I initially wrote this article back in 2020 when I decided to homeschool my daughter. I reached out to local parents and grandparents whom homeschooled their kids and grandkids. Since that time I've learned so much and have updated this article to include my insight as well at the collective views on homeschooling.
Know that little steps are still steps and they add up at the end of the week, month and year. Some years are better than others but as long as you stick with it, progress will be made.
My Dad used to deliver all news like this: "Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" So with than in mind, lets begin with the bad. That's always what I asked for first - so here we go.
Let’s start with the bad...
Choices:
There are so many choices that it can be daunting. You can do paid, free, and a mix of both. There are courses that are fully laid out and there some that you can pick and choose to make your own individualized curriculum. Again, it's flexible and that can be both good and bad. Investigating curriculum can be time consuming, when I began I searched local homeschool groups for recommendations, the state guidelines often give a list of recommended material resources as well. Visiting a homeschool playdate in the park is a good way to meet other homeschoolers where ideas can be discussed, questions asked, and friends made.
Cost
You are in charge for all financial needs from textbooks to individual courses or complete curriculum. Everything including tours to field trips etc.
You can find sales on back to school items and essentials and leave other things behind that aren't needed or not needed in large quantities like you would purchase for returning to public school. As far as courses you can find free materials and courses too.
If you order complete brand new curriculum packages from it could also be as costly. Especially with more than one child at home. I use a mix of different curriculum that is free and paid, depending on what my daughter needed to learn. Some things are worth the cost of either a tutor, special in person or online classes or online courses. It really depends on the subject and your child.
Time
It will take time. All things that are worth while take time. You need to do at least 4 hours a day 5 days a week for 172 hours here in Colorado to fulfil the state requirements for homeschooling. Some working parents have a hard time juggling the time when they already have a full plate. I work from home doing - this newsletter for Northern Colorado - and I have another blog I do as well. I set a schedule and keep to it as best as possible. There are times when doctors appointments or other life occurrences happen - but with that being said, these things happen with traditional school as well. The difference is that with homeschool you can pick up where you left off and your kids doesn't have extra work to make up.
State regulations say you can designate another family member to assist with homeschooling - keep in mind you are the primary teacher but if you need assistance you can get it. You can also get tutors, and do classes but you have to be the primary teacher, teaching the majority of the time.
Socialization
It's the first question every parent asks before they consider homeschooling. How will I socialize my child?
There are so many options, online courses, park play dates with other homeschoolers, public schools have opportunities for one or two day classes as well as some independent one or two day a week options for kids to still meet others while learning. Many of these options help with the basics curriculum, extracurricular and/or enrichment classes for you're homeschooler.
You're kids can also participate in traditional school sports, music and other classes while you teach most of the curriculum. Sports are a great way to keep connection and get in physical education when in middle and high school
Now for the good news...
Flexibility
You can make the day unique to you and your child. What works for your family? It doesn't have to look like a typical school day. It can if that works for you but if not - don't worry. Don't feel that you must adhere to what the public-school day usually looks like if something else works better for your family. If mornings work for you, do mornings. If afternoon or evening work, do afternoon or evening.
You can teach and the kids can learn at a formal desk set up or at the kitchen table. They can learn in a museum, in the back yard, on a field trip or online.
You can dress up, dress comfortable, or stay in your jammies. Though I'd suggest clothes to make the day seem focused. PJ's ended up being "too" comfortable for us.
All you need to do is adhere to the Colorado laws stating that an average of 4 hours a day are dedicated to teaching over a minimum of 172 days of instruction in Colorado.
A couple more things to consider are Teaching style and Learning style.
Learning Style
Each kid is an individual and they have their own learning style. This is a perk of Homeschooling. You can teach the way your child learns.
What’s your child’s leaning style?
YouTube Information from Diana Waring, Abundant Life Homeschooling on Learning Styles
Feeler - Loves people, field trips, discussions, interacting, is a talker and will be asking tons of questions.
Thinker - Loves Planned day schedule, orderly events, Loves when things go as planned, follows instruction easily, creates their own structure
Sensor - Love to move and do hands on, bounces around, seems uncontrollable but loves interactive engagement.
Intuitor - Daydreamer, creative, they will be imaginative and will bring up things in that are unexpected.
