Homeschooling, A Different Path

Homeschooling is a common alternative to public or private education for students from kindergarten to twelfth grade. Homeschooling is a great option for children who learn best at their own pace, be it the accelerated learner or the student who may need a little more time to master a subject. Before you fully commit to homeschooling your child, you should gather homeschooling resources. There are endless resources available for parents who want to homeschool their child, and they cater to any sort of teaching style that you as a parent turned educator might posses.

Don’t let the task of homeschooling overwhelm you. It may seem like an incredible and impossible endeavor at first glance, but once the different aspects of homeschooling as a whole, and a closer look has been taken, you will wonder why you ever worried. There are countless and varied homeschooling resources available to the parent who is thinking about homeschooling their child. One of the best hubs of information for the aspiring homeschool teacher is a local homeschooling organization. Most states have homeschooling groups where you can get personal stories as well as tips on how to most effectively homeschool your child.

The best homeschooling resource is, of course, the internet. From blogs written by parents who have forged the homeschooling path before you, to more professional hubs of information, the internet is probably your best bet. A simple Google search will result in complete lesson plans and homework assignments. You can choose what program is right for you; there is no need to be boxed in by certain tests, materials or homework. If you are looking for an explicit pre-written curriculum, again you can turn to the internet to help you find what you need. The best part about homeschooling is you can take pre-existing lesson plans and curriculum and alter them to yours own and your child’s personal needs.

 

5 Tips for Homeschooling Your Child

Homeschooling is defined as providing a child’s main education at home. Although this topic has been one of great debate by both critics and supporters, families continue to choose the option of educating their child in the comfort and privacy of their own home. If you are considering this method of learning, keep the following tips in mind:

Consider various teaching options. As a parent, you can often homeschool your child on your own or you may enlist the help of a professional tutor, which is a private teacher who typically teaches one child or a small group of children. In some cases, a child may also participate in independent study programs that are made available through a school.

Make sure the curriculum is approved. If you plan to homeschool your child, you will need to request a curriculum package containing an approved course of study. It’s important that parents make sure the program they use to educate their child is one that’s approved by their state and/or board of education.

Make learning fun. In order for a child to get the most benefit from homeschooling, many believe that visits to the library, museums and other cultural outings can help the student to learn more effectively. This is one of the reasons why public schools often participate in field trips, which allow the children to see a location up close and personal as it relates to their program of study.

Prepare your child for college. Studies have shown that children who learn at home are just as likely to attend a higher learning institution as other students, which means parents who participate in homeschooling will need to prepare their youngster for this change. A homeschooled child who wishes to apply for college must submit a copy of his/her ACT or SAT test scores. As for transcripts, children who gained their education at home may submit records from their supervising high school or correspondence course.

Get everything in writing. As a parent who wishes to homeschool your child, you are required to file the appropriate paperwork with either a local or state education agency. For more information on this topic, you can consult with your county’s board of education or your school’s principal. The name and age of the student must be given, along with lesson plans in some cases. Currently, parents are not required to have a teaching certificate in order to educate their child at home, but it’s important to check with your state’s laws regarding homeschooling as they may vary by state.

One final note: It is very important for home schooled children to be properly socialized with other children. Playing with kids their own age they can learn valuable social skills that will help them become more successful later in life.

The information contained in this article is designed to be used for reference purposes only. It should not be used as, in place of or in conjunction with professional legal or educational advice relating to homeschooling and/or the laws relating to this subject. For more information, consult with your local or state education agency.

Are Homeschoolers Really Socialized?

Whether you are currently a homeschooler (parent or student), or are curious about homeschooled children, a common question that you have probably either encountered or inquired is: “How do homeschoolers get their socialization”?

This is a hot topic for the home educating community-one that will spur myriads of challenging answers that support homeschooled children as being properly “socialized”.

Well, the main question at hand is: “What is socialization?” Starting with this pertinent question, we can find our answer in Websters’ Dictionary. Socialization is simply “a continuing process whereby an individual acquires a personal identity and learns the norms, values, behavior, and social skills appropriate to his or her social position”.

This is simply a long definition to mean that a child is socialized throughout a process in which she learns to acquire values and behaviors of those around him/her- simply put. Which means, in essence, that socialization can happen anywhere- be it public school, private school, church, home school, a homeschool co-op or support group, play dates, and the worst of places (bars, gangs, streets, drug houses). Socialization happens.

So, are homeschoolers socialized? The short answer to that is - yes! Of course, the real question people want to ask is: “Howare homeschoolers socialized?” With the myriads of options available for students today, it is fast becoming taboo to wonder how socialization can happen with students of any caliber, including homeschoolers.

