Are you suddenly homeschooling? Is the whole idea of trying to educate your children causing you to stress a bit? As a homeschooling mom, I can confidently say that the situation that has been thrust upon you is not a normal homeschooling scenario. There are many people worried about what is going to happen next and to add the responsibility of homeschooling your children can make life seem too much to handle.
There were many times as a homeschool teacher that our homeschooling was sidelined due to illness, travel and pregnancy. Ask any homeschooler and they will tell you the same. Was I worried at the time that my children were not receiving enough school? Yes! I can confidently tell you that it will all work out. Even though we had to stop schooling at times, I can proudly share that I have two children who are currently successful in the colleges where they attend. I have one who has a perfect 4.0 in college while still technically a high school senior.
This is the time to introduce your children to subjects and extras that they are not doing currently. Richmond Public Library is here to help! Even though we are closed, we have many wonderful resources for you and your family to use during this time.
No library card? No problem! Sign up for an E-card. It’s easy. Go to our home page and click on “Get a Card” from the top menu bar. Once you have that, RPL’s online resources are available for you to use.
I have listed some of our resources that I find helpful to use while homeschooling children.
Learn a language. RPL has not one but two language programs for your child to try. Rocket Languages that has over 15 languages to learn and Transparent Languages that has over 100! Both of them are easy to use. I find Transparent Language to be more in depth than Rocket.
Take a Course. We have the Great Courses Library Collection that is available to use with your library card. These are classes that are taught by PhD professors who are leaders in their fields. Some classes that could be helpful for your students are: How to Program, Astronomy, Vocabulary, Algebra, Organic Chemistry, Latin along with all different types of history courses.
Hobbies are also represented with courses about photography featuring National Geographic photographers instructing. Gardening also has a course which is perfect for this time of year with children. Seeds can be purchased online through many reputable sites.
As a library patron, there is access to Universal Courses. There are over 100 General Education courses available to take. It even includes a first, second and third grade curriculum. Beginning classes in the general subjects are there as well as skills courses such as “Babysitting 101”. They have a shorter gardening class than the Great Courses gardening course. It also includes many beginning cooking and baking classes. “Pie Baking 101” and “How to Bake Cookies” are two that would be great with kids.
Skill Building Resources. LearningExpress Library has a category called “School Center” which has work for skills improvements for both reading and math for grades 4 through high school. There is also a section that teaches software such as Microsoft Office and Photoshop.
Book Lists. By clicking “Kids” on the upper menu of RPL’s homepage there is access to many book lists organized according to age/grade level. There are also theme categories if you want to search titles by different topics.
Reading Help. Are you worried about reading instruction for your child? Tumble Books Kids’ Reading Library has storybooks that are read out loud while text is highlighted. This collection does not require an e-reader. Click the title of the book and it immediately jumps into that book. This is a great way to have your beginning readers practice reading skills. Tumble Math has books that can be selected by a math skill to help reinforce math concepts.
From the above list, it is apparent that your library has many resources for you to use. If all of this is still overwhelming, the best thing you can do for your child’s education is to read to them. No matter if they are an infant or a high schooler, reading aloud has an impact on your child’s school success. It also is an opportunity to create memories for you and them that will last a lifetime.
We are here to help! Please let us know how we can support you during your homeschooling adventure.
