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So you are new to homeschooling and don’t know where to start.
Maybe you are homeschooling because it’s been on your heart or maybe you just don’t want to follow the new state guidelines for public school.
No matter what your reason, here are some simple things you need to focus on when you decide to homeschool.
New to Homeschooling?
Know Your State Laws
Homeschool laws very greatly state by state so the first thing you need to do is find out what your local homeschool laws say.
Here you can find your state homeschool laws.
The laws vary drastically. We used to live in Ohio where we had to send in a letter of intent to our local superintendent and my children had to get an assessment at the end of the school year.
Now we live in the great state of Texas where I don’t have to notify anyone to homeschool my children.
Whatever state you live in, you can usually find a large active homeschool group on Facebook where other homeschool families can show you the ropes and even find templates of forms you will need to fill out.
Evaluate Your Family Situation
Every family is extremely different and one homeschool will not look like the next homeschool.
Having one child is much different than having 5 children.
Older children and teens may do well with video curriculum/online and younger children may prefer actual books and hands on.
I have my teens doing online Power Homeschool with a few books added in.
My younger kids are doing a more hands on approach with books.
You need to take a piece of paper and brainstorm what will work best for your family.
- Do you want to teach all your kids at once?
- Do your kids learn better with video?
- What is your homeschool budget?
- Local homeschool co-ops teach subjects?
- What weak areas do your kids have (math)?
- How much time do you have to teach them?
Writing down your individual families needs can help you get a clear plan of what you want to do.
I have my older teens school online while I help my younger kids with their bookwork.
This plan has worked well for us for several years.
When all my kids were younger, middle school and under, we did Unit Studies together in the living room.
You will have to decide what works best for your kids ages.
What Style is Your Homeschool?
There are many ways to homeschool such as unschooling, eclectic, and traditional.
Each unique style will depend on your personality and the goals you want to achieve.
We use an eclectic style of homeschool and have found it fits our family best.
You can read more about your homeschool style and how to choose what would work best for you.
How to Pick Curriculum
There are hundreds of ways to teach your child and picking curriculum can be overwhelming.
If you are on a budget, I suggest finding some ways to teach a few subjects for free.
I made a huge list of Free Homeschool Curriculum to give you some ideas of what is out there for free.
Most families spend their homeschool budget on the subjects that may seem harder to teach such as math.
It’s easy to pick up science and history books from your local library while your kids are younger.
You also need to decide if you want an online curriculum or traditional books.
Here are my top curriculum choices if you are on a budget.
We personally love Unit Studies in our homeschool and find it to be a natural way to teach multiple kids at once.
How to Organize Your Homeschool
If you are going to be schooling your children at home, you will need a bit of structure to keep everyone sane.
Again, this will vary greatly by family because apartment living is so different from families running a farm.
Here is how we incorporate chores in our homeschool.
Chores are needed to keep the house functioning with all the dishes, laundry, and shoes that get everywhere.
It can be helpful to have a morning basket for your little ones while you get some coffee and gather your thoughts.
Here are some ideas for a successful morning basket to make your mornings run smoother.
Make Homeschool Fun
Your homeschool is the perfect opportunity to have fun and tie heartstrings with your children.
Those new to homeschooling often try to stick to the books which can lead to frustration for the whole family.
Consider doing some fun first day homeschool traditions.
Add lots of hands on activities to your lessons.
Remember that cooking, helping dad fix the car, visiting the zoo, vacations, and even doing your taxes are vital life skills to your children.
All of life is a learning experience so be sure to make your school time enjoyable and not to be too strict on the bookwork.
Let us know in the comments below what new to homeschooling questions you have so we can all learn together.
