REMINDER: Homeschool College USA has moved.

Because this blog still seems to get a lot of traffic, I wanted to reiterate that the site (and blog) have moved. You can find the new blog specifically here: http://www.homeschoolcollegeusa.com/blog.html. I am simply leaving this one up so that if anyone does want to read the older posts, they may.

Moving the website.

I am in the process of moving HC USA to a new host. (It's a work in progress, but if you'd like to see it, you can find it HERE.) The design has changed a bit, but the information is this same, with a few updates here and there.

Once the site is fully built out, I will transfer the domain name so that www.homeschoolcollegeusa.com will take you to the new site.

PLEASE NOTE: Many of the internal links will *not* have the same URL address once the transfer is complete. If you have bookmarked a specific page on the site, such as an individual course page, you will need to update it after the move.

I am sorry for the inconvenience this may cause. I made the decision to move to Weebly from my current host because they offer a free ad-free webhosting package, and while I intend to upgrade to their pro account after the move to take advantage of some nice features, their price is about 1/2 of what I pay now.

Just as a side note - If you have ever wanted your own website but avoided it because of cost or because you are not a coding expert, Weebly may appeal to you. It does not require any HTML/CSS/coding knowledge and you can build your site completely with templates and "drag & drop" components. They have blogging software that is user-friendly as well. (If you do know HTML and CSS you can make changes to your site using either.) Their free package has a few limitations such as file-size on uploads and the requirement to have their icon in your page footers, but unlike the vast majority of free hosts out there, your site is not overloaded with ads. You can choose to include Google ads if you wish, but that is optional.

English Literature.

I have added a new course: ENGLISH LITERATURE, which can be used as CLEP prep.

ALEKS Math.

If you're a homeschooling parent, you can request a free two-month trial to use ALEKS math, by VISITING THIS LINK. If your student is planning to attend a college that accepts ALEKS credits (such as Thomas Edison State College), you can use this free trial to work on one or more college-level math courses*.

Just be sure to check with your school of choice before starting any courses, to make sure they will apply for credit.

*(If you have the flexibility, you can use this two-month period to completely finish one or more math courses, by working on them exclusively or almost exclusively, in a "summer school" type schedule.)

FEMA Update.

There were two broken links on the Emergency Management page that have now been fixed.

English Comp Textbooks.

In another pass through Amazon looking for cheap textbooks, here's what I have found for English Composition.

A Writer's Repertoire - used starting at .08 cents.

The Bedford Guide for College Writers - used starting at $2.35.

English Composition and Grammar: Complete Course - used starting at $7.16.

College English and Communication - used starting at a penny.

The Composition of Everyday Life: A Guide to Writing - used starting at .08 cents.

World History Study Guide.

THIS is sort of interesting. (If you open it, it may take a bit of time to load. It's a large file.) It's a "note-taking guide" for a common public school world history book. The book can be found HERE, listing as used starting at $8.65.

Or, for a different version, THIS is a note-taking guide for THIS BOOK which is listing used starting at $38.45. (Ouch.) If you click on the chapter links, you are taken to a page that gives the chapter note-taking guide, but also something called "concept connector worksheets," which may spark essay assignment ideas. (Also, FYI the note-taking guides for this book include section summaries which, even without the textbook, can provide good review/study materials.)

I'm not necessarily saying, "Quick! Run out and buy one of these books and then download the study guide!" because, frankly, I would imagine the ink cost of printing out the guide would be quite substantial. However, if you have a student who is very new to self-directed learning and is struggling with what to write in the study journals, this sort of thing may be a way to ease into how to take notes from written materials, and much of the world history studies carries over to the Western Civilization exams, and also the Social Sciences & History exam.

Oh, and one more thought: If you think you may *ever* find a use for these files, download them now and save them somewhere. There really is no telling how long they'll be available.