Need to get my ducks in order

Having problems figuring out where to start? Let other homeschoolers offer you some advice!

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Louise
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Joined: Tue Oct 21, 2014 2:16 am
Location: South Africa

Need to get my ducks in order

Postby Louise » Wed Oct 22, 2014 1:34 am

I need help! My children aged 5/8/10 are currently in public school and will finish the year at the school as I need to get things sorted to start homeschooling before I take them out. I have looked at all the materials on offer for all the curriculum, but do not have the foggiest which one to choose. The one that seems to suite our family is Love2Learn. I would love to hear from someone that is currently using this system. I want to find out how they have implemented the core system and what ad on programs was used. It seems so much how will this fit with three children at different ages. I was/am so excited to start with homeschooling, but so afraid that I might make the wrong choice and that the kids will be left behind.
What did you do to get comfort?

erinwelniak
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Posts: 4
Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2014 7:09 am
Location: Indiana

Postby erinwelniak » Thu Oct 30, 2014 11:21 am

I am sorry I don't have any advice to give since I am in the exact same boat you are in. I have a 5 and 11 yo currently in public school and letting them finish this year out as I figure out all that I have to prepare before starting. If you find any information from others please post back on here for me.
Good luck!
God Bless,
Erin

Tim@CBH
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Joined: Wed Oct 29, 2014 4:09 pm
Location: California
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Postby Tim@CBH » Thu Oct 30, 2014 3:54 pm

There's an old adage out there that says something like "amateurs study tactics, masters study logistics."

I would not get too worried about curriculum at this point. That's getting over focused on what you'll be teaching (tactic) at the expense of the how, where, when of teaching (logistics).

If Love2Learn looks good, then go for it and start focusing on building your support network, establishing home and work routines that will be conducive to learning. New homeschooling parents can often get so caught up in the curriculum that they forget to address the actual learning environment, which is probably more important.

Don't worry about getting everything perfectly together and in line before starting homeschooling.

Homeschooling is just like anything else, you can do all the research and prep work you want, but until you actually start doing it, you won't know what actually works for you and what doesn't. Why? Your children's learning skills and modalities are a different combination than any other group of 5/8/10 year olds out there. And that's awesome!

The best thing about homeschooling is that you as the parent get to learn alongside your students (Just stay a few days ahead of them :) ).

Focus on the basics: Reading, writing, math. Daily practice in all three, with a diversity of reading topics will be great.

Would highly recommend a phonics based reading program for the 5 year old.

Additionally, would also recommend getting plugged into a local group of homeschoolers where you can engage in mutual support. I was homeschooled K-12 and I can easily say that the best years of homeschooling were the one where my parents were regularly connected to other homeschool parents.
I'm a homeschool alum who works in education and wants to serve this awesome community I grew up in. Follow me on Twitter: @CollegeBoundHS.


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