I know you are thinking it is too early to be thinking about school, we just got out. Well, not really. If you have been considering homeschooling but just don't know where to start or not sure, you have all summer to think, pray, make your decision, start researching and looking for schools and materials, planning and getting ready for your next school year on your homeschooling journey.
This post will contain affiliate links to which we will receive a small commission. Links will be listed at the bottom of the page. We hope you find something very useful and that fits your needs in your Homeschooling adventure. We sincerely appreciate all your help.
We also have a Homeschool Playlist on our YouTube channel if you would like a video version of this page. Our last video will publish on Sunday and it will be the last one in this series of videos on our channel.
Please know that anything on this post is my opinion and options that I felt was right for my own children and our household. They are not to convict or persuade you in any way. Pray and research before you make any decisions. Ask plenty of questions, just remember what someone else does may not suit your home or children. The option is completely up to you. Only you know what is right for your home.
Have you thought about Homeschooling? Homeschooling is on the rise because we as parents, grandparents or even great grandparents are becoming more aware of what is going on in todays society concerning our children. We want to be in control of our children's education and have a say so in what they are learning. Things are slipping in undetected and disguised in the name of education that goes against our beliefs, morals and values as parents. It is an agenda. One way to take back this control is by Homeschooling.
If you have been thinking about Homeschooling but just not quite sure how to get started or don't know what to do, thank you for coming to this page. Here I will share my Homeschooling journey from what started as a desire, then to prayer, waiting, to finally getting our answer and opportunity, to taking the plunge and getting all set up legally, ordering material, planning and getting started. There are some things you will need to do and research before you get started. First, you will need to check with your state to see what needs to be done and let your State School Board or State Board of Education and your local school know that you will be homeschooling your child. The reason why you have to do this is because each baby is born and issued a social security number. The government knows when these babies turn 5 and are required to be enrolled in some kind of school establishment. When you contact them, and tell them you will be homeschooling, they record this and your child is accounted for. Crazy right? Then the next step is to start doing your research on what school, material and curriculum you will be using. You might need to know this when you call your Board of Education because they might ask. So let me take you on my journey and maybe I can ease some of your concerns and fears.
Before we even had children, I had a strong desire to homeschool. It always interested me. . I have a cousin who is a ministers wife and she homeschooled all their children and they graduated with high GPA's and all went on to college. I always admired her for that. I was very intrigued.
As our oldest son was approaching Kindergarten age, I started getting nervous and was very concerned. So my husband and I talked about it and prayed about it and God made the way and opportunity.
I got a little more nervous because I really did not know where to start so I reached out to my cousin because I knew she could put me on the right path. She helped me a lot and helped me to feel more comfortable and confident. She gave me a lot of advice and told me the things I needed to check into before I started. She gave me some resources to start out with. So I began digging. Please let me pause and say this, do not ever feel like you are not adequate enough to teach your children. Do not let society try to tell you that you are not good enough or smart enough to teach your children because that's exactly how I felt. They're are so many resources and different styles of teaching out there that it will blow your mind. Homeschooling laws do not require you to have a teaching degree although you might want to check with your state before you do. As far as I know you do not have to. There is a website you can read and need to always have on hand in case you need to know your legal rights. It is HSLDA Homeschool Legal Defense Association.
So after all my research and going through all the proper channels, I decided and settled on the school and type of learning style I wanted for my children. We used Abeka Academy Inc. based out of Pensacola, FL. Here are all the reasons why I chose this school.
1-) It was highly recommended. That's always a plus.
2-) It is a Christian academy.
3-) It is incorporated which means its a legal institution and provides all legal documentation like progress reports and report cards and transcripts for college.
4-) It is accredited which means they constantly keep up with changing academics at certain grade levels and their is testing in each subject.
5-) They have a DVD program or Live Streaming access which means you WILL HAVE LICENSED TEACHERS that teach in case any government changes should occur. Their DVD program is the one I went with for this very reason. I knew I wanted to have legal protection in case the laws ever changed.
