Frequently Asked Questions & Answers
Hello
Due to some delays currently, you will only receive your tracking number once your order has left Oikos base.
We are experiencing a two/three-week backlog at this time so you will therefore be waiting a little longer than usual to receive your order.
We would like to thank you for your order and your support of Oikos.
We would like you to know that we are working around the clock to keep stock on the shelves so we can pack your order and get it to you asap, but in spite of this, we have many factors which are influencing our efficiency in this regard, hence the delays. So, we ask for your patience and understanding and hope that while you wait you will find support and help in what we have put in place for you.
We are not sure if you are aware, or not, but we have a number of support structures in place for families who are choosing to teach their children at home. Since Oikos was established, in 1989, the primary objective is to help families who are keeping their children at home to raise and educate them. So the support that has been put in place since then continues to be strengthened with the changing of time and needs. It is this that we hope you will be blessed by and that you will find help and support through these means while you wait for your order to arrive.
Oikos YouTube channel- Videos are uploaded here routinely and there are a number of courses which you may find worth watching while you wait for your order and hopefully you will find videos/courses here for you to revisit when the time is right for you.
We also hope you will find the Oikos Facebook page helpful in keeping you updated.
You may also find the Oikos Podcasts helpful.
Please do not hesitate to contact us if we can be of any further assistance.
Once again, thank you for your patience and understanding
blessings
The Oikos team.
We hope, as we feel sure you do too, for a wonderful year.
We also hope that we can continue to serve and support you in your journey with your family at home.
Please do remember that we continue to ‘create’ for you: videos, audio books, podcasts, resources and so on.
We have taken the lockdown time during 2020 to be an opportunity for us to do productions for you which we are placing on the Oikos YouTube page. We hope for them to be encouraging, inspiring, supportive, helpful….or whatever it is that will help you.
Oikos YouTube channel.
https://www.youtube.com/user/oikosfamily
We share this with you at the start of the year as a reminder that the reason for the Oikos YouTube channel is there to help you. We know that when a new year starts there is a natural focus on what books to get so we do not need to encourage you to focus on that but perhaps a prompt to not forget about the help that is being made available to you will be helpful.
You can also contact us via email or ‘chat to us’ on the site….we are here to help.
Keep safe, keep smiling, keep strong
Abundant blessings
the Oikos Team.
Because we are making books for you we would like to encourage you to, 'grow a tree'.
If you have received seeds in your Oikos order, we hope you and your children will enjoy this project
You may have received either little acorns from the Sawtooth Oak tree variety or seeds from the Henkels Yellowwood tree variety.
Here are some fun facts.
The Sawtooth Oak tree.
Did you know...
Uses
The primary use for this species is as a wildlife food source. It is also a good shade tree.
Description
Sawtooth Oak is a large species, reaching a mature height of 21m. The leaves are similar to those of the chestnut but are smaller, 10-20cm, and have pointed teeth. The acorns are also small in size, about 2cm long, and are enclosed in cups. Approximately 2/3 of the nut is covered by the cup. Trees produce about 300 acorns per kg.
When planting acorns, plant them about 2cm deep. The seedlings should not be transplanted until they reach 30cm or more, in height.
Hopefully you and your children will do some further fact-finding on the Sawtooth Oaktree and learn the best way to plant the acorns and take care of them.
An exercise in patience while you wait for your oak tree to grow!
The Yellowwood tree
The Yellowwood tree is South Africa's National Tree
This variety of yellowwood tree is one of the most beautiful and decorative of our indigenous conifers, a tree that any plant enthusiast would be proud to have in their garden.
With its dense glossy foliage, it makes a most elegant pyramid of green in the garden.
The Yellowwood tree is a slow-growing tree with hard wood which is useful for furniture, panelling etc.
We so hope you and your children will do some further fact finding on the yellowwood seeds and learn the best way to plant them and take care of them, while you all grow in patience as you wait for your tree to grow.
If you would like us to send you the PDF which has photos of the seed planting project please email us at [email protected]
We hope that this festive season will be a blessing to you all, even with this being the end of a dramatic year, such has never before been known, we do trust that you will be able to enjoy the festive season and that you and your family will be blessed throughout.
We would like to thank you for your support through the challenging times of 2020 and we sincerely hope and pray that 2021 will see us being able to continue supporting and serving you.
Oikos websites will remain live and active during the festive season however the daily ‘chat to us’ on the website and order processing will stop as from the 18th Dec and re-open on the 4th Jan 2021.
You will be able to continue to browse and place orders during the 18th Dec and 4th Jan. however orders will only be processed, packed and then couriered to you after the 4th Jan. 2021.
From the 4th Jan. 2021 the orders will be processed in date order starting with the first to leave Oikos in 2021 being those placed from the 18 Dec. onwards.
We shall continue to be active on the Oikos Facebook page and Oikos YouTube channel so we do hope you will be able to follow the support offered there.
Please keep safe, keep smiling and keep strong
JOY=Strength
Abundant blessings to you and your loved ones.
Currently, we are in the process of some developments regarding Maths-U-See digital access
With regard to the digital Maths-U-See developments, we will keep you informed through the website and Oikos Facebook page. Right now, this is still a work in progress.
