For those of you who are really frugal homeschoolers...

I need help! I really need to get out of the "curriculum buying mode". I don't want to do that anymore. I need to find more resources online or such that are free or almost and use them. Like print off what I need for the week, then go from there. I know this can be done, because many of you do it.

So, what are the best places to go for this? Best sites, all of it. I know there is tons and tons out there and it is very overwhelming. So, I am asking for advice here. It will be for work for K/1st grade.

I am way too easily caught in the "oh this is the prefect curriculum" loop. I end up wasting more money that way, because when we find out it really is not I have to resell it and then you really end up loosing money. Well that is the way it seems.

Any advice or help would be great. Sorry for the rambling...

 

My favorites...

www.starfall.com (I love their printouts!)
www.learningpage.com (we used this soooo much for 2nd grade.. if we would have been homeschooling before that I would have used it then too!)
www.abcteach.com (I really want a membership but don't have the $$ rignt now)
www.enchantedlearning.com
http://www.zaner-bloser.com/spellingconnections/practice-pages.html
http://www.sciencenetlinks.com/matrix.cfm
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/lessons/matrix.html
http://msnucleus.org/curriculum/curriculum.html
http://www.eequalsmcq.com/Thank you for downloading Life Science.htm
http://www.sfreading.com/resources/ghb.html
www.bookadventure.com

I have a ton of links.. I really think I should go through them and clean them out.. but so far I have yet to do that.

I have so much stuff that I have bought, when really I could have everything I need pretty much free... it just requires a bit more work for me.

 

Here is a free Bible curriculum:
http://children.calvarychapel.com/site/curriculum.htm

here is a free grammer/writing curriculum:
http://www.sfreading.com/resources/ghb.html

I also like learning pages - http://www.learningpage.com/

enchanted learning is $20 for the year but they also have a lot of free resources
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html

Teacher Vision is $40 a year, but they offer 3 free printables (if you clear your cookies, you can get more free printables). But I'm actually planning on just paying the $40 a year b/c I hate having to clear my cookies all the time.

I have more links, I just have to find them.

 

I forgot about teacher vision I really like them

Thank you ladies for the sites... off to go check them out.

 

Well...most of my faves have been listed already! (starfall, learningpage, etc).

A couple missing ones are:

www.schoolexpress.com (550+ free downloadable E-books + like 10,000 other sheets)

www.dtwk.com (I have to check that one it looks wrong!)

www.superteacherworksheets.com (super Free)

www.worksheetworks.com (free for now, it's been in beta for about 2 years, they say when it goes live it will be about $10/$20 per year).

www.edhelper.com ($20/year but WELL worth it, especially for Kinder/1st)

www.handwritingforkids.com

www.akidsheart.com (if you're looking for bible stuff)

www.letteroftheweek.com (although, this might be too young for K/1st....I haven't used in a LONG time....)

www.homeschoolshare.com - they have lots of lapbooks and fun stuff - goes along with FIAR, but I bet you'd be able to use them and not have to use FIAR to do them!

Hmmmmmm...

If I think of anymore, I'll come back!

OH...and check out JenniferErix page - she's got TONS of freebies!!!!

 

Ahhh... yes schoolexpress! I forget about them since they don't send out the weekly emails anymore.. but I love that EVERYTHING is now FREE!!!

 

Also remember like Handsofachild.com has their freebies.. I think they are only 2 a year now (used to be quarterly), the currclick freebie of the week and anything else I find for free.. even if I don't think I will ever use it, I down load it... you never know what may come up in the furture.

 

I still get weekly email updates from them.

I do think that your subscription to that expires every so often b/c I stopped getting them for a while in the summer and I resigned up and now get them everyweek.

You could check your bulk/junk folder too...it might be going there?


It looks like they're almost done their US States - only thing left is a Washington DC unit which they promise will be out in the next few weeks.

I'm thinking of downloading all there stuff in case they ever go away!!! LOL

 

I will go re subscribe.. I haven't gotten one in weeks and weeks.

I have lots of their stuff downloaded.. but really should spend the time to get it all before it does just vanish.

