If you are thinking about moving your children from the public school system to homeschooling, you are not alone. An increasing number of parents each year find themselves keeping their children out of the classroom and making the switch to homeschooling.
It’s good to recognize that homeschooling, although quite beneficial and even fun, may present some challenges. Every family’s experience will be different and may present unique obstacles to be overcome.
One of the biggest challenges that you will have to deal with is in making that transition from the traditional school setup to homeschooling. This is completely normal, since most of us have only ever been a part of the public school system!
Our Best Tips For Transitioning From Public School To Homeschooling
Here are a few tips that can help ease the transition process:
1. Determine the laws regarding homeschooling in your State
The Homeschool Legal Defense Association (consider joining them!) has excellent resources at https://hslda.org/legal/ to guide you in making sure you proceed properly and with correct documentation but aren’t doing more than required by law. If your local school district tries to require more than the law you can rely on your membership in HLSDA to come to your defense.
2. Determine the learning style of your children
Public school is mostly one-size-fits-all with some exceptions for gifted or challenged students. Homeschool should be about matching the material to your child’s unique learning style. https://bereanbuilders.com/ecomm/what-is-my-childs-learning-style/ can help you determine what you should be looking for in the curriculum you choose.
3. Don’t try to recreate the public school experience at home
During the initial homeschooling days, it can be quite easy to fall into the trap of trying to recreate the public school experience. You could make that mistake while juggling your role as a parent and teacher and even in your approach to teaching. You should, instead, customize your child’s education by integrating it with your personal relationship and everyday lifestyle.
4. Understand the daily schedule
Homeschool does not follow the public school schedule since you are no longer in penal colony mode with head counts and inmate tracking. It won’t take as long to get through your school day. You’ll also be in an immersive experience where a trip to the grocery store incorporates math, grammar, and history. Making lunch can incorporate these same skills. Transit time for your daily schedule is a perfect time to do reading assignments and other schoolwork. Don’t compel yourself to spend one hour on each subject for six or seven hours a day.
5. Remember that it will take time for you and your children to adjust to the new system
Give your new system some time. It will naturally take a while before you and your children are able to adjust to the new normal. It could take anything between a few days to a few months, and there is nothing wrong with that. Start with one or two subjects and then gradually progress to a heavier workload.
6. Keep the plan flexible
One of the most crucial things that you need to do when transitioning from public school to homeschooling is making a plan. But your plan needs to be flexible. Tweak it as you go. You can do all the research you want into creating what seems like the perfect curriculum, but it may not always turn out to be the right fit for your family. Having a flexible plan will allow you to make the necessary changes.
Homeschooling With Berean Builders
For teaching and learning resources like homeschool science books, check out our online store. We offer a wide variety of books and other resources, including a comprehensive homeschool Physics course, for senior high students.