Want to Homeschool, Here’s How
Many parents have turned to homeschool this year to have a little more control over the education of their children. I have been working with curriculum, especially for English Language, for the last 15 years while I have helped administrate a Christian school in Ecuador and have home-schooled my children or supplemented their education with additional resources or curriculum for the last 13 years. Here are some tips to help you get started:
There is no “one model that fits all” with homeschool and with children.
You are the parent, and you need to think about what your child needs; some children are more hands-on learners, while others learn best by reading or writing. Some children have strengths in art and music while others are more geared toward athletics. You need to make the experience fit your child. If you are thinking of homeschooling but don’t know anything about curriculum, there is a terrific website called “Cathy Duffy Reviews”. I have used it many times through the years to find resources or curriculum I needed: https://cathyduffyreviews.com/#. Another really good website is the Homeschool Buyers Coop, especially if you are looking to supplement with some virtual curriculum: https://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/ One of the really great features of this website is that when you join for free, you will receive special offers to try out curriculum in the summertime. I have done this many times with my children and was able to sample curriculum that I would not have been able to afford otherwise.
Join a homeschool support group.
I am part of a Facebook group that is from the area where I live when I am in the US. I have learned so much from the experience of other parents and have been able to give advice as well. There are many offers of getting together in this group as well and offers of classes. This is a great resource. While in the US for 6 months, I was able to join a homeschool coop on Friday mornings and my boys still remember the great experiences they had in that group with enrichment activities. We were also able to participate in a used curriculum sale, to sell our books and to buy resources. These groups often will give ample free advice about models that they use and why they use what they use.
Research the model that is best for you and your family.
I love to read and love to use literature-based models with my children and the students at our school. Some of the literature-based programs that are available are SONLIGHT, MY FATHER’S WORLD and WINTER PROMISE. I personally have purchased from WINTER PROMISE and had a great experience with their reading-based language arts when my boys where little. Some other reading-based programs that I have tried and found them solid are LEARNING LANGUAGE THROUGH LITERATURE and PROGENY PRESS. I have read reviews of people who say that a fully accredited online model works for them such as ALPHA OMEGA or A BEKA BOOK. This is especially good for people who work from home and want their children to learn, but do not have a lot of time to teach. I have used some of the A BEKA BOOK streaming videos and they are very solid; my students enjoy them. On the other hand, one of my sons did a history class through ALPHA OMEGA and HATED it; he is a very interactive hands on and discussion-based learner and the class he took emphasized reading and answering questions. On the other hand, my second son spent a semester in a very academic accredited online public-school program and did very well with it. Both my sons took math through TEACHING TEXTBOOKS; we tried both the online version and the book version with instructions on a CD. It is a solid math program and one of my sons liked the book while the other one enjoyed the online program better.
Pray and allow God to guide you.
I genuinely believe that God guides us in what is best for each of the children that he entrusts to us. Their education is important, and He cares and knows your child better than you do. Homeschooling is a journey that can help your family be more united and you to be more involved in shaping who they become and the values that they carry into their futures. When I use an excellent curriculum with Christian values, it helps to strengthen my faith and that of my children. As Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.”
