Planning to home school this year. . .?

Question

I need any advice I can get from other Home Schooling Parents. This is my first year and I am scared to death. I plan to use the A Beka Curriculum. Thanks.

Answer 1

Congratulations! It's my first year, too, though we started in June, shortly after my oldest finished up her 4th grade year in public school.

I have heard good things about A Beka. The best advice I have gotten so far is to start off slowly. Until you are all in a routine (not just the kids, but you as well!), then don't worry about hitting every single subject every single day. So long as you are getting something done, you're on the right track and you can slowly add more as needed.

I would also suggest looking for your local home schooling group. There is a very active group in my area that I found through Googling my city's name with the words "home school group" and they got me hooked up with their Yahoo e-group. It's been a great resource for me.

Oh, and as for being scared to death ... who knows your kids better than you? You'll be an excellent teacher.

Answer 2

Hi! I homeschool my children-they would be entering 4th and 2nd grades this year if they attended a traditional schoo. They have always been homeschooled.

My advice is to RELAX and HAVE FUN! Go slowly until you find the routine that works for your family-for some families, it is school-at-home, for some it is the unschooling method, and for some (like my family) it is something in between those two.

If this decision is new to you, and/or if your children have been attending school until now, it may be necessary for you to have a deschooling period. So much of what we associate with school is unnecessary, and it may take you and/or your children a while to adjust to the differences.

If you have not already done so, please find a homeschool group in your area. The parents in that group will be a vital resource for you and offer a lot of support, and will allow you and your child(ren) to socialize with other homeschoolers. These groups often get together for co-op type classes, field trips, curriculum reviews, and a variety of other activities.

I use A Beka for my children, and we personally love it. I like that it is "advanced", that I can order almost everything we need from one company (we do supplement with some other materials as well), and the layout works well with our homeschooling. However, you might find that it is not the right curriculum for you-do not worry if that happens. Just use what you can from the material, or perhaps swap with someone. Then start looking into other materials for next year.

I started researching homeschooling when my oldest was just an infant, and I am so glad I did. The amount of information out there is overwhelming. Take your time as you work through it all. It truly is a wonderful experience.

I wish you much success! I am clickable on my profile, if you would like to contact me via email.

Answer 3

Take a deep breath....it's going to be fun and rewarding...on the days you don't question your sanity for choosing to home school.
My son has used the A Beka curriculum at his private school since k-3 and now that we are home schooling we are using it as our core curriculum. It's easy to work with and is a thorough curriculum.
Find a home school group in your area and get involved with their support groups and co-ops. The experienced families will ease a lot of your fears and will have some great ideas for you.
Drop this question into the homeschool area of YA and you will have lots more support and a lot of negative nay sayers that know nothing of home schooling and the positive aspects of homeschooler's development socially, academically, spiritually and within the family.

Answer 4

"Kate" and now "Loves Christmas Lights" Why don't you try answering a question you might actually have an answer for? It's painfully obvious you KNOW NOTHING about homeschooling and college. Universities and colleges (including ALL the Ivy League schools) welcome homeschoolers with open arms! You really should do some research prior to posting your erroneous comments on here. It only makes you look biased and ignorant! I have yet to hear of any college that specifically "loves" public school students and actively recruits them. I would say by your comments, you are most certainly a public school student. Perhaps you are not aware that effective and accurate communications are an important component of "social skills". You have just proven a point that public school students have "socializing" issues, too. Your intolerance towards a choice of education different than yours is really showing through and it significantly decreases your credibility on being able to give a truthful and intelligent response to any question. I had to add "Loves Christmas Lights" since we apprently have another person trying to pass off their biased opinions as "fact" regarding college!!

Answer 5

I'm not a homeschooling mom, but there is a big network of them in my area. My children are 2.5 years and 10 months so we've got a while before I have to decide. But, I can tell you that my aunt used that curriculum for a while and liked it enough.

Answer 6

I am a homeschool daughter:) 7th grade this year :) (my 1st year homeshooling)
WE LOVE IT!! MY mom is getting along fine and thought she may not be able to teach me... just be with your child and learn with him/her.
A Becka is good but use varitity of brands to find the one that works best with your child!
Good Luckk!!

Answer 7

I used the ABeka program and I found it very easy to use and the books are so colorful that the kids enjoyed it.