Getting Ready to
Homeschool For the First Time
by Terri Bittner/Homeschool
Teachers Lounge
Everyone
else might see summertime as a break, but
for homeschooling parents, especially
those who write their own curriculums or
who are planning to teach for the first
time, summer is busy. Along with all the
usual activities, we are writing
curriculums and planning our dreams for
the next year. Everyone wants a start-up
package, so this article will suggest
ways to prepare for next year. The first
article is aimed at people who are
teaching for the very first time.
The
first pre-homeschooling summer can be
overwhelming. You have so many questions,
so many fears. You've made your decision,
but now you may have no idea what comes
next. Here's what you need to do:
1.
Find out what the laws of your state are.
Here is a site that will give you links
to those resources: Homeschooling
on the Mining Company It is
essential that you find the laws and
follow them. Most of the time, no one
will check, but you don't want to find
out the hard way that you're going to be
the exception. Most states will at least
require you to register in some way, keep
attendance records, list books and
materials used, and describe what you
taught. Many states also require some
sort of evaluation each year. Keeping
notes in a dayplanner will give you the
basic records. Near your front door, in
case someone shows up-although probably
no one will-keep a copy of the paperwork
you filled out when you registered, and a
summary of your curriculum.
2.
If your children have been receiving
special education services, or if you
think they need them, make those
arrangements with the public school.
Homeschoolers are legally entitled to
receive special education services from
the public schools if the child
qualifies. You helped to pay for them, so
don't be shy about asking. If they have
not been receiving them, but should: Go
into the school they have been attending,
or would attend, and request an
evaluation for special education
services. Bring a written copy of the
request to give them. You should bring
with you a written request from your
pediatrician. You don't absolutely have
to have it, but it helps. If your doctor
requests it, they know they have to do
it. Also bring copies of any medical
evaluations or learning or physical
disability records you have. Be ready to
give them the address to your doctor, and
to sign a release saying they can access
the records. Also be prepared to give
them access to any previous school
records, so have the addresses with you.
3.
Find out what your school district or
county offers homeschoolers. Even if you
don't think you want to use their
resources, you want to know what is
available, in case of an emergency. The
first district we were in had an actual
curriculum. They provided all the books,
and we met with a teacher once a week. I
was insecure about my abilities, so this
gave me confidence. We only used it the
first semester, and then we struck out on
our own. Our current district offers a
similar plan, but we can also borrow the
books without using their program. That
is what we are doing now. I borrow some
of the books, but create my own
curriculum. My teenager turns in her work
for high school credit each semester.
4.
Decide how you are going to homeschool.
Do you want to buy a curriculum? I have
never done that, so I'm afraid you'll
have to look at other sites-or my message
board to learn about them. Many
homeschool support groups can tell you
about curriculums as well. Do you want to
use standard textbooks, but put them
together your own way? Find out if you
can borrow textbooks from the school
district. You can sometimes find them
used, but make sure they are fairly
recent. You can also order them from the
publishers, but they are expensive. Would
you like to make your own curriculum from
real-life resources? The library is a
great place to start. Our library even
has a homeschool section where they put
books to help us teach. You might be able
to convince your library to do that. The
internet has lots of resources. You can
also do research and write your own
texts. I've done that. It takes a lot of
work, but it's fun. Just be sure to
supplement, or you'll never get it done!
This is especially good for children who
can don't read well-you can take a book
and simplify it. It's also good for
children who want to learn things not
usually written at their level. I've used
it to supplement the history textbooks,
which never tell as much as I want to
teach.
5.
Figure out a budget. The first year,
don't buy everything at once. For one
thing, it's too expensive. For another,
you'll make mistakes. Pick up one or two
things whenever you're out shopping. Save
the budget for the big items-curriculum,
textbooks, and this year's special item.
Every year there is something I can't
live without. One year it was a
microscope. The year before it was a
globe. This year I crave a good computer
program that teaches Spanish. By the time
the kids graduate, I'll have a house full
of great things. I don't get them all at
once though. Start small. If you have
more than one child, the costs go down,
because you can reuse materials. I can't
give you a budget, because it depends on
how you want to teach and what you have.
It also depends on what you can borrow or
find used. I've found I can homeschool on
almost any budget, and it can be almost
free, if you're willing to work hard.
When I started, I had a $300 a year
budget, but I never spend that now. As I
said, you make a lot of mistakes at
first. I bought supplies from the school
supply store that turned out to be
useless. It took a while before I could
evaluate a book and know if it would work
for me.
6.
Get acquainted with your local resources.
Is there a homeschool support group in
your area? Those are especially helpful
when you're starting out. What books are
in your library on the subjects you are
interested in teaching? Are there any
homeschoolers in your church or
neighborhood who have things you can buy
or borrow? I always hand down outgrown
materials to a friend. Cultivate friends
whose homeschoolers are all older than
yours. Is there a teacher supply store
near you? I confess to an expensive
addiction to teacher supply stores. What
internet resources can you find on your
subjects? My favorite search engine is Inference
Find. It puts all the
finds on one page and organizes them by
site. I get more useful sites there than
I do anywhere else. Try it by typing in
something you plan to teach, like Civil
War. If you put in the name of a person,
try putting the name in quotation marks.
