Considering homeschooling.. so many questions

[Crazybean]

even as I read through the posts, I still have questions!

1. How much does it cost to homeschool? I'm assuming you have to buy all the books and supplies- is this tax deductible?

2. Do you have your kids involved with a boys and girls club for sports?

3. Do you need any special college degrees to homeschool your children? I have a BS and DH is in law school. I can always go back for a few classes if I need them.

4. How am I suppose to teach my kids if I have a weak area? For example, I'm not good at grammar~ how do we get past that?

5. How many days and hours per week do you homeschool? Is it a full 5 days at 6 hrs a day?

6. How do you notify the state that you are homeschooling and do the kids have to pass an annual academic type exam to prove they are learning?

[flowers]

Take a deep breath mama!

Even if you take a very "schooly" approach to homeschooling it is not as rigid as schools.

Laws vary state to state. You might want to get in touch with a local homeschoolers group to find out your specific state laws.

We don't use curriculum and rather use life as our education. We buy lots of books and spend money going to cool science centers, concerts or whatever else is interesting to the family.

Weak spots? A chance for your to learn and get better. Find a village and supplement with other adults.

A fabulous aspect of homeschooling is you can be relaxed about all the learning. It is more important today to know *how* to find information you need than to actually be able to retain and spout off information, kwim?

Good luck!

[Lillian J]

1. How much does it cost to homeschool? I'm assuming you have to buy all the books and supplies- is this tax deductible?

It varies from very little to a whole lot - it totally depends on how you want to go about it. I've seen people use the library and very low cost sources heavily and others buy lots of unnecessary things - and everything in between. And you don't need to buy a lot at any given time - you're better off on many levels to just get things very slowly as the needs arise.

2. Do you have your kids involved with a boys and girls club for sports?

Some do, some don't. In some places, there are lots of homeschool sports; in some places people join community sports; and in a few places homeschoolers can even take part in school sports to a limited degree. And there are always some who aren't even interested in sports.

3. Do you need any special college degrees to homeschool your children? I have a BS and DH is in law school. I can always go back for a few classes if I need them.

Requirements vary from state to state - you can look up your state laws here: LAWS

4. How am I suppose to teach my kids if I have a weak area? For example, I'm not good at grammar~ how do we get past that?

Many people do that with absolutely no problem. You can learn right alongside them. For grammar, for instance, there are lots of very good little books you can get and easily study on your own - it doesn't take long. And you'll find that there are lots of ways in which your children will be learning very well without you having to teach them - they can often prove to be their own best teachers.

5. How many days and hours per week do you homeschool? Is it a full 5 days at 6 hrs a day?

If anyone tells you they homeschool 5 or 6 hours a day, run somewhere else for advice - because that's excessive to an extreme . On the other hand, if someone tells you they homeschool 24 hours a day, they might have some useful advice to offer. Learning the things a child needs doesn't take a lot of intense and/or formal study every day. Here's a post that can help clear this up:
A question about hours per day

6. How do you notify the state that you are homeschooling and do the kids have to pass an annual academic type exam to prove they are learning?

Again, this varies from state to state - take a look in the link above about the laws, and you'll find the specifics for your area.

Here's a post with links to my own current favorite "getting started" resources, and it includes lists of support groups too.

- Lillian

[Mama_Leah]

1. How much does it cost to homeschool? I'm assuming you have to buy all the books and supplies- is this tax deductible?

We just paid several hundred dollars for one year of study but it's for all three older kids and is literature based (Sonlight) so most of the money went toward great books that we will have forever. On average we have previously spent about $80 per child each year.

2. Do you have your kids involved with a boys and girls club for sports?

We don't really enjoy organized sports so we haven't pursued this. We play yard games together as a family and with neighbors.

3. Do you need any special college degrees to homeschool your children? I have a BS and DH is in law school. I can always go back for a few classes if I need them.


As was pointed out by pp's this varies by state although only a few states try to make it extremely difficult for parents without degrees.

4. How am I suppose to teach my kids if I have a weak area? For example, I'm not good at grammar~ how do we get past that?

Most books do a pretty good job explaining everything. Organized curricula also have teachers books you can purchase along with the textbooks that help you explain what you are teaching. If it is something really tough like higher math or foreign languages a lot of homeschool groups have parents who help out other families in their level of expertise.

