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Electives

We're not exactly sure who determines what are electives and what are "core" subjects, or why. Okay, maybe math is more useful than tracing your family tree because you can't balance your checkbook using scions and second cousins. But what about your family history, and the history of, say, Guam or Haiti? Is there something inherently better about reading "the classics" than learning Mandarin Chinese? Why are physics part of the main coursework for high school students, while robotics is optional?

Unfortunately, we aren't qualified to answer those questions, but we can defend electives on another level. Electives are essentially those subjects best suited to a student's personal interests, talents and abilities. In that sense, they're almost more important than core subjects, though we aren't going to make an argument that you should learn French before mastering English grammar (as long as you live in an English-speaking area, that is). We are arguing for advances beyond the necessary "standards," however, and for a broad curriculum that is child-specific.

Some electives are more important than others. Learning to manage one's money, how to interpret the Bible, and (these days) how to operate and understand computers are all more important than taking an acting class (though the acting class will be very important for some on a different level altogether). Technically, none of these are required courses, though for Christians particularly the first two are essential for a proper education. There are plenty of similarly important topics as well, though each family will need to prioritize.

There seems to be a move toward less specialized education. As our society becomes increasingly homogeneous, we spend less time focusing and more time absorbing "the big picture." We ignore either one at our own risk. We must have a larger framework in which to fit the smaller pieces, but take away the framework and you're left with relativity and chaos; the smaller pieces, and you have only an impersonal and meaningless ideology. Electives are a way to assert the need for both, and to have fun doing it.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he is a husband and father, teaches adult Sunday school in his Presbyterian congregation, and likes weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur.Read more of his reviews here.
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20 Exciting Plays for Medieval History Classes
by Dean Bowman
from Walch Publishing
for 7th-9th grade
in Middle Ages (Location: HISW-MID)
$25.00
20 Plays for U. S. History Classes
by Dean R. Bowman
Revised from Walch Publishing
for 7th-9th grade
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
24 Exciting Plays for Ancient History Classes
by Dean R. Bowman
from Walch Publishing
for 5th-8th grade
in Ancient History (Location: HISW-ANC)
All New Square Foot Gardening
by Mel Bartholomew
3rd edition from Cool Springs Press
for Adult
in Gardening (Location: SS-GAR)
$24.99
Anna's Garden Songs
by Lena Anderson
from Scholastic Reference
for Kindergarten-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Art of Interpretation
by Nicholas R. Elledge
from Institute for Cultural Communicators
for 9th-12th grade
in Speech & Debate (Location: SPEECH)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
At Play: Teaching Teenagers Theater
by Elizabeth Swados
from Farrar, Straus and Giroux
for 7th-Adult
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Backyard Homestead
by Carleen Madigan
from Storey Publishing
for Adult
in Self-Sufficiency (Location: SS-Self)
$18.95
Bankruptcy Of Our Nation
by Jerry Robinson
from New Leaf Press
for 10th-Adult
in Economics Resources (Location: ECON-REF)
$15.99
Best of Sewing Machine Fun for Kids
by Nancy Smith & Lynda Milligan
1st edition from Possibilities
for 4th-8th grade
in Sewing, Knitting & Crocheting (Location: SS-SEW)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Better Than a Lemonade Stand!
by Daryl Bernstein
from Aladdin Books
for 4th-8th grade
Do People Grow On Family Trees?
by Ira Wolfman
from Workman Publishing
in Genealogy (Location: XFA-GEN)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Down & Dirty
by Ellen Zachos
1st edition from Storey Publishing
for 7th-Adult
in Gardening for Kids (Location: SS-GAR)
$19.95
Failure to Connect
by Jane M. Healy
1st edition from Simon and Schuster
for Adult
in Brain Development & Learning Styles (Location: HSR-BRAIN)
$17.00 $12.00 (1 in stock)
Gardener
by Sarah Stewart & David Small
from Sunburst Book
Realistic fiction for Kindergarten-4th grade
1998 Caldecott Honor Book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.99
Gardening Wizardry for Kids
by L. Patricia Kite
from Scholastic Inc.
for 4th-6th grade
in Gardening for Kids (Location: SS-GAR)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
God of the Garden
by Andrew Peterson
from B&H Books
for 10th-Adult
in Creating Culture (Location: XCU-CRE)
$17.99
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies!
