Hands on Homeschooling

Frequently Asked Questions

Play with a Purpose

Feel free to email me with any additional questions if you don't find an answer here.

 

   click on the questions below to be taken to the answers...

   What does the curriculum come with?
 

   What do I need to buy/have in addition to the binder to use Hands on Homeschooling?
 

   How much time should we devote to school each day?
 

   Can I start using the curriculum “late” in the school year?
 

   Do I have to use the program 5 days a week?
 

   Can I use Hands on Homeschooling in a daycare?
 

   Do I need the Idea Book to use a curriculum or a curriculum to use the Idea Book?
 

   Is the curriculum available on CD?
 

   How long does it take to receive the curriculum once I order?
 

   My child’s birthday is in the middle of the year, what version of HOH do I pick?
 

   Do you have a return policy?
 

What does the curriculum come with?
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Each Hands on Homeschooling curriculum comes in a 3-ring binder with the following categories:

1.    Introduction (letter from the author)

2.   Prep and Planning (ideas for getting organized and beginning to homeschool)

3.   Overview (year at a glance showing all themes)

4.   Lesson Plans (weekly overviews and daily instructions)

5.   Alternate Activities (additional ideas and recipes)

6.   Patterns (patterns and worksheets for the whole year)

7.   Index (alphabetical list of activities so you can look it up again)

8.   Early Bird order form (savings coupon for the next version. Note: Age 5 curriculum does not have an Early Bird form)

What do I need to buy/have in addition to the binder to use Hands on Homeschooling?
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Because denominations may interpret Bible stories or messages slightly different, the Bible stories are not provided in the binder. You will need to have a source for the stories (paraphrase your own Bible, children’s Bibles, Bible story books, etc.) The one single source that I have found to be most helpful is the Egermeier’s Story Bible.
The lesson plans give a supply list for each activity. If you already do arts and crafts with your child(ren) you will most likely have a majority of the items already.  None of the items called for are high price nor should they be difficult to find in your local craft store or discount store (like Wal-Mart).

How much time should we devote to school each day?
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That is strictly up to you and your child. Some kids have the attention span to follow along through all of the activities at a single sitting. Although this is not common. Depending on the age level, each curriculum offers 3-4 daily activities. You can choose to do them all at once or spread them out through the day. While in the preschool years we spent an average of 1 hour a day on school work. We would usually do some in the morning and some in the afternoon just to break up the playtime. “Deskwork” with pencil or crayons was usually done while the younger sibling(s) had a nap or rest time just so that I could focus on the older child’s needs.  Of course when we found something that the kids did not want to stop (like bug collecting or playing with play dough that we had just made), we extended the activity and it went on as long as the activity held their interest.

Can I start using the curriculum “late” in the school year?
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One of the best things I have found about homeschooling is that as the educator, I can choose to do what works for me. You can too!  Although all of the curriculums have some monthly theme related activities, it is quite easy to adapt. I do recommend that you begin with the September lessons and move forward. Some subjects, like math, build on prior lessons so you do not want to jump in ahead of your child’s abilities and frustrate them. But if you were to begin the curriculum in January instead of September you would find the curriculum showing Christmas crafts when you were actually in the month of April. When you come to a themed activity that does not fit because your calendar shows another month, you simply look to another month in the curriculum and pick something that is a better fit. In this case you would look to the month of April and pick something from there. Or you can go to the back of the binder to the Alternate Activities section and pick something from there. Again, homeschooling allows you the ability to pick what works best for your family. 
We adjust our schedule almost every year. During the preschool years we did this twice to accommodate the birth of new babies. Our second daughter was born in February and needed open-hear surgery in March. School simply stopped and we picked up where we left off going a little into the typical summer break. The third girl was born in November. We planned ahead that year and started school August 1st and then did no school at all between Thanksgiving and New Year’s. We still finished school ahead of the public schools and got a nice jump on summer vacation.  

Do I have to use the program 5 days a week?
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As described above, no, do what works for you. Many Hands on Homeschooling customers do not follow the traditional 5-day-a-week school schedule. Some use the program to supplement a mother’s day out program, some people use it just on the weekends because the parent works during the week, and some use it just as it is written. It is all up to you. During the year that my oldest child was four using the Pre-K curriculum I was asked by a friend to homeschool her child as well in order to prepare her for public kindergarten the following year. The child was already involved in a mother’s day out program so she was only available 2 days a week. We “did school” Wednesday and Friday afternoons from 12:30 – 3:30 while my youngest child took a nap. We managed to get through everything in the Hands on Homeschooling Pre-K version except field trips. The curriculum is flexible enough to fit around your schedule. 

Can I use Hands on Homeschooling in a daycare?
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Hands on Homeschooling is currently being used in homes for individual families of children, home daycare, and in preschools and mother's day out programs around the globe.    

Do I need the Idea Book to use a curriculum or a curriculum to use the Idea Book?
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No.  Each curriculum was written to teach specific skills to a specific age group. The Idea Book is simply a collection of activities that can be used with a wide range of ages. The Idea Book has tips for parents and activities to do with kids from infants and up. You do not need one to use the other. 

Is the curriculum available on CD?
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Sadly technology has made duplicating digital information so easy that I cannot put the curriculum on CD or send it by email at this time.  However, the Idea Book will soon be available on CD. 

How long does it take to receive the curriculum once I order?
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Each week I collect orders through Wednesday afternoon, assemble books on Thursday and ship on Fridays. Within the US I use Priority Mail which takes 3-5 days. So how long it takes to receive the order really depends on what day of the week your order is received. You can send payment (check or money order) along with the order form from the website or you can send payment through PayPal. Credit card payments through PayPal or money on account are immediately funded. “E-checks” (money from your checking account) done through PayPal take 3-5 days to clear. Orders will not be sent until money is funded.

My child’s birthday is in the middle of the year, what version of HOH do I pick?
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Which version of Hands on Homeschooling you choose has more to do with your child’s developmental level more than his/her physical age. Take a look at the Skills Lists posted with each age of the curriculum that you are considering. If your child has mastered a majority of the skills from the younger version, than you would probably be fine going ahead with the older version. Keep in mind that you can simplify things if needed by doing  more of the prep work for your child (cutting things out, lower expectations for coloring in the lines, following lines with fingers instead of crayons or pencils…) If you went through a majority of the year making things easier than you could simply repeat the same age program next fall using it as written. 

Do you have a return policy?
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A curriculum returned within 20 days of the original shipment, in original condition, will be accepted for return. Our policy is to refund the curriculum price using the same method as that used for the original purchase minus a restocking fee of 20%.
Curriculum returned with smudges, stains, damaged pages, or other obvious wear will be accepted under limited conditions. If it is decided that the curriculum can be returned, the refund amount will be based on the returned product’s condition after the 20% restocking fee.
Please note that we do not refund the original shipping amount or the cost of returning the book(s).
 It would much appreciated if you will contact us by
email prior to returning the curriculum and let us know why you wish to return the book(s) and that it is being returned.


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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2 Year Old

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Idea Book

 

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