Question to parents who homeschool their children...I'm considering...?

Question

Home-schooling my daughter. She's now 21 months old. At what age do most children begin their homeschooling 'careers'? I'm also a piano teacher (teach privately in my home). I want to homeschool my daughter because of the condition of schools these days. How much time does homeschool require each day? Do you homeschool your children Mon-Fri? I'm just trying to get a feel for how busy my days will be w/ teaching my daughter and teaching my piano students, plus just taking care of our house. I just don't want to be soooo busy each day that I don't have any 'downtime' with my daughter and husband. Any comments/suggestions/etc. greatly appreciated. Thanks!

Answer 1

Well, you already are teaching her....speech, grammar, behavior, etiquette, names of objects and animals, etc....

You can work around your family life and husband as well as your career. The times you teach piano, she can do reading, art or she can be with daddy at the library. You can include dad in teaching her, he could take over one or two classes, maybe health and PE, or science? If you homeschool, don't force yourself to be like a "school" with rigid times, rigid days, rigid styles or curriculums. It is okay to teach sunday afternoon, or Tuesday from 11 to 4 and then Wednesday from 9 till 2. It is okay to throw in a vacation day for her birthday and for the family to enjoy a day at the zoo, that too can be educational as well as bonding.
In other words, go with what works in your family and with your daughter. Start tracking her schooling once she hits 6 y.o. and register with HSLDA and the school district that you will homeschool her.

Enjoy your child and your family!!!

Answer 2

Homeschooling is very much a lifestyle, not just something you do for certain times a week. Every parent home with their child during the early years is really homeschooling their child. As the child grows, you progress from one step to another. This is one advantage of homeschooling from the start--it doesn't have to be a big jolt to the system.

Where you live may affect just what you do, though. Some places require you to do so many hours per day or year or that you cover certain subjects. It would be good to check up on these.

Other than that, because you are the principal and teacher, you get to decide the hours and the approach. What is typical where I live is for homeschooled students to have mornings set aside for more formal work and afternoons for other learning, like lessons, field trips, arts and crafts, just plain playing, things like that. Typically, kids aged K-1 don't do more than an hour of formal work per day. In grade 2, you might have 1-2 hours of formal work. Grades 3-6, 2-3 hours. Grades 7-9, usually at least 3 solid hours. Grades 10-12, 4-6 hours. But, the older they get, the more independent they can work, so you aren't sitting there with your child for 4 hours a day.

Some people start formal things as early as preschool. Others wait until required by law. You get to choose. And the beauty of homeschooling is that you can structure your day in a way that will work for you. You are not regulated by the school daily schedule and can get started at 7am, if you wish, and be done by 10, depending on the age of your child, of course.

Since you are a piano teacher, I'd suggest looking into getting to know your local homeschooling community better. You may be able to have a career simply out of teaching homeschooled students, which will also give you the most flexibility.

What we do: We have formal work M-F, although sometimes I'll do some very little things on the weekends. Our formal work time is usually from about 8:30-11:30. Afternoons are a great time to set aside 15 minutes for everybody to do some cleaning up in the house, sit back and relax, and have some fun.

Answer 3

My friend homeschools her daughter (age four, completing a Kindergarten cirriculum) two days a week. That's what works for them right now. Some weeks they do more schooling, it just depends. She looks for all the "teachable" moments that anyone can find. Her daughter also attends a local YMCA for gym with other homeschool kids.
Work around your schedule. You'll learn soon enough if your daughter would do better starting at 7am (some do) or 10. One hour may be more than enough one day, but she may sit through five hours the next. Be flexible! I want to homeschool, too, so good luck!

Answer 4

You have already been homeschooling your daughter when you think about it. You have taught her the things she needs to know for her age. I say take a deep breath and not overthink things too much. Children don't need to officially be in "school" until the ages of 6 or 7 in some states. Remember children need time to play up to this age to learn what they need to become healthy and happy children. Allow her plenty of time to be a little one until you really start in with the curriculumn. My sister in law is teaching her 9 year old daughter and she says it takes them about 3 hours a day to get everything in. We do a realaxed approach so my daughter is learning thru out the entire day so I can't say exactly how many hours we are spending per day. You will also learn what type of learner your child is and that will help you determine what kind of teaching you will do. My daughter is auditory learner and I am a visual so it makes it a little bit of a challenge for me. Luckily my husband is also a auditory learner so he helps me out there. Whatever you do make it fun and not a chore. I don't force my daughter to sit and do workbooks simple because she hates it and doesn't learn that way.

