Top 5 Amazon Classroom Resources for Homeschoolers
- Elizabeth Greer
- Feb 1
- 4 min read
When it comes to starting your own classroom at home, it can feel tricky to know where to begin. Do you start with curriculum and content? Do you start with decorating a designated area and figure the rest out as you go? Do you need to do a bunch of research just to ease your mind on the decision you're making? Well I've been there, and I'm here to help make your journey easier.
I've spent some time digging into the online world and have compiled a bunch of resources from websites to curriculum ideas that can help establish your classroom at home. And luckily, my top 5 can be found on Amazon!
HSLDA State Regulation Site
Before we begin on the Amazon list, the first and most important resource I want to share is the HSLDA website found here.
When you click on this website, you simply select your state and it gives you the most up-to-date laws and legal requirements you have as the parent/lead educator. Regulations vary from state to state, so it is important to see what your responsibilities are in your area.
Amazon Item #1
Remember how I said previously that it is important to know your responsibilities under the homeschool laws? Well, I live in Alabama, which is a low regulation state. My main responsibility is to file an initial report of my child homeschooling to my county's superintendent, which is especially important if your child has already completed some public school as it helps you to avoid truancy issues. However, beyond that, their education is entirely up to me. This is why I went and purchased this book by Rebecca Rupp, and oh my gosh. What a lifesaver.
This book takes you through a generalized curriculum that applies to the United States as a whole. It is full of websites, books, and just good, friendly advice that sounds like it's coming from a friend. I have used this book, as well as some of my state's standards, to develop my own curriculum for my kids that is both flexible to their learning style and helps guide me when picking workbooks for my kiddos.
Which brings me to....
Amazon Item #2
Abeka is one of the most reliable homeschool resources available. I was hesitant to use it at first because I wanted to stay clear of religious curriculums, but I will say, I have not been disappointed. Almost all of their religious curriculum is sold separate from their base-curriculum items, and their progression of phonics has been phenomenal for my learning-to-read child.
In fact, of all their kindergarten workbooks, my top two I recommend are their Letters and Sounds and Writing with Phonics. These two workbooks talk to each other, since their focus is the same (phonics), and it is very easy to make them work hand-in-hand for lessons. Their Think and Learn workbook is good for preschoolers and getting kids introduced to schoolwork, and their Number Skills is pretty good, but I have also used generic math workbooks from Target and Amazon that have worked just as well. Their line of phonics readers are also good, but you can get just as much benefit from them as from reading Dr. Seuss's Cat in the Hat.
Most of what I have used is their K5 line, but what I know about the rest of their line is that I will be individually purchasing their workbooks until Grade 2. The Abeka website offers bundle packages, but they can quickly become costly, especially if you're not planning to use the full package. That's why in these moments, you can just as easily turn to Amazon to buy the individual books.
Amazon Item #3
If you're just starting out with homeschooling, go ahead and grab some of these manipulative's. No matter how old your child is, these can help bridge the gap in mathematical studies by giving kids a tangible item to deal with in order to understand the numbers on a page. Not every kid learns via workbook, so it's good to have some hands-on options when building your school at home.
Amazon Item #4
Okay, so this one is kind of specific but it has a general idea behind it. The general idea is that you need some sort of visual cue for your kids to know that school is about to happen, especially if you're teaching little ones. For some people, this is as simple as designating and decorating a corner of the house, but for me, this was this specific circle-time chart. It is the visual cue for my kids that our daily school routine is about to start. It is large, hangs on the wall where my kids do their schoolwork, and every day we start our morning with going over the different content areas provided. After we complete this, we flow into the first activity of the day. Fun thing, it has also helped my youngest child get motivated to change clothes in the morning because we don't do circle time until after breakfast when everyone is dressed with teeth brushed. Having a visual cue coupled with a predictable routine has helped to establish a steady home learning experience.
Amazon Item #5
The last item on the list is a giant pack of educational posters. Personally, I like to get a large pack that covers multiple levels of content that you can then use to decorate your designated learning area for years. It's a good way to show your kids they're improving as well as give them general exposure and reminders to what they're learning. Besides that, it also helps designate your learning area the same way that the circle-time chart did. This pack is one of my favorites because of how much you are getting for the cost. It covers a wide range of curriculum as well as being fun and vibrant, which helps stimulate learning.
Closing Thoughts
Whether you're just starting out or looking to improve your home learning space, I hope these resources help you the same way that they have helped me. I am always seeking to improve my kids' homeschool experience, and as I find more resources, I will make those available to all of you. Let me do the work so you don't have to!
Until next time!
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