If you're thinking about homeschooling, but don't know where to start, it can feel a little overwhelming. I'm going to share a few things that have streamlined our routine and made the process enjoyable for everyone. Sometimes, parents have this idea in their heads about what homeschooling is supposed to be like. In reality, it can be ANYTHING that works for you. Don't make it hard on yourself, and your child(ren), by trying to fit in this little box. That's one of the main reasons you're getting out of the public school system in the first place, I am guessing.
There are SO MANY resources, groups, and co-ops nowadays since homeschooling has become so much more popular (and with good reason). You just need to find out what route is best for your child(ren).
First thing, you need to look into your State's laws in regards to homeschooling. Luckily in Texas where we live, the laws are really in our favor. They just want a basic curriculum of the core areas of reading, spelling, math, grammar, and good citizenship. There is no need to even register. If your child is already registered in public school, you'll just have to fill out a form and send it to the admin office, letting them know that your child is being withdrawn for homeschooling. It is stated that someone from the state could come and check on your child's progress, but it is extremely unlikely. I file all of my son's tangible work, though, just in case.
Here are a few of my other tips to help you get started...
Find Your Curriculum
Initially, this is what can be tricky for some families as there are so many programs available. Sometimes people purchase something and realize they do not like the way things are set up. Others find their children don't mesh well with the way things are taught in the lessons. I believe that curriculum should be more about keeping you on a certain path. We pick and choose what lessons we really want to focus on. Honestly, if there is something that I believe is a waste of my child's time, we won't do it. You will definitely come across "busy work" in some of these programs, just like in public school.
Personally, I have chosen a curriculum that is FREE. This program is Easy Peasy All-In-One Homeschool. If you want to print out their Ebook textbooks, it will cost money. They do have online versions that you can use for free, though. Once you figure out the classes that your child needs to take, they can go at their own pace. There are some things that you will need to do together, but there are also several lessons that they can do on their own. This program utilizes online games, online books, videos, worksheets, activities (both online and on paper), and the occasional project.
Supplement
This is why I do not stress too much on the curriculum. You are going to want to supplement with other things as well. I've found several great resources online. There are many teaching websites out there that will allow you to print off free worksheets and play online learning games. You can easily find spelling lists for any grade level.
One thing I do pay for is Education.com. It should give you half off the first month, then $15 a month after that. This website is loaded with tens of thousands of worksheets for all grades and all subjects. It comes with lesson plans that you can print out. It has online guided lessons and has quite a few learning games that can be assigned and played. This is a great website to help bolster your curriculum. That being said, I recommend buying a laser printer. I print off so many worksheets and the cartridges last up to 1,000+ sheets.
Another thing I find to be helpful is workbooks. I have found so many over the years at Target, Dollar Tree, 5 Below, and several other places. They are relatively cheap and a great way to get your children to complete some lessons on their own.
You need to be utilizing Youtube. There are just a plethora of educational videos geared towards children. If you're looking for something to add to a particular lesson, I guarantee there's a video to go along with it. Also, this is obviously something that your child can do on their own.
When supplementing, this is where you have the chance to come up with your own routine. These are some of the things that I've come up with:
Once a week, we will do a spelling test. Once a week, or every other week (depending on our workload), my son will have a creative writing assignment. This will either be prompted, or he comes up with his own prompt. On top of the curriculum, I will sometimes give him math, grammar, reading, and social studies worksheets and/or workbooks. Occasionally we will get in the kitchen and do a cooking class or do some type of engineering building project that we've found online (you can literally make school this fun). If he's had a pretty taxing day (we're getting into some pretty hard math right now), I will let him decompress with 30+ minutes of online learning games.
This may seem like a lot, but most days we finish school in 2-3 hours and before lunchtime. Then, we have the rest of the day for getting together with friends, running errands, or just hanging out at the house.
Schedule
This is entirely up to you here. You need to figure out what works best for your family. I know someone that does curriculum Monday-Wednesday and takes the rest of the week to do fun projects, experiments, or just hang out with friends. I know of another family that will do lessons 3 weeks on and 1 week off. I know another family that's pretty laissez-faire with their schedule. I am kind of the same. We will usually do lessons Monday-Friday, but if we have something going on that day, or we just need a break, we don't do any work. What you'll find doing homeschool is that your child will be so far ahead compared to children going to public school (especially since we do not take a full 10-week summer break). It's easy and realistic to think that you can allow your child to take their time on some things.
