Homeschooling in California

There are tons of books out there for parents about homeschooling, but not so many for kids.  I was listening to a homeschool podcast a couple months ago, and there was an author being interviewed, Rain Perry Fordyce.  She’s written a very cute picture book for kids about homeschooling.  The book is called “I am Learning All the Time” and is illustrated by Audrey Anne Miles Churney.

Being different can be tough on kids, and homeschoolers are different just because most people still send their children away to school.  Having a book that tells their story, that says homeschooling os normal, that lots of families do it, and that it’s good, I thik is very validating and reassuring for a child.  One thing I like about this book is the positive tone.  I tells the story of a 5 year old homeschooled boy and what he does at home compared to what some of his regular school friends do in school.  It doesen’t make any judgments about which way is better.  It doesn’t trash public schools.  It just shows that ther are different, and equally acceptable ways to do things. 

And from the kid point of view, I think Hannah would also give it a good rating since she asked for “I am Learning all the Time” as her bedtime story for at least 5 days in a row when we first got it, and frequently ever since. 

Another aspect that impressed me as I listened to that interview was what lengths Ms. Fordyce had gone to in order to keep the publication of her book as eco-friendly as possible.  She tracked down special a special publisher that would be able to print in the most environmentally friendly manner.  This is a self published book, and probably not available all over the web.  She specifically mentioned that they chose not to offer it on Amazon.  I ordered my copy directly from her at her website:

http://homeschooladventurebooks.com/

There is even an option to get an autographed copy there, so I couldn’t resist doing so.