Home School News Blog

Posts Tagged ‘resources’

Homeschooling has become a very popular alternative to private or public schooling. Additionally, publicly funded education has major implications compared to the traditional education forms, as well as homeschools. In the end, the eligibility for parents who homeschool their children is decided by the court and to a great extent the constitution is on the homeschooler’s side. Parents are shifting towards homeschooling and there are various reasons for this.

It is gradually becoming a better alternative for parents who are not very satisfied with the traditional system of education. In case you are planning on homeschooling one or more of your children, you should have reliable information. Since many parents have chosen this form of education lately, you can see its popularity growing in leaps and bounds and with so many resources available to help you, there is no need to be worried or stressed about support and help.

You can browse through various sites on the Internet that can provide you a plethora of information on homeschools. There are numerous sites that are specially created for helping parents. Besides the information, such sites also offer lesson plans and application methods. It will help you to address the appropriate lessons that your child requires at a certain age.

You can even get in contact with professionals and homeschooling parents who can give you valuable information that will help you to take this decision for your child, as well as yourself. Almost every state has an education website that includes the standard of education in that state. The list has everything that needs to be covered in every school year, based on the standardized tests of the state. These standards can be used by you like a guideline for deciding the subject matter that your child will have to cover every year.

With the help of the information it becomes easy for you to start your search for material within the scope of the subject. You can start searching for the right material on good websites and also look for resources and links to other websites that can be of some help. Not every homeschooled student learns in a set manner or pattern, so you will have to search a wide variety of material for every lesson your child will be covering. This should be done because in case your child starts struggling with a particular concept, you can help him or her out by offering a variety of other lessons related to that concept.

Another advantage of taking help from websites offering homeschooling help is that many can even provide a connection to a community. If you join such communities, you get a chance to speak to other parents and get more information about this field. Getting advice will help you improve a lot. You will also be able to avoid certain mistakes if other parents share their experiences with you since they will be telling you what should and should not be done. So there is no need to worry as a lot of support and help is present out there if you want to start homeschooling your child. You just need to conduct some research and be aware.

Homeschoolers involve themselves with various community resources on several different levels. First and most common, is simply making use of services offered – for
instance, taking a class at a museum or buying a product from a local business. Next, homeschooling families or support groups might arrange to visit a local factory to see how furniture is made, or take a tour of the local blood bank to learn how it works.

Individual homeschoolers may work as volunteers or apprentices within the community, often finding such opportunities after exploring many options. Finally, some facilities may in turn provide services for homeschoolers after they have had experience with homeschoolers working as volunteers for them.

Don’t expect every business or museum to be eager to work with homeschoolers. Some relatively bureaucratic bodies simply haven’t any official policy for dealing with homeschoolers and so won’t even try. Some will be completely unfamiliar with homeschoolers, and a few will have had a bad previous experience with a rowdy bunch and decided not to have anything to do with homeschoolers ever again. Most who are hesitant are simply used to working with school groups, typically one grade or age at a time, and are a bit puzzled when faced with handling a mixed-age group of homeschoolers.

All homeschoolers use community resources to some extent, but unschoolers are especially interested in finding ways of connecting learning with the everyday details of life. Try looking at your community, not just as the place you live and work and shop, but as a collection of opportunities for learning. Consider a few of the possibilities you may be able to find within a short radius of your home.

Bookstores and Other Retailers

Bookstores run a close second to libraries as homeschoolers’ favorite resources. New books, used books, any books on any topic can become a part of a homeschooling curriculum. Trade books are often better information sources than many books specifically intended to be educational. Other retailers similarly useful as “curriculum” suppliers are toy stores, computer software and hardware dealers, hardware stores, nurseries and garden supply stores, and so on.

Any retail operation can be an interesting place to visit, just to see how businesses work: How do employees spend their time? Where does the stock come from? How is inventory tracked? How do the owners decide what their customers will buy? Even the most routine shopping trip can supply bits and pieces of the answers to such questions.

Museums and Other Cultural Institutions

Museums, although overtly educational, are like libraries in that they have no prerequisites for learning from them. You can pick and choose from their offerings, spending all your time in one gallery and ignoring the rest if you like. Many museums offer classes and workshops.

Homeschool can quickly grow and become an enterprise that is overwhelming. There is so much that parents need to learn before they can begin to educate their children. However, just like any other large and complex task, it is much easier to tackle when you break it down into simple to handle pieces. Plus, homeschooling is not nearly as difficult as many people think it is – or as the make it seem.

