Making the Big Decision
This was the hardest part of homeschooling I've personally encountered so far. Bear with me while I drudge up some old memories and take you through the process I experienced. If you're considering homeschooling and have questions, I hope I've addressed some here and have lead you to a suitable answer. However, the best advice I can give is to start by taking this (and all decisions) to God and let Him take it from there!
Legal Issues
The first question I had was what legal battles will I have to face. I thought it was inevitable that there would be a court decision involved in determining if I was worthy to homeschool. What I found was that it is perfectly legal to homeschool in all 50 states. Since we live in Texas where homeschool is considered to be private school, we have very few requirements placed on us by the state. We do not keep attendance records, we do not have formal testing, and parents do not need a degree in education. Although we are not required to formally test, for my own peace of mind, our children do take the TAAS test to monitor their progress.
This link takes you to T[exas] A[ssessment] of A[cademic] S[kills] Tests where you can print the test.
|
Be aware
that all state requirements are different. |
Leaving Public Education Behind
Next, I worried about how to get my child out of public school without making myself and my family an enemy of the entire community. I look back on that time and laugh now. I still understand why I felt like a traitor...after all, I, like most people, thought going to a public school was just a step in growing up. Going against the tide felt like I was shunning all those parents I had enjoyed getting to know through school parties and field trips. I was sure they would think I was making personal judgements against their decision to continue with public school. In fact, I had more encouragement from those same parents, not to mention several phone calls and visits from other parents, some I had never met before, hoping to do the same for their children. There are those who will ask questions designed to make you feel incompetent or those who make comments which will test your patience, but on the whole those have been rare occasions. As far as what steps are involved in taking a child out of public school, again each district has different requirements. Check with your school district. In our case, we sent a letter of intent stating that we were withdrawing our children with the intention of homeschooling and that we would be conducting "school" using a curriculum that included all the basic subjects. Again, what steps you should take depend on your state's requirements.
Patience and Teaching Skills
Maybe I was unusually sure that I could handle whatever challenges homeschooling would bring, but it didn't really occur to me to worry about patience or skills I might need. Over the years, I have learned that patience comes from practice. In order to fully function as a caring parent, petty squabbles have to be dealt with in a calm manner. There will be those days when no one seems to get along and everything is disorderly. It happens to all parents, homeschoolers or otherwise. The real challenge comes when you can't seem to make a child understand a lesson. In that case, I put that particular subject away for a few hours and go back to it later. Sometimes, you just need a break. Sounds pretty simple, but most of the time all it takes is a moment or two to back away and clear your mind. Life will not cease if your child can't seem to get the concept of adding fractions. And one of the best things about homeschooling is that you can take all the time that is needed. There is no shame from teachers or other students making the child feel inadequate for not keeping up. On the other hand, finding a particular skill easy means you can move on to something else without waiting for a classroom full of students. Another great thing about homeschooling is that if a particular curriculum is not working, you can always change to something else. And there is always the option of private tutoring or possibly finding an older homeschool student to help. You'll find that the homeschool community in general is very helpful and most parents have encountered the same problems. Ask for help, you'll be surprised at the response!
What about Curriculum?
Finally, when the reality of the situation had settled, I was faced with what curriculum to purchase. I wanted the best, of course :0) but didn't have a whole lot of money to start with. I began by making my own form of unit studies (though I didn't know that's what they were at the time) by checking out books on all sorts of topics that my son showed an interest. I also purchased workbooks at my local educational supply store. This kept us busy until our primary curriculum could be found, purchased and arrive by mail. The first "major" curriculum that we bought was Saxon Math. I had been so impressed with it when helping the children with their homework, I was giddy that I could purchase a homeschool kit from the same company! We've since changed curriculum sources in all other subjects twice...yes, we've had to learn the hard way about what fit our needs. But so far we've been happy to stick with Saxon. At this time, Alpha Omega Lifepacs and Switched on Schoolhouse are our choices for Language Arts, Science and Social Studies, while we use Powerglide for Foreign Languages. Ask other homeschoolers what their preferences are and do some investigation. Personally, I have never attended a curriculum fair, but have heard that they can be a bit overwhelming.
