Are you Considering Homeschooling?

 There is no one else that is more knowledgeable about your child than you are. No one will be more invested in their education than you. No one will love them and put up with their little quirks more than you will. You are your child’s best teacher.

 I could give you hundreds of statistics on why homeschooling works, but the bottom line is- it works. You most likely wouldn’t be here if you hadn’t heard at least one success story.

Getting Started Homeschooling

 There are so many resources out there to help new homeschooling families that knowing where to start and wading through it all can be overwhelming. Take a deep breath and follow these easy steps below.

1. Recognize that you can do this! You don’t have to have a degree in education or any other degree to teach your children. Being their parent is enough. It will require some motivation and consistency.

2. Every state has their own laws and requirements for homeschooling. Check out your state’s laws below.

3. Decide what kind of a teacher you are, and what kind of a learner your student(s) are.  Do you like to create your own lessons, or would you prefer a curriculum that tells you what to teach? Does your child enjoy workbooks or are they more of a hands-on learner? Are you not sure?  Check out these resources.

1. Teaching Around the 4 MAT Cycle

2. The Big What Now book of learning styles

 4. Once you have decided on #3 It’s time to figure out what curriculum to purchase (unless you are creating your own) This is where it can sometimes get overwhelming. There are hundreds of choices out there, if you have homeschooling friends ask them what they use and what they like/don’t like about it. Read some reviews. Settle on what you think might be the best fit for your family and know that you can always change something that isn’t working.

5. Plan.  This is where it gets fun. (at least for me) Sit down with a calendar and your curriculum and plan out your year. Your state might have a required number of days or hours that you have to school. If that is the case, make sure you plan your year accordingly. Give yourself lots of flexibility. Most curriculums have four-day options. I personally think 4 days is the way to go. Having the extra day allows us to plan field trips, participate in co-ops, run errands, make appointments, have playdates or just catch up.  Consider how much time off you want to take around the holidays. Are there any trips you have planned? Look through your curriculum and decide if there are any subjects that could be connected to field trips in the area, or experiments that you need to plan for. I like to write these things down so that I know what I need to plan for.

6. Pray over your year and ask that the Lord give you the grace and the wisdom you need to school these precious children.

You can find your state requirements on the HSLDA website here.