The first thing to remember in homeschooling is that there is no “one size fits all” and what is right for one person may not work for someone else. This being said, there is no single starting point that is right for everyone. Different parents present different skill sets and have different life experiences. However, nearly every single parent who attacks this task will at some point experience some trickle of doubt as to whether they can actually DO this or if homeschooling is right for their child or even their family. The doubts are normal, but what it boils down to is that only the parent and child can decide if it is right. Family members who do not understand or approve can not make the very personal decision regarding how your child is educated – only you and your child can do that.

If you decide to go with homeschooling, know that homeschooled children, on the average, outscore their peers on standardized tests and perform at the top of their class in college. Within the home, parents can offer an environment to the child that is safe, fun and is conducive to learning. They can tailor an educational program that is structured specifically for their child’s needs and interests. This is an area where public schools often fail.

The Law

One of the first things that you should do once you make the decision to homeschool your child is to learn everything that you can about the laws and regulations in your state. Learning the legal requirements and restrictions should be done very early in the process. The HSLDA (Home School Legal Defense Association) can provide you with a wealth of information and assistance. They can guide you through the process of researching the laws in your state. While homeschooling is legal in all 50 states, certain aspects differ such as the amount of paperwork and the level of involvement of local school districts. Some states also require that homeschooled students be tested at certain points to track their progression.

Support Groups

Modern homeschooling has been around for more than 40 years. Literally hundreds of organizations have been formed during at time that covers every state and nearly every area in the United States. You can find a list for your area by visiting http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/states/index.php. There are also many online groups and many are even region specific. Yahoo groups, Google groups and MSN groups all have very useful clubs where homeschoolers can share curriculum, tips, support and supplies including books. Some local online groups even have field trips, get togethers, play groups and teen nights to aid in the socialization process for the children.

Books and Magazines

There are many books and magazines that are available to help with homeschooling issues. However, as the internet has grown and expanded, there is even more information readily available to homeschooling parents as well as students. Parents can sign up for homeschooling newsletters and they can even go on to teacher resource websites and sign up for newsletters and daily tips.

If you are interested in reading the philosophy of homeschooling and its origins, John Holt’s books are fascinating. “Teach Your Own” by Patrick Farenga is also a very popular book on homeschooling. “Classical Homeschooling Magazine” is available at http://www.classicalhomeschooling.com. While it mainly focuses on the classical homeschooling approach, homeschoolers of all types can gain valuable information from it. “Home Education Magazine” is another very popular publication regarding homeschooling.

Materials and Resources

Materials and resources are integral to the homeschoolers success, but not in the manner that you may think. Many parents elect the school-at-home route, at least initially. What this does is basically take the books and materials out of the classroom and place them in the home where the child learns them and the parent is the teacher. It usually does not take long for parents to realize how much effort is involved in this method and they often find the materials substandard at best.

There are alternative materials and curricula available from many commercial sources. The homeschooling clubs and groups mentioned earlier can also offer a wealth of information. There are materials and curricula that can be downloaded on the internet for free and these groups can point you in the right direction. A popular forum that provides good information is http://forum.homeschool.com/forum/default.asp. Another popular source is HEM (Home Education Magazine). You can access their site at http://www.homeedmag.com/wlcm_netwrk.html. Another site is http://www.home-school.com/forums.

All of these sites give parents helpful tips, suggestions for curriculum design and materials and much more.

Your approach to homeschooling your child may be structured or unstructured. It depends on you and your child’s goals, whether they are college, art school or just a good foundation of knowledge and a keen mind. Whatever your concerns and issues, you can find the help that you need to get you started and make your homeschool experience a success.

This is so easy, I almost feel like I am cheating. I had to keep rechecking this method because it is working so darn good ! I know that it may be a little late in the home school season to share a method on planning, since all you real teaching moms had your lessons planned months ago, right? Really though, I have actually been so busy putting together our school year that I haven’t had time to share my exciting simplified planning method. For years I would try different types of less

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Lesson Planning Simplified

Copperswife and Preschoolers and Peace are teaming up to bring you Marvelous Mondays! This coming Monday, March 30, Cheryl (Copperswife) and I will begin a series of reviews of homeschool curricula. Each Monday, until we run out of topics, we will discuss what we’ve used and liked, as well as what we’ve used and not liked, in a particular subject area. We’re not comparing notes ahead of time, and I think it will be great fun to see where we agree and where we disagree!

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Marvelous Mondays

The longer I have been homeschooling, the more and more free resources I see come on to the market. Really, if you had a computer with internet access and a printer, you wouldn’t have to spend another dime to educate your kids. Recently the younger kids (6th grade, 4th grade, 2nd grade, and kindergarten) have been doing a series of lapbooks and unit studies on different subjects from nature. We’re currently learning about Honey Bees, and so when this free little unit study put out by Haagen

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Fun (and Free!) Little Unit Study on Honeybees