Homeschool On has a fun quiz that determines if you kid learns in a kinesthetic, auditory, or a visual style.
This video is from Social Science Explainer and reviews the following Parenting Styles based on Diana Baumrind's principals.
Authoritative - Balance of attention and rules.
Authoritarian- strict and one way communication
Permissive - Warmth and compassion often lenient.
Uninvolved - Detached due to various reasons.
Teaching style
YouTube Information from Diana Waring, Abundant Life Homeschooling on What is your Teaching Style?
There a few things to know before teaching. One is your teaching style. Keep in mind your teaching style may not match your child's learning style. That's ok. Knowing the differences and similarities will help you both get along together better and will enhance your relationship in the long run. Quick tip: Sometimes teaching and learning styles can create conflict when frustration enters from a subject or task not going well. Take a deep breath and remember it's ok to take a break and come back to what you were doing. Even taking the rest of the day and beginning again the next day if things get too intense. Remember, you can't teach well if you are frustrated and you're child can't learn if they are upset. Breaks are wonderful things! And they are something that traditional schools don't have the luxury of offering to any child, but you do.
Feeler - interpersonal relationships withing the home and family are key, you want to explain so everyone understands what they are doing and why they are doing it.
Thinker - you thrive on order, schedules, no interruptions. Lesson plans set and ready. Items for your lessons are set out and ready for the next day.
Sensor - Hands on, experiments, crafts, models, teach hands on.
Intuitor - Tons of ideas on how to teach, comes up with your own curriculum, love interruptions and going on tangents related to subjects to investigate and teach Loves to surprise with an adventure.
Every Learning Style Explained in Three Minutes by Helpful Professor Explains! goes over 18 styles briefly.
Visual Spatial - Learn best by seeing the content.
Auditory - Learn best through hearing
Verbal / Linguistic - Loves writing essays and active conversations
Physical/Kinesthetic - Learns best hands on through touch and full body activities
Logical / Mathematical - Logic, logistics, math oriented
Social / Interpersonal - Loves working in a group, sharing ideas and getting immediate feedback
Solitary / Intrapersonal - Self motivates, delves deep into subjects, learns best alone, independent.
Naturalistic - Learns best when they can experiment and explore
Reflective - They need time to ponder and digest information privately before they understand and apply it.
Experiential Learners - Benefit from hands on, simulations, practical exercises, and real world experience.
Intuitive Learners - Look beyond facts, consider broader possibilities, and rely on instincts.
Systematic Learners - Prefer structured practices, organized materials, values step by step learning process.
Critical Learners - They are naturally skeptical, deeply analytical, always questioning and evaluating.
Creative Learners - They rely on their imagination and creative abilities to produce new ideas & solutions.
Holistic Learners - They need to see the whole picture to understand the parts with integrative learning experiences to help connect the dots.
Observational Learners - Learn through observing how others do the tasks.
Abstract Learners - They prefer to learn through ideas and concepts rather than just learning facts.
Concrete Learners - They require tangible and specific examples, they benefit from direct interaction with the materials.
Styles of Homeschooling
Schooling at Home is basically the same as your local public or private school classroom, but it’s implemented at home. Typically organized around complete curriculum packages, arranged by school year, and might even be the same curriculum your local public or private school uses. School-at-Home education can be done independently or by online schools.
Unschooling is where your child explores a topic until they are satisfied. Learning plans and study projects are created largely on the student’s interests and explored in learn as you go activities and experiments. Basic skills like reading, writing, and arithmetic, done through technology.
Montessori focus on guided exploration. Kids explore what they are interested in. Discovering the world around them. They use some
Classical is guided by an "Applied Trivium" framework. Structured historical curriculum that cycles around every 4 years in chronological order. Subjects are interwoven throughout.
Charlotte Mason Method incorporates short periods of study with nature walks, nature journals, history portfolios, observation, memorization, and narration. Reading includes biographies, classics, and stories of heroes, and life lessons. Lessons are somewhat child guided fairly flexible.
Eclectic is also referred to as "Relaxed" homeschooling. Parents use different methodologies mixed together and focus on a child's unique learning style per subject not homeschool style. Eclectic is mostly child-directed, resourceful, and non-curriculum based. Lesson plans are a sampling from any combination of homeschooling methods, or resources.