You're more likely to get the right
person.
7.
Decide what subjects to teach, and what
part of each subject you want to teach.
You will probably want to keep up with
the public schools in math and reading-or
get ahead. This will make sure they do
well on any required tests, and let them
go back to public school if your needs
change. Borrow a book from your local
public school-they will probably let you
look at it. The homeschool office of your
district should have that information
too.
a.
Copy down what is on the test at the end
of each math chapter, because those are
the parts of the book the publishers felt
were really important. Failing that, you
can simply get a good math book from a
school supply store. Look for the ones
that look like real textbooks. The ones
in the grocery store are meant to
supplement a school book, and skip too
many things. Math books are the one thing
I always buy, either from the publisher
or from a teacher supply store.
b.
Other subjects can be taught based on
your interests if the children are
younger than high school. Every state or
district teaches those things differently
anyway. I teach my history
chronologically, because it makes more
sense. School districts tend to do it
geographically: kindergartners through
second graders get holiday history (the
stories behind the holidays), social
studies lessons about community
helpers-firemen, policemen and so on,
good citizenship and simple geography. By
second or third grade, they are learning
about their town, and doing more
geography. Fourth graders almost always
study the state they live in. Fifth
graders do American history up to the
Civil War, and sixth grade seems to vary
by state or fad. Some finish American
history, others study a foreign country,
and some do ancient history. Decide how
you're going to do it. You need at least
a globe and a map for this class.
c.
For science, you might want to try
monthly themes. You could, for example,
do a month on dinosaurs, and then a month
on weather. This is your fun class, so
consider spending a good portion of your
budget for hands-on materials. You should
at least have a magnifying glass for this
class. Microscopes can be had for very
little if you want one. (Try a toy
store.) Library books are more fun than
text books, and Jan Van Cleave's books
(Biology for Every Kid, Physics For Every
Kid....) are great for hands-on
activities and good explanations.
d.
Reading. If the children aren't good
readers yet, this should be your top
priority. I would use a text book with
children who aren't reading at a second
grade level. After that, they can use
real books if you'd like. Once my
children are good readers, I don't worry
much about formal reading instruction. We
do massive amounts of reading in all our
subjects, and I choose literature to go
along with what we study. There are
stories, plays and poems on everything
these day. Ask your librarian for help.
Many teacher supply stores have activity
books based on classic novels or picture
books. They have worksheets, vocabulary
lists, and activities that relate it to
other subjects. Make sure you give them
reading comprehension questions
sometimes, so they know how to take
standardized tests. You can buy books on
those, or pick up old reading books in
thrift stores. After a while, you'll know
how to make your own. If you have high
school students, introduce them to Cliff
Notes. We use those as textbooks. My
links page has great resources too,
including pages that have lesson plans.
e.
English. I am old-fashioned and think
English is highly neglected in many
schools. Children need to study grammar
in order to be good writers. You can make
your own worksheets or buy a book in a
thrift store. In this case, older books
are often better. I even teach
diagraming-there is no better way to
understand a sentence. Don't forget to
write lots of reports and stories.
f.
Spelling: Another neglected subject. Here
is how I teach spelling: Some years I
start with a spelling book, if I happen
to have one. The other way to get words
is to take the words your child misspells
when he writes. You can also take them
from his other subjects. Focus first on
words he uses every day. I start testing
him from my list until he misses five
words. These will be his first spelling
words. (Five isn't many, but this is
self-paced, so we're not talking only
five words a week. Also, the goal is to
learn every word perfectly, not just
until the test, so you don't want too
many.) I assign him to learn those words.
There are lots of ways to learn a word.
You can write it five times. You can
spell it over and over out loud. You can
fingerspell it using the sign language
alphabet. (Somehow the fingers learn
words faster than the brain, so this is
good with learning disabled children. My
links page lists a site to learn the
alphabet.) You can write it on a big
piece of paper and trace over it in lots
of different colors. You can cut the
letters out of magazines. You can spell
it with tiles from a Scrabble(TM) game,
or with plastic refrigerator magnet
letters, or with letters from a breakfast
cereal that has alphabet letters in it.
It doesn't have to be boring. The next
day, before they've looked at the words,
I give them those five words. If they get
one right on the first try, I put a check
by it. I will add one new word for each
word that gets a check. (Remember to get
the new word by testing. You are
self-pacing, so there is no need to use
words they know already.) At the end of
the day, I tell them to choose the two
hardest words, and practice them. When a
word gets three checks, I only test on it
once a week. When it gets three more
checks, I test it once a month. When it's
clear they won't forget it, I put it on a
review list to check up on once in a
while. I do the testing orally until we
get about ten words on the once a week
list. Then I give a periodic written
test. The reviews are done orally, mixed
in with the testing. I start with the
words on their list, and if I need to add
words, I keep going. If they miss a word,
I give it to them over and over. If we
had these words: dog, cat, house, bird
and sit, I would give them the first
word. If they knew it, I would go on to
cat. Say they miss cat. I would add it to
the list, and then tell them how to spell
it. Then I would give dog again and then
cat. I keep starting over to help them
learn the words. On good days, you can
test ahead. g. Physical education: Kids
get plenty of exercise if they don't
watch a lot of televison. I never do this
during school hours, although I count the
time on my timesheets. Count lessons they
take, teams they are on, bike riding,
rollerblading, walking to the grocery
store....
h.
electives. Be sure to teach something
fun, or something that interests you. If
you like to garden as a family, make it a
class. Fun things like art and music get
done outside of school hours, but it
counts. In homeschooling, most good
things count.
