Homeschool World Forum

[Renata]

without going into it in too much depth , my daughter hasnt been to school in over 18 months, she has been ill and now phycologically has lost confidence in attending , the education authority have just changed her school to see if that helped , it doesnt so to give my child an education i am thinking of home schooling is there any advice people can give me to make my mind up that this is the best option for her, and give me some advice on how to get started, i am at my wits end and feel there is no help out there for parents in my situation.

[hscoach]

I have been homeschooling my children for 11 years. We enjoy it so much! I believe there are many reasons why homeschooling is superior to attending a tradtional school. Two of my biggest reasons would be 1) My children are not subjected to the negative social pressures of school. They are not forced to spend tons of time with kids who are not a good influence. I believe this has made a big difference in their lives. 2) They have learned a lot more by homeschooling and the learning has been much more enjoyable.

To get started with homeschooling, the first thing you need to do is meet the legal requirements for your state. Go to this link and read the law.

http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

Then you can choose the curriculum you will use. There are lots of options. You can use textbooks, workbooks, cds, dvds, free internet sites, etc. You can buy your curriculum used and/or use your public library to save money. You should not spend a lot of money on curriculum the first year until you get a better idea of how your daughter learns best, etc. Here are a couple of sites where you can read reviews of curriculum:

http://www.cathyduffyreviews.com/

http://www.homeschoolreviews.com/

I'm sorry that your daughter has been so sick. I hope that homeschooling works out for you. Best wishes.
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Laura L. Barth
http://www.freehomeschooladvice.com