Answer 5

I have home schooled my children for more than a total of 20 years and I really enjoy it. Here in Washington state. we have some of the most liberal laws in the country. By Federal law, your child can be home schooled and the school district must still allow your child access to the school. They can even go part time. You must check your states office of superintendent of public instruction for laws in your state, everyone is different. Remember that schools have classes of 28 or mare students you have only your own, thus your time is really spent learning around the clock. The mandatory age of required education here is 8, meaning the law says the child must be schooled at age 8 before that there is no law. they do not have to be schooled at all. But that may be a different age in your state. Home schoolers achieve at a higher rate each year, they do in fact get out do the public schools wonderfully. A great number of our homeschooling community here are teachers from the public system who do not want their kids int he schools they work in.
As parents and as the one responsible for our child's education generally speaking we tend to give overwhelmingly to our children's education. If I were to put my child into school after homeschooling, she would most likely be bored. Because schools are locked into outdated books and little in the way of support and supplies, the children suffer. In home school she is challenged. My son at 8 wanted to know about the stock market. I didn't know anything so we went and found a stock broker who taught him and he made his first of many trades that day. People want to help. they are excited to help. Anyway, you have a long ways to go before you have to deal with laws about schooling, till then learn the heart of your child, and she will learn yours. Enjoy !
Its the music you two play between your hearts that will grow you both the most. :)

Answer 6

Well, it can be a form of help to the few who come on and ask honest questions about homeschooling, but I still wouldn't go so far as to call it community service. More like a way to entertain myself. BTW- I am addicted to it myself, but I suppose I could be addicted to much worse things! In fact way back in my B.C. days I was.

Answer 7

I HAVE BEEN HOMESCHOOLING MY TEN YEAR OLD FOR 2 1/2 YEARS AND IT HAS BEEN AN UP AND DOWN TRIAL AND ERROR. THERE IS NO REAL SCHEDULE, THE SCHEDULE IS UP TO YOU. BY STANDARDS, THREE HOURS A DAY IS ENOUGH TO GET IN THE WRITTEN AND TAUGHT CURRICULUM. BELIEVE ME, ITS NOT EASY, ESPECIALLY WHEN I HAVE TO TEACH HER HOW TO TYPE!!! (AS U SEE , I S**K!) 21 MONTHS IS YOUNG AND YOU NEED TO APPROACH YOUR LOCAL SCHOOL SYSTEM AND FIND OUT WHAT THE REQUIREMENTS ARE. IN MY STATE, YOU NOTIFY THE SUPERINTENDENT OF THE DISTRICT AND WRITE A LETTER STATING YOUR INTENTIONS. NJ HAS NO GUIDELINES BUT WILL PROVIDE WITH THE CURRICULUM BUT AT YOUR EXPENSE TO COPY. IF YOU WISH TO TEST IN OUR STATE , YOU CAN WHEN THE SCHOOL DOES SINCE YOU STILL PAY SCHOOL TAXES. MY CHILD WILL BE GOING BACK TO TRADITIONAL SCHOOL VERY SOON BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE I AM MISSING ALOT!! HOPE THIS HELPS AND GOOD LUCK. YOU STILL HAVE A FEW MORE YEARS TO THINK ABOUT IT

Answer 8

you are already teaching your daughter by following routines, and reading to her, more formal things like reading writing and other classroom subjects can wait till 4-5 yrs, reading is often picked up by children who are read to on a daily basis and as far as a schedule you will need to ck with your local school district who usually governs what, when and how homeschooling is operated.

most homeschoolers do not follow a traditional schedule and incorporate different subject with everyday tasks like cooking, farming, religion, reading, would revolve around school topics math, science, reading, social studies, history etc,

read some books about homeschooling, and ck out your local school district, not all of them are bad

Answer 9

I honestly believe u cant teach your child everything that a school system can. Ive had friends in the past that were home school by their mother and they didnt know half the stuff that I had learned. Teachers have a set state agenda that they must teach. If u are worried about the condition of schools then move to somewhere that schools are still a good place to be. there are a lot out there. If it means ur child getting a good education then u must sacrifice. Also, why take that experience away from her? Highschool was one of the best times of my life and urs too (if u went) and a lot would agree with that. Going to school helps shape someone. What if your daughter is very smart and needs to be challenged more when she gets older? If u stick her in a school after going so long with home schooling.. I grantee her grades will drop because she'll be scared or will be having tooo much fun.