6-) The material and curriculum is already designed and put together into grade level kits for you as the teacher or assistant and a kit for your child. This will include all your teaching materials to follow along with, a DVD guide, test books, answer keys, manipulatives, grade book, etc. Then your child's kit will include their text books and other things they will need. I loved that all the guess work of putting together and searching for curriculum to fit academic levels was already done for me. It was easy peesy. You can pay for your year all at once or there is a payment plan. Abeka made made it so easy and really took a lot of my worries away.
7-) Abeka provided that classroom atmosphere because it is recorded live in a teachers classroom with all her or his students there as well. Even thought they were on camera, you can see the other children in the class and the teachers also interact with the children watching the DVD's. It was awesome.
8-) My children got to see other children, and got to listen to someone else besides their mother all day long because we all know how children like to start tuning you out at any given moment. lol. They were learning to listen to someone else, learn respect, and discipline from someone other than me which will help teach them to thrive in society.
There are so many other schools that have this same ease and style as Abeka. If you decide you want to be the one doing the teaching, then you need to contact your state and find out academics for your child's grade level then do your research on what curriculum you want to put together. You will need to find out what academics need to be taught in each subject and each grade level. You will need to know if you want testing or non-testing for your child. Will you want to keep progress reports? I will say this, if you ever decide to send them to public school or back to public school you will need transcripts from the school you have been using.
I will list several schools at the bottom of the page and their website links.
We continued to homeschool up until Jr High and then our boys wanted to play football for the same school that their father played for. Our local school at the time would not let homeschoolers participate in public school activities. So this made us talk and pray again. I could not hold my kids back from this desire. They wanted to follow in their dads footsteps and I did not them ever wanting to hold this over my head if I was to have said no. So we let them go. It was hard at first, not on them, but me. lol. I had had them all this time. But they did great and all their teachers loved them. I will have to say, I was ok with this decision because half of the teachers at our local school, we go to church with, I knew them so it made it easier and more comfortable. The principal was my husbands old math teacher before he became the principal. So he was glad to have our boys come to school there. They did really great and they went on to high school and did great there too. Our oldest played all through Jr high and his high school years and got his letterman jacket. After they graduated, their teachers were sad to see them go. Did I agree with everything in public school, no. Many a times I voiced my opinion and concern. I was in touch with teachers as much as possible. You can attend school board meetings at any time. Most are open to the public for parents to attend. Our local schools are really good about having the opportunity to talk to the principals and teachers. Open door policy. Our schools also let our church be a big part of a few ministries in the school FCA, bible studies before school, and a Wednesday night program at our church where we pickup children from school and take them to our church and give a meal, bible and music ministry. We are a small community and this is helped so many children. Even thought they went to public school in the end, they knew I was there anytime they needed me. Homework, studying for tests or projects. Teachers knew they could call or email me at any time. I had the first opportunity to ground our boys in good work and study habits. I was the one who got to teach them to read and write. I am so grateful I was the first one to start them on their learning journey and I enjoy the 6 years I got to do it. After they started public school and I was not their sole teacher, I still had the hardest part and that was life lessons, morals, beliefs and values. I wish they would have let me finish all the way through high school but like I said, you know your kids better than anyone and all kids are not the same.
This was what some of our days looked like and I wouldn't have changed it for the world.
Fast forward to the next generation and I got the opportunity to be the caregiver of our grandchildren. This was right up my alley and I was so in my comfort zone. I saved so many toys, school materials etc. I was so excited and I loved and still love (because their will be more grandchildren to come I'm sure) having the next generation under my wing so I could start them on their learning journey as well. It will always be the parents decision as to what path they will take as far as school, but once again, they know I will be here even if it's to help with homework or projects to which we have done. I have some in public school now. I supplement with helping with work. Whatever time I get to have with any of our grandchildren before they go to school will always be leaning experiences and fun times and we will be making lots of memories together.
When they were younger and we were together everyday, this is some of the things we did and used. Some things I made, saved and repurposed, or purchased.
I love Busy Binders or Activity Binders. Some I purchased and some I made by buying binders, sheet protectors and workbooks. I would take work book pages and tear each page out and put into a sheet protector. They can use dry erase markers and erasers and use over and over again. Awesome idea. I even took some old books that use to belong to our boys and used them. I'm so glad I saved them after all these years. Then some books I laminated some pieces like shapes and pic of colors and used velcro on the piece and then on the page so they could match things, and the pieces will not get lost. One book I would like to give credit to that I purchased. Her website is on the front cover of the book so be sure to check her out.
