HomeschoolTeacherMom S.

This is the absolute WORST place to buy curriculum. I did not research with the BBB before doing business with them. I orderered over $500 worth of curriculum from them (I chose the lease option, which is the same price as the purchase option, but if you return the package by the due date, you get 1/2 the amount credited toward more curriculum).

They got everything wrong. On the site, there is an option to choose from 2 different types of math programs. I chose one, and actually received the other.

When I tried to call them (over 12 times) during business hours, I kept getting a recording telling me they were closed and to call back. After then emailing at least 5 times, I finally got someone to respond to me. They tried to tell me there was no such option to choose from on the site, and that someone had tried to call me to inquire as to which program I wanted. Since I "didn't answer the phone, they just chose one for me". 1) I just went back there today, and yes, there IS an option on the online ordering form to choose Harcourt Math or Saxon Math. 2) No one EVER called me - our house phone is in our homeschool room and I sat by that phone night and day. There were no missed calls on the caller ID, and no messages on the voicemail. ERRRRrrrr...

Also - a hint about the lease option. Not a good idea for folks who follow the public school calendar, if you (also like me) are an OCD planning type who likes to order all your curriculum early to avoid the crowds and backordering. They only give you 12 calendar months with your books. I ordered mine in March, but quickly came to regret that decision as I was told that I would have to return it by March 1 of the next year in order to be eligible for the credit. So while time was ticking away on my other core subjects, I still hadn't received my Math curriculum, and they refused to give me an idea as to when I would receive it.

So I had to take my son's summer break away from him, start him on his 4th grade lessons early (sans Math), so we could finish in time to send the books back. Meanwhile - we still didn't have a Math program. They refused to work with me at all. I asked if we could extend the lease of my other subjects just until we received the Math so that we could start them all together. They said No. I asked if they could reimburse me for the cost of the Math, so I could purchase a different program elsewhere. They said, NO. Their only solution was to charge me through the nose for a lease extention of the other books until I had time to finish the Math program. No thanks- I finally told them to change my status to a purchase option, so that I could give my son his well-deserved summer break and then move along at our own pace... and also so I would never have to darken their online doors again.

Oh, BTW... If you order the SUPER (most expensive kit)... none of the tests are included except in GUM (Grammar), in which the tests are actually built into the book. Most other online stores include the tests/extra teaching materials with the "deluxe versions... not this place! When they say "teachers manuals," they actually mean "photocopied answer key to review questions in the book." You don't get the actual teachers manual... with teaching hints and tests with answers... you just get the answers to the little summary questions at the end of each lesson... IF you're lucky.