A Homeschooler's Guide to Choosing the "Best" Books
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You know you're a homeschooling parent when... you're totally and unabashedly obsessed with books. Homeschooler... book hoarder...is there really a difference?
Didn't think so.
But all books are not created equal. And there's a lot out there to sort through! So I've decided to do a little round-up of the resources I use to help me find quality living books for our home. This is a multifaceted process... but it's fun!
First, I browse the following book lists in the general age range I'm looking for. As you skim these lists, you'll see some repeat titles. That's a good indicator it's a must-have book! If you're nerdy enough, you could enter them into a spreadsheet or list-making app. I use Trello for this. I am nerdy enough.
“We must put into their hands the sources which we must needs use for ourselves, the best books of the best writers.”
A Few Great Book Lists
Ambleside Online
Ambleside Online is a free Charlotte Mason homeschool curriculum. The books are carefully selected, high quality literature across all subject areas. To use Ambleside Online for book suggestions, click on the approximate grade level (books in this curriculum are at a pretty high level, so if you look at year 3 for a 3rd grader it might be ok but don't ignore the years below year 3!). Ambleside does a good job of linking to any free online versions of the book. This is a great way to read a few pages yourself before you decide if it's something you want to purchase in hard copy form.
*This is a Christian resource, but not all book choices are Christian in worldview.
Build Your Library
Build Your Library is a secular, Charlotte Mason inspired homeschool curriculum. Emily selects books for her book lists based on her criteria of what a “living book” should look like. She has book lists for every grade level from preschool through 12th grade available on her website, without having to purchase the curriculum! Be sure to use her affiliate links to the books to give credit to her hard work in curating these lists for us!
Sonlight
Sonlight is a literature-based, Christian homeschool curriculum. To use Sonlight for book suggestions, shop by grade and choose your grade. Click on complete package / learn more to see everything in that level. Now click on the what's included tab which gives you a breakdown of everything in the package, including the books with book cover images all sorted by subject. Go to town writing down any that sound interesting to you!
*This is a Christian resource, but not all book choices are Christian in worldview.
BookShark
BookShark is the religion-neutral sister of Sonlight, and includes many of the same or similar thoughtfully selected living books. They really shine in the “Read Alouds” and “Readers” categories, which are often literary and historical in nature.
Mensa for Kids
You don't have to be gifted to use these excellent book lists! Mensa for Kids has created a program called Excellence in Reading which includes book lists for grades K-12. The lists are free, downloadable, and printable. I recommend downloading all of them, and using them for yourself as well as your kids! If you ONLY used MENSA, you’d walk away with incredibly well-read children.
Read-Aloud Revival
Read-Aloud Revival is an awesome resource for all parents who love reading with their kids. To gain access to her main book lists, subscribe to her email list! It's worth it. Many other smaller more topical book lists are published all the time, so I recommend staying subscribed or following the facebook page for updates.
Shopping For Books
Used Books
It can be hard to hunt down these books at used book stores, but it's worth a search depending on where you live. Skim the shelves, and if you don't see anything familiar from your lists - oh well! The same thing with attending library book sales. They can be a gold mine or they can be nothing but junk, and you don't know until you try. Just don't put too much emphasis on it, but have fun looking!
Websites like Thrift Books and Better World Books sometimes have what I'm looking for, and sometimes the prices plus shipping aren't good enough compared to just buying it new, or used on Amazon. It's always good to check, first, just to be sure!
Book Outlet (I'm Obsessed)
Book Outlet is my favorite resource to go to first because I've found so many gorgeous classics there for amazing prices. They don't have the selection of Amazon, but if you search by author's last name for the books on your list, you might be surprised at what they have! Their Scratch & Dent books are so affordable, as cheap as used books, but in almost perfect condition. I can't say enough good things about this place so I implore you to look there first!
They've got a nice rewards program too, so you can earn points for each dollar spent, which adds up to a discount on a future purchase. I've even got a coupon for you to use! It's for $10 off of your first order of $25.
My Amazon Storefront
I’m slowly curating our favorite books into bookshelves in the schoolnest Amazon storefront. There are book lists by grade level for preschool/kindergarten, 1st grade, and 2nd grade so far. As well as books by subject, such as history, literature, and science.
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The homeschool world is full of creative, fun printable resources for any interest we might want to follow! It took me a while to warm up to the idea of how and when to use these, but now that I have a system to use them in our home - they’ve become an adventure we all love.