Welcome to the Natural Life
Congratulations on considering homeschooling!
I found the following “article” on a home schooling chat list. It is so full of simple, to-the-point wisdom that I couldn’t help but share it with all of you. I hope you enjoy it. If you are already an experienced home schooler this is something you can share with families new to the journey.
Here are some words of wisdom.
1. Know and understand your state laws. It is LEGAL to homeschool. A great help in understanding your state laws is.....Local Support
2. READ, READ, and did we mention READ? There are so many great books available on homeschooling!! Here are some favorites:
The Unschooling Handbook by Mary Griffith
The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling by Debra Bell
The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn (even if you do not yet have a teen!!)
Anything by John Holt, Linda Dobson, the Moores, and the Colfaxes
If you have a teen/pre-teen, find a copy of And What About College by Cafi Cohen.
3. Take the time to learn how your children learn best. This is a benefit that homeschooling offers us...to tailor our children's education to fit THEM!
There are 3 primary styles of learning:
Visual Learners (seeing)
Auditory Learners (hearing)
Kinesthetic/Tactile Learners (doing).
A great book on learning styles is called In Their Own Way by Thomas Armstrong ...read anything by him! Also check out books by Cynthia Tobias and Still Teaching Ourselves by Agnes Leistico.
Some websites are:
SmarterKids: http://www.smarterkids.com/rescenter/learnstyle.asp
University of Minnesota: Learning Styles
http://www.d.umn.edu/student/loon/acad/strat/lrnsty.html
4. Know that there are many different styles of homeschooling.... there is NO right or wrong way to go about it. It is about what is RIGHT FOR YOUR CHILD and you!! Here are some "terms".....
Deschooling- a period of time after a child has been in public school to get out of the mode of ‘school’. You may find that if you try to go right into homeschooling you will have a battle on your hands.. so if you take time to have some fun, go to museums, out to lunch etc..
things you could NOT do during 'school' before.. it might help. The loose rule of thumb is...for every year spent in schools, they will need a month to readjust...to relearn that learning can be fun!!! To love it again.
Curriculum based homeschooling- it is just as it sounds, you buy a prepackaged curriculum that comes with all the 'bells and whistles’. There is such a wide variety to pick from- The Elijah Company (http://www.elijahco.com) has a pretty good write-up on different kinds.
Eclectic homeschooling- eclectic is where you pick and choose from different curriculums. You might pick up art from a Quaker homeschool group and science from a Muslim curriculum provider. You are still using books and workbooks but from different sources that meet your child's interests and needs.
Unschooling- Child led learning; Natural learning; Delight-led learning. Spirit-led learning. The child is given back his own education. Learning is happening all the time. The parent is always on the lookout for that ‘teachable moment'. It is a lot easier to do than it sounds. If the child wants to learn about the Civil War, that is what is studied etc. We use whatever resources work!! Life is the most popular!! Here's a hint: Unschooling is what you have done since birth. It is the way you helped them walk, and talk, and learn the alphabet...When they were ready, in fun happy ways, with you there helping and supporting!! Find some unschoolers to talk to...it is very interesting!
Unit Studies- Unit studies is like...you are studying horses. You do your math with horses, (age appropriate. like counting them, percentage of white and brown, etc) your history of horses, biology of horses, etc. You study one thing that encompasses everything. Many people use this when they have many different levels in the household...
it is easy to provide for all grade levels. Also, it works well with special needs children because you can focus on what they want to learn about.
5. Love your kids :) Hug them, learn with them, have fun!
Here are some links:
● Eclectic Homeschool Online http://eho.org/
School Is Dead; Learn in Freedom!
● http://learninfreedom.org/
Great site offers a list of colleges that accept homeschoolers.
● National Home Education Research Institute http://www.nheri.org/
● Typical Course of Study http://www.worldbook.com/ptrc/html/curr.htm
curriculum overview by grade
● Christian Unschooling http://www.inspirit.com.au/unschooling/
Site has many links...Unschooling, special needs, educational links and more.
● Enchanted Learning http://www.enchantedlearning.com
The COOLEST Free worksheet place!
OK, that's it :) Hope I didn't overwhelm you...it is really a GREAT journey you are beginning!
This article was excerpted from an article by Nevada Home Schooler, Elissa Wahl
