How Do I Start Homeschooling My Child?

Need help with: How do I start homeschooling my child? You'll find answers here from the largest number of homeschooling families ever brought together to show you how to begin.

One of the commonest problems with homeschooling is starting out.

And one of the delights of homeschooling is that we can all support each other and help work out the answer that suits you best.

The Courageous Homeschooling Handbook brings together 4,000 homeschooling families to answer the worries we all face like:

• Will my child miss out?
• Can I cope?
• What about friends?

Part Two shows you all the different ways we homeschool so you can choose the method that suits your child best. Do you need a timetable? How much structure should you have? Do you have to have a curriculum - and which is the best one?

Answers: How Do I Start Homeschooling My Child?

I asked homeschoolers to give you a flavor of the sort of questions and answers you will find in our Courageous Homeschooling Handbooks:

"One of the biggest mistakes I made was trying to mirror public school. Once I slowed down, we could enjoy the process more. I second guess myself all the time - what good parent doesn't!  But I've never regretted the decision to bring her home. (First year homeschoolers, 7th grade)" ~ Tressa

"You don't need a lot especially at the start. Take him out, give him chance to recover and see where his curiosity takes him - you'll be amazed; I know I was." ~ Janet

"The point with home education is you do it at your pace, following your budget, your interests, your needs. Your greatest needs at the moment probably involve a bit of boosting your son's self-esteem, relaxation, etc etc. Take the academics slowly and follow his lead too." ~ Sara

"You can also get plenty of materials online for free from excellent educational websites, depending on his academic ability and existing knowledge!" ~ Alexander

"De-register and follow your heart! I wouldn't buy a thing for now. The internet is our best friend and its amazing what you can find for free/cheap when you look for it. I found this talk by Ken Robinson inspiring and it helped us as a family take the step out of school." ~ Bettie

"Knowing what I know now, I would take him out of school and leave him to himself for a while. As soon as he is ready, his behavior and attitude will change and you'll start spotting what he's really interested in and take it from there, building on that." ~ Leyli

"I would also, as others have said, let him be for a while until he starts to show an interest in learning. Then, when he's ready, if he's a kid who likes dinosaurs (for example) go to your local library and get books or educational movies on said subject. Find, online, art projects to go along with it and eventually you can get him to write stories, poems or essays to go with it. That study most likely will spark another interesting research of some sort and it just kind of rolls from there. Pinterest, Netflix, Youtube, NationalGeographics, all are great online resources to pull from as well." ~ Brianna

"Easy Peasy A complete, free online Christian homeschool curriculum." ~ Tressa

How Do I Start Homeschooling Reading, Writing And Math?

Starting out is especially hard when it comes to teaching the basics like reading, writing and math.

What if your child can't keep up? Won't that show your homeschool has failed?

Thankfully, 4,000 homeschoolers come together to share the best ideas for teaching reading, writing and math that really work along with essential reassurance that your child WILL get there in the end.

The secret to success is getting your child to want to learn. You will see proof that you will succeed because homeschooling gives you the freedom to tailor your teaching to the pace of your child.

How do I start homeschooling? must be one of the most important questions anyone can ask.  Thankfully, lots of families have been there before you and can prove that homeschooling is the best decision you'll ever make.

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Homeschooling › Help › How Do I Start Homeschooling?

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