Educational Assistance

Homeschooling, while it affords you certain freedoms when educating your child, it is not always easy. There are things that you can do to make homeschooling easier for yourself as a parent. The following tips may help make your job as a homeschooling parent a little easier.

1. If in doubt, look on the Internet. If you are in doubt about your method of homeschooling or home school cirriculum use the internet to seek another method. In fact, you can use the internet to help you in regard to nearly everything homeschool related. Do you need something to keep your little one busy while you’re working with an older child? The internet has coloring sheets galore, as well as worksheets, mazes, and puzzles.

2. Choose a complete homeschool cirriculum. Complete curriculums will also make homeschooling easier on you as a parent. Instead of having to search through multiple catalogs to find just the right cirriculum, choose a complete cirriculum. Not only will it save you time, it may even save you money, in the long run.

3. Cut yourself some slack. Don’t expect yourself to be the perfect teacher. Unless you have an education degree, you most likely will make mistakes along the way. Don’t beat yourself up about them. Learn from the mistakes and try not to repeat them again.

4. Allow your children to help themselves. You can’t be expected to know everything, so if your child wants to learn something you don’t know, give them the freedom to follow their interests. You might be pleasantly surprised to find that they learn more on their own than they did while you were more involved.

5. Seek the help from others. When in doubt about anything dealing with homeschooling, seek the advice from those who have been homeschooling for longer than you. Even though they may not have dealt with exactly what you’re dealing with, chances are they will be able to give you advice or point you in the right direction. Take advantage of your homeschooling peers’ offers of help, there might be a time where you’ll be able to return the favor.

6. Online communities are available. If you don’t know people that homeschool in your local area, there are literally hundreds of homeschooling communities on the Internet. Search online for homeschooling groups or forums. They can be found in every state, and even some outside of the United States. You may have to register to join a homeschool group or forum, but you can be as active as you like and remain anonymous if you like.

Homeschooling doesn’t have to be hard. In fact, one of the reasons most people choose to homeschool is the ease and freedom associated with it. When you have difficulty, however, you may feel as if you need help. The above tips, when followed, can help make homeschooling a little bit easier.

For further information, advice and resources visit http://www.homeschoolcirriculum.info

 

|A growing number of people are choosing to homeschool their children rather than sending them off to the general public school system. There are a number of reasons that parents cite with this increasing trend ranging from concerns concerning the declining quality of education present in certain school districts to personal convictions about the worldview being communicated to their kids.Increasingly more states will also be starting to make allowances for families who choose to educate their kids in your own home. While there are still those who are opposed to homeschooling in general, there are a growing number of advocates with this alternative inside the public arena. The laws are beginning to reflect the changing attitudes that both educators and the general public have toward homeschool education.This alternation in attitude toward homeschooling can also be showing up in advanced schooling. Many top-level colleges and universities are accepting students who have a homeschool education and discovering that, not only can homeschooled students compete with those who graduated from public school programs, oftentimes homeschooled students are actually outperforming them academically.As parents make the decision to homeschool their children, one of the first challenges they face is discovering what steps they need to take both when it comes to educating their kids and tracking the results so that their student/children may have a suitable transcript. There are numerous of programs that provide prewritten curriculums for homeschooling families which cover the whole selection of topics and grade levels. Many of these are offered also online.One of the major advantages that homeschooling offers is the flexibility to tailor the curriculum to the child’s specific needs and interests. It is necessary, however, for homeschooling families to possess a solid plan because they educate their kids from home. Developing a solid curriculum is an absolute necessity to insure that the child gets the training that he or she needs.Another helpful option for homeschooling families would be to join a homeschool support group or co-op. These kinds of groups could be invaluable in terms of choosing the best materials and educational helpful information on your homeschooling program. Many groups offer supplemental classes that homeschooled children can deal with enhance their homeschool lessons.Another resource that many homeschool people are turning to is the internet. Interactive curriculum programs that may be viewed online are especially helpful when it comes to offering additional methods to teach homeschooling students. Having the ability to watch a video having a teacher on screen is a lot more effective and much more enjoyable for that student than just reading the fabric from a book.Most of these types of online homeschool programs will also have written materials that can be downloaded and printed on your pc. This is actually the best of both worlds. If internet connections are slow, the video content may also be downloaded. This is sometimes a faster and cheaper alternative to buying DVDs that have to be shipped and may often get misplaced when lesson times roll around.As homeschooling continues to expand being an educational option for parents, the accessible resources will also continue to grow. Homeschool curriculum options are these resources. For a good homeschooling arts education program, check out our website at ChristianArtClass.com.

Five Homeschooling Misconceptions By Asha Oshun’ Mali

When I told my mostly middle class family that I was thinking of homeschooling my children, I was met with a host of negative responses. My mother, in particular, was mortified. “Home school!” she said exasperated. “Now why would you want to do that? Don’t you know home school children don’t get into good colleges? And, how will you socialize them?”

