Tennessee Homeschool - Homeschool Blogger

Free Holiday e-book

Mon, 2 Nov 2009 11:32:00 -0600

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Simply go to the link below to get your free copy. Again, no strings attached. Feel free to share it with your site or blog visitors, newsletter subscribers, or Facebook friends.

Welcome to TN homeschool

Mon, 2 Nov 2009 11:45:00 -0600

Hi and welcome to the Tennessee Homeschool blog at Homeschoolblogger.com. My purpose is to try to help new homeschoolers (and veterans too!) find information on the World Wide Web that can help them with their homeschools.

If you have any specific questions about Homeschooling in Tennessee, please send me an email and I'll see if I can help.

~Betsy

PS. This blog is not to be any source for legal advice. Just opinions and ideas from homeschooling my own children in Tennessee since 1995.

State History

Fri, 24 Oct 2008 07:29:00 -0500

I've personally completed all the state history requirements as my children have now passed the age where they needed to study a state history course, and I spent countless hours putting together some interesting information about our state of Tennessee.

Now I see that I could have just used State History from a Christian Perspective and saved myself tons of prep time! Steve and Joy Dean from A Helping Hand have put together all the little pieces and parts that make learning about your state fun! They have all 50 states available now.

Africam

Fri, 17 Oct 2008 06:49:00 -0500

Africam is a live-stream from a video camera on an African game reserve. Now there are a couple different ways to view the live-stream. It's so much fun to see the actual wild life as they are and what they are doing RIGHT NOW.

Click the Africam link to get started.

Enjoy! ~Betsy

Frequently Asked Questions

Thu, 11 Sep 2008 07:19:00 -0500

I've been wanting to make an FAQ on this blog for sometime, but first I needed to get all my thoughts (and all your questions) in line. Here's what I've come up with so far. I'll add to this list as I find (and answer) more questions.

1. What is this blog for and about?

2. How do I use this blog?

3. What are the legal ways to homeschool in Tennessee?

4. Where can I buy curriculum?

Curriculum Stores

Fri, 5 Sep 2008 07:13:00 -0500

One of the first questions I always get concerning homeschooling is "Where can I buy materials?"

There are many on-line sites and homeschool catalogs that offer many, many selections. Here are some of my favorite on-line places to order new curriculum.

The Schoolhouse Store                     Rainbow Resource

R.O.C.K.Solid                                  Home Science Tools

And here are some great places to find used curriculum on-line:

Homeschool Buy                             Vegsource Homeschool Talk & Swap

The Homeschool Mom    and   The Home Sweet Homeschool list many other on-line sites for used books.

By all means I don't try to list every place on the Net that you could buy homeschooling materials! I just listed the ones I use frequently. There are plenty out there, just search for 'homeschool books'. Goodluck!

A new school year!

Tue, 26 Aug 2008 13:25:00 -0500

Well, it seems to be the time to start back to school for most of us. We actually went back to school in early July so that we can be finished by mid April. That works for us, but everyone does things differently. That's one of the benefits of homeschooling!

I want to welcome any new people and introduce them to the Tennessee blog. I've spent lots of time collecting information about homeschooling in our great state and linked many important web sites to the side bar on this blog.

First on the side bar is a list of the most recent posts to this blog. Many of the posted events have passed now, but some of it's still pertinent information that you might want to read.

Next is information all about this TN blog. Including how to contact me directly if you have questions and how to find all the posts that have been archived since the beginning of this blog.

Next you can view the posts I've made here by the category that I placed them into. Supposedly for easy access.

The next part is the Tennessee Homeschool Information. This is where you will find the links to all the legal stuff and other web sites that will help you get started on your homeschooling journey.

Then you will find list groups. These are web-based groups specific to your area that you can join and ask questions to many veteran homeschoolers that may be near you.

Next you will see three sections of homeschool organizations that are grouped by East, Middle and West. These are physical groups that you can join. Check out their web sites for more information.

The rest of the side bar contains links that I found to be educational and generally Tennessee specific. If you have any questions about how to begin homeschooling and where you should go from here, please feel free to email me.

May God bless your efforts to teach your own.
~Betsy

(as always, if you find a broken link, please let me know so that I can update that. Thanks.)

On-line books and free things

Thu, 23 Aug 2007 07:31:00 -0500

I've been searching around for free stuff that will help the budget of the homeschooler. Boy, are there TONS of free things out there! I've made a small list of some things that might help your school budget.

First is on-line libraries! Who wouldn't love to find the book they need to read right on-line without wasting gas to go to the library and get it! Might not find too many children's books on these sites, but lots of good classics and highschool/college reading. These are just a few...search for 'on-line free books' and see what you come up with!

The University of Pennsylvania library

Alex Catalog of Electronic Texts (14,000 classic texts)

Bartleby On-line (the preeminent publisher of on-line literature)

Bibliomania (2000 free on-line texts)

William Shakespeare Complete Works (not poetry)

Read Easily has variable text font so your eyes don't strain so much reading on-line!

