I consider myself still a newbie homeschooler, so I found Teri’s Tips: Tried and True Home School Solutions a big blessing to read. I decided to homeschool in 2018 after taking a good two years of praying. Feeling like a completely new homeschooling mom even now, I was so grateful for this read since I was able to relate to some examples of what others went through. Teri Spray filled her book with so many wonderful and simple solutions for anyone new or even not-so-new to homeschool. Teri’s Tips: Tried and True Home School Solutions retails for $24.95.

Teri has many solutions for those who have struggled with time management and staying organized. She extensively covers how to become organized, how to stay on track with life and homeschool, how to teach with real heart and meaning, as well as many methods she promises will work for anybody. This felt like a gold mine to me. I have used many of her tips so far and noticed I have also been using these solutions all along without even realizing it. Add the fact that it works for many others, and I feel more at ease that using simple things can be just as good as something complex.

She has several templates and charts for you to copy and use to your heart's content. I can see myself scanning and printing many of her templates and charts to use for that different feel on getting organized. Sometimes having to use other homeschooling techniques will help get me out of this mud I feel that I have been stuck in for months. This is a book full of fresh ideas that I know I can use that are so simple, but yet the kind of things that I know I would not have thought about because my head is too wrapped around on how difficult I think a lesson should be.

This book not only has many shared resources and ideas, but this read for me has many encouraging and relatable stories. And reading something relatable to myself makes me feel more confident knowing that I am not alone. For example, all these typical floating homeschool questions I have had in the back of my head, Teri has answered them. I know I will want to go back to read this again and again for encouragement so I can reassure myself that homeschool does not have to be difficult and strenuous. I just love that her main idea is simplicity is the key.

The only con I see in this book are a handful of typos. It is nothing severe and did not affect my ability to understand the passage; when I noticed a typo, I was still able to understand Teri’s sentence.

I feel I have benefited from this book since it has lifted my spirit, so I am very thankful for this. I would recommend this book to anyone whether just starting homeschooling or veteran who has been homeschooling for years. I feel it can be a great refresher. It is always good to hear about other homeschooling adventures, tips, tricks, and ideas. Especially from those who have been doing this for many years, I love to take in all their advice. Teri's shared experiences comforted my thoughts, reassured me, and kept me motivated.

-Product review by Jesela Ortiz, The Old Schoolhouse® Magazine, LLC, September 2020