By Jim Cook
Published: July 17, 2009 in The Dothan Eagle
Vicki Norris said buying textbooks and workbooks online or through catalogs was one of the hardest parts of home schooling her kids.
“The hard part was not being able to look at the materials before you purchased them,” she said.
Now that her two kids are grown and gone, Norris hasn’t left the home school movement behind. Norris and husband Steve Norris recently opened a business in the Rehobeth area that caters to home school needs.
Located at 5414 County Road 203, Hidden Treasures Homeschool Store opened on June 3. The store is open from 1 until 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 8 a.m. until noon on Saturday.
The store works like a college bookstore, allowing home schoolers to consign their materials for sale and to buy materials at consignment prices. The store also offers copying and transcript preparation services and home school consultations.
Home schooling is an increasingly popular trend nationwide and locally.
According to the U.S. Department of Education, about 1.5 million children are home schooled. The National Home Education Research Institute pegs that number closer to 2 million.
According to NHERI, the home school population is growing by about 5 percent per year.
Research shows that home school children, on average, outperform their public school peers on standardized tests. NHERI figures show that home schooled children typically score 15 to 30 points above public school students on standardized academic achievement tests.
Norris estimates that about 300 families in the Wiregrass home school their children.
“It gives one-on-one time with the children and you’re able to focus more on their personal needs,” she said. “They’re able to work at their own pace and you can instill your own personal values and beliefs in the children.”
Max Oden / 