#HiHomeschool – The Tuttle Twins

Welcome to that time of year that homeschool parents are getting excited about new curriculum. As we wrap up our current school years, we start imagining the perfection that will come with our upcoming year. We will find the ideal curriculum. Our little scholars will love everything that we plan. Our routines will be smooth and we will have the best homeschool year ever. Just me? Seriously, spring is a time of renewal and many homeschool families are in the planning stages. This year, I’m looking for items that will interest my middle schooler and my upcoming kindergartener! Yup, JustaBXgirl is entering 7th grade and Hops is heading to Kindergarten. As you can expect, most of their studies are very different. Even still, I look for things that I can tailor for both girls. The Tuttle Twins will be my experiment for this year.

I was able to receive The Tuttle Twins Combo Pack for review purposes. Each book in the bundle is based on existing books and ideologies that may be above our littles’ current comprehension or interest levels. The Tuttle Twins make the topics more age appropriate while leaving open the ability to keep the conversation and lessons going. There are fourteen books in the bundle covering various topics.

The way I will make this work for both is that we will begin the lessons by reading the books together. Some days I will read and other days JustaBXgirl will do the reading. The beauty of this collection is that you can choose if you want to use all the books in the bundle or if you want to focus only on a few. It can be used in the manner which best works for your family. You can purchase the bundle and get all of the books or purchase individually the books that work for your family.

The books can serve as a wonderful introduction to a number of topics and offer glossaries, discussion questions, and more at the end of each story. In this post I will share a bit about each book.

The Tuttle Twins Learn About The Law – This book is based on The Law by Frédéric Bastiat. When Ethan and Emily Tuttle learn about wisdom in school it leads to a discussion with one of the wisest people that they know, their neighbor, Fred. Fred shares the book  The Law by Frédéric Bastiat and helps them understand the place that laws and rights have in our society. The Tuttle Twins introduces ideas of legal plunder and true laws. It is a great beginning to studying how governments work and don’t work.

The Tuttle Twins and the Miraculous Pencil – This book is based on Leonard Read’s essay “I, Pencil.” You can find an animated video on Youtube here of the original essay. In this book, the Tuttle Twins and their classmates go on on a field trip to a factory that manufacturers school supplies after learning what an economy is. While at the factory, the class discusses how to make a pencil exploring everything needed to make one. As in Leonard Read’s essay, this book does an amazing job of sharing all that goes into making the pencil. It is a wonderful way to begin discussions on interconnectivity in our society.

The Tuttle Twins and the Creature from Jekyll Island – This book has multiple lessons. It begins by sharing that the Tuttle Twins dad’s favorite hobby is beekeeping. In the first pages of the book we learn about how honey is made and extracted so that it is ready to be sold. This can be a complete lesson in itself but there’s more in store for us in this story. After packaging the honey up, the Tuttle Twins get ready to enjoy their annual county fair and farmer’s market with their grandparents where they will they sell their honey. While selling their honey, they get into a discussion with their grandpa about why we want to earn money. Their grandpa introduces the concept of a medium of exchange, which then leads to an experiment in bartering. This book introduces the Federal Reserve and fiat currency.

The Tuttle Twins and the Food Truck Fiasco – This book introduces the Tuttle Twins to the idea of Protectionism. The book breaks down the hard work and need for community involvement in getting laws changed. Change doesn’t happen overnight but can happen with a plan and people willing to work together to make it happen. This book contains lessons in economics. Many of the principles discussed can be found in Economics in One Lesson.

The Tuttle Twins and the Road To Surfdom – There’s lessons to be learned everywhere. In this book the tuttles head to the beach for a family reunion. What should have been sand, sun, and fun turns into an adventure to find out why so much has changed. Whey have so many shops on La Playa Land closed down. Why are so many people moving? What is eminent domain? How does central planning work? Should we focus on individualism or collectivism? This book with ideas from Road to Serfdom is really well done in ways that allow littles to see how one decision impacts many. It might be my favorite in the series.