Some of the more popular choices of extra-curricular activities among the homeschooled community are:

 

4-H clubs
bible clubs
church groups
missions groups
volunteer work
music classes
science labs
art classes
dance classes
theater and performance
drama clubs
homeschooling co-ops

 

Out of the wide variety of options available for homeschoolers, the list above is relatively slim. Socialization happens in many of these opportunities, including in some of the following situations:

 

the local post office
zoos and museums
firestations
the grocery store

 

Socialization happens wherever a student happens to be- whether at home, community, or group class. In short, homeschoolers are not only socialized, but in many regards, quite exposed to the real world. His or her experiences with volunteer work, play dates, enrichment classes (likely with other kids their age), and group field trips, allows ample opportunity for collaboration and community involvement that I would dare say prove desirable for most students, schools, and teachers.

 

 

Teaching Homeschool Science

Science seems to be one of the most difficult things for many homeschool parents to teach.  It’s a complex subject with many different facets, and some homeschool parents don’t exactly understand a lot of it themselves.

Well, the good news is you can make learning science fun for your children AND for you!  You can learn together, and learning together makes it easier and more enjoyable.

While it’s important to concentrate on firm lesson plans and homework-style lessons sometimes, it’s also very important to get some hands-on experience.  This is what makes learning science easy and fun.  Trying to teach science without any hands-on work will not only be potentially boring, but it will be harder to grasp many of the concepts, too.

Here are some ways you can experience science hands-on:

• Visit a pond and take water samples.  View them under a microscope and describe on paper what you see.
• Visit the beach and take notes about the ecosystem.  What types of plants live on the beach?  Which creatures live in the tide pools?  What types of animals live in the ocean near the beach?
• Cook something like bread.  Explain how the yeast works to make the bread rise, what the various ingredients do for the bread, and what would happen if each ingredient were left out.
• Grow a garden.  Children can learn about botany, food supply, pest control, organic gardening, and where their food comes from.
• Get a chemistry set and experiment.  Did you have one of these as a kid?  They’re a lot of fun and very educational!
• Get a telescope and watch the stars.  Point out the various constellations and draw maps of the ones you see.
• Go on nature walks.  Identify plant species and animal species.  Document when and where you located each species, what they were doing, what time of day they were seen, and how many times they were seen.

Teaching homeschool science can be fun and rewarding for the entire family.  It’s just important to focus part of your time and energy on the hands-on part, rather than spending all of your time memorizing binomial nomenclature and the parts of cells!

Free Homeschool Lessons

Welcome to Free Homeschool Lessons.  I am a homeschool mom of 5 beautiful children.  Only one of my children has attended public school, and it was a bad experience that we would never repeat.  We made the choice to homeschool our children for many reasons.  For us, it was an easy choice.  For many, it’s not so simple.

One thing that made it easier for us to choose homeschooling is the fact that we work at home.  Because we own our own business, we don’t have to be at work certain hours, we’re home all day to supervise the kids, and we have more time available because we don’t have to commute to work.

For parents who work, choosing homeschooling can be considerably harder.  When you have to deal with work and commuting, it takes away a substantial part of your day, and homeschool can certainly interfere with the time you do have left.

Still, we believe homeschool is the ONLY option for our family.  Here is a partial list of some of the reasons we chose homeschooling for our children.

• We don’t agree with some of the things that are taught in public schools.
• We wanted to teach our children our own set of moral values.
• We didn’t want our children corrupted by children who are allowed to run rampant and behave terribly.
• We didn’t want our children to be bullied or harassed.
• We didn’t want to put our children at risk from children who might harm them.
• We didn’t want them to be exposed to additional illnesses.
• We wanted to protect them from drugs and alcohol for as long as possible.
• We wanted to be able to choose who our children socialized with until they’re older.
• We wanted them to have more attention during the learning process.
• We wanted more control over what they learned.
• We wanted them to have some say in what they learn, and how.

There were SO many reasons for us to choose this, and so few for us to choose public school.  For us, this was the right choice.  This won’t be the right choice for everyone!  We certainly don’t want to push this lifestyle onto anyone who isn’t ready for it or doesn’t want it, and we don’t want anyone to feel guilty if they don’t choose this for their family.  You have the right to choose what you want to do for your own children!

But for those who do choose this, we wanted to offer a little help.  We know what it’s like to struggle in the beginning to create lesson plans, organize your day, fit everything in, and find good lessons without spending a fortune.

This blog is to share our experiences with homeschooling, help you plan lessons, help you organize your day, and just give you general help and advice when you need it.  If you’ve chosen to homeschool your kids, good for you!  We’re happy to have you!

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