Education on Paper

Abeka Homeschool Curriculum – An Honest Look at the Pros and Cons

Abeka homeschool curriculum is a K-12, accredited, Christian based homeschooling program that uses teaching techniques that are similar to those used in traditional schools. A Beka Book was founded in 1954 and is a still a favorite among Christian schools. The company’s use of textbooks and workbooks makes it a popular choice among parents who want to make sure their children remain on par with their peers in Christian and public schools.

Abeka homeschooling materials are colorful, thorough and easy to use, making it a good fit for families who are new to homeschooling. The company provides workbook pages that children can use independently, and teacher’s manuals that tell parents exactly what to say and do during instruction time. Parents can also purchase flashcards, charts and games that are scheduled in the lesson plans, along with answer keys for checking workbooks and tests. The company offers a full range of academic subjects. Materials can be purchased separately or as part of a kit.

Although A Beka is more expensive than similar programs on the market, it provides a high-quality education that usually places children a grade level above their public school peers. The company’s lesson plans and other materials can be saved and reused with younger siblings. Because Abeka is a popular program, materials that are well kept can usually be easily resold.

Some homeschoolers have complained that Abeka is too structured, too time-consuming, and too much like having school at home. However, as with any curricula, the program can be adapted to meet a family’s needs. In our home, we only use Abeka for math, phonics and language arts. We slow down or speed up as needed, and eliminate unnecessary activities. We also add in books, projects and field trips to make our program more fun.

Abeka generally works well for children with visual and auditory learning styles who learn in a traditional manner. It may not be a good fit for kinesthetic or hands-on learners. In addition, because the program moves at a rapid pace, it may not be suitable for children with special needs or learning disabilities.

Families who choose to use Abeka homeschool curriculum can use the parent-directed program that allows them to purchase materials to use on their own, or the fully accredited option, where A Beka Academy generates report cards and transcripts for the student. The company also has a DVD program which brings high-quality teaching into the home. In my opinion, the non-accredited, parent-directed option allows more flexibility. Families that live in states that do not have strict homeschooling requirements should have no problem taking this route.

Before purchasing materials from A Beka Book, view samples at the company’s website or attend a hotel meeting at a location near you.

Writing curriculum that is taught in a home school setting should not only meet the requirements of public school curriculum, but should also give the chance for a child to excel at a faster rate than in traditional schooling. This is because the child can put more focus to reading in home school, and this gives the kid an opportunity to advance in their reading level at whatever pace they would like to.

There are many products for parents to buy that will help fully teach reading and writing properly to their child. Depending on the age of the student, there are fun programs designed for young readers, and challenging programs that parents can buy that will advance the student to a very high degree of writing. There are many different avenues that a parent can take to motivate their child to advance their writing skills, and many incentive programs for them to buy. Making sure they are teaching the right curriculum to their child will let the student not only learn at their own pace, but also keep them learning just as fast as someone in a traditional school setting.

Many parents choose to buy student activities books that will help the student have fun while learning and excelling their writing capabilities. Other tactics a parent can use are organizers and posters that they can put up that will constantly remind the student of previous lessons that have been taught. This is often seen in most classrooms in private and public schools. Curriculum based activities are usually based on what level of reading and writing the student is at. There are programs designed for any level and age the student is learning at. A great way to promote learning when it comes to writing is to make the activities fun. Writing games are sold for any age level and will not only challenge the student, but will also make them have fun while learning how to write more proficiently.

Parents can also buy products that will help them to learn better methods of teaching. Staff building programs are a perfect option to learn how to better teach writing curriculum at a steady pace. You do not want to try and teach something to a student that is above their level, just like you do not want to slow down the students learning by teaching things that the student already knows. Making sure the teacher parent is up to date with the writing curriculum as well as the student is important for both aspects of learning.

The Beliefs of Abeka Books:

Abeka books is a well known homeschooling program that focuses on teaching your child with traditional Christian values. I really love that they focus on putting God first and base the lessons around those principles.

