If you have said “yes” to the call to homeschool your children, congratulations! I am thrilled for you.
Here are a few action points to get you started:
1. Consider signing up for membership with Homeschool Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). They will lead you in all legals aspects of homeschooling. They will be there for you if you run into issues with your local school district. They will be your advocate. This is an optional step but I highly recommend taking it.
2. Once on the HSLDA site go to your state to see which steps you need to take to comply with the law. Here you will find details of exactly how to homeschool in your state, your options for ways to homeschool (i.e. homeschooling under the home education law, private tutor, religious exemption, and so forth), your required assessments if any, and much more.
3. Connect with your local homeschool community. Begin with your parish bulletin to see if there is a homeschool point of contact there. Here is an excellent resource for finding a homeschool support group. https://www.thecatholichomeschool.com/support/support-groups/
Don’t go it alone mama. You will need the support of other homeschooling moms.
4. Choose your curriculum! I always recommend this book, Cathy Duffy’s Top 100 Picks for Homeschool Curriculum. In the book you will find surveys which will help narrow down your teaching style and your children’s learning style. This will assist you in choosing the type of curriculum you will use. Another helpful site to compare excellent Catholic curriculum is Heart of a Mother.
5. Plan your framework for your year. This is a general plan, which can be changed as you go. Do you like a traditional school year (September-June) with summers off? Do you prefer to school July through April or May and take lots of long breaks? Are you interested in year-round schooling with a week off every 6 weeks or so? Here is the great thing-YOU decide what works best for your family! You have from July 1-June 30 to accomplish your yearly goals. Be as flexible as you’d like, but have a general plan laid out to work from.
6. Set up a space to work. Okay mamas, before you go down the rabbit hole of Pinterest homeschool rooms, remember this, you don’t actually need that. You will need a place to store your supplies and books and a workspace. Your workspace can be your kitchen table, and you can store your supplies in baskets or in a closet.
7. Most importantly, Give it all to The Lord. He has you. Keep Him in your focus. And take a deep breath. This is a good decision.
Enjoy the journey! God bless you.
Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam
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