One of the biggest concerns I hear about homeschooling high school relates to how the parent will be able to teach all the high school subjects proficiently. I mean most of us graduated many years ago and if you haven’t been using it, you probably lost most of it! The good news is that there are programs like Teaching Textbooks to help you homeschool high school with ease!
I have been using Teaching Textbooks in my homeschool for more than 5 years. I have graduated one to college using Teaching Textbooks. I am currently homeschooling both middle and high school age children who are using Teaching Textbooks. Let me tell why I love it.
Reasons to Love Teaching Textbooks
When I was first homeschooling I used (and loved) Singapore Math. In fact, it is what I used with all my kids for the elementary years of math. When I hit the 6th grade set with my first I was not impressed. It felt hard to follow and very intensive for me. Needless to say, we fought, we struggled, we gave up. Then I found Teaching Textbooks. When it comes to the upper levels of math I love how comprehensive and not mom intensive Teaching Textbooks is. {See How I Teach Homeschool High School Math with Teaching Textbooks.}
Computer Based – While you can buy the workbook too, I found it unnecessary. The problem were the same but there was no room to work them out.
Bite Sized Lessons – The lessons are video based and how they begin each lesson. After the lesson they are given a reasonable amount of problems to work on.
Second Chances & Hints – Your children can turn these on or off but sometimes it is nice for them to ask for a hint if they are stuck.
Automated Grading – This program does ALL the grading for you! I love that all I have to do is log on to see their grades, what problems they got wrong, and even if they viewed the solutions or not!
Parent Grade Book – There is a separate pass-coded section for parents where you can even delete grades so the children can do the lessons again. I have always required a score of 80% or better to move on. If they score less than that I go in and delete the scores so we can go over those sticky spots again.
Is Teaching Textbooks Rigorous Enough?
This is often where Teaching Textbooks comes into question. I can (and will) only speak from my experience. My oldest daughter didn’t love math. She struggled greatly about halfway through Algebra I. We had to go back with her and review and work many of the lessons with her before she caught on. She then completed the remainder of her high school math with ease. She took and scored higher than most of her public school counterparts on her entrance exam for our local community college.
Teaching Textbooks is a great option for kids who are struggling with math – Here are 5+ Reasons Teaching Textbooks Works for Struggling Math Students.
While it seems as though Teaching Textbooks might lag behind (all 3 of my children started a year ahead. For instance my up and coming 6th grader will be doing Math 7), following the program through its completion covers everything your student needs.
My 9th grade son is much stronger in math, and enjoys it significantly more than his older sister. He did not struggle where she did, and moves through more quickly and with ease.
I know it is so hard to believe that something so easy could be so right, but it is! I will happily be using Teaching Textbooks through high school for all 3 of my children!
Getting Teaching Textbooks for High School
While Teaching Textbooks begins in 3rd grade, they have options for middle school and all the way through high school.
Options at the high school level:
- Pre-Algebra
- Algebra I
- Algebra II
- Geometry
- Pre-Calculus
Hop on over to the Teaching Textbooks website. There you will find Sample Lessons, Table of Contents, and Placement Tests for each level!
Heidi Ciravola is mom to three kids who are all currently homeschooled. One in high school, one in middles school, and one in elementary school. She spends much of her time navigating the high school waters (from electives to college prep) and creating unit studies from her unschooly youngest child's adventures. You can find her writing about these things as well as her love of books and homeschool life in general over at Starts At Eight.
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