you're tired of paying large amounts of money for your homeschool curriculum and other materials, the following information will help you get more bang for your teaching dollar.
K-12 Free Homeschool Curriculum
People who are new to homeschooling will usually purchase a curriculum their first year. A purchased curriculum can run in the hundreds of dollars and in some cases, an all-inclusive one may run in the thousands. However, you don't have to spend all of that money to teach your children. Many materials and books are free if you know where to look for them. You may be surprised to learn that much of what you need may be found at your local library or church and through local or regional homeschooling groups.
Use Your Library
Many libraries are now part of a nationwide system that allows librarians to search for books that may not be available in their own system. Thrifty homeschooling parents can request a search of some of their favorite curriculum books from their local library. However, request your materials well before your school year starts. Books that come from other areas of the country may take several weeks in transit.
In addition, each year most library systems have a central book sale where thousands of books are sold, often for as little as a dollar for an entire grocery bag full of books. Check out these sales for bargain titles for your classroom.
Homeschooling Groups
One of the easiest places to find and exchange homeschooling materials is at a local homeschool group. These groups often exchange textbooks, hold swap meets and may even host a homeschool conference where curriculum and suppliers attend to sell their latest products. You may even be able to borrow books from a group's lending library if you're not sure whether or not a specific curriculum will work with your children.
Local Church Resources
If you're interested in teaching your children using a religious-based curriculum, your local church may already have some of the materials you need, and they're usually free for the asking. Check with the local Sunday school teachers to find out what is available; they often have lists of where free lesson plans and unit studies can be found on the Internet. Your church may also have a lending library that is stocked with the books you want to use in your classroom.
Internet Resources
One of the easiest places to find free homeschooling curriculum materials is the Internet. There are literally dozens of websites dedicated to providing homeschooling parents with the materials and support that they need. The following websites have lots of freebies available to homeschooling teachers, including lesson plans, unit ideas and curriculums. All you need to do is either download them or request them on the websites.
- Federal Resources for Educational Excellence- includes thousands of documents, photos, videos and animations
- National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration – lots of freebies for teaching about oceans and the weather including lesson plans and curriculum
- Jefferson Lab – hundreds of free resources for teaching science and physics
- National Postal Museum – get free materials on everything from the Pony Express to stamp collecting
- NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory – lots of freebies on weather, climate and ocean science for children and teachers
Homeschooling parents don't have to spend a fortune to educate their children. There are so many free resources available that they may create a custom-made curriculum for each child. While this may require a little extra effort in the summer months, the end result is a well-stocked classroom at the beginning of each new school year.
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