We have been informed by Math-U-See USA that due to the many challenges currently, as well as various other complexities, they will only be developing the digital version for South Africa to be offered through Oikos in 2021.
While we wait we can be praying for them all as they traverse their way through the global crisis.
Math-U-See USA sent us this question, and their answer, to help families with the physical DVDS'
- Our computer was recently updated to Windows 10. Now we find that we can no longer play the Math-U-See Instruction DVDs. Do you have an updated file that we can download to continue using this program?
- Yes, you’ll need to install a video player to use the DVDs on your Windows 10 operating system. One option that has worked successfully for other customers is found at www.videolan.org; download the VLC media player. (Please note, this is a third-party website and Demme Learning is not responsible for the content.)
I hope this is helpful to you in the interim.
blessings
The Oikos Team
March 25 - 2021 Update from Math-U-See - USA
Hello Sonja,
International customers are unable to purchase directly from our store website unless they have a US billing address and are only purchasing the DP and that would be the exception.
International customers will call us to place their order. We prepare a PayPal invoice and then fulfill their order. If they mention they are a SA customer we will direct them back to you for the SA edition and manipulatives. If they want to purchase the DP from us directly we will offer that to them but all SA editions and manipulatives are referred back to you.
Everything that we have in our DP will also be in the DP we are creating for you to offer your customers since we are hosting and supporting that. You will have access to providing the DP to your customers which we will review at training
Question: Regarding LLTAL Gold, World Literature. How important is it to have the specified publisher version of the additional novels
Answer: You do not have to use the specified versions of the literature for the World Literature course. The lessons are not tied to any specific version. There are many translations of The Odyssey, some harder to read than others. We suggest that you review a few to find what works best for your student. We do recommend No Fear Shakespeare because of the modern translation, but it is not necessary for completing the lessons.
A story you should read regarding this.
A few months ago we heard the news that we would not be able to import the Math-U-See manipulative blocks. This of course was a great concern, so we prayed. We prayed most specifically for the Math-U-See team in USA because they were dealing with a supply shortage which had multiple ripple effects on them and the people. So we prayed.
When our (Oikos) stock of manipulative sets starting running low we started praying for you, the parents whom we serve and supply these resources too. A few months later i wrote a letter to share the sadness of us no longer being able to supply the blocks. The day i was going to send that letter i received word from Math-U-See USA that they could send us some (50 to be exact) block sets. These block sets are referred to as IBK’s. (Integer Block Kit). We were delighted that we would be able to keep supplying you but we did continue to pray as we wondered what would happen when the 50 IBK’s, which we were now able to get from USA, were sold.
This part of the story is where it hits the parents……sadly. Although we have managed to get more IBK’s in stock the cost to do so has resulted in a price increase of 25% !!!
We are saddened by this reality but we had to make a decision…25% increase or no IBK’s. We were so very glad that Math-U-See USA were able to supply us with the 50 IBK’s so we accepted the increase and began the import process. Now however we are faced with the decision once again as we are able to receive another 50 sets but once again the price increase will be 25%.
So this letter is to inform you that we have decided to proceed with getting more blocks so that we can continue to supply you with this valuable resource but we will need to increase the price of the blocks, so as to be able to import these blocks. We have managed to adjust the increase to be 21% instead of the 25% that we have incurred. (Truth be known, the increase to Oikos was significantly more but we were so heart sore to add even the 21% to the blocks. We now trust and hope that we can sustain these increases)
Signing off with a bitter sweet feeling in my heart. Happy that we can keep supplying you and sad about the increase.
What is the difference between KONOS HOW Vol 1. and KONOS HOW Vol.2?
- Year Planning
- Goal Setting
- Portfolio Development
- Order of study
- History
- Art
- English Studies
- Bible Studies
What KONOS HOW Vol. I Covers:
- History
- Art
- English Studies
- Bible Studies
- Latin
We understand that the new payment system is different to the old, but we assure you that it is just as reliable, as well as being even more secure than before.
The changes implemented on our site are to do with EFT payments, as (in the past) they have been a huge security problem, as well as adding a time-delay to order processing. Because of this, we implemented the SiD Instant EFT Payment method.
If you are unsure about the security measures in place, could we ask you to follow this link, as it will explain it more efficiently than we could via email.
However, we have also added a way for you to pay via your debit card. As long as the card is either MasterCard or VISA, you can pay using the PayGate "Pay via card" section.
This video shares a personal testimony which we hope will encourage and help you.
Please watch this video which is a personal testimony of living with illness.
Please watch this video which shares about the value of family board game time.
If you still have questions feel free to contact us at [email protected]
Please watch this video for the answer. If you still have questions feel free to contact us at [email protected]
Please watch this video for the answer. If you still have questions feel free to contact us at [email protected]
While we offer educational resources for all ages, we are not a formal institution and don’t require formal registration. This is due to the vision, philosophy and objectives of the ministry.
We only require for you to register an online account (which you will be prompted to do automatically as you checkout on the Oikos online store). Registering online enables you to shop without having to enter your details every time you wish to checkout, as well as keeping a record of your previous orders.
Services
Free Delivery
On orders over R1500. Within all major urban areas in South Africa.
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Placements & Assessments
Tests for Maths and Language placement