I hope this page will answer any questions you may have on homeschooling. Let me start by telling you my story.

When my oldest child was nearing school age, I phoned several local schools and requested the opportunity to sit in on some classes to observe the goings on. I was met with frank unfriendliness. At this time in my life I was approaching a move and could choose from four area schools, not knowing this the schools' attitude was one of 'why bother, you can't choose her school or her teacher.' Well, suffice it to say, I was not happy! I did choose a school, one that my mother and I both had attended as children, and became a volunteer there. My daughter had already learned to read at home and knew her shapes, colors, numbers, etc., so imagine my astonishment when the school was not prepared to teach up to her. Instead the class continued to teach everything Jess had learned by age 3, this was very frustrating. The teacher was unwilling to advance her to the first grade but allowed her 'reading time' with an older student.

I am sure you can understand my lack of enthusiasm when we moved again and Jess would have to go to a less that friendly school for first grade. It was at this point I chose to homeschool. I had been considering it since Jess was about four, but my husband was not supportive of the idea. By the time Jess was ready for first grade, I was divorced, and although my ex gave me some trouble, he has never pursued the issue. {A word of caution here, if you are married, PLEASE do not do this without your husband's support....for the sake of your marriage and your sanity!} Well, I did teach Jess at home for firstgrade (the traditional way--by application...more on this later) When second grade rolled around, her brother Josh was ready for school. At the time, and through much prayer, I made the decision to send them to school. Before doing this, I called everyone I knew that had had a child at this particular school and questioned them about teachers. When I registered my children, I politely demanded the teachers I had chosen. My perseverence paid off, and the teachers were wonderful. But when the next school year rolled around, I was ready to have my children back at home where they belonged.

That is the story of how we came to be a homeschooling family. When I did it the first year, I used alot of generic material from a local teacher supply store. The next year I schooled, I went to a curriculum convention and purchased alot more (you see I was schooling three, by now!) The best book I ever bought was Teaching Children by Diane Lopez. This is a curriculum guide for grade levels kindergarten through sixth. It includes reading/spelling words for lower grades, reading suggestions for all grade levels, as well as a comprehensive guide for all subjects for all levels. It was a life saver for me in planning my school year!

People homeschool for several different reasons. Most homeschool for religious reasons, many for educational purposes and some because of a handicap or learning disability, but everyone has one primary reason. That reason is because we love our children. Now don't get me wrong, children attending public school have parents who love them. What I mean is that a parent cannot homeschool if they do not deeply care about their child's future. Let me warn you, there is much adversity still out there. Everytime I see my mother, I have to watch my tongue. She doesn't understand how I could keep them home all day, she asks why I don't just send them away (to school.) Now obviously she could not homeschool, she does not have that drive, that commitment. I do.

Now, you may wonder what to do next. No? More questions? Try here. When you have read all you can, and have decided to "train" at home, read about the Technical Aspects here. Then come on back, I will tell you step-by-step how to do it.

Applications are in, replies received? Now lets get down to the nitty gritty. First lets get the teacher supplies in. You won't need much, depending on the grade. A lesson plan book is a must, red pencils are nice and something called an EZ-Grader. This allows you to easily assign a percentage to an assignment. It is inexpensive, less than $5, but essential! It is always good to keep extra pencils, construction paper and spiral notebooks on hand. Invest in a good pencil sharpener. I am not going to discuss curiculum here, you can go to my bookcase for that. But do shop around until your find exactly what you need. Don't over buy! This is hard for first time moms (well, it is hard for us seasoned moms, too!) Sit down and make a quick overview of your goals for the year. What particular skills do you want your child to achieve? Once this is done, divide them up evenly into four or five groups. All set? Now look at the first set...this is where you start. You have 40-45 days to teach those goals. Can you do it? Of course you can. If it is your first time out and you are a little nervous, try sticking to the basics like Math, Reading and Writing. Science, Social Studies, Art, etc. can come later in the year after you gain some confidence.