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HOMESCHOOLING in KANSAS: the Basics

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{The term “homeschooling” has been a hotly debated topic for years and is even more so today. This article is not to debate what equates to “homeschooling” but to help define WHAT you want for your kids and HOW to get it.}

If you are in Kansas and thinking about homeschooling your kids this year, there are a few things you need to consider.

But, more importantly, you first need to understand the basics of the process.

Before all of this crazy COVID chaos, it was a lot easier to dissect the different homeschooling concepts but things have gotten rather murky with dozens of terms that seem to mean the same thing:

Distance Learning

On-line Options

Public-school at Home

Charter Crossovers

Hyrbid Schooling

Virtual Classroom

and more…..

But if you find yourself wanting to keep your kids at home for school, no matter which term is being used, you need to understand the basics. And the best way to understand the basics is to ask yourself a series of questions. 

The first question you need to ask yourself is:

Do I want to school at home WITH the help of my LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT?

If you want to keep your local district involved, then that’s where you need to go to get started. There are as many different virtual/distance learning/hybrid plans from the districts as there are districts in the state. So, if that’s what you want, you need to seek them out for help. Only they can help you with the details. 

But if you want to cut ties with the local district and not take part in what they are offering as an alternative to coming into the classroom, the next question you need to ask yourself is:

Do I want to partake in the free PUBLIC SCHOOL AT HOME option that is offered through the STATE OF KANSAS?

This has been available for years and you’ve probably seen it advertised on TV {K12 and Kansas Connections Academy are two I see most frequently.} This is free and available to any kids in the state of Kansas. You can head here or here to check out some options. This route will remove you from your district but keep you in the Kansas State Department of Education’s realm. There are a few “schools” from which you can choose. They provide the curriculum and, at least some, provide laptops for you to complete their curriculum. If that’s the route you want to take, check out those links. They will send you loads of information on how to get started. I personally know some families that have had great success with this route and I can put you in touch with a few if you’d like. Just let me know. 

But, if you said “no” to those two questions above, your final question is this:

Do I want to HOMESCHOOL WITHOUT ANY CONNECTION to the public school system?

If your answer to that is “yes,” then these are the steps you need to take:

STEP ONE: UNDERSTAND that the state of  Kansas does not officially recognize “homeschooling” as an option. No worries, though. They just call us “non-accredited private schools.” It’s totally legal and any competent adult can do it {seriously, that’s how they define who can teach your kids….”competent adult.”} You can find more info from KSDE here and you can read the statues here. 

STEP TWO: REGISTER with the Kansas State Department of Education as a non-accredited private school. It might sound daunting but it’s super duper simple. Go here to get that done.  All you need is your name, your address and the name of your homeschool. That’s all. You don’t even need your kids’ names, ages or grades. When it asks for “custodian,” that’s you. And you only need to do it ONE TIME. You do not need to do this every year. I did it in 2011 and haven’t visited the site since. 

THREE: WITHDRAW your kids from their public schools {assuming they attended previously.} I know this sounds daunting too, but it’s NOT! And don’t let the district bigwigs or local school secretaries freak you out. Just do it. Here is an example of a good withdrawal letter. You do not need to tell them anything else.  You can go here to see what you do and DO NOT need to tell the local school. Just withdraw your kids and move on. You are 100% within your legal rights to educate your kids at home in the state of Kansas {and every state for that matter.} 

FOUR: KNOW the requirements. Thankfully, in Kansas, the requirements are very few. No testing is required. No portfolio submissions needed. No curriculum approval process. No attendance is monitored. You can go here for an easy rundown on the requirements. But, believe me when I say it is very minimal. At the moment, in the state of Kansas, homeschoolers have a lot of freedom and luxury. It may not always be that way, but that’s the situation for now. 

