Customer Reviews

The Home School Manual : Plans, Pointers, Reasons and Resources, 7th ed. (Home School Manual: Plans, Pointers, Reasons, & Resources)

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This book recommends that homeschooling be done one way and one way: that it be modeled exactly like American public schools, right down to regular test taking, giving and tracking grades, and attendance record-keeping.

The tone of the book is insulting and at times negative about homeschooling and about the thoughts and opinions of the homeschooling parent. I feel that some parts can actually instill fear in the parent and the author then recommends that unless things are done his recommended way, then the child should go to public school instead. I felt this book was dis-empowering rather than empowering.

You should be aware this book is very religious in content; the books front and back cover don't divulge this tidbit.

The book is over 500 pages long, and the pages are large-sized. There is a lot of text but the organization of the chapters is illogical and confusing. Anyone intersted in homeschooling would be better off with a shorter book that is more concise and "to the point". Many of the writings by Wade make statements but these are not flushed out in detail-but then bits and pieces of that subject are mentioned here and there throughout the book. For example it mentions the benefit and necessity of knowing your child's learning style but then doesn't immediately explain anything about them let alone leave the reader feeling empowered to learn about it and then apply it.

You will like this book if it is your desire to model your homeschool exactly as the public schools, including using the same curriculum as they do. If you like being told there is one right way to do things, then this authors writing won't offend you. This book is not for you if you like to read about different homeschooling methods and then come to your own conclusions. Please know that if you do like this book and start out this way and it is not working, there are loads of other resources about other ways to homeschool, ways that are more flexible and define education in different ways than the public education system does. There are other books, magazines, and homeschooling support groups that enlighten you about different ways to homeschool so that you can custom design what works best for your child(ren) and you.

More about what I don't like about this book:
The first chapters start right off on a negative tone. Wade is a school administrator and much of the beginning of this book reads more like a policy manual for a public school. On page 36, Wade warns parents that choosing to pull their child out of school "may teach the child the wrong lesson". This is one example of the insulting language he uses to refer to a homeschooling parent's decision to remove the child from school is because "your mother hen instinct got all fluffed up because your little chick wasn't assigned to the advanced reading group". He is careful not to state anything negative about the public school system, which he still works within.

The author perpetuates myths that have clearly been debunked by others who have successfully homeschooled their children. It is sad to see these old myths included as fact in a book that is supposed to be supportive of homeschooling. Examples are that the majority of people homeschool for religious reasons and that homeschoolers have less socialization than schooled children.

The beauty of homeschooling is that learning can happen in different ways, custom designed to different learners. This book talks about how Wade feels homeschooling must look: it is a narrowly defined system that mirrors the American public education system. Wade is open to the unit-study approach that is initiated by the parent. Wade is opposed to children learning about what they are interested in, also known as "self-directed learning", "interest driven learning" and "unschooling". Wade openly states his opposition to various homeschooling methods such as unschooling (85) and classical education (89), such as outlined in "The Well Trained Mind". Wade makes it clear he doesn't like any curriculum that differs from the public schools and states that if a parent does not follow the public school curriculum then "you should let a more traditional school do the job". It is interesting to me that Wade is not only biased toward school but toward public school. To be so closed minded about educational choices, even to rule out various private school methodologies (such as Waldorf or Montessori) is amazing to me, and it shows his closed-mindedness with regard to education.

Some of this book actually is not at all applicable to the homeschool environment. The parent is called the teacher and the child is a student (which I find annoying). Textbooks are said to be the most important educational tool that will be used (68) and he recommends getting the same educational materials as your public school system uses. I thought it was widely known that textbooks contain many errors and are boring to boot. I could go on and on about what upset me about this book but will stop here. Please be aware there are more positive books on the market for beginning homeschoolers such as those by Linda Dobson and Mary Griffith, and great magazines such as "Home Education Magazine". There are loads of books about the problems with public education such as those by John Holt, John Taylor Gatto, Jonathan Kozol and James Herndon.

When I decided that I wanted to homeschool, I was totally lost as to where I should begin. A friend bought me this book and I am forever grateful to her. This book offers so much information, not just about the basics of homeschooling, but offers planning tools, encouragement and practical advice on which curriculum to choose, and which to avoid. It is definitely a good base for anyone who is thinking of taking on the challenge of homeschooling. I highly recommend it!

I read through many homeschooling guides while considering it as a posible alternative to public school. The Home School Manual was by far the best and I would HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who is currently or is contemplating homeschooling.

This is a perfect book for people who desire someone to tell them exactly the "correct" way to homeschool, who are Christian Fundamentalists, and who want to spend all day organizing, following a strict and elaborate schedule, and who want some "expert" to tell them what to think and how to behave. The arrogance of the author is insulting. There are lots of better, more open-minded books available that treat the reader as an intelligent human who is simply looking for information and options rather than assuming the reader is an overgrown child who wants a lecture about the "right" way to do things. I recommend starting with "The Homeschool Handbook" by Mary Griffith.

The entire book is extremely religious, which would be fine if was advertised as such. But I am a Buddhist and picked up the book assuming it was for ALL homeschoolers. The author was constantly quoting Christian scriptures to me and telling me to pray to God and include Bible study as part of the cirriculum. There is nothing more annoying than Christians who assume all "real" people are Christian and everyone else doesn't count. Then there are bizarre things right out of the 50's. I was stunned to have the author lecture me about music: "A heavy beat that distorts natural, regular patterns and that tends to control the listener is dangerous. Such rhythm is used in the voodoo spirit possession ceremonies." Can you say Racism? All native African music is based on complex, hypnotic rhythm.

The author tells people they MUST have a cirriculum and LOTS of structure, and lectures against unschooling or more relaxed styles of homeschooling. What a bunch of nonsense. Parents and children need to work things out on their own and come up with a style that suits their individual temperaments and learning styles. Cirriculums are ONE option, Unschooling is another option, and there are an infinite number of ways to homeschool that lie between the ends of the spectrum.

The ultimate message is "don't think for yourself". Let this judgemental Know-It-All tell you exactly how to do things, what to think, what to believe and how to behave.

When I began homeschooling four years ago, there was so much to learn all at once it seemed, and so many ideas on how to do it. This book helped me get a picture of what homeschooling was all about and how wonderful it could be! It contains articles from 40 some other authors besides Mr. Wade, so you get to read many viewpoints. I highly recommend it to someone starting out, and think it would be helpful to a veteran also.

I'm A homeschooling mom, and I found alot of good information in this book. It covers principles of home education, areas of learning, theory into practice, resource information,and forms for keeping records. This book will show how to set up a wonderful christian learning environment for your child,and how to find materials and help, to make your home school succeed.

I have looked into MANY books over the past year and so far this is the ONLY book that gives you the resources needed to prepare you to HOMESCHOOL your child in a confident and biblical manner. You don't have to worry about grabbing how to books after you get your hands on this one, however be smart... get a copy from your local library and read it yourself before you buy it. Some people think that this book has too much Structure. But in my personal opinion... that is exactly what children need in today's world. Why do you think we have so many smart mouthed kids who do what they please and have no respect for themselves or their elders?!? The bible states that we parents have a responsiblity to train up a child in the way they should go so that when they are old they will not part from it. The bible also says that when we are in line with God's word we will have eternal peace.

Simply put, Know God...Know Peace VS. no God...no Peace

I would rather use this book than one of those montessori (train up a brat books) any day

To those of you "Un School" homeschoolers... this book is not for you! Go get one of those "How to ruin your child for life books" because if you have a problem with THE WORD OF GOD then you really have a problem