You can use the Clear pockets too as you can the sheet protectors. You just change out the workbook sheets. They can still use dry erase markers and erasers. There are dry erase boards too.
Flash Cards and Manipulatives are great to have on hand. I love the one for motor skills especially this one that teaches snapping, zipping, tying, buttoning, etc. I even created a little something so they could practice a little sewing. I took a piece of cardboard and a hole punch and punched holes around the outside. Then I took a shoelace and inserted one end and tied a knot so it would not come out of the hole. They take the other end and thread it through the holes following them around the object. It was just like sewing with a needle and thread.
Other manipulatives include magnetic numbers and letters, popsicle sticks, blocks, buttons, marbles, etc., anything they can use to count with, make words with, or number and letter recognition. Make up some of your own games. I mixed flash cards with numbers and letters and added manipulatives and taught them recognition from looking at the card, matching it with the correct letter or number manipulative and pick them out. I'll show you some.
You can even take an old deck of playing cards or Uno cards and make a game out of it.
Don't forget puzzles. They are fun for any age. I started out big, then got smaller. Now they can put multiple piece puzzles together no problem.
And let's definitely not forget arts and crafts. They learn depth perception, visuality, hand and eye coordination, among so many other things, and then just to have fun. Hence, the coloring of a plain old box.
Sensory boxes are awesome for sensory, motor skills and hand and eye coordination. Basically, you fill up a bin with all sorts of things that they touch and grab. You can add tools like tweezers, tongs, measuring cups, spoons, etc, to help pick up, sort, fill, dump etc. I follow a ladies YouTube channel called The Purple Alphabet. You should really check it out. She is awesome and teaches so many ways to use items for teaching.
DVD's. I have numerous amounts of these. I will turn one on while they are eating their meal or snack. Any time our tv is on, it is on something educational. I love this set of DVD's. They are from Preschool Prep Company. I will leave a link down below.
A few items I am so glad I kept from Abeka was their Handbook For Reading and My Blend and Word Book. These books sets the stage for your child's learning to read journey. I absolutely love Abekas Phonics Program. I use these on all the grandchildren before school age to help boost their reading skills.
Homeschool resources do not have to cost a fortune. I buy a lot of mine from Dollar Tree, Dollar General, Walmart, and Amazon. Believe it or not, I find things at thrift stores. I am so glad I saved a lot of my kids curriculum from when they were homeschooled. I have phonics readers, cursive handwriting tablets, books and text books. I kept all the manipulatives too. I am and will continue to use them as more grandchildren come along. Use your imagination too. Pinterest is awesome to find so many ideas.
Just a few things to consider and think about. You may be asking yourself, we or I work full time jobs and we would never be able to homeschool. Well, all I can say is, where there is a will there is a way. If you want to do it bad enough, you will find a way. I know some parents who homeschool their kids when they get home from work. It can be done. Do not fall into the trap of comparing yourself to other homeschool families. You will start second guessing yourself and will start to feel like you are not adequate enough.
I will be the first to say that every day will not be sunshine and roses. Nope. You will have good days and bad days just like everyone else. The thing is, you can be more flexible and know your kids strengths and weaknesses. You will know if they need structure, schedule, routine etc. Let me say this too, even though you do homeschool and you can be flexible, you will still need some kind of schedule, routine and structure. Parents, you will need self discipline. It will be easy to start getting slack and before you know it, you will be behind, unorganized, and overwhelmed. You know what happens when you get overwhelmed. You will want to throw in the towel . Please do not let this happen. You are the parent and the children do not need to start gaining control even in this area. They can sway you in a heart beat to not doing school one day or two. Kids do better and thrive better when on a schedule and routine. You need to be self disciplined to say, "Ok, its time to get started for the day!" and carry through with it. I would highly suggest a Planner. One that you can do your daily planning, monthly or weekly planning. If you know what a block schedule is, that will be really helpful too. You might be a "fly by the seat of your pants" kind of person, but you will need some kind of planning to your day. Make your days fun and be sure to give lots of praise and encouragement. This needs to be rewarding for you to as to knowing that you are investing your time and energy into your children's education. By all means, if you need help, enlist the help of other family members or friends.
