Christian Home Educators' Curriculum Manual: Junior/Senior High

Homeschooling has become a big business with lots and lots of choices. It is hard enough sifting through the curriculum, let alone figuring out what learning style your child is, how to keep records, how to prepare for college. Well Mrs. Duffy covers all this and more in her organized, indexed, easy to use curriculum manuals. Every time they have been updated/revised I purchase them. I love her writing style, her personal experiences and her honesty in the features of a curriculum.I could not have navigated through home schooling without these and definitely needed the JR/Sr. high manuals to get through the high school requirements.

Cathy Duffy is not only a gifted author, but she also knows how to review things. Sometimes it is hard to be objective, especially if you have books or material you love more than others. But Duffy tells you what is out there, what is good for different learning styles, and also what is good for your teaching style. (And gives you tests on how to discover each.) Plus there are forms in the back that help you keep records for this most important time in your student's life.I work at a homeschool bookstore, and when people ask about a curriculum, or just how to survive high school, we grab this book!

This book gives very thorough reviews of the major publishers of homeschooling books, ie, BJU, Alpha-Omega, Christian Liberty Press, School of Tomorrow, Beautiful Feet, Greenleaf Press, A Beka - the list goes on! All the addresses, websites and phone numbers are provided in the back. It even reviews correspondence schools. Then it describes unit studies and reviews some of those suppliers. Then the best part--it describes in detail, subject by subject, various books, CD Roms, and videotape programs for teaching every subject a homeschooled student needs! All the reviews are from a Christian viewpoint and thoroughly researched. The author doesn't just pick one favorite supplier in each subject, either. She points out the pros and cons of each as well as letting you know when you don't have to buy all the teacher's manuals and extras that the publishers sometimes push. I consider this book indispensable! When a new edition comes out, I'll be first in line to buy!

When we moved overseas and had to be very selective on which items to take along on the plane, I selected Cathy Duffy's " Christian Home Educators Curriculum Manual 1997-98". It was the key to all the other resources we needed to continue to homeschool our children in Junior and High School, with very helpful comments, addresses and phone numbers of publishers. I understand the new edition is even better! I am buying it right now just to update the information.

Cathy's manual has been indispensable as our family homeschools for the first year. It's comprehensive reviews have helped us make decisions with confidence, and Cathy is to be especially commended for her gracious, even-handed approach to diverse perspectives (such as Protestant and Catholic views). She has covered not only curricula but all the practicals such as publishers' phone numbers and addresses (post and web), planning, skills, goals, testing, grading, graduating and more. . . . Perhaps most valuable of all is a great introduction (for parents and children alike) to worldviews. Even the paper/print quality here is exceptional. If you have room for only one homeschooling resource, this is just the best.