FIVE: CHOOSE your curriculum. This is, by far, the most time-consuming step. And there is no way for anybody to tell you what will be right for your family. There are as many curriculum options as there are WalMarts in the country. Or more. This is where many families get overwhelmed and discouraged. The most important thing to remember is that whatever you choose to do, does NOT need to be forever. You can adjust as many times as you need to throughout the year. 

But, to get started, I would head over here and read about the learning styles of your kids. That will give you a good start and will, in the very least, help you eliminate several types of curricula.

I would also check out these two articles that discuss the various methods of homeschooling: How to Choose the Best Homeschool Teaching Method for Your Family and A Beginner’s Guide to Homeschooling. 

And this article offers a three step approach to deciding on curriculum and could really help you narrow things down. 

Another great resource is anything by Cathy Duffy. I have a couple of her books, which I loan out to potential homeschoolers all the time, but you can get a lot of her info online here {you can also buy her books there.} She has reviewed OODLES of homeschool curricula and does a great job of dividing things into helpful categories. She also outlines whether they are of a Christian, secular or neutral worldview. Using her resources should leave you with at least a few viable resources.

My last suggestion would be to reach out to both local homeschool groups and also national groups {which you can find plenty of online.} But, I would save that step for last. I’d arm myself with a wee bit of knowledge first and “arrive” in those groups with some specific questions. It’s really hard for veteran homeschoolers to answer “what’s the best way to homschool?” Why? Because, really, nobody can answer that but you…which, in truth, is the heart of homeschooling!

YOU GET TO DECIDE WHAT’S BEST FOR YOUR KIDS’ EDUCATION!

We know it takes a lot of time and energy to make the decisions necessary but, believe us, it will be worth it! 

Three Tips on How to Homeschool During the Holidays

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{This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our Disclosure Policy for details.} 

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Long before I was a homeschool mom, I was a classroom teacher and one of the biggest challenges I experienced every year was figuring out ways to push through the academic curriculum while wading through the holiday season filled with parties, programs and plays. It was NOT An easy balance to find. Sway one way too much and my First Graders wouldn’t be able to read/write or add/subtract. Sway too far the other way and parents complained about “missing out on all the fun parts of school.” {I do not miss that type of pressure at all!}

I never dreamed that it would be just as hard as a HOMESCHOOL MOM to ensure that academics did not totally fly out the window as soon as mid-October hit. 

Between the amazing array of field trips that seem to abound every fall {apple picking, pumpkin patches, picnics in the park…} and parties to celebrate the various holidays {Caramel Apple Decorating, Thanksgiving Feasts, Gingerbread House Building…} having a full week of schooling at home seems impossible. Throw in at least one play, program or musical and it’s a wonder we get any teaching done at all from October through December.  

And, before you utter, “but learning happens all the time, no matter where you are and what you are doing” let me remind you that, while that is true, it’s not THAT simple. I agree that learning CAN happen anywhere. I believe that learning CAN occur at anytime.  BUT unless your kids are going to grow up to be professional Pilgrims or toy-making elves {no offense to those professions, ha ha,} they will need to know how to read and write. If they want to survive in the world of shopping and eating out, they will need to be able to multiply and divide. If they want to go to college, they will need to know how to formulate a scientific hypothesis and write clearly structured essays. And those things cannot be taught if we stop focusing on academics for the last 10 weeks of every single calendar year.

So, how can we continue to teach academics during this busy holiday season?

TIP ONE: Plan Ahead!

Wrap up 25 Christmas books, start on December 1st and read one book per day until Christmas.

Pick fun but purposeful unit studies to use all winter long {check out these brand new 12 Days of Winter Unit Study Packs that will go live in December 1-16, 2020!}

Assign copywork of the lines your kid needs to know for the Christmas play.

Take paper and pencils to the store when shopping for gifts and ask your kids to find the total before you go to the register.

Search TpT for lessons on holiday symbols and traditions or the true story of Christmas.

Choose crafts that teach skills your kids actually need and not just because they are cute.

