So, being that my husband has moved me far, far away from civilization (ok, a bit of an exaggeration but we all need it sometimes), I have entered the world of online shopping in earnest.
So, early this morning I am shopping on Amazon.com. I logged into my account and they informed me that the price of two books in my shopping cart had jumped by $5 combined! Now, I was a bit upset, but what can I do? Amazon is still the cheapest place on the internet to get books and the nearest Barnes and Noble is 3 hours away (just not a viable option with 3 kids and little time).
So I ordered my books and one gets free shipping (for orders over $25) which seems like a great deal, right? Well, the only catch is that your order gets less priority so it takes about a week longer to receive your books if you had actually paid for it. But, being a mom on a budget, I can wait (just not patiently usually).
As a home schooler, I am looking for curriculum books on line. There is one book in particular that I need (ok, so I WANT it really bad) to teach my daughter how to read. Brand new from the owner’s website, it’s $90 plus shipping. However, I can get a used copy online at Amazon for $70 so I will save money. However, I’d have to buy it from Amazon’s marketplace which is basically anyone who wants to sell items online can go through Amazon (I’m sure there’s probably some vetting process). But, the complication here is you never know what you’re gonna get and if you don’t like it, the return policies on some are dubious to say the least. In essence, I don’t know these people from Jack and I’m hesitate to buy from them.
So, now the question becomes, “Do I spend the extra $20 and buy the book from the publisher directly?” I have been wrestling with this exact question for the better part of an hour and so I’ve finally decided to spend the extra money and buy from the people I know (who by the way, are incredibly nice and helpful) rather than some guy in his garage.
The book by the way is from the Riggs Institute, a non-profit agency specializing in explicit phonics. Explicit phonics is where you teach your child to read and write through learning the sounds rather than through learning sight words and memorization. I LOVE this method and is part of the reason I didn’t enroll my daughter in the kindergarten when we moved. Also, they are not a Core Knowledge school either, which was unimpressive. I highly believe every child needs the same knowledge from year to year plus it’s just overall good stuff that everyone needs to know. I myself enjoy reading “What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know” by E.D. Hirsch, Jr, and my kids definitely love it.
The book entitled “Writing and Spelling Road to Reading and Thinking” by Myrna McCulloch is highly rated and I’ll have to keep you posted on my daughter’s progress once I begin this program after the first of the year. I will order it once business hours occur (I’m an EXTREMELY early riser. I work best alone in the morning hours and am most productive. It works out great because my husband works nights.).
Please feel free to comment (especially if you’ve used any of these aforementioned books). I’d love to hear from you!