Also, if you want to take that vacation, go for it. There's nobody you need to let know that your child will not be attending class and no need for makeup work. On one of our longer trips, I've taken a little schoolwork for my son to do in the mornings while we spend the rest of the day playing on the beach.
Socialization
I have gotten a lot of flack from family members and other people telling me that my son does not get enough socialization with other kids and that homeschool kids can be weird. Quite the contrary, though. There are so many ways to get your kid(s) around other children. There are so many co-op groups out there, wherever you may live. There are schools set up specifically for homeschool kids where they can go at least once a week and work on their curriculum or be taught lessons (outside of their own work), usually by other parents. It's a good way to meet more like-minded people and for your child to make some new friends. In some areas, there are farms where your child can spend the day learning how to garden, help around the farm, horseback ride, and play outdoor activities.
My son is enrolled in Jiu-Jitsu four nights a week (his idea ha), and he loves it. You can enroll your child in organized sports. You will even have the ability to enroll them in traveling sports teams, if that's what you're into, without it getting in the way of his schooling. I also sign my son up for a few camps during summer. We go on a lot of camping trips, and that is another great way he meets new kids.
Another thing I've found is that there are several businesses that do special events during weekdays specifically for children that are homeschooled. I found a gym that offers a two-hour gymnastics class, three times a week, for homeschoolers. They play games, learn fun little techniques, and then have open gym for the last 30 minutes. He has a blast with it! Look around your area to see what options might be available.
Once your child has met a few kids, you can easily schedule playdates with the parents and make it a pretty regular thing. A lot of the times when the weather is nice, we will go hang out at the park downtown for a few hours. My son meets tons of new kids that way, some that are also homeschooled. You'll find that it becomes easier to hang out with families that homeschool because they have relatively the same schedule as you, and your line of thinking is more on the same page. It can be difficult for some families that are still in the public school system to understand why you do what you do.
Review
In Texas, homeschooled children do not have to take any standardized testing, which is a blessing. I do think a review of past lessons is important, though. When we're finishing up a grade level, I like to have my son do a review workbook to see how much he has retained. I will of course add this review book to his files. He does not do it all in one sitting. Over the course of a grade level, I will also have him do certain topics multiple times to make sure he has properly learned it.
Work Environment
This is something else I love about the freedom of homeschooling. For one, we get to start whenever we want, and my son can stay in his pajamas. We usually start at 9:00 am. This gives him about an hour or so to wake up and eat.
When he was in school, we had to force him to wake up at 6:30 am, shovel food down his throat, and get him dressed because my husband had to drop him off on his way to work by 7:00 am. That was just no bueno for me.
If you feel a little lazy sometimes, feel free to sprawl out on the couch and do your lessons from there, using a lap desk and the coffee table. We usually work at the kitchen island, but sometimes we'll change it up. Occasionally, my son likes to work on the floor, wrapped up in his sleeping bag. Whatever gets the work done, I'm all for it. We've even done work while at the park. We just grab a table under the pavillion. It's pretty relaxing when the weather is nice out.
More Than One Child
If you have more than one child at more than one grade level, facilitating their workloads may feel a little tricky at times. This will be another area of trial and error. Every family will be different here.
Not only do I have a nine-year-old son, but I babysit a preschooler that I am prepping for Kinder. Her workload is much lighter than my son's, and she requires more breaks. Sometimes I will have her watch my son do his science and history lessons, especially if there is a video. She enjoys being able to do things with him. I've even implemented a system where my son helps to teach her lessons, and he receives a dollar per day. She also really enjoys the online learning games and doing worksheets. Even at that age, there are many things she can do on her own. This frees up my time and enables me to help my son with some of his harder lessons, or get some things done around the house.
I hope these tips will help you in your homeschooling endeavors. Feel free to ask me questions about anything I may have missed, or you just need more information about.
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