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 Ingenious! Oct 30, 2009
This book is a lifesaver for anyone trapped in a car with young children -- and even the older ones. I was simply astounded at all the fabulous ideas for activities I found in the Carschooling book.
I found interesting tidbits -- things I had never heard of, interesting activities, games, songs, humor and more. This book actually helps make family travel fun again.
 Carschooling is for everyone Sep 16, 2009
What is Carschooling? Carschooling is about utilizing that time the family spends in the car - commuting, running errands, going to sports practices - to help families stay connected and engaged with each other. It is about learning but it is also about exploring the world around you. Carschooling is not about squeezing even more academic stress or more mindless drills and pressure onto school-aged children. In Diane's own words, "Carschooling is about using ideas and resources to help children learn while on the road, but it is also about doing activities that help families spend meaningful time together."
Carschooling has universal appeal. If you are a parent, and you drive a car with your children riding with you, then you will undoubtedly benefit from this book. Regardless of whether you are a working parent or a stay at home parent, or if your children are in full time public school, or an exclusive private school, or are homeschooled, these ideas translate to you and your family easily and simply. Carschooling can be used for children from preschoolers through high school.
Diane Flynn Keith has a talent for introducing a concept, and then comprehensively exploring the idea fully in a way that is readily accessible and adoptable into your everyday life. Her gentle touch is evident on every page, and she inspires and empowers families by giving them the information, the tools, and the ideas to get them going. This book does not take a "one size fits all" approach however. Alongside of the concrete ideas are messages to help parents adapt their Carschooling to their own individual children to meet their developmental needs and learning styles best. Carschooling is an approach to spending time on the road, and a mindset to make the most out of it.
Carschooling is organized into logical sections for subjects, but it also includes valuable information on getting your car and your supplies and ideas organized. Car-friendly snack ideas, activity ideas, and thoughts on which models of vehicles lend themselves best to Carschooling are discussed. Tips on managing carsickness and behavioral challenges are also touched on.
Subjects span a chapter each: math, language arts, science, social studies, geography, visual and performing arts, foreign languages, and PE and Health are all covered, as well as the purely fun "recess" activities. Each section has inspiring ideas and resources for further explorations. Not only will you as a parent come away with more knowledge yourself, but you will come away after reading Carschooling with a fresh perspective and an arsenal of ideas. Bugs on the windshield become more than an annoyance; license plates become tools for math; 18 wheelers become chemistry lessons, billboards and advertisements serve dual purposes for social studies and English. This goes far beyond the typical car-based educational ideas of observing the weather and mapping geography on the road. Carschooling takes the mundane and turns it into creative, thinking, interactive time.
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4 of 4 found the following review helpful:
 Falls short May 03, 2007
The title is excellent. Great Concept. Road trips, commuting, outings...... Kids today spend more time in cars than imaginable previously.
Many fun but completely impractical suggestions. The more doable ideas are not so creative. It is not a bad book but didn't offer anything new to us. Think music games, word games, craft projects, books on tape and storage. However if you are at a loss maybe this book is for you.
8 of 10 found the following review helpful:
Excellent resource for any family, homeschooling or not Sep 05, 2005
This book is a terrific resource for any family who rides in a car at any time, really! It's packed full of ideas for stimulating learning in the confines of the family car. Not only does it alleviate boredom and annoying behavior ("He's touching me!") but it gives exciting suggestions for learning and/or reviewing all school subjects.
It starts by offering great tips on keeping your family car clean (yes, it's possible!), organized and efficient for trips ranging from weekly errands to long cross-country driving. Then it divides the subjects between math, science, language arts, liberal arts, and even P.E.
Each chapter begins with a list of helpful items to keep on hand for learning, such as a magnifying glass for science and colored pencils for liberal arts. Then the chapter lists a number of ways to help kids learn and strengthen their skills in each subject, such as license plate math or memory games. Many suggestions can be tried immediately and others suggest and critique specific helpful resources such as audio tapes or equipment helpful to "learning on wheels." I only wish it included approximate prices for the items, but that really is my only complaint about this book.
Although we're homeschoolers, I think this would be a helpful resource for any family to utilize car time to stimulate the mind and eliminate the question, "Are we there yet??"
19 of 23 found the following review helpful:
Fill up that wasted time with learning! Aug 31, 2003
Diane Flynn Keith has offered what no other book has offered: freedom from the "Are we there yet?" moans from the backseat. "Carschooling: Over 350 Entertaining Games & Activities to Turn Travel Time into Learning Time" takes advantage of the free time that children often have in cars and turns it into learning time. It would be a mistake to view this book as solely for homeschoolers; it is for anyone with children ages 4 to 17 (and beyond). There is no other book like it on the market. If you are a parent and you ever drive with children, trust me, you need this book!Thomas Nixon
Author, Bears' Guide to Earning High School Diplomas Nontraditionally
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