5. How many days and hours per week do you homeschool? Is it a full 5 days at 6 hrs a day?

We homeschool year round so we can take time off when we want. On a miracle day that we cover every subject it takes less than 3 hours total.

6. How do you notify the state that you are homeschooling and do the kids have to pass an annual academic type exam to prove they are learning?

We file under the religious exemption clause that is available here. We are not accountable to the state at all. Not all states provide this and many homeschoolers do not homeschool for religious reasons so it's not for everyone. Homeschool Legal Defense also has laws and listed by state.

[annekka]

I'm a new homeschooler of an 8yo so I don't have all the experience of some here, but here's my perspective on some of your questions:

Originally Posted by Crazybean

1. How much does it cost to homeschool? I'm assuming you have to buy all the books and supplies- is this tax deductible?

Just wanted to point out that some states have charter school programs that fund independent study program using public funds. These are very big here in CA -- we use California Virtual Academies (CAVA) but there are other programs as well that differ from county to county. The downside is that since this is technically a public school education, there is a fair amount of record-keeping and our son must take that standardized tests like the other public school kids. But we get the K12 curriculum, plus lots of books, supplemental materials, and a computer + network access completely free. We just pay for misc supplies like pencils, notebooks, etc. Plus we don't have to buy all the wrapping paper and cookie dough through the endless parade of public school fundraisers

Originally Posted by Crazybean

2. Do you have your kids involved with a boys and girls club for sports?

My son is in cub scouts, and takes golf and karate lessons as well. We couldn't do these things when he was in school as he was always too tired and frustrated at the end of the day.

Originally Posted by Crazybean

4. How am I suppose to teach my kids if I have a weak area? For example, I'm not good at grammar~ how do we get past that?

I find I have the most fun teaching the subjects where my own knowledge is weakest. For instance he just finished a history unit on the Middle Ages. I never had much of an interest in history and knew very little about the Middle Ages. So we went to the library and researched it together, learning together as we went. It ended up being more fun for both of us that way. The subjects I'm really strong in, like math and science, can actually be more frustrating to teach because I make incorrect assumptions about how much he should know or how quickly he should be catching on.

Sometime the people with the most expert level knowledge in a subject are actually the least able to teach it to others. My undergraduate experience at UC Berkeley bears this out. All you need is a good attitude, a desire to learn, and some basic resources which the information age has put within everyone's reach. Best of luck to you!

[3momkmb]

1. How much does it cost to homeschool? I'm assuming you have to buy all the books and supplies- is this tax deductible?

In the US it is not tax deductable, at least not at a federal level. How much you spend can vary a lot, you can spend next to nothing or you can spend several thousand per child...it all depends what you chose to use. I typically spend about $500 for two kids although next year I will have to make due with less since DH just lost his job

2. Do you have your kids involved with a boys and girls club for sports?

We don't have a boys and girls club here but my kids have been involved in sprots for years. They both dance now but in the past they have taken part in soccer, tennis, tumbling, gymnastics, all star cheer and rec cheerleading. Some states allow homeschoolers to take part in school sports and if they don't there are usually rec deptments, private groups or all stars.

3. Do you need any special college degrees to homeschool your children? I have a BS and DH is in law school. I can always go back for a few classes if I need them.

As far as I know you do not. I know there are no education requirements at all for the homeschooling parent in my state (Maine) but I can't vouch for all states.

4. How am I suppose to teach my kids if I have a weak area? For example, I'm not good at grammar~ how do we get past that?

You choose a scripted (tells you how to teach) or a self teaching (written to the student) curriculum or you enlist the help of someone who is better at it then you are.

5. How many days and hours per week do you homeschool? Is it a full 5 days at 6 hrs a day?

My state requires that I teach for 175 days but it doesn't care if I homeschool 5 days a week or three, as long as I log inthe 175 days in a calendar year. It also doesn't care how long those days are. I do follow a 5 day week and we typically spend less then 2 hours working on book work with my 10yo. I really have no idea how long my 15yo spends working as she does the bulk of it in her room before bed. I doubt it's 5 hours though.

6. How do you notify the state that you are homeschooling and do the kids have to pass an annual academic type exam to prove they are learning?

Again, I can only answer for my state but we are required to submit an annual Notice of Intent to Homeschool (a simple form stating I will follow homeschool laws and listing the names and ages of my kids) and have an annual assesement (which can be a test or a portfolio review). I have never tested my kids.