 

Thanks for reminding me of schoolexpress. I haven't been getting their emails either - I paid when it was subscription based and was really happy with it. I love the state things!!! I just finished downloading them all.

Now to relook at the science stuff - my dd loved doing some of those last year just as extra work.

 

Here are my most used websites. This has been compiled over the last 8 years of homeschooling, so it is mixed grade levels ( for future use for you maybe?).


I use this for English ( to get ideas, print things off), it takes you to different websites:

http://www.richmond.k12.va.us/readamillion/literatureactivities.htm


Language Arts also:

http://www.vocabulary.com/


Math, by grade level or concept:

http://www.homeschoolmath.net/worksheets/


Anything and everything!! Grade level or concept. Games, worksheet generators or pre-made:

http://www.softschools.com/


A ton of stuff!! Takes you to different websites:

http://www.homeschoolingadventures.com/worksheets.html


Unit Studies:

http://www.easyfunschool.com/IndexUnitStudies.html


All about lapbooking ( plus ideas/links). I use this to also make storyboards, timeline ideas:

http://www.squidoo.com/lapbooking


All free worksheets, constantly updated/added to:

http://www.tlsbooks.com/kidspagearchive.htm



Fun stuff for kids to play online:

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/
http://www.scholastic.com/kids/stacks/games/
http://www.funbrain.com/


For me. Articles, helpful sites, printables:

http://www2.scholastic.com/browse/home.jsp
http://www.homeschoolnewslink.com/homeschool/articles/articlescover.shtml
http://www.donnayoung.org/index.htm
http://www.homefires.com/articles/magic_in_the_child.asp

 

Thank you so much for asking this! My computer crashed and I lost all my bookmarks!

 

I get excited just looking at all the links! WOW! I'm going to bookmark this page for future reference!!!

 

did anyone say DLTK, and Donna Young/

 

donna young has been listed.. and I had written up a post with dltk on it but then hit the back browser button on accident and lost the post.. so I'm back for my post..lol

I forget what all has been listed.. but here are some more:

www.rhlschool.com
www.classicsforkids.com (great for music class!!!)
www.dltk-kids.com
http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/kids/flash.shtm (fire safety)
http://www.sparky.org/ (fire safety)
http://www.smokeybear.com/kids/games.asp (fire safety)
http://www.sedl.org/scimath/pasopartners/senses/ (the 5 senses)
http://www.innerbody.com/htm/body.html (human anatomy)
http://bensguide.gpo.gov/k-2/index.html (government for kids)
http://www.udel.edu/biology/ketcham/microscope/scope.html (virtual microscope)
http://www.globalclassroom.org/ecell00/javamath.html (everything)
http://www.primaryresources.co.uk/index.htm
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/websites/4_11/index.shtml
http://free.ed.gov/

 

Thank you Sommer! I am on my way to bookmark those.

 

I was just going to say...for K/1, I print stuff out on occasion but primarily use the library. I am a huge fan of a casual "unit study" approach. I have four kids - my oldest is 7/2nd grade - and we are getting ready to buy our first curriculum for next year. I just kind of do a kid-led theme, go online and reserve a ton of books, and then let them pick out 3-5 off the shelf when we go. I do this for my 4 yo, who isn't reading, along with my 7 yo who is. It's amazing what they pick up flipping through on their own, w/o reading, it gives you some new books to read with them w/o spending a huge ton of time browsing (which I just can't do with 4), and other than the late fees (which we minimize by always going to the library on Monday so the books are always due on a Mon) it's free.

We love enchantedlearning & starfall over here as well (esp starfall); I think the websites have been well covered otherwise!

 

For finding free lapbooks on a topic, go to the Love_to_Lapbook Yahoo Group for alphabetized topical lists of links.. I can't post links yet.

 

Am I looking at the right schoolexpress? It's gone paid! They don't have the free units anywhere that I can find...

 

OH MY GOODNESS!!! That literally JUST HAPPENED IN THE LAST WEEK!!!!

I have no idea what's going on. I'm so ticked at myself now for now downloading the stuff I wanted!

SHOOT!