Create an Advent activity for the month of December that is both meaningful and academic.

If your family does the Elf on the Shelf, be an Elfover-achiever and make at least some of the elf’s daily antics centered around academics.

Take the time not only to go Christmas caroling but also learn the words of and the meaning behind classic carols before you go! {Click here to receive my December FREEbie – a 40-page Hymn Study Pack on Angels We Have Heard on High.}

None of that advanced planning takes away from the fun and joyful experiences of the holidays. But they do make the activities more meaningful and purposeful and they keep your kids focused on their academics while still having fun.

TIP TWO: Get creative!

Ask your kids to group the ornaments into types {shapes, sizes, colors, etc} and graph them before you put them on the tree.

{Or, later in the season, have them count the number of pine needles that have fallen off before they vacuum, ha ha.}  

Rewrite the math assignment to include word problems about gifts, stockings and candy canes.

Say “we will practice fractions while baking cookies today” and make your younger kids reduce those fractions while the older kids need to find equivalent choices.

Replace the spelling words in your kid’s workbook with words including “sleigh, tradition, mistletoe”.

Teach formal letter-writing by having your kids write “thank you” letters.

Switch out your lunch-time read aloud book for something holiday related. {For a great historical fiction Christmas chapter book appropriate for all ages, check out the Imagination Station’s Danger on a Silent Night.} {And then take your fun new read aloud to the next level and get a resource to accompany it here. This Novel Study Pack is filled with vocab studies, puzzles and more!}

Explore the science of snow and the chemistry of instant hot-cocoa.

Define the laws of physics that allow graham crackers to be held up in a vertical position with icing while building gingerbread houses.

Yes, it will take longer to be creative. Yes, it will feel more like work than if you simply hope they’ll learn through osmosis while baking cookies, decorating trees and building gingerbread houses.  But, the extra time and effort will be worth it. They’ll be doing actual academics while enjoying a variety of fun activities!

TIP THREE: Be Diligent!

Acknowledge that your kids’ academics fall solely on you. Yes, that’s a lot of pressure but it’s what we signed up for when we decided to homeschool. So, remain diligent during the holiday season.  

Be diligent about your time.

It’s okay to miss out on a field trip or two.

It’s okay to say “no” to the choir director at church.

It’s okay to turn down the opportunity to organize the co-op Christmas party.

Be diligent about goals for your homeschool.

Stick to your daily routines.

Stick to your lesson plans.

Stick to your curriculum.

Do not put that carefully-chosen curriculum on the shelf “until January when things settle down.”

Be diligent by acknowledging that in January, you will be hit with Valentine’s Day, Easter and end-of-the-year craziness.  

Be diligent in continuing to educate your kids during this busy holiday season.

Be diligent now so you are not caught off-guard in May and then decide to scrap the last 10 chapters of math.  

I know this sounds difficult and time-consuming but, if you PLAN AHEAD and BE CREATIVE, it’ll be easy to BE DILIGENT!

And if you do all three, you can easily slip in loads of fun activities and memory-making!

And wouldn’t a spare $500 help you successfully homeschool through the holidays as well….or at least help buy gifts and goodies?

I’ve teamed up with some of my favorite bloggers for the 7th annual Christmas Blessings Giveaway with the hopes of making this holiday season even better by giving away $500 in Paypal cash to two families!

While we wish we could bless many more families, we were able to come up with a big prize for TWO families – $500 each (delivered via Paypal) – that we pray will make a big difference in their lives this Christmas season!

There are lots of entry options in the Rafflecopter form below – the more you enter, the better your chance of winning!  I know it can seem tedious and time-consuming to go through all the entries, but isn’t a chance at $500 worth it? I think it is!  Plus, all of these amazing bloggers donated their own money toward the cash prizes, so this giveaway wouldn’t be possible without them.  I hope you’ll take the time to check out each one. Who knows, maybe you will find some new blogs to follow.

