Home School: Taking the First Step

by Borg Hendrickson

Home Taking the First Step is a comprehensive guide to becoming a successful home-schooling parent and family. Now in its 12th printing, the book's 337 pages in 7 x 10 format addresses all aspects of this rapidly growing educational movement - from frequently asked questions to creating a home-school plan that will meet any state or local requirements; from state regulations and procedures to teaching methods and approaches. Lesson planning, curricula and materials, record keeping, sources of support, readings and resources - all are included in this thorough guide. Most importantly, the book shows you how to create for your children a loving and supportive educational environment, socialize them for healthy learning and ethical living, ensure that their individual needs are consistently met, enhance their self esteem, and motivate them to love learning throughout their lifetimes. No book has more clearly and comprehensively laid the route to the home-sch! ool alternative.

337 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1994

Reviews

[Heidi J. · Rating 2 out of 5]

In all fairness, I think this book would have been a wonderful resource for a beginning homeschooler when it was first published. However, 23 years later things have changed significantly and a lot of the information is out of date. Its strengths are in preparing a new homeschooler to get approval and succeed in a state or school district that is likely to be hostile to the idea of homeschooling, but as the popularity of homeschooling has grown, I believe a lot of the methods she recommends to prepare your case for the school officials probably aren't necessary anymore.

As a mom who is only researching the possibility of homeschooling, I found much of the information very discouraging and overwhelming as well. However, Hendrickson does a good job of reminding you of the mundane topics of meeting legal requirements and keeping records, things a newbie may not yet have considered but need to be taken care of right from the start, rather than figured out through trial and error.

[Martha · Rating 2 out of 5]

It has a couple of very good resource chapters, but I
otherwise didn't find it really helpful unless I was trying to duplicate public without the extra kids.