Healthy Family
By Kristen Smith, Contributing Writer
When I first considered homeschooling, I wondered where in the world I would find the materials I’d need to teach my children. Then I started looking into homeschooling more thoroughly, and I was overwhelmed by how many choices there were!
Then I found myself overwhelmed a second time. And that was by the price of most boxed curriculum packages.
Ouch! I knew right away that it would be simply impossible for our family to afford homeschooling if we were going to rely on boxed curriculum packages.
We live on a modest teacher’s salary, along with some supplemental income from my work from home and my husband’s additional job as a pastor. The little extra helps, but it’s certainly not enough to spend $500-$700 per child on homeschooling.
I knew I had to think outside of the box. Literally. And so I started thinking.
Doesn’t the Library Have Most of These Books?
I looked at the beautiful catalogs from various publishers that interested me, and something really stood out to me. If I would purchase a boxed set of materials, a great majority of the books in the set could be easily found at the library.
The lightbulb turned on, and our bank account was spared!
For example, Charlotte’s Web is a popular children’s book that is typically found in most sets somewhere between grades 1-3. Charlotte’s Web is also found at even the smallest of local library branches.
Of course there are certain books that are better to own. My booklist anthologies (which help me choose what books to get at the library), family favorite books, dictionaries, and animal encyclopedias are referenced often. Borrowing them from the library would be a hassle.
But those books that we just need for a set amount of time? I rely heavily on the library for those!
Our approach to homeschooling involves lots of reading and literature. Every couple of weeks, I chart out what we are going to be studying or make a list of books I want my independent readers to read. Then we head to the library and check out anywhere from 20 to 40 books at a time.
Finding More Resources Beyond Just Books
We all know that libraries offer a plethora of books. But did you also know that they also offer a variety of magazines and other periodicals, audio recordings, videos, ebooks, computer games, and even activity packs for kids?
When we are studying a certain composer, I might look for a CD of his music. If we are studying the ancient Romans, I might check out an engaging and informative DVD on the time period.
I especially love the activity packs that our library offers in the children’s section. Though this option will vary from library to library, typically you’ll find books, recordings, and other materials like flashcards all centered around one topic or theme and in one container.
We’ve checked out lab kits (another term for these activity packs) on scientific themes, math facts, historical periods, and more! My children get extra excited about these and I love having a group of resources already put together for me. They’re kind of like boxed curriculum sets without the cost!
Don’t forget that most libraries offer special free programs for school-aged children, and some even have programs especially for homeschoolers.
Making the Library a Familiar Place
Another great benefit of utilizing the library for the vast majority of our homeschool resources is that it becomes a celebrated and familiar place that my children love.
I kid you not. My children occasionally cry when a trip to the library has to be postponed and they’ve read all of the books in our current stash!
The library has become a treasured destination in their eyes. They are beginning to understand all of the potential that it has to offer: the stories, the knowledge, the imagination, and more.
They are also learning how to use the library. My guess is that a great number of adults would struggle to find a specific book on a particular subject at their local library.
But my children? They are starting to learn how to search the computerized library catalog, write down the location of the book, and find it themselves. Sure, they still need some help from me or a librarian, but they are becoming more and more confident navigating the library.
If you’re interested in homeschooling but concerned about the cost, don’t despair! Spend some time at your local public library and you’ll quickly realize how many resources are available for you to use for free.
Does the cost of homeschooling concern you? Are you familiar with all that your local public library has to offer?
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Jessica Dimas
Thanks for sharing this, I haven’t started homeschooling quite yet because my children aren’t old enough but I was wondering about this. It’s relieving to know you can find so much of what you need at the library!
Kristen Smith
I’m so glad it was helpful to you, Jessica! Best wishes as you begin your homeschool journey in the future.
Heather @ My Overflowing Cup
Utilizing the library is one of my best homeschooling tips. We use it for everything that you mentioned. I can’t imagine homeschooling without our local library. Great post!
