The Old Schoolhouse Magazine – A Review

As a new homeschool mom, I am a sponge for information. I am devouring everything about the subject that I can find. I recently had the opportunity to read the November/December issue of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine and give you a review of my thoughts. The Old Schoolhouse Magazine is free and available from www.TheOldSchoolhouse.com. It is jam-packed with useful and fun information for homeschooling mothers and their families.

This issue of The Old Schoolhouse Magazine has 176 pages of articles and advertisements that appeal to homeschoolers. There is something for every type of homeschooler. I really like how some of the articles are written by people who are certain “types” of homeschoolers. For example, I enjoyed the article titled “Using the Library to Create Your Own Curriculum Part III” by The Ordinary Homeschooler. There were articles included from The Classical Homeschooler, The Artistic Homeschooler, and many others.

I enjoyed that there are articles for parents of homeschooling children of all ages. I only have young children, so I devoured the articles “Teaching Children to Serve” and “Creating Holiday Fun with Little Ones.” There are also articles for parents of older children and an entire section on college prep.

Nearly every subject is covered in at least one article in the magazine. There are articles about art, music, math, history and technology. I was pleasantly surprised to find a wonderful section called “Little House Legacy” with an excellent article on Christmas legacies and how we can learn why Christmas memories are so permanent for us from Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Little House books. (I love the Little House books!)

I am currently in the process of teaching my oldest how to read, so I adored the Phonics and Reading section of the magazine. There are articles on teaching reading, an article on keeping your children interested in reading, and even a fun how-to for teaching letters to preschoolers in a creative way!

Because this is the November/December issue, there are several ideas to help you with Christmas shopping! There is one article that gives tips on creating a Christmas video to give to relatives and an entire last minute gift directory to give you ideas for educational gifts. I also enjoyed a couple of articles that featured homemade Christmas gift ideas.

There are also articles that made me really think. I’m an introvert and sometimes I need some solitude to be alone with my thoughts and my Jesus. “Learning to Love Silence and Solitude” made me question how much “noise” my children are hearing every day and how I can help them enjoy silence. I also enjoyed the article, “Should Homeschoolers Fear Obama’s Race to the Top?” and how the CCSS could possibly affect homeschoolers. There is also an interesting article on the rise of home education and Christianity. I’m a first generation homeschooler, so it’s interesting to see that I’m not the only parent who is deciding to go against the norm and homeschool!

Of course, the magazine could not be complete without product reviews! If you are looking for new curriculum to add to your homeschool, there are several different reviews to choose from to give you an in-depth look before you purchase!

I love this magazine. It’s full of so much good information and the digital version is FREE! The only small problem I have with The Old Schoolhouse Magazine is that the digital version is a little difficult for me to read comfortably on my computer. I’m kind of old school. I like to hold magazines in my hands, and this is the first digital magazine I have read. It took a little getting used to because I had to enlarge the print and then move the bars around on my screen to continue reading specific articles. Honestly, if I spend more time reading digital magazines on my computer I could get used to it, and I’m sure if I opened it up on an e-Reader that problem would be eliminated. Overall, I loved reading the magazine and would recommend it to any homeschooling mom and her family!

Check out The Schoolhouse Review Crew for more reviews!