I did not know how to respond to her then. What I did know: was that I was not crazy about the education my children were receiving at their perspective schools. I did not blame their teachers at all for this-I knew they were doing the best they could-and honestly, I feel it’s a parent’s job to ensure their children are getting a quality education.

But still, I did not know how the home school processed worked. So, I turned to what I am good at; snooping. I stalked internet websites on homeschooling for weeks- learning all that I could. I also took a trip to the library-a handy free resource-and read books on the subject as well.

Added to this, I found out through word of mouth-which of my friends knew home schooling parents. I learned a lot from my quest, and I certainly learned a lot about home schooling misconceptions.

Misconception number one:

One of the most common misconceptions is that homeschooled students will not be able to socialize with other kids.  Having my children not only socialize with other kids their age, but also participate in community service programs, was very important to me when considering the option of homeschooling.

I wanted to make sure they had hands on experience for their perspective career interest and I also wanted to make sure they understood the importance of volunteering their time to help others in need. My thirteen year old wants to be a Veterinarian. I wondered how I would be able to make sure she was able to learn more about animals.

I found out through my research, that she could not only get experience by working  at animal shelters , but that she would also be able to fulfill a community service component by volunteering her time.

And as far as socialization is concerned, there is plenty of information available on the internet. Home-school.com is just one of the many sites where you can find home school social groups for your particular state.

There are also sites that can help strengthen your child’s skills by allowing them to interact with other learners their age.  Helium.com  is one such site. Helium offers teenagers, 13 and up, the chance to display their writing and the opportunity to read the writing of others.

Misconceptions number two:

A friend was careful to advise me that homeschooling was illegal. I told her I did not think so, but she insisted. “You are going to go to jail and lose your kids if you home school girl.” She said. While the mere thought of doing something illegal-especially where my children were concerned-was terrifying for me, my research showed me that homeschooling is indeed- legal.

There are state rules that must be followed however. I was reassured after learning from Fine Homeschooling.com (www. finehomeschooling.com) that homeschooling is legal in all 50 states. I was also encouraged by the fact that there were many sites that had detailed information on the legal information regarding homeschooling for each state.

One of the most informative was the Homeschooling Legal Defense Association.( www.hslda.org) The site is very detailed in regard to the legal ins and outs of what you can and can’t do as a home school parent or guardian.

Misconception number 3:

The next misconception I was met with was that to teach children at home you needed at least a bachelor’s degree and a teaching certificate. I learned that is in not true either. However, each state has different laws regarding homeschooling.

In Georgia for instance, all you need is a high school diploma. And, you have to make sure that you hand in an attendance sheet at the end of every month so that you are in compliance with truancy laws.

Teacher Certification is also not required in most states. You must be careful, however, to make sure that you are competent at the subjects you are teaching.  Your child’s education is extremely important. Don’t be afraid to enlist tutors to aide you in giving your child the highest quality education possible.

And you will need to make sure the tutors are qualified. In some states, like California, tutors must be certified.  However, you will have to do the research to find out what your states home schooling laws are.

Misconception number 4:

“Are you going to be able to afford it? I mean, the economy is pretty bad out there and you won’t be able to work full time if you home school.” This was a legitimate concern for me. I knew that I and my husband would have to work.

But, I knew too, that our schedules could be set up in a way that would allow us to offer our children the best of our time, resources, and attention.  As far as affordability is concerned, homeschooling is no more expensive than public school and far less expensive than most private schools.  Homework on your part is important.

The internet offers a plethora of websites on homeschooling.  One of my favorites is Successful Homeschooling (www.successful-homeschooling.com). This wonderful website gives useful information and links on where to find cost cutting materials such as used books, free and low cost homeschooling links, and much more. And there are many other sites like this one available on the web. Just head over to Google and do a search. You will be amazed at what you will find.

Misconception number 5:

Can home schooled children get into good colleges?  According to Karl M. Bundy they can and not just in America. Mr. Bundy (www.learninfreedom.org) , list well over 1,000 colleges that have accepted and still do accept home school students.

And, some of America’s finest colleges and universities, like Harvard, are listed as well.  If you are worried about standardized test like the A.C.T and S.A.T, you don’t have to. According to Isabel Shaw in an article written for Back to School with Family Education (school.familyeducation.com),

“On average, homeschooled kids score one year ahead of their schooled peers on standardized tests. The longer the student home schools, the wider this gap becomes. By the time homeschooled children are in the eighth grade, they test four years ahead of their schooled peers.”  (school.familyeducation.com)

Of course, you as the parent educator will have to do your own foot work where getting your child into the school of your choice is concerned. But, that would be your job no matter what system you choice for your child to attend; private, public or home.

All in all, homeschooling can be an enriching experience not only for your children, but for you as well. Don’t listen to the naysayers; do your own snooping. You will be surprised and delighted at what you will find.