The Successful Homeschool Family Handbook (Paperback)

by Dorothy Moore (Author), Raymond Moore (Author) "BACKDROP: Given your warm, responsive attention to your children, your materials and methods may make a significant difference in your results..." (more)
Key Phrases: educational litter, home teaching parents, peer dependency, Head Start, Moore Foundation, New Jersey (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
If you are thinking about homeschooling, or are struggling with a educational homeschooling curriculum that is difficult to use, let Dr. Ray and Dorothy Moore show you how to make homeschooling an easy-to-live-with family adventure in learning. This low-stress, low-cost program shows you how to build a curriculum around your child's needs and interests - and around a realistic family schedule. Instead of a cut-and-dried approach, you'll discover the freedom of a flexible program that encourages creativity and initiative.

Product Details

• Paperback: 300 pages
• Publisher: Thomas Nelson; 10th large type edition edition (March 9, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0785281754
• ISBN-13: 978-0785281757
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #54,858 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

113 of 114 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars here's how to teachby living with your children, July 19, 1999

By A Customer

This is the first book I read when looking into homeschooling. I had no intentions of actually homeschooling, but by the time I had finished reading what Dr. Moore had to say, I was thinking, "How could I NOT do it?" This book has a balanced approach that is reassuring and our children have responded to beautifully. It was written as very much against early formal schooling and pressuring children before they are ready, but it also does not swing to the other extreme by being too permissive and not teaching anything at all. In fact, being a person who tended to be far too permissive, I was convinced to work harder at being self disciplined for my children's sake. Laying down good habits is a large part of what Dr. Moore teaches. Having an orderly home is the first step to successful homeschooling, and once that is in place, teaching follows naturally. He shows how learning is part of life, and how to teach especially small children by our warm response to their questions. Covering everything from teaching reading,and preparing unit studies, to healthy eating, we get a good idea of how learning is a lifestyle and not something we just add to our regular day. The Moores have truly been a blessing to our family.

85 of 87 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars describes "The Moore Formula" for homeschooling, November 30, 2002

By	christinemm - The Thinking Mother (Connecticut, United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

The Moore's homeschooled their own children many years ago, when they were living overseas. Both Dr. and Mrs. Moore have careers in the education field and so are well aware of what goes on in primary and secondary education in America. They don't spent time bashing the schools in this book but instead promote homeschooling as a superior education.

My short summary:
This book encourages children to be at home with a stay-at-home mother from infancy through school-age (avoiding preschool). Then they recommend not teaching reading until the child is ready, and that can fall between 8 and 12. They discourage forcing learning to read before age 8 citing that it may cause eye problems to occur. Formal lessons in other subjects are to begin no sooner than age 8. There is no one right curriculum or method that they espouse. The most important lessons in the early years are character formation and to form a close knit family bond. They feel strongly that homeschooling parents should not run their `home school' just like a government (public) school. And lastly, they feel it is essential to have the child do volunteer work and be of service to others on a daily or weekly basis starting at a very young age. This they call "The Moore Formula" for success. Be forewarned: anyone who doesn't agree with these ideas will dislike portions of the book or the entire book.

My longer summary:
First off the book jacket states the book will help you pick a curriculum. Whether that is something you want or something that turns you off please know that I could not find that information anywhere in the book and I did read it cover to cover.

The book starts of with the most convincing argument I have found anywhere (including in general parenting books) as to the value of young children staying home with their mothers rather than attending preschool. In "Miseducation: Preschoolers At Risk", author David Elkind speaks to the problems that can occur when children go to preschool instead of staying at home with a parent. Elkind doesn't focus hugely on the value of an intact and close knit family. In contrast, the Moore's book does cover the value of a close-knit family in extensive detail.

Character formation, instilling values, ethics and good social skills are the main goal of raising young children, according to the Moore Formula. This can only be accomplished when the children have a close relationship with their parents and when they are physically with their parents so the parent can guide them. Separation at young ages (i.e. going to daycare or preschool) prevents the parent from seeing the bad or inappropriate behavior and therefore not being able to correct it. (I take it a step farther by saying tha this separation can actually cause problems that then need to be fixed.)