The giveaway will run from Monday, November 16th through Wednesday, November 25th (ends at 11:59pm EST). Winner will be notified by email shortly after the giveaway ends and will have 48 hours to respond to claim the prize or another winner will be drawn. You must have a Paypal account to win.  By entering this giveaway, you agree to be added to the email lists of the participating bloggers.  Please be sure to read the Rafflecopter terms and conditions upon entering.

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Three LIFE LESSONS My Son Has Learned From Taking a Live Online Class

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My son began his 8th Grade year as a homeschooler this month. I’ve always designed his yearly curriculum using an eclectic approach, mostly with the intent of catering to his strengths while moving his weaknesses forward {sometimes we moved things along slower than I care to admit.}

As I was planning this school year, I finally forced myself to stop denying the fact that I only have five years left with him at home and decided it would be wise to consider what he will need for his High School transcript before making my curriculum selections. 

Considering he wants to major in Zoology in college, there are very specific math and science courses he needs to take in High School, which means there was some very specific prep work we needed to do this year.

We’ve always done a full school schedule that included math, science, history, language arts, writing, Bible as well as some additional electives. And, for the most part, I’ve felt more than capable of instructing him. Until now. With the weighted importance of High School looming just one year away, I decided that it was time to outsource a couple of the more important subjects that were beyond my personal skill set as a teacher. 

This realization lead me to enroll him in a live, online General Science class designed for Middle Schoolers. There are all sorts of online classes available in every subject imaginable with 1,000 different models and approaches. Some are laid-back and more fun than anything. Some are pre-recorded and “work at your own pace.” But I selected a rather rigorous course with a more traditional educational approach.

The class meets weekly for 90 minutes and there is substantial homework for the other four days. The entire experience consists of loads of reading,  hands-on experiments, timed tests, note-taking  and live lectures. 

In just three weeks of taking this class, our son has learned a tremendous amount. Way more than I could’ve successfully taught him using just the book, my ability to skim chapters and my penciled-out schedule.

In addition to learning about the history of science, how to form a hypothesis and how the scientific process both succeeds and fails, he has also learned some very valuable LIFE LESSONS in just three weeks. Lessons that he needed to learn. Lessons that would’ve been really hard to teach him on my own. Lessons that I didn’t know he needed. But, thankfully, lessons that this General Science class seems determined to teach him though I doubt the instructor planned as such. 

 

 

LIFE LESSON ONE: HOW TO RESPECT THE HONOR SYSTEM

Obviously with Mom as your teacher and being an only child, it’s pretty hard to lie and get away with saying you did your work when you didn’t. Even if you are a homeschool kid with six siblings, I think it would still be pretty hard to get away with lying about your work…certainly harder than if you were a public school kid with 29 other classmates to distract your teacher. 

But, as is common among some styles of live, online classes, students don’t have to submit proof that they finished every assignment. Sometimes they simply have to click a button that says, “Yes, I performed Experiment 2.3 and completed the lab report.” 

The first time this popped up as the way to submit his weekly assignment, my son clicked “yes” and then turned to me and asked “but how will my teacher know if I actually did it?” “Ummmmm,” I floundered a bit and then brilliantly said, “she won’t, but you will.”

ACTUALLY DOING THE WORK

And this opened up the opportunity for a discussion regarding the HONOR SYSTEM. We talked about how being dishonest will always hurt you to a degree, even if other people never find out.  And in circumstances that involve reading, learning, etc, it’s definitely going to hurt you in the long run.

Not only will it hurt because it can {hopefully} cause guilt and shame, but it will compound over time. If you don’t do the reading or complete the assignment, you aren’t learning the material. If you don’t learn the material, you won’t do well on the tests. But, more importantly, you have missed the opportunity to LEARN something new, GROW as a student and ADD to who you are. And then you chose to lie about it. 