And now more free stuff on-line:

Homeschool Radio Shows
"Living Books for the Ears" newsletter brings you wonderful "old time radio" adaptations of great books and historic stories, chosen especially for homeschooling families, each and every week -- and it's absolutely free. One of my favorite listening sites.

Homeschool E Store "Tomorrow's Lessons Today" (electronic books for download)
They have many resources and one item is always free each week. Everything on the site is downloadable, and not real books.

OnePlace Kids - Here your kids can hear and enjoy the classic Christian radio programs such as Down Gilead Lane, Adventures in Odyssey, and more.

MarcoPoloSearch has the Thinkfinity Search Engine that provides access to all of the educational resources created by the Thinkfinity Partners plus Partner reviewed materials. Wonderful to find lots of information for download.

Bible Lesson Book has a free printable from World Missionary Press

English Grammar 101 is a free online instructional series for middle school through high school.

This free American history curriculum designed for third graders, is 82 pages long!

Weather Wiz Kids has lots of things to do and many projects to learn about the weather.

Free On-line Geography Sites

Thu, 2 Nov 2006 06:37:00 -0600

Best Free On-line Geography Sites
according to, Terri Johnson, Knowledge Quest, Inc.www.knowledgequestmaps.com

ON-LINE GAMES AND QUIZZES

1. Take National Geographic's Geography Bee quiz!

2. I Like 2 Learn allows you to not only learn about the countries and capitals of the world, but also the mountains and bodies of water.
3. At Action Quiz you can play against other kids and teachers and see if you can win.

4. GeoSense also allows you to play alone or against another player. You are asked to not only identify countries of the world but cities as well.

GREAT REPORT SITES

Atlapedia and CountryReports are two great sites for general information.

JUST MAPS - BUT REALLY COOL MAPS!

You will enjoy creating your own maps at Plasma.National Geographic.com

Would you like to see what the earth looks like a night as seen from space? Check out NASA.
Don't forget Google Earth. This is an incredible piece of software that is taken from actual photographs of the earth.

DOWNLOADABLE GEOGRAPHY

Seterra is free software that you can download onto your computer and play their many geography games. Locate countries, capitals, cities and more.

FUN VIDEO SITE

At Animated Atlas you can watch a five or ten minute video about the growth of our nation.

TEACHER RESOURCES

TLS Books is a great site with lots of printables. You will find contact information of places where you can receive free geography materials at Ed.gov

Many thanks to Terri Johnson, Knowledge Quest, Inc. for providing us with these helpful links.

Tennessee Encyclopedia on-line!

Fri, 7 Sep 2007 13:09:00 -0500

Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture
(an on-line encyclopedia)

"The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture is an amazing collaboration of almost 550 authors who have created the first updated, comprehensive study of Tennessee history since 1960. In the years since 1960 thousands of books, articles, theses, dissertations have been written about Tennessee history and culture; new research fields have been opened while others have been more fully explored; and new collections of primary sources have been discovered and stored away at an increasing number of archival collections, historic sites, museums, and research libraries across the state. As the bicentennial of 1996 approached, all of this new scholarship was ready to be mined, analyzed, and condensed into a single volume representing the present generation's summation of an entire century worth of research and historiography." visit Tennessee Encyclopedia.net

This sounds like a great resource for our Tennessee history classes!
~Betsy

Homeschooling Basics Tennessee

Sun, 6 Aug 2006 07:18:00 -0500

There are three options to legally homeschool in Tennessee.
(This info from HSLDA.)

Option 1) sign up with your LEA (local education agency)
That's your county in which you live. Forms for Independent HS are on this page at the Tennessee.gov/education/homeschool site.

Option 2) sign up with a CRS (church related school) umbrella school
See a list of some CRS here . For a list of ALL the non-public schools in Tennessee visit this page at tn.gov.

Option 3) sign up with a satellite school.
Here are some state wide satellite schools:

	Aaron Academy www.aaronacademy.com
	Family Christian Academy www.familychristianacademy.com/
	HomeLife Academy www.homelifeacademy.com/index.php
	Gateway Christian Schools http://www.gatewaychristianschools.com

Check out HSLDA for a complete rundown of the legalities and options.
Get some more legal information from HomeschoolLegal.com
And check out TnHomeEd.com for lots more information!

Homeschool Tutorials

Thu, 28 May 2009 19:55:00 -0500

The following are the homeschool tutorials that I know of in Tennessee. If you know of others that you'd like to see listed here, please send me an email. Thanks!
_______________________________________________________________________

West Harpeth Christian Tutorial - Franklin

"The mission at WHCT is to help homeschool parents and their students by providing select, graded coursework from a deliberate and informed Christian perspective for the purpose of supplementing the home education. By hiring tutors who confess a Christian faith, possess a Christian worldview and are qualified to teach their subject areas, we fulfill our goal of helping educate our children in a unique atmosphere. We would like to extend an invitation to you to join us in this calling - educating our children for the glory of God."