The authors have spent years researching child physiological development, cognitive development, and reading readiness. The Moore's feel that children should not be taught to read before the age of 8 as a minimum and possibly until 12. If you want even more detailed information on this topic, read their book "Better Late than Early". They state that if reading instruction begins too early, whether at home or at school, if they have difficulty they are labeled learning disabled whereas if they waited until later to learn to read that would not happen. Additionally they feel other problems may crop up due to the learning disability label, such as self-esteem issues, acting out with bad behavior, et cetera. How you feel about this opinion on reading will heavily influence how you like the book. If you are looking for proof that waiting a bit to teach reading is okay then you will like this book and also "Better Late than Early". If you have strong opinions against this idea then you will not like that portion of the book!

In lieu of formalized lessons and reading instruction before age 8 or so, the Moore's recommend character formation as the main goal of home educating your child. Television viewing is to be kept to a minimum of quality programming if not banned entirely. Reading aloud to young non-readers is strongly encouraged. Being of service by volunteering is recommended on a weekly basis from a very young age. Parents should also model being of service to others by doing volunteer work themselves (the family should do the volunteer work together).

The bottom line is that if we as parents spend time raising children with good personalities and social skills they will be fun to be around and well liked by others. By delaying reading and formal teaching until at least age 8, a lot of stress is avoided.

The Moore's are Christian and I am guessing there are about 10 religious references overall made by the authors; that is not much compared to some of the Christian homeschooling books on the market. Their faith is not noted on the book jacket. I mention this as some people seek out books written by Christian homeschoolers, and some may want a heavier hand with Christian content while other people prefer secular homeschooling books.

There are also 17 essays written by homeschooling families using the Moore method and some of those are more laden with religious references than the Moore's own writings, such as saying that the Lord called them to homeschool or that they feel homeschooling is a responsibility as outlined in the Bible. I have read other books where religious references outweighed the content, such as saying "to get the best curriculum for your child pray to the Lord and he will guide you". This book does not do that. The book is loaded with ideas, opinions, and references to studies, which provide information-rich content. (I am trying to explain what this book is like so that potential readers can judge for themselves if this book is right for them.)

The most confusing thing to me was that throughout the book they reference using "the Moore formula" to have a stress-free home school but they don't say exactly what "The Moore Formula" is until the last chapter which is only five pages long. This short chapter really belongs at the beginning. I advise reading this chapter first and then as they go on to explain their formula in detail throughout the book you will understand the references they continually make to "The Moore Formula".

Update March 2008: This was the first book I ever read about homeschooling when my oldest was just a toddler. This review was written and published here when that child was just two years old. Right now my oldest is ten years old and in fifth grade (and is homeschooled). This book was a big influence to me, it was inspiring. Since then, I went on to read many other homeschooling books, magazines, and listened to lectures at homeschooling conferences (from both secular and Christian sources). I have two children. My kids have never been to daycare or preschool or school. Thinking back on the book now I can say that it was very inspiring and left me feeling empowered and that "homeschooling is good and it can be done with success". I also appreciated the tone of the book focusing on the notion that homeschooling is a `family affair', it is a lifestyle, it is not just about `academic lessons'. We are raising whole people, we homeschoolers are not just focused on the academic segment of our child's development.

68 of 69 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you're questioning your ability to homeschool, READ THIS!, April 17, 1999

By A Customer

If I could recommend one and only one book to anyone either looking into homeschooling, or struggling with homeschooling, this would be it! This book helped me see that we as parents are more than capable of homeschooling our children successfully. It gave me the absolute confidence to do it, and to stop worrying about what everyone else thinks. Dr. and Mrs. Moore cover every question that you might have from "what to tell the neighbors" and "What if all I have is a high school education" to "What if my child is handicapped or has a learning disability." By the time you're through reading this you will have the confidence not just to answer the questions people ask you but also not to be intimidated or question yourself everytime you are confronted by critics. Besides just the confidence, the Moores teach you (with studies to back it up, and real life family stories as testomonials) how you can avoid just doing "school at home" and instead "homeschool". They give you study after study, and reason after reason, to let the rigid classroom structure and workbook method go out the window, and instead replace it with the loving and relaxed (and enjoyable!) way to teach your children even more successfully at home. I feel indebted to this book,and these authors, for the enjoyable and stress-free education I'm able to give my children at home!