HERO of Oklahoma

Oklahoma Homeschooling - The Homeschooling Experience

It can be very reassuring to know someone else has "been there, done that" and has probably experienced what you are going through and can understand where you are in your homeschooling journey.  For new homeschoolers, being able to read about other families, their methods and styles, along with the ups and downs that are part and parcel to daily homeschooling can be very comforting.  To read how "normal" their lives are at a time when homeschooling may feel like you are swimming up the mainstream instead of going with the popular flow.  Whether you need to take comfort in reading about the daily lives, or whether you feel a need to read about young adults who were successfully homeschooled and have gone on to lead healthy lives, there are many such books available.  Below is a  list of books covering the real life experiences of some homeschooling families.  Take some time to real one or more.  Get a feel for homeschooling through the stories of those who have already "been there, done that."  And good luck on your own homeschooling journey!!

 

The Homeschooling Experience Suggested Reading

Real Lives: Eleven Teenagers Who Don't Go to School, by Grace Llewellyn.  Grace presents first-hand accounts showing the wide variety of worthwhile things teens can do if given the opportunity. Highly recommended for teenagers who are new to homeschooling--and their parents!


Homeschooling for Excellence by David and Micki Colfax.  The first book about the family that educated their sons at their remote ranch in northern California and then sent three homeschooled sons to Harvard.


Hard Times in Paradise by David and Micki Colfax.  The Colfaxes wrote a sequel to Homeschooling for Excellence: Hard Times in Paradise describing their challenges homesteading while in the midst of homeschooling.


Family Matters: Why Homeschooling Makes Sense by David Guterson.  Touting the importance of the family, this book is written by a high school English teacher who, with his wife, homeschools his three sons. Thought provoking observations about how we learn and societal ideas about institutional education.


I Learn Better by Teaching Myself and Still Teaching Ourselves: And, Still Teaching Ourselves by Agnes Leistico.  A homeschooling story in which the mother moves from skepticism and resistance to trusting her children's interests. In Still Teaching Ourselves, Agnes broadens the scope of her family's learning to include high school, college, and the workplace.


And the Skylark Sings with Me - Adventures in Homeschooling and Community-Based Education Albert describes his family's life-affirming, joyful homeschool experience, and inspires the rest of us in the process.


Homeschoolers' Success Stories : 15 Adults and 12 Young People Share the Impact That Homeschooling Has Made on Their Lives by Linda Dobson.


Homeschooling: A Patchwork of Days: Share a Day With 30 Homeschooling Families by Nancy Lande.  If you've ever wanted to be a "fly on the wall" to see what homeschooling is like in real families, this is the book for you. Follows a "typical" homeschooling day with 30 different families.


Homeschool Open House by Nancy Lande.  Five years later, Lande revisits the homeschooling families interviewed in the Patchwork of Days book, and includes additional interviews, detailing many examples of the rich and varied ways homeschooling really happens, from America to Africa. Fifty five families share their successes and failures.

Better Than School: One Family's Declaration of Independence by Nancy Wallace.  The Wallace family story of how they started homeschooling.


Child's Work: Taking Children's Choices Seriously by Nancy Wallace.  A continuation of a story of a homeschooling family. This book is about how Nancy's children grew up and found work they loved.