by Laura Amy Schlitz
from Candlewick Press
for 5th-9th grade
2008 Newbery Medal Winner
in Historical Fiction (Location: FIC-HIF)
$12.99
Green Thumbs
by Laurie Carlson
from Chicago Review Press
for Preschool-3rd grade
in Gardening for Kids (Location: SS-GAR)
$10.00 (2 in stock)
Hollywood Worldviews
by Brian Godawa
from InterVarsity Press
for 11th-Adult
in Culture & Discernment (Location: XCU-DIS)
Homeschool Psych
by Dr. Timothy S. Rice
2nd edition from Rocking R Ventures, Inc.
for 9th-12th grade
in Psychology (Location: XWV-PSY)
Interpretation of Dreams
by Sigmund Freud
from Basic Books
for 12th-Adult
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$12.99
Language of Flowers
by Kate Greenaway
from Dover Publications
for all ages
in Poetry Anthologies (Location: POET-ANTH)
$6.95
Little House Cookbook
by Barbara Walker
from HarperCollins
for 2nd-8th grade
in Little House Materials (Location: LIR-LHM)
$14.99
Meaning at the Movies
by Grant Horner
from Crossway Books
for Adult
in Culture & Discernment (Location: XCU-DIS)
Mind Over Media
Focus on the Family Life on the Edge
by Stan Campbell & Randy Southern
from Focus on the Family
for Adult
in Clearance: Christian Books (Location: XCLE)
$2.00 (1 in stock)
Money Matters Family Night Tool Chest
by Allen Burkett, Jim Weidmann, Kurt Bruner, Larry Burkett
1st edition from Chariot Victor Publishing
for Kindergarten-Adult
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Money Matters for Kids
by Larry Burkett
from Moody Press
for Adult
$10.99
Money Matters for Teens
by Larry Burkett
from Moody Press
for 7th-12th grade
$12.99 $3.00 (26 in stock)
Money Matters for Teens - Workbook (Ages 11-14)
by Larry Burkett
from Moody Press
for 5th-8th grade
Mr. Scott's Guide to the Enterprise
by Shane Johnson
from Pocket Books
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$10.00 (1 in stock)
My Dinner with Andre
by Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory
from Grove Press, Inc.
for Adult
in 20th & 21st Century Literature (Location: LIT7-20)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Orchard Mason Bee
by Brian L. Griffin, illustrated by Sharon Smith
1st edition from Knox Cellars Publishing
for 10th-Adult
in Gardening (Location: SS-GAR)
$6.00 (1 in stock)
Outside Hollywood
by Isaac Botkin
from Vision Forum
for 10th-Adult
in Creating Culture (Location: XCU-CRE)
$10.00
Pearables Home Economics for Home Schoolers Level 1
from Pearables
for 2nd-6th grade
in Home Economics Curriculum (Location: SS-HOMEC)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Pearables Home Economics for Home Schoolers Level 2
from Pearables
for 2nd-6th grade
in Home Economics Curriculum (Location: SS-HOMEC)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Pearables Home Economics for Home Schoolers Level 3
from Pearables
for 2nd-6th grade
in Home Economics Curriculum (Location: SS-HOMEC)
$6.50 (1 in stock)
Performing Literature - Student Textbook
by Diana Smith
from Bob Jones University Press
for 10th-Adult
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$46.11
Psychology: A Christian Perspective
by Dr. Timothy S. Rice
from Rocking R Ventures, Inc.
for 9th-12th grade
in Psychology (Location: XWV-PSY)
Reel Spirituality
by Robert K. Johnston
from Baker Academics
for Adult
in Clearance: Christian Books (Location: XCLE)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Rose in My Garden
by Arnold & Anita Lobel
from William Morrow & Company
Rhyming Stories for 1st-3rd grade
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
Secret of Handling Money God's Way
by Beverly Dayton, Howard Dayton
from Moody Press
for 9th-12th grade
$8.50 (1 in stock)
Secret of Handling Money God's Way - Teacher's Guide
by Beverly Dayton, Howard Dayton
Ldg from Moody Press
for 9th-12th grade
$7.00 (1 in stock)
Square Foot Gardening
by Mel Bartholomew
from Rodale Press
in Gardening (Location: SS-GAR)
$12.00 $8.00 (1 in stock)
Star Trek Compendium
by Allan Asherman
from Pocket Books
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Star Trek: Star Fleet Technical Manual
by Franz Joseph
20th Anniversary from Ballantine Books
in Theater, Drama & Film (Location: ELE-THEAT)
$15.00 (1 in stock)
Student's Guide to Psychology
by Daniel N. Robinson
1st edition from Intercollegiate Studies Institute
for 9th-12th grade
$8.00
Sunflower Houses
from Workman Publishing
for Kindergarten-6th grade
in Gardening for Kids (Location: SS-GAR)
$8.00 (1 in stock)
Sunset Western Garden Book
8th edition from Oxmoor House
in Gardening (Location: SS-GAR)
$34.95 $20.00 (1 in stock)
Tempest for Kids
Shakespeare Can Be Fun
by Lois Burdett
from Firefly Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Shakespeare Materials (Location: LIR-SHA)
Usborne Starting Gardening
Usborne Internet-Linked
by Cheryl Evans, Sue Johnson
from Usborne
for 3rd-6th grade
in Gardening for Kids (Location: SS-GAR)
$2.70 (1 in stock)
Who Was Walt Disney?
Who Was?...Series
by Whitney Stewart
from Grosset & Dunlap
for 3rd-6th grade
in Who Was? biographies (Location: BIO-WHO)
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