You will never have to worry about any of the teaching being out of line with biblical beliefs. Abeka believes that there is nothing more important than focusing on Christianity and God in all of your children’s lessons and schooling. I highly recommend them for parents who want to instill these values in their children from a young age.

Methods:

You can use Abeka books all the way from kindergarten up to 12th grade. They furnish compete lessons and learning guides for every subject in every grade. I’ve found that Abeka takes learning seriously and teaches your child their core curriculum in a way that provides balance and enlightenment.

The Abeka books package gives you all the materials needed for the entire school year so you don’t need to buy any additional curriculum programs for your children.

The Abeka curriculum also comes with lists of supplemental things such as arts and crafts materials that you will need to purchase to go along with the curriculum, and everything is planned out for you in your parent’s guide.

The pictures from the lessons are colorful and keep your child engaged in learning. Another thing I enjoy about the Abeka curriculum is that their goal is to base every textbook around the word of God. Your child will, above all else learn the word of God while he or she is learning their academic lessons.

The lesson plans feature a place for you and your child to write down goals and track your progress. There are game ideas that coincide with the academic lessons. This is a great way for your child to retain the information they have learned.

The goals and plans teach your child how to actively plan a goal and strive to reach it. With the suggested daily schedules, you will be able to teach your child efficiently and maximize the benefits and learning that your child receives.

Abeka books also offers a Sunday school program, which I have found to be a fantastic and easy way to teach my children about the Bible in a fun and easy to understand way.

The stories are all taken straight from the Bible, and retold to your child in a way that’s easier to understand and remember. The pictures are bright and colorful and your child will love looking at the books. This is a great way to bring education and the word of God to your child hand in hand.

This would be a great curriculum for parents who are uncompromising when it comes to the teachings of God, and who want their child to receive the best education there is that is coupled with Christian values, teachings, and truths.

This is a fantastic program for traditional Christian families. Abeka books makes it so easy to follow along and teach your children because the lesson guide provides you with step-by-step instructions along the way. Get started homeschooling your child today with Abeka Books.

How – To Choose And Use An Online Homeschool Curriculum

As a parent who has chosen homeschooling as the best educational option for your child, online curriculum resources can be an important component of your children’s education. If you have an Internet connection and consistent access to a computer, there are many online tools that will help you provide your child with the skills they need. An online homeschool curriculum can work to supplement your own individualized curriculum, and can also provide a complete learning solution for a variety of subjects. While homeschooling can sometimes feel like a lonely endeavor, online homeschooling resources provide plenty of ways to feel connected.

In order to work with these resources effectively, you should have a clear role in mind for using online curriculum resources. If they are a secondary tool, it’s a great place to find reading materials, individual activities, or worksheets which can be downloaded directly from a website. Often, a variety of sample materials will be available, which gives you the opportunity to review the material first. If you like the material, you will then have the ability to place an additional order.

However, online homeschooling curriculum has evolved and can be a much more sophisticated tool than just providing worksheets. Your child can attend an online school, plug into specific courses, and complete learning modules and activities at their own pace. This option can be a better choice if you would like to spend less time planning their lessons, or if you have specific learning outcomes that may be easier met by a more structured curriculum, such as higher level math skills, or practicing a foreign language.

Before purchasing a curriculum, it’s a good idea to spend sometime looking at homeschool curriculum reviews. You can find many review sites online, and in addition to finding reviews on particular programs you are already interested in, you will also find up-to-date reviews on a variety on new programs as well. You will also find helpful tips and techniques from other parents. If you do a search online for ‘homeschool curriculum review,’ you are sure to find plenty of choices available.

Online homeschool curriculum programs can play a an important primary or a secondary role in your children’s education. The internet is a vast learning resource, and it shouldn’t be neglected as a valuable tool for homeschooling. With its ease of use, and adaptability, there is room for online resources in any educational plan.

More and more children are being homeschooled these days. Because of this, there is an abundance of resources for homeschooling. There are several types of homeschooling, including Classical, Montessori and Eclectic. You may also have heard of Abeka homeschool. Actually, Abeka is not a type of homeschooling but a curriculum package that parents of homeschooled children can use.

