Homeschool Quick Start Guide: Part 1

Where do you begin?

This is probably the hardest question you will ask yourself when you make that decision to homeschool.
If you look online, your mind will most likely go a little wacko! There are so many opinions and options out there that it feels just a bit bananas.

Let's just start off with the most basic question. What educational method are you going to use?

When I was being homeschooled in the 1990s in Florida, the state only had three forms of education choices: Government school, Private School and Homeschool.
When most people said they were homeschoolers, they meant that they were registering with their local county as a homeschooler.

However, in the middle choice, Private School, there was also another pathway for homeschoolers.
Florida law did not require private schools to have brick and mortar buildings. Nor did it require that children attend an actual building with the school name on it. The private school had to keep certain basic health records and an attendance log for each student, however.
This leeway gave rise to what would become known around the country as "umbrella" schools. Usually, this meant that it was a private school that allowed parents control over their child's education and that the actual "schooling" was done in the home and supervised by the parents.
Private schools varied greatly as to what their requirements were. And some even sought out accreditation so as to give their students a more concrete diploma to take into the next phase of their adult life.

Today, (at least here in Florida), there are quite a few more choices. These range from government school driven online learning to scholarship opportunities for parents to make their own choices regarding how and where their children are being educated.
Yet, it still breaks down to basically those same three choices.

If you have decided to take your children out of government school and you do not want to enroll them in a physical, five-day-a-week private school, then you are essentially a homeschooler.
But, what is your educational method?

Just as in the 1990s, there are "umbrella" schools that offer additional credentials and guidance to your homeschool journey. You are still the primary guardian of your child's education, but you have chosen to partner with a private school.
Or, you can register with your local county and abide by their guidelines as to how to homeschool.
In my personal experience, being in a private school where my parents (or, now, myself) were still the ones in control of the actual "educating" part, gave them a great deal more freedom from governmental interference. Essentially, you are never even on the government's radar because you are in a private school and they have no influence over you whatsoever.
The choice is up to you!
If you decide to register with your county, Homeschool Legal Defense Association has an excellent resource for finding your state's particular laws. Click here for that resource.

Okie dokie. You have made that choice of private school homeschooler or county homeschooler. Now what?

At this point, you are probably thinking:
"I should get books, lots of books. What books should I get?"
Well, I would say, "Whoa, there!"
And, here is why. Your number one priority at this point is finding out what your child needs the most.
If you are starting from the very beginning and you have one or more littles running around your feet then the choice is basically this:

GET THEM A GOOD READING PROGRAM.

You might be thinking that you should also get math. Yes, eventually. But let's face it, if you have a 4 or 5 year old, do you really need a formal math book? Personally, I don't think so. Math is very concrete and easy at this point.
Use cooking, grocery shopping or even just leaf counting in your yard as a beginner math program.
You are certainly equipped to teach them how to write the ten digits they will ever need, right?
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Yep. That sums it up. Every number they will ever write uses those 10 digits.

My next advice is before you buy a single book, dive into your learning style. And, along the way, try and figure out your child's learning style.

The reason I make this important recommendation is that not all books are created equal. It matters a great deal to your homeschooling success to pick a teaching method that aligns with your learning style and your child's learning style (or personality). I go into this quite a bit in this article. But, there are also great resources out there for this.
Diana Waring's website and 8 Great Smarts are two excellent places to start.
So, do a little digging into this aspect of teaching before you make a purchase. It can save you a lot of headaches and money.

Back to my point on a good reading program.

Most reading programs out there, I am sad to say, are terrible. Not because that is their intention, but because they try to teach English so fast that they end up with lots of exceptions. Exceptions are the most frustrating thing you can teach a little one.

My husband and I are currently writing a reading program, here is a link to that.
But, if you are looking for a complete program that you can read lots of reviews about, this is the only one I can genuinely recommend. It takes quite a bit of time to get into, but it is full of great information. It is called Logic of English.

Please do not use a shortcut program that requires your child to memorize whole words! This will set them up for failure for the rest of their lives.

Your child is coming out of government school. What is your first step?

If you are pulling your child out, the first thing you want to know is if they have any learning gaps.
Now, this may be an obvious gap. It may even be the reason you have pulled them out.

While science and history are important, I really don't count those as major concerns.

No matter what age your child is at, you want to know if they are in the right place in reading and math.
If you have a 5, 6, 7 or even 8 year old and they are not independent readers, that is not necessarily an emergency. Just find a good reading program and be consistent and patient. If you are using a program that causes frustration, it will be a serious roadblock to learning.
But, if you have a 9th grader (supposedly) who cannot read well, that is a huge red flag!
Do not worry about anything else. Just help your child become the reader they deserve to be.

Again, Logic of English is a solid program that has been around for several years. I personally think they come with the greatest amount of information. But, it will require you as the parent to basically re-teach yourself to read!

Be patient with yourself, and do not feel the need to rush around and get the first program you see. Take the time to do your homework (wink, wink) and it will save you a great deal of frustration down the road.
In the next part of this blog series, I will dig into grade levels and why you shouldn't care about them.

Just Keep Swimmin' Y'all
Kari Erdly

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