Here I will include affiliate links to resources we used or that I know will be good materials for your homeschool and I will include website links for you to check out and research.
Leapfrog Leapstart:
LeapFrog Learning Friends 100 Words Book :
LeapFrog 100 Animals Book:
LeapFrog My Own Leaptop, 2 - 4 years:
ORSEN LCD Writing Tablet 10 Inch:
Amazon Fire HD 8 Kids Edition Tablet:
Boxiki Kids Learning Pad with 10 Educational Flash Cards for Toddlers 3+ Years:
Magnetic Tiles Building Blocks STEM Magnet Blocks Toys:
Preschool Prep Series Collection - 10 DVD Boxed Set (Meet the Letters, Meet the Numbers, Meet the Shapes, Meet the Colors, Meet the Sight Words 1, 2 & 3, Meet the Phonics - Letter Sounds, Digraphs & Blends:
VTech Touch and Learn Activity Desk Deluxe:
VTech Musical Rhymes Book:
https://www.abeka.com/Homeschool/?gclid=Cj0KCQjwmZejBhC_ARIsAGhCqncvGnxq9t4Vildtmdb-NGR6-OgxCWPKwoMW90ENXDDxpfaXMzZ8SBUaAtkdEALw_wcB
The Good and the Beautiful:
https://www.goodandbeautiful.com/
My Fathers World:
https://www.mfwbooks.com/
K12 Online School:
https://www.k12.com/
Brighter Vision Learning Adventures:
https://brightervisionlearning.com/
McGraw-Hill Children's Publishing
Teachers Paradise Grace Publications:
https://www.teachersparadise.com/co/brands/grace-publications/page/6/
Bendon Publications:
The Clever Factory Inc.:
School Zone Publishing Company:
Scholastic:
https://www.scholastic.com/home
Time4Learning:
https://www.time4learning.com/
Free Homeschool Resources For Kids:
https://funcheaporfree.com/resources-for-kids/
Dollar Tree has great homeschool material and this is where I purchase alot of the manipulatives I use:
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=845001&u=322231&m=64888&urllink=&afftrack=
24houranswers:
This is an online homework help for school and college students:
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=2275544&u=322231&m=137799&urllink=&afftrack=
Class Tracker:
Does your student struggle with keeping up with assignments, test days, or other important dates associated with school? Class Tracker has all kinds of cool planners just for students. I may just get me one.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=2272537&u=322231&m=137580&urllink=&afftrack=
Brain Pop:
Oh My Goodness, I remember this when our kids were in public school. It is a website that you can sign up to use for extra cute little learning videos that you design and use for your curriculum. Kids enjoy sitting and watching them and at the end there are little quizzes that helps them retain information.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=1998736&u=322231&m=123910&urllink=&afftrack=
Teachers Discovery:
All kinds of Homeschooling Subject including foreign languages and curriculum (at the moment the sight is down for updating merchandise, please keep trying back)
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=1777945&u=322231&m=110847&urllink=&afftrack=
Hooked On Phonics:
I absolutely love this program to teach phonics. I used it with my children also.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=1432468&u=322231&m=92263&urllink=&afftrack=
Lesson Planet:
Lesson plans and worksheets to build your own curriculum.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=680666&u=322231&m=56820&urllink=&afftrack=
National Autism Resources:
If your child is Autistic, this company has great resources and educational material just for them. Very highly rated and recommended.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=358190&u=322231&m=37698&urllink=&afftrack=
Knowlegebox Central:
Great resources for Lapbooks and printables:
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=85475&u=322231&m=13085&urllink=&afftrack=
English4Today:
This is a program that teaches the English language that would be great for International Foreign Exchange Students.
https://shareasale.com/r.cfm?b=41403&u=322231&m=8556&urllink=&afftrack=
Here is our Homeschool Videos on YouTube:
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