Supporting Your New Homeschooling Journey
The events of the past year or so have shone quite the spotlight on homeschooling and how many parents worldwide support their child’s education journey from home. While many parents have been juggling work, school, home, and everything else under one roof for many years, millions more were left facing an uncertain future as they scrambled to work out how exactly they would ensure their child had an uninterrupted education with everything else they had to juggle too.
Combining virtual learning with in-person classes has become the norm for many people, but more and more families are dedicated to this way of life and make it work every day.
How can you make the switch to a successful home learning journey for both you and your child?
State Requirements
Homeschooling laws and regulations differ greatly from state to state. In New York, for example, parents must submit an annual declaration of intent to the local superintendent by July 1 or 14 days before beginning homeschooling, as well as an individualized home instruction plan. In addition, parents in New York must keep attendance records, submit quarterly reports, and administer standardized tests. You Can Home School has detailed information on your state’s laws.
Homeschooling Community
Find yourself in a local homeschooling community or an online group who you can lean on for support, especially in the early days where you are all finding your feet. Homeschooling isn’t easy, and it will take some time to find out what will work for both you, your child, and your family life. Especially if you have more than one child and you need to accommodate different levels of learning and topics.
Decide on Your Curriculum
The beauty of homeschooling is that you get to decide what you learn and when and stick to your own schedule or mix it up. There are various homeschooling plans you find online to help you decide on how to put together your school years.
Once you know your curriculum, you can put your lesson plans together using resources online and hard copies of books and learning materials.
Choose Your Learning Style
Many children benefit from a blend of learning styles to help them absorb everything they need to. For example, if you are teaching them about coding and developing technology, allowing them to control their learning, seek out their own resources to supplement their learning and foster independence. Many websites and new resources have a wealth of information to help you learn new skills that you can teach your child, such as Java API, or to allow them to develop their skills as part of their curriculum or additional studies to support their education.
Create Your Learning Space
Educating at home can feel like you are losing your home to a classroom. Define boundaries by creating specific learning spaces you can contain your classes too. This will allow you to close the door on “school” at the end of your learning day and have your separate home time on evenings or weekends around your schooling time.