Visit the West Harpeth Christian Tutorial web site for more information.

________________________________________________________________________________

Stone-Table Classic Foundations - Franklin

"In August 2000 Robbie and Sharilyn Grayson began Stone Table Tutorial, on five acres at 4150 Clovercroft Road, Franklin, Tennessee. Stone Table started as an aggressive and innovative form of Christian education that would address the surfacing cultural problems of the 21st century: the fog of a Post-modern world view, a waning Christian consensus amongst the young, a poor Christian scholarship at the elementary level, and an ignorance of a Christian physiological view of the individual."

Here is the link to their web site: Stone-Table.com
______________________________________________________________

Bellevue Homeschool Enrichment - Pegram

Bellevue Home School Enrichment serves Pre-K through 12 with classes on Mondays during the school year. These classes meet just west of Bellevue in Pegram. This is a Christ-centered, academic program at affordable rates. It also offers lots of extracurricular activities including drama, volleyball, Girl Scouts, Junior Achievemnet's Exchange City, yearbook, student government, and much more.

Visit the web site: www.enrichmentbhse.com

________________________________________________________________________________

Tennessee Blue Book

Fri, 24 Mar 2006 15:55:00 -0600

Here's what it says in the preface: "The Tennessee Blue Book is a publication which serves as a manual of useful information on our state and its government, both past and present. This edition contains information on the makeup of Tennessee state government. It also contains an expansive history section, the constitutions of the United States and Tennessee, the state's symbols and honors, the most recent election returns, and census information."

I found that you can view the entire "Tennessee Blue Book" online! They've made these files in pdf so you can read the entire book without borrowing it from the library. You can also go directly to what information you need about the state.

Check out the table of contents here and pick and choose what you want to read about first. The newest edition is 2007/2008, but it's still a great resource.

~Betsy

Field Trips - West

Thu, 9 Feb 2006 09:12:00 -0600

Here's a list of fun field trips to take in West Tennessee. By no means is this the BEST of field trips we could come up with....just a list to help you get started on visiting some of the interesting places in your area of Tenenssee. (just click on the name to take you to the website for more information about that destination.)

West Tennessee

Shiloh National Military Park

West Tennessee Regional Arts (Humboldt)

Casey Jones Home (Jackson)

National Civil Rights Museum (Memphis)
Free admission Mondays, 3:00-5:00 p.m.

Parker’s Crossroads Battlefield

Pinson Mounds State Park

The Children’s Museum of Memphis

Lichterman Nature Center (Memphis)
Free admission Tuesdays, 1:00-4:00 p.m.

Memphis Brooks Museum of Art
Free admission Wednesdays, 10:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.

Memphis Botanic Garden
Free admission Tuesdays, 12:00-4:30p.m.

Public Earthquake Resource Center (University of Memphis)
Free admission at all times

Memphis Pink Palace Museum
Free admission Tuesdays 1:00-4:00 p.m.

Mississippi River Museum @ Mud Island (Memphis)

Reelfoot Lake Resort Park (Tiptonville)

If you have some other field trip destinations that you would like to see included on this list, please email me with the link. Thanks! ~Betsy

Field Trips - Middle

Thu, 9 Feb 2006 09:06:00 -0600

Here's a list of fun field trips to take in Middle Tennessee. By no means is this the BEST of field trips we could come up with....just a list to help you get started on visiting some of the interesting places in your area of Tenenssee. (just click on the name to take you to the website for more information about that destination.)

Middle Tennessee

Fort Donelson Battlefield (Dover)

Customs House (Clarksville)

Belle Meade Plantation (Nashville)

Sam Davis Home (Smyrna)

Mansker’s Station (Goodlettsville)

James K. Polk Home (Columbia)

Cumberland Science Museum (Nashville)

Cookeville Depot Museum

Stones River National Battlefield (Murfreesboro)

Old Stone Fort State Park (Manchester)

If you have some other field trip destinations that you would like to see included on this list, please email me with the link. Thanks! ~Betsy

Field Trips - East

Thu, 9 Feb 2006 07:40:00 -0600

Here's a list of fun field trips to take in East Tennessee. By no means is this the BEST of field trips we could come up with....just a list to help you get started on visiting some of the interesting places in your area of Tenenssee. (just click on the name to take you to the website for more information about that destination.)

East Tennessee

Museum of Appalachia (Norris)

Governor John Sevier Home (Knoxville)

Chickamauga/Chattanooga Battlefield

American Museum of Science and Energy (Oak Ridge)

Tennessee Aquarium (Chattanooga)

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park

Tennessee Valley Railroad (Chattanooga)

McMinn Country Living Heritage Museum (Athens)

Beck Cultural Exchange Center (Knoxville)

Doak House Museum (Tusculum)

If you have some other field trip destinations that you would like to see included on this list, please email me with the link Thanks! ~Betsy