What's New at Epi Kardia?

Thanks to the help of our dear friend, Norm, and the FANTASTIC software he recommended, X-Site Pro, we have recreated our website and will be able to update it ourselves, saving time and money!  Even if you are not a techno wiz, you can create your own web site in no time with this $197 software.  We highly recommend it!

Make sure you scroll to the bottom of this page to read about our soon-to-be-published e-book and new high school writing course!

 Local Epi Kardia Classes Offered!

Elizabeth will be teaching classes in the greater Charleston, SC area using Epi Kardia curriculum beginning fall of 2008!   For more information and a list of classes offered, please check here.

Buy Books through Epi Kardia!

Would you like to buy your books at the same time you buy your curriculum?  We have linked with Amazon in order to give you that opportunity.  Using our links benefits us as well (a few cents per book, anyway!)   Currently we have added the books for our World History-World Literature Course for High School   and upcoming (fall 2008) American Literature course AND the books for Set I of our Third Grade Lesson Plans. Additionally, we have added a section of our favorite books called Recommended High School and Adult Reading.  We will also be adding the rest of the  books for our Daily Lesson Plans soon--check back often!

Epi Kardia Now Has a Blog!

This forum exists to encourage and offer you support as you home school. We are "in the trenches" with you, but as we are experienced homeschoolers and both have graduated children who are successfully* attending college, we may be further down the path than many of you.  We hope to be an encouragement to you as well as offer practical help to aid you in educating your children, spiritually as well as academically. 

Our first post includes a free writing lesson for middle school or high schoolers—and even if your students are younger, you will enjoy reading the hilarious examples of analogies written by actual high school students! Later posts include Reflections with the Oldest in College*, How Fine are the Fine Arts? and Are Your Expectations Causing Frustration?  If you are struggling with a reluctant writer (or writers!), make sure to read our series on Reluctant Writers.  Be watching for our upcoming series:  How to Prepare your Middle Schoolers for High School, coming soon!

We hope to offer you encouragement, general teaching tips, historical and other book reviews, as well as free lessons and forms on a regular basis. Please check it out at www.epikardia.com/blog and let us know what you think! 

If you would like to subscribe to our blog, or be added to our general mailing list, you can have new posts sent right to your door --to your e-mail inbox, anyway--- :-) as soon as they are published! Please add your e-mail address and first name below. (We will never sell or otherwise share your personal information with anyone else.) As a thank you gift, we will send you a link to our two free e-books described on our Free Downloads page!   

What's Next for Epi Kardia?

Coming Soon...

SPRING 2008  

Ready to Move Beyond the Textbook?

Now you can! With our new e-book, Designing a High School Course Using Real Books, all of the direction you need is at your fingertips. Organized in easy to understand steps, this guide opens up a multitude of literature-based courses for you and your high school student to develop. Just decide which course you want to cover, grab your books and watch your high school student excel!   

And here is an excerpt from the Introduction of our new high school curriculum, Essay Styles for High School:

An Essential for Every High School Student...

Essay writing, recommended for every high school student, requires a clear understanding of the essay types, essay structure, the writing process and solid evaluation to be truly beneficial. At Epi Kardia, we don’t view writing as a subject, but rather an essential life skill. Students who can express themselves well through writing tend to achieve more in every subject area. Writing promotes more succinct communication, organization skills and higher level thinking. It develops confidence, creates an outlet for healthy expression and strengthens a student’s overall academic prowess.

With our new high school curriculum, Essay Styles for High School, your student will learn to write the five most common types of essays: narrative, descriptive, expository, persuasive and comparison/contrast. This course is designed with step by step detailed instructions for both the student and the teacher providing a clear picture of each essay style along with solid goals and objectives. Even parents who do not view themselves as strong writers can teach this course because the evaluation section describes exactly what you need to look for in your student’s writing and explains how to determine a fair grade, as well.

SUMMER 2008

American Literature for High School is new and will be ready for the fall of 2008.  Get a head start and order the books used in the curriculum here!

Check back soon!