We kept the conversation going and covered other parts of life where the HONOR SYSTEM might come into play. Will I know that he didn’t feed the dog when he said that he did? No, but his dog, CoCo, will know and she’ll be hungry. And it will be because he was not honest. 

Will the librarian know if he takes 4 books when the sign said “One free book per kid”? Not unless she’s watching. But the last three kids who want a free book will “know” because they won’t have a free book to take home. And, it will be because he was not honest. 

Will his college prof know that he hasn’t completed his individual assignments leading up to the major group project? No, but when it’s time for the group project to be turned in, his groupmates will know and their grade will suffer. And it will be because he was not honest. 

That’s a big LIFE LESSON that we were able to begin to tackle,  all thanks to his live, online general science class. 

 

 

LIFE LESSON TWO: HOW TO TAKE A TIMED, ONLINE TEST

This LIFE LESSON might seem nominally important compared to learning HOW TO RESPECT THE HONOR SYSTEM but, in today’s day and age, knowing HOW TO TAKE A TIMED, ONLINE TEST is most assuredly a LIFE LESSON that our kids need to master at some point. Whether it’s taking an online college course, trying to earn advantage points for a reduced health insurance premium or attempting to avoid a penalty after a speeding ticket, knowing how to negotiate an online test is pretty much imperative these days.  

For my son’s live, online class, he will need to take a total of 23 online tests. The first two tests are open-book and untimed but then he’ll need to transition to timed, close-booked tests.  Strangely enough, he was very excited to take the first test last week. In fact, he was so excited that he got up early and started his test at 8am on his own! But then he had to go to his volunteer job and didn’t return to the test for seven hours! So, by the time he completed the entire test, the exam clock had run for more than EIGHT HOURS.

THE AFTERNOON PORTION OF HIS FIRST TEST 😉

Of course, we emailed the teacher and explained the situation. She found it as humorous as we did and explained that she fully expects a learning curve for the procedures of the class. I’m just glad he has begun the mastery process of HOW TO TAKE A TIMED, ONLINE TEST now at the age of 12, as opposed to as an 18 year old in college {when his professor might not find it nearly as funny!}

 

 

LIFE LESSON THREE: HOW TO MANAGE HIS TIME

Our homeschool calendar has always been what I would term “firm, yet flexible.”  I plan out the entire year in advance and assign things by the week with the full expectation that my son will accomplish them within that time frame. But, I am also flexible in the sense that if life gets in the way, a certain subject is taking longer than expected or his teacher {aka: me} hasn’t quite finished printing the necessary pages, I can just break out my erasable pen and re-work the calendar. I have done this more times than I can count. 

But that’s not quite the case when enrolled in a live, online class. The assignment calendar is set at the start of the semester and provided to the entire class. Every student needs to keep up with the calendar or suffer the consequences of missed assignments and bad grades. 

As soon as I saw the calendar of assignments for my son’s class, I was reminded of my college days and the euphoric feeling that would come over me when I got my hands on a class syllabus for the first time. I LOVED knowing what was due when and plotting it out in my planner.  LOVED it. I’m sure that’s not true for some people. It certainly hasn’t been true for my son. Then again, he’s only 12. He’s got time to acquire that weird love of making a list of things to do and then crossing them off as you get them done. Maybe he’ll never develop a love of the syllabus and to do list like me but he does need to learn HOW TO MANAGE HIS TIME. 

And, what better way to learn it than through a live, online class? {It’s definitely a much better way than to have his mom, or worse yet, his future wife nagging him constantly.}

During the second week of the semester, there was a small hitch in our week. I don’t recall what it was. It doesn’t even matter what it was. The point is, my son did not get his science experiment done on Thursday as originally planned. Then, Friday was uber busy, as always, and there wasn’t any spare time to get the experiment done. So, guess what he had to do? Wake up early on Saturday morning and get the experiment done. 