8.
Set a schedule. I find that if we don't
do it every day at the same time, it
doesn't get done. Our school hours are
from 8 to 12, with a fifteen minute
recess. We do other fun things that
count, so we get far more than the
required hours. Get ahead at the start-or
include the educational things you're
doing this summer. Then if you get sick,
or things get chaotic, you can take a
short break without getting behind.
Generally though, hold school no matter
what, especially at first.
9.
Start planning. Begin by writing out a
general outline of what you want to
cover: your science themes, how much
history you will teach this year, and so
on. Then just plan the first two months.
Start with the subject you feel most
comfortable with. Suppose you've decided
to plan history first. Look at the first
chapter in the history book, or decide
what will be your first unit if you
aren't using a text. We are starting with
the Civil War this year. (We did it last
year, but everyone has whooping cough, of
all the stupid things, so it got
short-changed, and we're doing it again.)
Since I have a textbook, I will have the
children read the chapters there and
answer the questions just for practice. I
will check the book to find out what
material is missing from the book that I
want covered, and start looking for
internet and library resources to teach
those. I use James Leuween's book,
"Lies My Teacher Told Me" to
look for mistakes in the book. This book
took ten high school text books and found
where they made mistakes. It also tells
how history books get written, so it's
very enlightening. It can be interesting
for older children to look for false
history taught in their books, and to go
back to original resources to find out
what really happened. I'll also look for
fiction based on the Civil War and try to
come up with some hands- on
activities-making maps, creating a game,
cooking food from the time period.... A
fort near us has re-enactments, so I'll
get a schedule of those as well. I'll
make an outline of the material the way I
want to teach it. For example, I'll list
the first chapter, and the materials or
activities I want to go along with it.
When I put together my curriculum, it
will all be organized.
10.
Put it all together. There are lots of
ways to do this. One way I've found
successful is to have notebooks for each
month. I pick them up at thrift stores.
You only have to have two for each child,
however, one for the current month, and
one you are preparing for the next month.
You can either divide the notebook by
subjects or by date. If you are doing it
by subject: Simply put all the material
and lesson plans in the notebook in the
order you want them done. You can include
a check-off list at the front where they
can mark what day they did each thing.
That will be your record if you need one.
Our school district's check off sheet
also includes a place for the child to
decide whether they made outstanding
effort, average effort, or poor effort.
Number each assignment to show how much
should be done at one time: Number one
might say to read the chapter and answer
the questions. Number two might say to
make a vocabulary list for the chapter.
As they get older and more experienced,
you can give them more control over the
scheduling. If you want to do it by day:
Buy or make dividers for each school day
of the month. At first, you may not
really know how much can be done in one
day, so you may have things left over, or
you may finish too soon-which is why you
want to be at least a month ahead. Just
move extra packets to that notebook, or
add some to next month. Label the first
one: Round 1. (Don't put a date on it. If
you get behind or ahead, you'll be
totally confused after a while. Put one
assignment for each subject in that
section. When they finish that section,
they move to round two. This is good if
you are trying to tie subjects like
history and science together. The plan is
to make Round one last one day. If they
finish early, they can either put extra
time into a long-term project you have
going, like reports or web pages, or they
can go on to the next round. If they take
too long, they can finish the round the
next day. At the end of a month, they
will hopefully have done everything in
the notebook. Give them the next one.
Take the old papers out of the first
notebook and stash them in a box. This is
your proof if you need it. Refill the
notebook with the materials for the next
month. (You will always have one notebook
being used, one waiting, and materials
being gathered for the month after that.
These can be kept in big manilla
envelopes until needed.) Always have a
project you can toss in if you get the
flu and aren't up to teaching. An
emergency curriculum is essential.
11.
Line up your resources. Collect a list of
people you can call if you get stuck. I
knew two professional teachers when I
started, and they both promised to give
me advice if I needed it. I also made a
point of knowing which teenagers at
church were really good at math, just in
case. Check around your support groups
for people who are good at certain
subjects, and know who the experts are.
We knew a real Native American who was
very interested in her culture. She was
more than happy to share her knowledge
with us. This year, we had a friend of
mine who is an author to dinner. She was
primed to discuss writing with the
children. They all have autographed
copies of her books, and they listen to
her better than they listen to me.
12.
Have fun. It really is fun, and not as
hard as it sounds. This time next year,
you'll be excited to put into practice
all the great ideas you have, and you'll
be an old pro, giving advice to other
novices.
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