Can I really do this??

• If you feel that homeschool is right for your children, if you are brave enough to take the leap, and if you give it your all (seeking help when needed), then I believe you can do this.  In our society we are often told that we aren’t qualified enough to teach our children adequately, and I believe the opposite.  You, as the parent of your children, are uniquely qualified to understand what they need and you have the greatest motivation to help them succeed. Given enough resources, time, and support, you can do this!!  For a more in-depth answer to this question, click here.

Where do I start?

• Go to HSLDA.org to find the requirements to legally homeschool in your state (for those in the United States). They watch these requirements carefully and you can trust them to be accurate and reliable. You MUST comply with the legal requirements! If you live outside the United States, ask local homeschool groups or google it to find out an official source to tell you what the legal homeschool requirements are.
• If you are super pressed for time and want to get started homeschooling immediately, just get Cindy Rollins’ book, Morning Time: A Liturgy of Love, and read the first 70 pages. Then gather some classic books from the library (or online) and start reading aloud, while you continue to research and add to your homeschool. Morning Time is the BEST thing we have ever done in our homeschool and the absolute anchor to all we do. Also, Cindy’s podcasts, The New Mason Jar, and the Literary Life, are fantastic! I really value her wisdom gained over the decades of homeschooling her nine children. She is a voice of calm sanity in the overwhelming sea of homeschool “influencers” and you can trust her to point you to the things that really matter. Cindy also has a very active Morning Time for Moms Patreon, where she reads through the Charlotte Mason volumes, along with many other resources that are so helpful for a homeschool mom. She also has a yearly Back to School Conference that’s been a huge help to me (the 2021 conference was especially enlightening, and the 2022 conference had an excellent talk on neurodiversity).
• See how we do things at Our Ideal Homeschool Day. And for your own education, consider the principles and resources shared in my post, Why Read Literature? Also, check out our favorite resources and curriculum, gathered through our 16 years of homeschooling seven kids (four have graduated high school), for more ideas of where to start.
• Reach out! We are so blessed to live in a day when we can find mentors, groups and co-ops at the click of a button. Join Facebook groups, like Mere Motherhood, or do a Google search for homeschool groups and organizations in your area. Ask questions and find friends. You are not alone and there are so many willing to help guide you and be by your side as you homeschool your children! It is invaluable the help that community can bring to homeschooling.
• If you have just come from public school and are completely panicked about where to start, you can check out The Good and the Beautiful as a way to ease into the new and different paradigm of homeschooling. Just know that TGTB is what my kids would call “workbooky” and not where I recommend you stay, or you will miss out on the full and wonder-filled world of true education beyond teachers guides and workbooks. And never replace Morning Time with TGTB! I really feel like Morning Time is the core of homeschool. Also, feel free to ignore the TGTB recommended literature lists, she leaves a lot of fantastic books out for unnecessarily strict reasons. Every child needs the beauty and wonder of The Chronicles of Narnia, for instance!

What am I supposed to teach my children?

• The most common basics are: reading and writing (language arts), math, science/nature study, history, geography, art, music and physical education. Our favorite resources are listed here.
• Don’t fall into the trap of trying to cover everything, you can’t.  Even if you could, they won’t remember it all.  Do you remember everything you were taught in school?  No, and no one does. Everyone has different gaps in their learning, no matter where they go to school.  Gaps aren’t a problem if your children know that they can start to fill them whenever they want, that’s what life-long learning means.
• Your state will have legal requirements for what you must teach your children, but they vary between states, so make sure you check HSLDA to understand what they are.
• Remember that every child is unique and the freedom you have in homeschooling gives you the opportunity to meet them wherever they are and help them get to the next level. Education is an exciting journey!

I don’t know everything in every subject that I have to teach, help!

• Get creative, there are so many resources out there to help you facilitate your children’s education.  Books, curriculums, online courses, tutors (obviously be very wise and cautious about leaving your children alone with anyone), co-ops, part-time classes at the local high school or community college, apprenticeships, career and technical education programs, and high school teens can even get a job in the area they want to learn.
• You don’t have to know it all!!  Charlotte Mason says we are to be a “guide, philosopher, and friend.” You can learn alongside your children, from the best books and resources you can get your hands on. Keep learning on your own time and then share that with your children.
• Teach the things you love and feel most confident in, then gather resources that take some of the load off your shoulders.  For instance, I really don’t enjoy math and I don’t remember much of it from when I was in school.  So… I don’t teach it.  The kids have always done either an online curriculum or worked through a well-written, self-guided book.  Luckily my husband loves math so they go to him if they have questions.  If I didn’t have him to help, I could hire a tutor, have the kids take an online class with an instructor, join a co-op and have another mom teach them that subject, etc.

How long does homeschool take each day?

• Homeschool does NOT need to take as long as public school, I promise.  The following estimates are totally ballpark figures because every day is a little different, and they are based on how we homeschool.  (also see “typical homeschool day” question below)  Other methods and curriculums, or online schools, will obviously look very different!
• With young children, ages 5-8 you could easily be done in less than 1.5- 2 hours.  Most of that will be with you, since they are learning to read and need more direction.  For upper elementary and early middle school, about 3 hours is typical, about 1.5 to 2 hours with you (one hour of that is morning time which all ages participate in).  As they get older they are much more self-sufficient and you take on more and more of a purely mentor role.
• For upper middle school and high school, my teens spend about 4-5 hours, and about 1.5- 2 hours of that is with me (about one hour of that is morning time which all ages participate in).  They are mostly self-guided and are pursuing their chosen goals, but I also like to read through books with each of them for some one-on-one connection time.  
• The above estimates are just talking about the concentrated time on typical subjects that most states require homeschoolers to teach.  If your state requires logging more hours than that, remember that much of life at home qualifies.
• Piano practice is music, cooking with a recipe is math, drawing and coloring is art, watching a nature documentary is science, a family dance party is physical education, reading a book is language arts or could “count” as any subject the book covers.  Remember life is full of learning.