The Abeka homeschool curriculum is one of the most popular Christian homeschooling curriculums. It is a complete learning system that includes a teacher’s guide, suggested lesson plans, templates for testing, and textbooks. The Abeka curriculum is known to be challenging; it is typically one grade level ahead of regular public schools. Thus, a first grade Abeka curriculum is equivalent to second grade public school curriculum.

The Abeka homeschool curriculum covers homeschooling from kindergarten to 12th grade. It is an accredited, faith-based home schooling program used by many Christian schools. Like any curriculum, it has its pros and cons that you must consider before you decide to use it in a homeschooling program for your kids.

Pros

The curriculum includes lesson plans and schedules similar to that used in public schools. New homeschooling families will find it extremely helpful. The materials are advanced and may be used for gifted students.

You can purchase Abeka learning materials individually, or as part of grade-level kits. This way, home schooling families can buy only the specific materials that they want. In addition, Abeka curriculum materials have a high resale value. Many homeschooling parents prefer to buy used Abeka curriculum to save money.

Cons

The homeschooling packages of Abeka are quite expensive and much more costly than public schooling. Abeka also changes their textbooks and curriculum materials frequently, making it difficult to find the right workbooks if you use the same textbooks for your younger children.

Abeka homeschool relies heavily on textbooks and workbooks. It is more time-consuming than other curriculums for homeschooling. Thus, it may not be the ideal curriculum for parents who prefer a more relaxed approach. Also, average students may find the accelerated curriculum too challenging, leading to higher burnout rate.

Abeka homeschooling offers an accredited program for kindergarten up to grade 12 where report cards and transcripts are maintained by Abeka. The program is offered with a video option or traditional parent-directed option. It is a faith-based, accelerated curriculum and it is up to you to decide if Abeka homeschool is suitable for your child.

Most parents think that homeschooling their child is hard work. However, it should be the other way around. It should be an exciting experience for both the learner and the teacher.

Many Christians opt to educate their child at home because they believe that they can truly supervise their children once they homeschool them. But is it really that hard? Yes it will be hard if you believe that it’s hard but the truth is there are a number of great Christian homeschool curriculum that you can find online and offline. Parents just have to be creative and resourceful.

So where and how do you start a Christian Homeschool Program to a child?

Begin by assessing why you like to teach a Christian based homeschool program. Be aware of the things you need to know with homeschooling whether you’re a first time parent or not. Be aware of what homeschooling laws are implemented in your area. These are vital things to remember when starting any homeschooling programs. Continue reading →

The Abeka homeschool curriculum is the most popular homeschool curriculum available. Almost everyone who has even thought about homeschooling has heard of it. The company is based in Pensacola Florida. There are pros and cons to anything that you purchase. Here are some pros and cons to consider when looking at Abeka:

Pros -

1. Christian based – Abeka weaves a Christian message throughout all it’s texts.

2. They tell you exactly what to say and do with your child. You know exactly what needs to be accomplished for a certain day. You can purchase teachers manuals, tests, lesson plans and textbooks.

3. The books are easy to resell when you are done with them because many people are looking for used Abeka books.

4. Advanced material – If you are looking for an advanced and accelerated method of homeschooling your children, then Abeka will give you that. Their second grade material is equal to first grade public school material.

Cons -

1. High burn out rate – Because of the accelerated material and strict lesson plans, many parents find it too difficult to complete all the material.

2. Expense – Abeka books are one of the more expensive curriculums you can purchase.

3. Many of the textbooks have the student work right in the book. If you want to preserve your textbooks for younger children or for resell, you will need to have your children do their work on a separate sheet of paper.

4. Many students find the textbooks are not very interesting and are much like public school textbooks where the material is dry and dull. Many students also burn out on Abeka because they have a huge amount of material to read and do and sometimes can’t complete everything that is required of them.

As with any home school curriculum, it is good to look over the pros and cons and make sure you look at reviews of curriculum and pray about what you believe God would want you to use to teach your children.

Want to know more about Abeka? Get more information at Abeka Homeschool Curriculum