The Tuttle Twins and the Golden Rule – Summer Camp means the Tuttle Twins will be on different teams. When around their new friends they learn that competitions can cause us to not be our best selves. There is sabotage and pranks galore. This book shared the Golden Rule with the twins through their camp leaders. They learn to do no harm and to do good. They learn to come together and work together for the best interests of all. It’s a simple lesson but very important, especially in our current society.

The Tuttle Twins and the Search For Atlas – This book comes from the ideas behind Atlas Shrugged. The Tuttle Twins win a contest that will allow them to participate in a traveling circus as clowns. When they report for duty they find out the strongman has quit. Throughout the story they hear different perspectives on why he left. They also get to observe how different positions are valued in different ways. They learn a bit about supply and demand. They learn about production vs. consumption. They even learn a little about socialism. JustaBXgirl will enjoy this book because she takes circus class so can have a behind the scenes perspective. I enjoy the book because it’s an opportunity to introduce different economic systems in a simplified way.

The Tuttle Twins and their Spectacular Show Business – I feel like so many people these days are saying they want to be a business owner but don’t really take the time to know what goes into that. This Tuttle Twin adventure builds on the work found in Competition & Entrepreneurship. It does a phenomenal job in helping the Tuttle Twins identify needs to starting their business. I love the five questions that their Nana asks them when they present their idea. This book also introduces business plans and defines monopolies and competition. JustaBXgirl has always had an entrepreneurial spirit. I see this book getting lots of use.

The Tuttle Twins and the Fate of the Future – The Tuttle Twins are disturbed after watching a dystopian movie and decide that they want to make sure their future doesn’t fall into the hands of predator robots. They use their upcoming book club to work with their friends and their families to come up with ways to avoid a dismal future. This book brings us ideas from Anatomy of the State which for less than $6 I might be adding to my home library. The twins learn about coercion vs persuasion in government along with the difference between state and society. Given our current political climate in the United States, I can see using this with the girls to plant hope and build creative ideas on how our society can avoid a dystopian future.

The Tuttle Twins and the Education Vacation – Hold the presses. The Tuttle Twins are going to be homeschooled!!!! The Education Vacation is the start of a new type of learning adventure for the Tuttle Twins. This book is a great read for anyone questioning why families choose homeschool. While every family is different and has different reasons for their educational journeys this sums up a good portion of the reasoning. Some of the ideas shared here come from The Underground History of American Education, which I am adding to my TBR list. One of my favorite things about this book is that whether you choose to homeschool or not, it reminds us that our children are individuals. They will all learn differently and deserve to be recognized for their individual needs and achievements.

The Tuttle Twins and the Messed Up Market – The Tuttle Twins have decided to sell their family theater. They still have the entrepreneurial spirit though and jump right into another business plan. This time after learning a bit about how banks work, the Tuttle Twins decide to start a business lending other kids money to start their own businesses. This book delves into incentives, loans, interest, and subsidies. It would be a great place to introduce government subsidies to littles and research where most go and how they help or hurt society as a whole.

The Tuttle Twins and the Leviathan Crisis – This Tuttle Twins connects with Crisis and Leviathan. Outside of the comic book shop businesses in their community are suffering. Many are looking for government subsidies but Mr. Tuttle doesn’t believe that to be the answer. This book talks about how in times of crisis government reaches for more control as citizens fear for their futures. The story does a great job introducing new terms and revisiting others.

The Tuttle Twins and the 12 Rules Boot Camp – We all want to be our best selves. In this Tuttle Twins adventure we meet the twins youngest uncle, Brock. Brock is not living his best life or living up to his potential but that is okay because we all need to start somewhere. The Twins put together a 12 Rules Bookt Camp to help Brock identify 12 rules that will help him start living an honorable life he can be proud of. The idea of 12 rules comes from 12 Rules For Life. This one is a good one for helping littles identify the type of life they want to lead and the type of person they want to be

The Tuttle Twins and the Medals of Merit – This book tackles totalitarianism, socialism, and communism all through the lens of youth sports. There are many lessons that can be pulled from this book but my favorite is that sometimes even when inundated with adults values and beliefs children can work together to make things right for everyone.

Now that you’ve made it through the Bundle check out the Tuttle Twins new release, The Tuttle Twins Guide to the World’s Worst Ideas. It came out in May and shares 20 ideas that seem to never go away.