Don't confuse homeschooling with online public schooling. Online public schools will have you register and have the regular school day (6-8 hours a day with additional time for homework depending on school), and homeschooling online can be having a curriculum that is administered with you as the teacher and using a database of classes to teach with.
If you've decided on homeschooling
these are some simple steps to get you on your way.
Step 1: Know your state laws. Colorado Department of Education has the steps spelled out pretty well. https://www.cde.state.co.us/choice/homeschool.
Step 2: LOI/NOI. You must notify the state of your intent to homeschool with a Letter/Notice of Intent referred to as a NOI or LOI. This can be mailed to any school district in the state, not just your home district. Find out more in "So, You're Thinking Home School? Here's The Rules In A Nutshell." I have links to sample Letter/Notice of Intent as well as where to send your LOI/NOI.
Step 3: (optional but worth the time if you have it) Unschooling. From speaking to homeschool moms who have made the transition it is suggested to do a period to “Unschool.” Most suggest a month but you can take as long as you feel you need. It really depends on your child and hos long it takes to decompress and ease into the idea. Unschooling is the period used to establish your own daily routine, organize a schedule, figure out your child's learning style and your teaching style and to follow their lead before choosing a curriculum.
Step 4: Choose your curriculum. This is overwhelming. Even for many homeschool veterans. Many parents go into this thinking they have an idea of what they want only to find out there are so many ways to accomplish what they want. Make sure you consider your teaching style, your child's learning style and your lifestyle. Remember - homeschooling can and probably should look different than traditional school based on your teaching style and their learning style. This is where you can customize school and teach how your child learns.
Tips From My Personal Experiance
Let me start with this:
Homeschooling is a serious responsibility, but you can't take yourself and your kids too seriously. The key for my daughter and me is to keep it light and fun. Laugh at mistakes and make sure that we progress. There will be days that we don't get as much done as we like, and there are days we just pack it up and do nothing. Then there are the days that we go on for hours finding out about new things and just in the flow of it all.
Each day is a new day and don't pressure yourself or your child too much. Create goals, milestones to achieve but make sure these are attainable for you're child and you.
Make sure you get all your supplies together at the beginning of the week or month, depending on how you like to prepare.
Take breaks. We work for 20 - 40 minutes and then take a break depending on what we are studying. Adjust the time for littles and kids who are industrious, age and ability appropriate. Consider diagnosis like ADHD, Dyslexia, Neurodivergent or physical abilities that may make sitting or focusing for a long time difficult. Set your schedule to you and you're child's needs.
Begin the day with kindness, patience, and positivity. Even when the kids don't express any of these. There will be days that begin light and fun and then days that will test you. Bring your patience and positivity. It goes a long way.
Know that little steps are still steps and they add up at the end of the week, month and year. Some years are better than others but as long as you stick with it, progress will be made.
Consider your child's motivation for learning. Make them part of the day you have planned. When they see what you are planning it relieves some tension in them.
My biggest tip is just to take this time to connect with your child. This is a great opportunity to connect on a level that many parent's don't have the luxury of experiencing. Don't let them get so frustrated, and don't get so frustrated yourself that the day ends up with everyone mad. I've seen this a lot. We experienced this in the beginning ourselves. I got so entrenched in wanting to teach at the level I thought my daughter should be at - and wasn't. That her frustration made me frustrated. I couldn't figure out why she didn't know what I thought she should know. It was an eye opener. After I took a step back and evaluated her on what she could do and we began there - life got so much easier.
Side note: I was following advice from homeschool moms who had it all together and were (and are) incredible role models. They and their kids were perfect. I also had to remember that not everyone is perfect LOL. We are humbled by life and not perfect. We make mistakes that are just that, mistakes. Things don't always turn out rosy but they can turn out like lemonade (making lemonade out of lemons).
Don't try to be the family that you think you should be. Be the family you are. Blemishes and all. That's how you become the perfect family that others see. Those perfect families really aren't perfect either. They've just figured out what works for them and that's what makes their life look so easy to others.
Be you, be patient, give grace and you're family will thrive at homeschooling.
 |
You can homeschool in a way that fits your family. If you are looking for local support, I would suggest Facebook groups. I have found a bunch of great supportive homeschool moms on various sites. You can find a couple of favorites of mine in "So, You're Thinking Home School? Here's The Rules In A Nutshell." or by searching Homeschool.