Kristen Smith
I hear you, Heather! I think we’d be broke if we didn’t use the library like we do! Though we sure do pay our share of late fees… 😉
Andi @udandi
Great post, don’t forget many libraries also offer electronic resources (databases) that include anything from encyclopedias to articles (both newspaper and journals). Digital downloads of books, audiobooks, movies, music, and magazines offer many more options than just what’s is physically available inside the library walls.
Kristen Smith
Yes! Awesome input, Andi! A friend of mine was recently sharing about all of the digital resources you can get through the library. I need to ask my librarians about it because I’m not sure exactly how it works. It arrived at our library maybe a year or two ago, and I’ve never taken the time to figure it out. Thanks for adding that!
Susan
Like you Kristen, we’re lucky to live in a community that values homeschooling. Four of the libraries within a 20-mile radius of our farm have children’s librarians who love to pull resources together for unit studies or particular themes. For example, we were going to do a quick study of Grandma Moses’ art. Our librarian was able to pull together an impressive collection of books with large pictures of her work, biographical information, the artist’s contemporaries (to show how her work differed), pictures of other folk artists’ works, and historical information about what was happening in the country and world at the time Grandma Moses was painting.
I have recently discovered, however, that I don’t even need to leave our farm to take advantage of the treasures of our local library. I can order themed/unit study information right from our library’s website and just stop in to pick it up at a prearranged time. I can borrow ebooks in multiple formats. I can stream some audio books. Plus, I can take advantage of my library’s memberships to foreign language classes, an online children’s read-along site (tumblebooks.com), and free online classes from local vocational/career centers and community colleges.
Libraries of the 21st century are amazing!
Kristen Smith
I want to learn more on how to use library e-books! And yes, searching from home and having things ready for pick up is such a wonderful convenience. I do love our modern libraries!
Anna @ Feminine Adventures
I love the library too! Although we have to be careful now that my oldest is reading (because there’s plenty I *don’t* want her reading!), they have a great selection of books. They even sometimes have curriculum that you can check out to preview before purchasing.
Oh, and if your library doesn’t have a book you wanted, always ask to see if they’ll get it. Ours has been pretty obliging about either doing an inter-library loan or ordering the book!
Kristen Smith
I completely agree with that concern, Anna. We’ve had some checked out and read that I later regretted. It’s hard to keep up with eager readers!
Lisa @ This Pilgrim Life
Thanks for sharing such a great resource! We are just starting our homeschool journey, but I know we will keep a large focus on quality books. Right now, my kids mostly gravitate towards nonfiction, and we stock up on books on whatever their current interests are when we visit.
Hopefully we will make it back soon…that is as soon as I save up to pay our current fine 😉
Kristen Smith
The fines… oh the fines! Today when we checked some books out I was both shocked and delighted to see that I owe $0.00!
Cammie
We use the library extensively as well. For those books that you just have to own, I buy most of them used at half-price books.
If your interested in another free resource look at your Parks and Rec. dept. ours has different trunks that you can check out to do various nature studies. We have been allowed to check them out for a semester at a time.
Kristen Smith
That’s a great tip on nature studies! Our Dept of Natural Resources sends free nature guides to educators, including homeschoolers. My favorite so far was an owl pellet to dissect.
Elaine@biculturalhomeschool
We use the library extensively, because I don’t want to clutter our crowded house more than I need to. I love it, except my library doesn’t have a lot of Christian books (fiction, biographies, parenting books, homeschooling resources). It’s discouraging. I request a lot by inter-library loan, but then I started feeling guilty about requesting so many when a librarian friend told me that they usually cost like $10 per item to get from another library. I guess that’s what our taxes are paying for right? I’m not getting the benefit of all those taxes used for the public school, might as well get a lot of use from the library! I still feel a little bad requesting so many though.
Erin
That is such a good point about cutting down on home clutter! I had no idea the loans were so pricey!
Kristen Smith
I had no idea those can be so costly, either. My assumption would be that they wouldn’t offer them if they were becoming a financial strain? Hopefully!
Ashley
An awesome tip for homeschoolers to use the great asset available. Homeschooling using the public library is a great idea. This is really useful for many of the homeschoolers and their parents. Good suggestion!!