Important Information About Getting Started with Homeschooling (from 25-year homeschool mom Jan L. Burt))

 So, you're considering homeschooling and have a few questions. 

Hopefully this post can answer some of those!

Getting Started:

Yup, homeschooling feels pretty daunting at first. But keep in mind that with the right tools and resources and a healthy mindset, this form of education can be a tremendous blessing for you and your child. It's a unique opportunity to tailor your children's education to their individual needs and interests. And that is a pretty amazing opportunity, if you think about it!

Getting started involves knowing your individual state's legal requirements for homeschooling families. HSLDA has a pretty comprehensive guide to each state's laws and standards, so consider taking a look at that site for more info. (I'll link it at the bottom of this post.) 

You may need to submit notification of your intent to your local school district. There may be some curriculum standards that you will want to be aware of. For example, when my children were in high school, I followed Kansas' standards for obtaining a high school diploma; meaning they had four years of math, two years of high school science which included labs, and the like. It was not difficult to meet those requirements, and perhaps was not totally necessary since they were public school requirements, not laws per se. But because my children intended to attend colleges that were out of state, I decided to use the Kansas graduation requirements as a template for their course of study, which I then added to their transcripts and submitted with their college applications. Some state's require standardized testing or portfolio reviews. There may be minimum attendance requirements to keep in mind. Again, HSLDA should have all this information easily and readily accessible, and I certainly would not want these potential requirements to deter you from choosing to homeschool. All of these are very, very doable (especially if you keep track of what your child is learning and what resources you utilize.)  Your states Department of Education website may also provide this information.

Homeschooling allows you to put together a personalized curriculum for each one of your children. Their unique learning style, interests, and the pace at which they best learn can all be customized by you. It may sound daunting but remember that you know your child better than anyone else and you have front-row access to their preferred ways of learning and retaining information. Here are a few tips to consider:

Identify their learning goals and decide what you want your child to achieve academically as well as personally. Who they grow up to be as a person, with real character and integrity, is as important (if not more so!) than what they learn. 

Choose subjects that you want to cover, keeping in mind their interests and your state's requirements. 

Select resources. Explore different curriculum options. Look at textbooks, online courses, compare different educational styles. Don't be afraid to craft a totally eclectic education for your children. Educational games, reading great books, hands-on projects...these are all excellent curriculum options. How does your child best learn? Do they have ADD? Do they need a standing desk so that they can wiggle while they work? (This doesn't have to be expensive; you can build one with some wood and hinges that lock into place so that the "standing desk" mounts to the wall and folds down when not in use.) 

Create a schedule. Plan out each day or each week and leave space for some dedicated time for each subject and for daily life. Be flexible. Keep tweaking it until it works for your unique family and lifestyle. Adjust as needed. 

Mix in some variety here and there. Hands-on activities. Field trips. Project based learning. This is engaging and fun for your child!

Next, let's consider some time management strategies. Because how you manage your minutes really does determine the direction your life goes. This is true in every arena of life, but I have found it to be incredibly true of homeschooling. To stay on track, manage your time...which includes managing your minutes.

Create a schedule and stick to it. Don't be afraid to tweak it and adjust it, but do create one and follow it. 

Set realistic goals. Your child probably is not going to complete their high school work in ten months. Avoid overloading yourself or your children.

Break tasks down into manageable tasks. Like eating an elephant, you homeschool well one bit at a time. Division is a homeschoolers best friend when it comes to turning large projects into smaller, manageable steps. 

Use a planner or calendar just for your homeschool stuff! (I had one for myself and one for each of my children once they got into third or fourth grade - it was a game-changer and made my life so much better!) They can look at their planner and know exactly what they need to be working on. Track assignments, put their orthodontist appointments and sports practices in the planner and keep track of deadlines for things like state assessments or college application dates. 

Minimize distractions. Keep your learning space phone free, as much as you can, and toy free, too. If you use your kitchen table, just put the books away at the end of the homeschool day and eat dinner there as a family. Keep a bookshelf and some baskets or crates nearby to put supplies and books in when you finish up for the day. But don't let distractions take your homeschool for a ride. 

