Getting the homeschool books and resources can seem a difficult task. If you've started with your child at kindergarten or 1st grade age, it's fairly simple to get what you'll need. If you start in later years, there are so many different types of curriculum and different stores and catalog, it is hard to navigate through the great selections available. We hope the detailed resource lists provided on this site (see 6th grade example) may help you slim down your shopping list. Once you know what you need, the costs can add up. Here's what we've found works well and fits our budget.
For a full curriculum provider, we have been pleased with Sonlight for the elementary years. Their "curriculum" consists basically of a big box of great books you read with your kids. They have math, language arts, and science options available to round out the educational experience. If you have younger kids and want to get them ready for the middle school experiences we've described, Sonlight is a fine choice.
To find the resources mentioned on this site, we suggest an approach of borrowing what you can (from friend or library), especially items you will need for a short time such as a reader. Items that you will use throughout a year, or possibly over several years should be bought. Buying these new can easily be justified since they will be well used over the years with several children. Buying new guarantees you will have a high quality item not already worn out by others.
If you have a little time before the item is needed, it pays to checkout Ebay where many homeschoolers resell gently used items that still have years of use left. Also, many vendors offer new items on Ebay. So you can usually save a little money. You may save a great deal if you can win an auction on gently used material. Often, we are able to find an entire curriculum set, such as the Saxon Math homeschool kit, or the Abeka Science kit with workbooks, teachers guide, etc. for a great price - usually the whole kit for less than the price of the textbook alone.
For example, we've bought the entire Saxon Math kit for less than $30, where new it is around $75. Likewise for the Abeka kits - getting the kit of several books for $15 when the new price is over $50. If the item has a workbook or test booklet the student would write in, make sure it has not been written in. Most homeschoolers have children write in a notebook so workbooks and such can be reused with siblings or can be resold. Just confirm this in any Ebay listing.
These are various EBAY searches that we've monitored in the past for middle school resources. You don't need Ebay membership to search for items, but becoming a member is free and easy. As a member you're ready to bid when you see something you can use or sell something you no longer need. Following the links is a "window" into current live Ebay listings for various middle school resources.
Ebay: Abeka Science 6th, 7th, 8th grade
Ebay: Saxon Math 6th-8th grade
Ebay: Various Middle School Resources
Ebay: Register New Member
Another option is the Sale/Swap board at the Well Trained Mind site . This is an active board where the prices are usually a little better than Ebay. You don't have the security of Ebay's seller feedback system, but we've purchased several things from the Sale/Swap board and have had no problem.
If you can't find what you need on Ebay, or want to get many new things at once from a single vendor, we recommend ChristianBook.com or Amazon.com. On Amazon, many smaller bookshops resell used items which can save you a lot. Amazon offers free shipping on new book orders that total over $25. ChristianBook offers a wider assortment of Homeschool resources. Their products are new and prices are generally slightly higher than Amazon. At either site, you still save a lot of money compared to the prices at big bookstore chains. And both sites have reviews of the products and easy search capability so you can quickly find everything you'll need. So if you can't borrow it, check it out, or find it used OR you would like a shiny new book that will last for years, try these sites:
ChristianBook.com - Homeschool Resources
Amazon: General Homeschool
Amazon: Find Saxon Math
Here's a complete list of online bookstores we trust.
