How to Begin the Homeschooling Journey

How to Begin the Homeschooling Journey

Determine the educational goals, opportunities and life experiences you want your child to obtain. What is most important for them to learn? What kind of a person would you like to see them become? Prioritize, plan and follow through.

Then evaluate the public school experience. As a homeschooler, you need to make sure your child has at least the same skills as those who graduate from the public schools. This shouldn't be hard to do as there is such a spectrum of students who come out of the public schools and many times the standards are incredibly low.

What many public schools are good at:

Most children can read, write, type and do basic math when they leave the public school. Public schools usually have strong science and math programs and good extra curricular activities and school to work programs. Depending on the teachers and classes the students take, they will know about different things. Public schools tend to be poor in areas such as history, rhetoric, logic, languages, communication, philosophy and classics. Some schools have wonderful music, art and sports programs depending on the school. Some students are able to find areas where they can excel and do well in public school and in life. Many students leave either thinking they are extremely well educated and smart or thinking they are stupid and unable to do academics; often neither of these is true.

Once your student can read, write and do basic math, everything else they learn or study will be either comparable or greater than what is learned in the public school. The standard of the public school is surprisingly low. Many elementary school teachers admit that out of the 6 hrs. given to the public school each day, 45 min. to 1 ½ hours of it are spent in actual learning time.

Because of the great success of homeschoolers, the only argument left to support the public school system is that it is a great way to socialize our children. Many homeschoolers in fact reject the public school because of the socialization that goes on there especially with regard to bullying and other problems.

However, public school is not all bad and there are many well-meaning wonderful teachers and administrators who really just want what is best for the children and when the parents take an active role in their child’s education and help at the school, it can be a great experience as evidenced by many people we see all around us.

There certainly are disadvantages to homeschool. It is very time-consuming for the parent. The child may feel lonely if there are not other homeschoolers around. And it is hard work for both parents and children. But the payback is worth it. Parents and children get to spend more time together and learn together. It is so rewarding to watch your child learn. There is much more flexibility in what to study and for how long and how in depth. There are tons of opportunities for field trips, classes and time to serve and enjoy nature. It can be scary at first, but homeschooling is no longer uncharted territory and we are seeing the benefits more and more each day as more and more people make the leap to homeschool.

Choosing a curriculum:

There is so much to choose from. It could be overwhelming. I like the trivium and classical approach to education. The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer is an excellent resource with many good curriculum suggestions. Rainbow Resource has a huge catalog great for perusing. Latter-day Family Resources also has good advice on curriculum. I have heard that Abeka is wonderful for the elementary levels. Saxon Math seems to be the favorite once the student reaches the 5^th grade level.

The curriculum I have enjoyed so far is as follows:

Math:

Singapore Math --- It comes with a text book and workbook. The kids go through the work book and when they get stuck they ask me and we can over it in the textbook until they understand it. Also, I correct their workbooks and make sure they understand as they go, but it is nice because they mostly do it on their own. Math is a matter of practice.

Reading—

The Leap Frog Letter Factory DVD is the best quickest way to learn the letters and their sounds. Then they need to learn to blend the sounds together to make words. The best way to do this is to say it slow, then say it fast. Then the child is ready for BOB books and The Ordinary Parents Guide to Teaching Reading by Jessie Wise. We also use a set of phonics games put together by Diane Hopkins that help with all the stages of reading and make it fun.

Language Arts such as writing and grammar ----

Greek and Latin are my choice for teaching English grammar, vocabulary and spelling with all the English words that come from Greek and Latin. I like the Elementary Greek series found at www.opentexture.com. We will start Henle Latin around age 12 or when we are finished with the Greek series.

For writing and composition, the students keep a journal, write imaginative stories and book reports as they are able. They also give narrations when they are young to get used to expressing themselves before they have the ability to write it down on their own.

For Penmanship, they begin by tracing the scripture of the week in cursive. I print it in grey with a cursive font. This also helps them with memorization. Once they are good at writing in cursive, they simply copy the scripture exactly which gets them used to punctuation and word usage, or they may choose a different selection to copy such as a poem or section of other literature.

Literature:

We read poetry, short stories, novels, the scriptures, and picture books out loud for learning and enjoyment. We talk about what we read and what the new words mean. There are many great lists. www.mainlesson.com has many wonderful stories and poems and other selections you can print or read online. Just the listing of what they have is a great resource. There are many lists of classical children’s literature when you search. Homeschooling conferences are packed with veteran homeschoolers willing to share their knowledge. The UHEA (Utah) conference held each June is a great place to get lots of good advice and list books and websites that are so helpful.

History:

I like the Story of the World Series by Susan Wise Bauer. The series is divided into 4 books, the first on the Ancients, 2^nd on medieval times and the renaissance, 3^rd on Early modern times including the establishment of the USA and the 4^th is on Modern times. Each book is compiled of stories from history in chronological order and is complemented by an Activity book complete with maps, coloring pages and additional reading ideas.

Science:

We have been using the God’s Design series. Each chapter covers a topic in science and then has experiment ideas or worksheet to go along with the material covered. We also read different science books, observe nature and grow a garden. Telescopes and microscopes are also fun, and we may get brave and take a dissection class this coming school year.

Music, Art, Extras:

My children are required to take piano. I am fortunate to be able to teach them myself. I love the Music Master Program by Roger Lewis at www.mmgroups.com . We also enjoy singing together and listening to all sorts of good music. Once they have mastered the piano and the guitar, they can learn to play another instrument if they so desire. We take time to make crafts, draw and enjoy good art at museums and in books. Some years they have taken dance classes, gymnastics, soccer, choir or art classes. Girls Club and Boys Club has also been great for making other homeschool friends. Field Trips are a must, and book clubs have also been a lot of fun.

So that pretty much covers what I know about curriculum. There is so much out there, you have the freedom to tailor it to your specific wants and needs. Good luck!! If something doesn’t work, just try something else ‘til you get it. It will work out!!

So now all that’s left is to figure out how to fit this all in. Some families like to keep at it 5 days a week and take the summer off. Others work 3-4 days per week and continue through the summer. Others may work 3-5 weeks in a row and then take a week long break. And then there is everything in between and sometimes longer breaks or fewer and shorter breaks. Once you have your goals and priorities clarified, then you just do what you have to do to accomplish your goals.

One very important thing to remember is that it is just about impossible to mimic the public school at home. There is a reason the public schools are run the way they are, mostly to keep order with so many children and very few teachers. Just figure out what will work for you and your children. Focus on your desired outcome. Most homeschoolers I know prefer to get it done in the morning when the mind is fresh and clear, but others find it easier to do it in the evening depending on parents schedules and other factors. You just have to try things out until you figure out what works, and that may change many times. The Miracle Music program www.childrensmiraclemusic.com has been a great help in getting our children up and ready to start the day in a timely manner and develop good habits.

So that's it!! Don't be afraid, just jump in and enjoy the FREEDOM!!!!!!!