SATURDAY MORNING SCIENCE

And that’s what he did. I won’t pretend there wasn’t at least a little whining and complaining about getting up early and doing school on a Saturday, but he did it. He knew that if he didn’t get it done on Saturday, he would be behind on his Monday and Tuesday assignments and would not be prepped for the live, online class on Wednesday afternoon. 

So, he got it done. He caught up by working on Saturday morning and learned a valuable LIFE LESSON…HOW TO MANAGE HIS TIME! 

 

 

Homeschool moms often find themselves doubting whether they are doing enough. I know that, over the past 9 years of homeschooling, I have doubted myself a lot. I have doubted whether I made the right curriculum choices. I have doubted whether I have allowed my math-hating kid to take math too slowly. I have doubted whether I shouldn’t have chalked up his horrible spelling skills to just not being a natural speller. 

But more important than worrying about his academics,  I have doubted whether I was giving my only child enough socialization. I have doubted whether we have focused on the right life skills. I have worried that I don’t even know everything that I need to teach {so how can I possibly make sure he learns it?}

But then I step back and take comfort in remembering that homeschooling is a journey. It takes a massive compilation of thousands of individual academic and life skills to create a fully functioning homeschool graduate.

For his 8th Grade year, in addition to Pre-Algebra, World Geography and the New Testament, my son is also learning how to do laundry, how to bake cookies/cakes and how to feed/care for bats, snapping turtles and mudskippers {that’s his volunteer job}. 

And, apparently, he is also learning HOW TO RESPECT THE HONOR SYSTEM, HOW TO TAKE A TIMED, ONLINE TEST and HOW TO MANAGE HIS TIME! {Not that I planned any of that, but I’ll gladly take it!}

 

o

HOMESCHOOL MOMS Are Not the Same as CLASSROOM TEACHERS

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I recently saw a poll in a big Face Book group for HOMESCHOOL MOMS that asked the question,  “If your church asked all TEACHERS to stand up and be recognized, would you stand up?” 

The answers varied, of course, {but the discussion stayed civil, thankfully} and it got me thinking, “would I?”

If my pastor asked the TEACHERS in the congregation to stand up and be recognized, would I stand up?

The answer is NOPE. I would not. I would stay seated and respectfully acknowledge all of the TEACHERS who stood. Why?

Because I don’t consider myself a TEACHER. 

I am a HOMESCHOOL MOM. 

And HOMESCHOOL MOMS are not the same as CLASSROOM TEACHERS.

I’m a mom who has decided to educate her child at home. Yes, I teach my child. But I am not a TEACHER in the way most people use the term. 

I’m not a TEACHER of other people’s kids. 

I’m not a TEACHER who is responsible for 30 kids at one time. 

I’m not a TEACHER who is mandated to teach specific subjects and utilize certain books. 

I’m not a TEACHER who answers to 30 sets of parents, one principal, a team of grade level peers, a full school board and the state.  

I’m not a TEACHER who is underpaid but still expected to provide a beautiful but calm, comfortable but exciting, gender-neutral, multi-cultural environment for my students. 

I’m not a TEACHER who is regulated in what she can say and how she can say it. 

I’m not a TEACHER anymore than a mom who uses homeopathic remedies at home is a doctor. 

I’m not a TEACHER anymore than a dad who arms himself at home is a police officer. 

I’m not a TEACHER anymore than a neighbor who rescues his family from a fire is a firefighter.

I’m just a mom who decided that it would be best to educate her son at home.

And I get to make that education look however my husband and I decide.

It’s an absolute privilege to do so and I feel blessed every day. 

Is it always easy? Of course not. 

Is it always fun? Ha. I wish. 

Is it worth it? Totally!

But, I am not a TEACHER. 

Let those men and women have their discounts.

Let them have their special appreciation weeks.

Let them flood their FB pages with requests for classroom donations. 

Let the community call them special.

Let the churches recognize them on certain days.

Let the public donate backpacks and pencil pouches. 

   HOMESCHOOL MOMS are not the same as CLASSROOM TEACHERS.

