Staring At A New School Year-To Homeschool or Not?

Summer Is Coming To An End - DECIDING TO HOMESCHOOL or NOT

This is a big decision many people have at the end of the homeschooling whether they have been homeschooling their children or their kids have been in public, private or alternative schools. Up until recently, many people didn't even have Homeschooling or Working While Homeschooling on their radar as an option. Now, many know that they have more options in customizing education for their kids than ever before.

IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO HOMESCOOL

You can decide to homeschool your child at any time of the year. You have the option to 'try' on traditional education, and decide that it's not for you, then take your child out to homeschool them.

However, if you plan on homeschooling your child first, then putting them back in traditional school, you may consider some of the hurdles with this option.

-Elementary School: There is an easier transition to elementary school if the child homeschools. They may give the child a placement test, then enroll them in their grade based on their age.

-Middle School: This is the grade range where special programs for gifted students, and students with interest that can easily migrate into like high school programs happen. The risk is that your child may not be eligible for some of those programs if you enroll them after 7th grade. However, you can request that your child get tested for those programs.

-High School: No homeschool credit will be acceptable at the High School level. So homeschooling your child for several grades, they will still have to finish 4 years of English and 3 years of Math (4 in some states) which may require summer school or doubling up on classes.

IT IS NEVER TOO LATE TO HOMESCOOL

When you decide to homeschool and it's a new idea, don't rush to buy curriculum, jump into school and plan long lessons, schedule and days. Take a step back and talk to your child, find out how they like to learn, what they want to accomplish this school year, and what is their most difficult and rewarding subjects. Then test their skill to see if they have educational gaps, have a love language that works well for positive reinforcements, and socialization preferences.

Unschool them, by doing nothing specific with school work, but get them to a point where you are interacting with them on a fun, loving and bonding manner.

Then start their schooling with focusing on the following in the order below:

1) First quarter of school, work on filling the educational gaps in Math, Reading, Writing.

2) Second quarter of school: start your curriculum for the school year with four subjects, adding the additional subjects after a week or two.

3) BE FLEXIBLE, realize kids like us need breaks, gets bored, don't want to show up to work and need vacations.