www.learningpage.com is free www.enchanted learning is $20 for a year I love it. the virtual vine is good to (I don't have the exact link for it)
Can I suggest that sometimes the public schools get rid of their texts & just trash them...maybe call any schools and see if they're getting new texts. I know the school that I worked at did this like a year or 2 before I taught there (I was subbing), but we gave the reading books away at an open house to whomever wanted them. We just had to write trash or something in the front cover. I still have them...lower el up to an upper el level.
Just be careful with this! Carl brought home upper math books for me. I learned quickly that there was a REASON they were dumped! REALLY hard to use, especially for someone who was NOT a math nerd! And of course, he was insisting I use them, because they were FREE, and think of all the money we could save!!! He finally learned that a free book was NOT a good trade-off when it meant a wife that was frustrated and iritated trying to teach with a book that was next to impossible, and fussing every night when he got home, lol!!!
Agree with you as well. These were reading books. The lower level has like poems & even Chicka Chicka Boom Boom in it. I figured they would be good to just have in the library.
This just dawned on me.. blonde moment I guess. Check on your state laws, and also with your school district. Here in PA the schools are required to provide us with copies of their curriculum (you know the books and all) upon our request. We don't do that, but I have thought of it a few times.. just to see what the Jones' are doing..lol.
There are a TON of free sites out there to help you out! There is also - http://www.oldfashionededucation.com which provides a TON of free stuff - even books that are online. Search for Ambleside Online as well! Great ways of learning - and alot of books can be found at the library. The printable stuff - like edhelper and enchantedlearning are great - even as coloring books Even my 11 year old goes for those things once in awhile (nice to know he's still a kid)
We use Core Knowledge lesson plans-- they are printable off the internet. I just have to supplement the lesson with books from the library or books from our shelves. Just the cost of paper to print the lessons. My dad's church used to have a small school and they have sold us a few books at discount prices. We also buy "sciencey" books at Barnes and Nobles from their bargain shelves.
Cmerth, do you know that homeschoolers can get an educator's card from B&N, which gives you 10% off stuff that you use for school.
We have a local church which is huge and has a library - a friend of mine who homeschools goes there...anyway, she told me the other day that they have the "Drive thru American History" DVD Series IN the Library! Can't wait to check it out. I don't attend this church, but I got a card anyway, they were fine with that! I go there enough (they have a huge indoor playground) that I stop in the library every so often. Anyway...just another idea
thank you all for the great suggestions, i have spent a few days living on here looking at different sites yesterday, i was in town and went into a charity shop, and got 6 books for under a fiver! including a dictionary, an illistrated bible, yoga for children, some art books, so that is another really clever place to go, dd learns about helping others as well!