CLASSROOM TEACHERS are poorly paid, underappreciated, hard working individuals who deserve special recognition. 

And, yes,  so are HOMESCHOOL MOMS. We are special. We work hard. We are often underappreciated. And we’re certainly underpaid, ha ha. But we CHOOSE to do those things and be that person for our own families. That is an entirely different concept than a CLASSROOM TEACHER who is assigned 30 new kids each year from community families and is expected to provide a decent education with a small budget and a huge bureaucracy.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying CLASSROOM TEACHERS are worth more than HOMESCHOOL MOMS. And I am not saying the opposite. 

All, I am saying is that

 HOMESCHOOL MOMS are not the same as CLASSROOM TEACHERS.

Three MOST IMPORTANT Considerations to Help Decide Whether to HOMESCHOOL

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Making the decision to homeschool is one of the biggest parenting decisions  you will ever make. Some women know long before they even meet their prospective spouses that they intend on homeschooling their future children while others send their kids to public school for four years and then on the eve of a new school year, feel drawn to keep her kids home. And many moms are somewhere in the middle of that spectrum. No matter which mom you find yourself to be, deciding whether to homeschool is a HUGE decision and one that should not be taken lightly. There are seemingly 100 different things to consider when making the decision, and if you join a FB group of current homeschoolers, you’ll be faced with 1000 new considerations! In order to not get overwhelmed, try focusing on just these three for now…

ONE:  SOCIALIZATION

How will  your kids receive SOCIALIZATION?

This is such a “hot-button” issue between pro/anti homeschoolers that it seems like a crazy place to start but the reason it is a hot-button issue is because it’s an important one.  SOCIALIZATION {the process by which one acquires a personal identity and learns norms, values, behaviors and social skills} cannot be done in a vacuum or alone at home. Despite what many homeschoolers tend to argue, SOCIALIZATION is a legit concern. Most homeschoolers bristle when somebody {anybody!} asks about SOCIALIZATION for homeschoolers. Personally, the question does not bother me because I believe it is a fair question. Whether you move a child from public school to homeschool or a child’s education begins with homeschool from the start, the fact remains we are removing kids from the automatic, built-in day-to-day social setting that is found in the public school classroom. {Whether that is good or bad SOCIALIZATION, is a different question for another day.} And, unless you’re wanting to homeschool in order to keep your children literal captives at home, you would probably {hopefully!} agree that kids need some sort of SOCIALIZATION.  The GREAT news about homeschooling is that we get to CHOOSE with whom and how they socialize.  So allow yourself to ask the important question… how will your kids receive SOCIALIZATION?

Do your kids already have friends who are not based on their current school setting?

Do you have neighbors who homeschool?

Do you have neighbor kids at all {so your kids can play with them after school}?

Do your kids have cousins in the area?

Do you attend church where your kids have friends?

Do your kids participate in any {non-school related} sports or other activities?

Can you afford to add them to new/additional sports or activities?

Are there any co-ops in your town?

If so, check their rules and bylaws. Would any of those co-ops be a good fit for your family?

If not, would you consider yourself confident and capable enough to start your own co-op?

Does the local library offer any type of activities for HS kids?

If not, do they offer after school activities for all kids?

Do you already possess the necessary transportation to take your kids to/from activities/playdates/etc?

Do you have multiple kids?

If so, will you homeschool all of your kids? Do some of those kids need naps, have busy schedules or require special attention of some sort?

Are your multiple kids close in age? Do they get along? Do they enjoy being together?

Do your kids like loads of social interaction or do they just tend to have one close friend?

How do you feel about your kids having on-line friendships?

How you do feel about your kids being friends with younger kids? Older kids?

