how do i get started in homeschooling my children. and no smart a++ either please.?

Answer 1

Some states are actually willing to fund your home-schooling efforts -- and in that case, the organizations who facilitate such programs are a great starting point for advice. If you don't see anything of that nature listed in local phone book, call your state's Dept. of Ed. to ask. Such a call may also provide information about legal restrictions in your state regarding home-schooling.

If there are no organizations that facilitate state funded home-schooling, take time to find private home-schooling cooperatives in your state. Home-schooling can have some hidden complexities -- especially for high school and in ensuring your child a diploma. But even for elementary, the best sources of advice will be people that have been doing it for awhile in your state -- not to mention that a mentor of sorts is highly recommended.

Answer 2

The first step is to know your state laws - each state is different, so check out the HSLDA website to see an overview of your state's laws.

Next, you need to determine your method/philosophy - classical, unschooling, eclectic, Charlotte Mason. See if your library has any books ABOUT homeschooling and do a search online. If you're leaning towards the classical approach, _The Well-Trained Mind_ by Jessie Wise and Susan Wise Bauer is an excellent resource. If you're more eclectic and want to choose your own curriculum, check out _Home Learning Year-by Year_ by Rebecca Rupp.

Finally, the curriculum. A lot of the choices will be dictated by your methodology/philosophy. Unschooling - you won't need many textbooks, just lots and lots of books and manipulatives for younger kids. Classical - lots of classic books, both for children and teens/adults along with a few texts (spines) for math, science...

There are some great curriculum reviews by Cathy Duffy (_100 Top Picks for Homeschool Curriculum_) and Mary Pride (_Big Book of Home Learning_ or _Mary Pride's Complete Guide to Getting Started in Homeschooling_).

Look for a local support group or co-op - they're great sources of info on dealing with the public schools, what's available in the community, dealing with worrried family members, ... You can also ask around to look at (and maybe even borrow) different curriculum before you shell out the cash.

One caveat - not every curriculum works for everyone. I can't tell you how much I have spent on, "this totally awesome curriculum that the kids all LOVE" only to find out my kids DESPISE it. Try it out, and if it doesn't work, shelve it and try again in a month or two. If it STILL doesn't work, sell it on eBay and move on to some other program. Oh, and I would avoid buying your whole curriculum from one publisher (A Beka, Bob Jones, etc.). Not that they don't have good stuff, but not everything will fit with your family and your kids learning styles.

For the absolute best prices on new curriculum, check out Rainbow Resource (see sources). For used curriculum, start with your local homeschool community, then check out eBay, VegSource, and CraigsList (if there's one where you live).

Of course, to avoid the anti-social thing, make sure you enroll your kids in some type of activities (karate, gymnastics, chess club, etc.) You may even find out that there are homeschool activities available, where your kids get to interact with other homeschoolers. Where we live, public schools look down their noses at homeschoolers and offer NO support, but some private schools offer 'dual enrollment' or cafeteria-style enrollment (pick and choose your classes).

This should get you started. If you need clarification on anything or have further question, feel free to email me.

Answer 3

I am a homeschool mom to four kids, different grades. The first question I would ask is, what state do you live in? To find out all the legal stuff about your state go to www.HSLDA.com. It is an excellent website and I would suggest gaining membership to them, if you decide to homeschool your kids. This will help protect your right to homeschool you children. As far as specifics on how to get started, I can offer this, contact me either through my email [e-mail], or messanager using alistrinaknows, and I will help answer any questions you have and lead you to the right website for your circumstance. I look forward to hearing from you.

Answer 4

Hopefully you will not have any problems, but you should decide how determined you are to do this. Sometimes the schools cause a lot of problems for homeschooling parents. I'm not trying to change your mind, just suggesting that you be prepared for the worst and hope for the best.

Answer 5

Eh, I don't know about the legal stuff, but in terms of preparing your children, I can offer this advice:

Get your kids used to the idea first. Explain what homeschooling is to them, and see if there's a homeschooler email list or the like that you can get on and ask if you can talk to any homeschooling parents, or set up something so your kids can meet.

Then, have them take a learning styles test. Discover Your Child's Learning Style by Victoria Kindle Hodson is very good and has a test. If you have a Performing, auditory learner on your hands, there's no point in making him do Producing style print work, because that will only frustrate him.

If you're coming off school, just take time to deschool and relax. Let your kids unwind completely. Just have lazy days where all the kids do is play guitar and lie on their beds reading for a few months. Then, start slowly. Say, "Okay, guys, we're just going to do math today." Then, next week, add science, after that, English, etc.

Pay attention to how your kids learn best. Some kids will do best if they have a school-at-home setup, but to be honest most won't. I'm a completely independent learner; if I'm being led, I get bored out of my mind and nothing sticks, no matter how hard I try to pay attention. Depending on how old your kids are (I'm assuming 5-10, don't know why, but hey, does it matter?) independence may be more or less needed. Find out if just giving your kid a math book and saying, "Do lesson 40 and put it in your math folder by the end of the day," works best or if the kid needs to be with an animal, outside, kicking a soccer ball against the wall (the last works wonders for me) or yeah, being led by you.

In terms of finding supplies, eBay is very useful. It's a huge con to buy a whole curriculum. Pay attention to what your kids want to learn about in each subject, and get books out of the library on that topic. Museums often have printable assignments on their websites. If you have a kid who, for science, wants to study ornithology, that's just as valid as whatever arbitrary science the curriculum makers have decided a kid should be interested in at that age. Also, realizing that some kids aren't music people, or aren't math people, can be very difficult. If all your kid wants to do all day is play his electric guitar, let him. If he hates math, just say, "Okay, I want you to get to Trig," (or whatever) and nurture his musical talents.

There's really no point in forcing someone whose heart lies in music to do sheets of balanced questions -it's not like it's really going to stick if he doesn't care- just like there's no point in trying to force a math head to be the next great oboist.

In closing (whoa, I went on too long), try to have fun, relax, and listen to your kid's input. It's okay to have days where you don't do any 'school'. Haven't you ever taken a day off of work?

I'd reccomend unschooling but that's a radical movement, so it may not be to your tastes.

Answer 6

Contact your local school district. They will be able to help you get started and let you know the district and state requirements. But... if you can't figure out how to get started without asking here, you might want to reconsider homeschooling.

Answer 7

First, does your state require a homeschool license? Second, since you have a computor you can do alot thru that.

Answer 8

http://www.home-school.com/