Many parents home school and I think even more consider it (or perhaps wish they could). As a home schooling family (at times I should add!), and as an autism consultant, I’m frequently asked about home schooling. Those interested in learning more may find the following common Questions & Answers helpful.
1. Where do I start? – the most fundamental answer would be to decide that you’re going to home school. If uncertain you’ll move forward and home educate, then it’s suggested to begin researching. The Internet provides countless resources, including home schooling families, that can provide you with more information then you’ll care to have! It may be helpful to read about the various types of home schooling and what your local regulations are.
2. I’ve decided to home school… now what? – Once you’ve decided to home educate your child, it is time to make it official. You will need to notify the public school district of your intent to home educate and provide an Individualized Home Instruction Plan also. I wrote about this process in greater detail earlier this week.
3. What must I teach? – Here’s where it can get tricky. Chances are you’ll have set standards, subjects or topics that must be covered during home education. There is some flexibility in what grades certain standards must be met, but for the most part, parents are required to stay in compliance with regulations (varies by location, so check with your home district to obtain applicable policy).
4. How do I teach my child with special needs? – This is a difficult question to answer, since every child learns differently and special needs makes no difference. You’ll want to have some type of plan or schedule (not everyone does, but most prefer to) and you’ll need to pick materials that compliment your child’s learning style. Chances are you instinctively know how your child learns and even how to teach them, you simply need to apply it.
5. I’m not a teacher, how do I write lesson plans? – Few home schooling mothers are also teachers, so if you’re worried about lesson plans, you’re not alone. I was really hung up on this one (especially because I’m an ‘over-planned’ person, who plans to make back-up plans). What I found was that, to my delight, most teaching materials have corresponding lesson plans. If the curriculum you’re using doesn’t include lesson plans, begin visiting online resources for teachers and you’ll find an array of samples.
6. What about attendance? – Attendance works the same way in home educational settings as it does in the public school. Depending upon your regulations, you’ll be required to conduct a specific number of instructional hours. The home schooling calendar includes the summer months, but most parents don’t factor that into the school year (even if schooling during the summer). You’ll record and keep track of your instructional days, sick days and days off for Holidays. I made a quick template and printed off one for each month. You can also visist a teacher supply store and buy an attendance book. Attendance records are submitted to your district to further demonstrate compliance.
7. What about grades? – Where I live, in NY, children that are home schooled cannot earn a ‘regular’ high-school diploma, so grades are incredibly important if your child may attend college. During home education, you’ll record grades and tally final grades in accordance with your district’s reporting schedule (usually quarterly and determined by the district). Scores and grades are collected from work, tests, assignments and projects. What’s important is that you test, collect, record and submit the grades.
8. What is the biggest drawback to home-schooling? – The answer to this question is highly personal and will vary greatly depending upon whom you ask. For me, since I work a lot of hours, have three children and all the work that comes along with that, I found lack of time to be the biggest drawback. I had enough time to meet his needs, in fact surpass his needs, but my own responsibilities took a hit. There’s something to be said about respite as well. It’s wonderful to spend so much time with our children, but everyone needs a break. My fiance was wonderful and really pushed me out of the house in the evenings, so I could have a break (even though I protested, saying I was too tired). Again, that’s just the case for me.
There are many more questions that can be asked and answered when it comes to home schooling. Hopefully I’ve covered the basics here, as these are the questions I’m normally asked during trainings, consultations and even while shopping at the grocery store.
If you have a question about home schooling that isn’t answered here, please post it below so I can address it. Remember – if you’re wondering about it, chances are someone else is too.
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