Take breaks. Need an easier day? Plan one. Schedule regular breaks. Go to a museum. Have a library day. Take a day trip, go on a hike, have a picnic lunch. Do what you need to do to avoid burnout. And moms, maybe look into cycle-based planning. It can be a lifesaver for us homeschool moms. (I'll try and add a link to a mom who talks about this on her TikTok channel - her name is Rebecca and her handle is @myhomeschoolvillage) 

Be flexible. Inflexibility is not good for most aspects of life. And it really isn't good in parenthood. When it comes to being a homeschool parent, it's just really bad to be totally inflexible. Adjust your schedule as needed to accommodate real life and the unexpected things that pop up. Teaching your children to navigate real life well is a life skill that will pay dividends for them in the future. And public school doesn't teach that very well. 

Aim to keep your children engaged and motivated as they learn. Add in hands-on activities (I feel like I keep restating that, but it really is important on so many levels!). Crafts, woodworking, experiments, all sorts of things will help keep them engaged. 

Make their lessons relevant, if possible. Real-world experiences count as learning.

Follow their interests. Incorporate topics your child is passionate about. Honestly, this is one topic I have spoken about SO MANY TIMES at homeschool conferences. If they have a passion, try to add pursuit of said passion into your homeschool routine.

Educational apps, board games, websites. All these are great learning options to keep kids engaged. And I have already mentioned field trips - but it bears repeating! Go to museums, historical sites, nature centers, the library...make learning an outside-the-house experience now and then. 

And encourage creativity. Let them create. Creatives make up half the population, right? So odds are, one of your children is creative in some facet. Art, music, writing...these are outlets that serve as learning portals for creative children.

Celebrate successes - yours and your child's! Acknowledge them and find ways to reward them. Go out for ice cream. Have a movie night and they get to pick what you watch. Cold cereal for dinner. Find ways to celebrate! And do something for yourself, too. You put the "home" in homeschool, after all!

If you are not an extreme introvert like me, you may want to look into co-ops, homeschool groups or associations, online forums and communities, and may even find a tutor for a subject or two. These can provide information, resources, connections with other homeschoolers, classes and activities, and assistance for specific subjects. Keep this in mind! Even if you don't need or want any of these things currently, you may want or need them in the future. 

Some good advice for new homeschool parents would be to start small and slow and steady. Don't try to do everything at once. This is new for you and your children. No need to reinvent the wheel or to replicate everything public schools do. Start with reading and math and maybe some kind of art project for fun. Then add some more subjects over the next couple of weeks. 

Be patient. It takes time to figure out just what works, and what doesn't. for you and your child. Remember, if it isn't sustainable for the homeschool parent, then it isn't going to work. Don't beat a dead horse. Just move on and try something else.

Trust your instincts. You know your child better than anyone else. 

Don't compare. Not even among your own children! Not with public schoolers, private schoolers or other homeschoolers. Comparisons lie, steal, derail and ruin pretty much everything. Do not compare!

Remind yourself why you chose to homeschool in the first place if you have a hard day. Things will be hard in some manner or another no matter where your child gets their education. Remembering your why will help you to choose your hard and stick with homeschooling.

Enjoy it! It's a lot of work, but it was the best work I ever got to do. 25 years is a long time to do something ... so take me at my word and enjoy some aspect of it every single day!

     A Quick Recap:

          Research your state's legal requirements.

1. Define your homeschooling goals.

2. Explore curriculum options and resources.

3. Connect with other homeschooling families.

4. Create a plan and get started!

Below are some links that I mentioned earlier in the blog, as well as a link to my Amazon Storefront (which pays the bills for all the things I do, like podcasting equipment and annual fees, speaking for free at homeschool events, and moving me toward my goal of giving all my content, books, pdfs, courses, etc. away for free). It's called Rooted & Renewed Finds, and thanks in advance for checking it out! 

Homeschool Laws By State

Rebecca (@myhomeschoolvillage) | TikTok

My TikTok homeschool page - Homeschool Encouragement (@homeschoolplanandpray) | TikTok

As always, happy homeschooling to ya!

Questions? Leave a comment! 

Thanks for reading the blog and God bless!