[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]By Shari Maser, Off-Campus Program Advisor
For students who are taking charge of their own education through homeschooling, distance learning, or alternative campus programs like ours, reading stories by and about others in the alternative education community can be both affirming and inspiring. The titles below can be a great place to start.
Books BY Homeschoolers…
Did you know that many homeschooling students and parents are published authors? Here are some examples of homeschooler-authored books I have personally enjoyed:
- Fiction: Eragon series by Christopher Paolini
- Non-Fiction: How Carrots Won the Trojan War: Curious (But True) Stories of Common Vegetables by Rebecca Rupp
- Non-Fiction Picture Book: Carolina’s Story: Sea Turtles Get Sick Too! by Donna Rathmell German (who is also the editor at Arbordale, a respected children’s book publishing company)
And I recently discovered this website that curates an extensive list of authors who homeschool or were homeschooled themselves.
Books ABOUT Homeschoolers…
When my kids were younger, some of our favorite books were stories about homeschoolers, such as:
- Ida B… and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World by Katherine Hannigan
- The Boxcar Children (series…though we mostly just liked the first 19 books, which were written by the series originator, Gertrude Chandler Warner)
- Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos (series) by R. L. LaFevers
Check out this long list of books featuring homeschooled characters for many more titles.
If you like biographies and autobiographies, the Famous Homeschoolers and Successful Homeschooling websites provide diverse lists of homeschoolers whose life stories might be worth reading about, from founding fathers (like Benjamin Franklin and John Adams) to modern-day athletes (like Tim Tebow and Serena and Venus Williams).
And if you want to go beyond books, check out the movie version of Nim’s Island.
What are some of your favorite books (or other media) authored by or featuring homeschoolers? Please share them with us below.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