Every family will answer those questions somewhat differently. Every situation is unique but remember, the question isn’t “If I choose to homeschool my kids, will  they  receive any SOCIALIZATION?” The question is “How  will they receive that SOCIALIZATION?” I’m a wee bit different in the homeschool world because I only have one kid so any/all SOCIALIZATION occurs when I make plans with other people or take our son to an activity. So, believe me when I say,  if I can provide not just sufficient SOCIALIZATION but also meaningful  SOCIALIZATION for him, then you can too!

TWO: FINANCES

Can you afford to homeschool?

If you are already a SAHM with no income, then this is a much smaller piece of the decision-making puzzle for you. All you need to consider is if your FINANCES can handle buying curriculum and paying for potential outings? 

If you are NOT currently a SAHM, you do need to sit down and do the math on whether you can afford it. Things to consider when looking at your FINANCES…

How much do you make per year?

Can your family afford to lose your income?

Are there ways you can cut things from the budget?

Are you the provider through whom your family’s health insurance is offered?

Do you currently pay childcare while your kids are at work?

Do your kids have any included meals while at public school or childcare now? {because homeschool kids seem to EAT their way through the day!}

Can you afford to buy curriculum?

Can you afford field trips, memberships to museums and whatnot?

If you would still need to bring in some income, what could you do to make that happen?

Are you organized enough to work part time and teach from home too?

Are you focused enough to work from home with your kids doing lessons as well?

Are you driven enough to do it all? And to do it all well?

Only you and your husband can decide whether you can afford homeschooling or not. Asking other homeschool moms can be helpful in terms of identifying any “hidden costs” to homeschooling but, in the end, every situation varies greatly. As far as knowing how much curriculum can cost, you just need to know it can range from basically free to thousands per kid. The best suggestion is to decide how much you want to budget for curriculum, plus how much you want to spend on field trips, classes, etc and then throw in some more for unexpected things. If you decide to homeschool, use that number and stick to it. Adjust it for the next year if you need to. 

THREE:  SUPPORT

Who will SUPPORT you on this journey?

{The SUPPORT of your spouse is a given. If your spouse is not on board with the idea of homeschooling your children, you need to stop reading this and focus on that issue before anything else. Under no circumstances do I suggest that a mom should homeschool without the complete SUPPORT of her husband.}

So, assuming your husband is already on board, who ELSE will SUPPORT you? Because, believe me, you will need it.

Will your parents support you?

In-laws?

Close friends?

Church family?

Grown children?

Neighbors?

Old friends?

On-line friends?

I’ve been very blessed in the sense that our family and friends have been very supportive along our entire HS journey so far. But, I know that is not the case of many, many homeschoolers. I’ve heard of homeschool moms being verbally attacked by their own mothers for ruining their grandchildren. I know moms whose next-door neighbors have called CPS because they homeschool. Friendships have crumbled, families have become estranged and marriages have ended because some moms have opted to keep their kids home and provide their education. Stop now and think of the important people in your lives. If you care what they think, ask yourself if they are likely to SUPPORT your decision to homeschool. If you don’t care what they think, good for you! But, now ask yourself if you are okay doing this alone. {Of course you would have your husband’s SUPPORT but as any SAHM will tell you, you need more than just your man when it comes to the day-to-day grind of being home all day with kids.}

Now, ask yourself what type of SUPPORT will you need?

Do you just need the absence of random people verbally judging?

Or do you need actual phone calls from your mom saying,  “Yay, you! You are amazing and your kids will be fabulous adults some day!”

Do you need physical SUPPORT from friends taking your kids for a day so you can go to the MD, carpooling to activities or swapping subjects to teach one another’s kids?

Are you an introvert and have no desire to make new friends but would be more than happy to join a FB Group with 30, 000 other homeschool moms?

Do you need your old friends to SUPPORT you by validating your friendship through frequent girls-nights-out?

Just like with SOCIALIZATION and FINANCES, the answers to the SUPPORT questions will look different for you than me {or anybody else}. The important thing is that you are honest with yourself as you take each of these things into consideration. It’s a big decision but the time, effort and energy spent will be well worth it!

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