What does a typical homeschool day look like, with several children?

• The rhythm and routine is going to be totally different for each family! (notice I did not say “schedule,” that is a word that inevitably causes stress for me) We have a general flow to our days and we plan built-in margin. That allows for following rabbit trails of learning, deep discussions, or the emergencies that always seem to arise (like the toddler making a giant mess that now needs to be cleaned up).
• The best two things we have done are:
  • Morning time!! We LOVE this time together every school day to read aloud, sing, pray, learn poetry and scripture, focus on mindset and character, filling our hearts with good and beautiful things.
  • Combine every subject possible. Science, history, geography, art, music, nature study, etc. can be done together “family style” which creates great opportunities for connection as we learn and discuss together. Then the older kids study and read more in-depth during their own individual time, and share with us what they have learned.
• We currently have three children at home who are homeschooling; ages 17, 12, and 9 (four of our children are already finished with high school and on to other things).
• I share our daily routine in this article.

Can I homeschool for free?

• Yes, I believe you can! The list of our favorite resources includes many free options, but I will list some examples here. Don’t forget that YouTube has so many different educational videos that you are sure to find interesting things to learn together.
  • All-in-One
    • Libraries of Hope (this collection can serve as a full curriculum for the family, including over 100 free books covering history, geography, nature, art, music, poetry, and literature)
• • • Ambleside Online (a completely free full curriculum for every grade. It takes awhile to get oriented on the website but it is worth it if you are looking for a quality literature-based curriculum.)
    Language Arts / Literature
    • Ambleside Online (high school English can be completely covered by using the plans on the AO website)
• • • Copycatbooks.com (free manuscript, D’Nealian, and cursive handwriting worksheets)
• • • SpellingCity.com (free spelling and vocabulary practice)
• • • Poetry Foundation (free poetry and poet biographies)
    History/Geography
    • Forgotten Classics (free American Freedom series, World History series, Great Lives series, and more)
• • • My World Story Book and My America Story Book for short biographies that help history come alive
• • • Liberty Kids (wonderful show that makes American History come alive for kids, currently available on YouTube)
• • • Seterra.com (practice geography and quiz yourself)
  • Math
    • MEP has lesson plans and worksheets for a complete math program including grades K-9. Here is an good example of how to get this program set up for your child
    • Khan Academy has many free math courses for the upper grades
  • Science
    • John Muir Laws nature journaling resources are incredible! Learning to observe and care about nature is the first basic step in science education
    • Mystery Science has some free lessons that all start with a question
    • Crash Course science courses cover biology, anatomy, botany, zoology, chemistry, physics, astronomy, and more
  • Art/Music
    • Let’s Make Art (watercolor YouTube channel)
    • Art for Kids Hub (drawing/cartoons YouTube channel)
    • Enrichment Studies (free artist study every month for subscribers)
    • Hannah Fridenmaker’s Folks and Hymns (YouTube channel)

My child is preschool age and I am excited to homeschool, what do I need to do?

• Most everything you need can be found at Well-Educated Heart.  How I wish I had WEH when I first started out!  Marlene teaches parents to honor a child’s natural curiosity and desire to learn, then nurture their heart through story, music, nature, poetry and art.  
• Please don’t fall into the trap of feeling like your child will be behind, or that you must push academics.  The younger years are the prime time to wonder, discover, laugh, play and build your relationships.  Here is what I would tell myself if I could start over.

What about socialization?

• This is an inevitable question that will be asked at some point. The short answer is: your kids are going to be just fine!  Homeschoolers don’t usually just stay at home.  We are part of a co-op, we go on field trips, the teens are in sports and choir, we meet other homeschoolers at the park, the teens have a church youth group, the high school kids take part-time classes online or at the local charter school, and they have a daily church seminary class. Our kids don’t have hours of homework to do so they have time to play with neighbor friends and have lots of family time when dad gets home from work, we travel, we interact almost everyday with both adults and children of multiple ages. Because homeschool kids are used to that, they are typically confident talking to adults and are also comfortable with little children.
• Think long and hard about what “socialization” means and you will realize that homeschool does provide it. And if someone is telling you that they knew this homeschool kid once who was so weird and awkward, well okay but can’t they also name several kids who were public schooled who could be described the same way? Where a kid goes to school doesn’t guarantee anything. I personally wouldn’t want my kids being “socialized” around swearing, bullying, vaping, etc which is what I hear is often the case from many of my friends who’s kids are in public school. I am grateful that my children are learning manners and kindness, how to interact gracefully with all ages, while having great experiences both in the home, online, and away from home.
• Any lingering question of socialization was answered for me when I heard Gordon Neufeld speak.  This video is long but SO good!!
• Even if you are stuck at home for reasons out of your control, you can: start a book club, science club, geography or spelling bee, or simply a monthly showcase of what you are learning, and then meet together on Google Hangouts or Zoom. You can call family and friends (especially the elderly), you could even play chess and other board games remotely.