Beginning to Homeschool

There are plenty of resources out there for homeschooling. Joining homeschooling associations is a place to start. They exist and are on the web.
http://www.home-school.com/groups/IL.html Here's one for you to start with.
I have never homeschooled, but have had a close friend home school her children for 10 years. She sent them to school after that, and they were completely on target for their age group and grade level.
If this decision is made, make sure that you are prepared with the right curriculum that if the opportunity presents itself and your kids eventually return to school, you know that they will be ready academically.
http://aha.typepad.com/

In order for you to homeschool, you must read all that you can on the process. In MY opinion, you should be at least college educated. You should be able to not only teach all subjects and curriculum that your local school district teaches, but I also believe that you should also be fluent in every subject you teach. My friend that I spoke of is a double master's degree and is an educator herself.

J., please do not take anything that I say as a way of trying to sway you in any certain direction, but I think you should seriously reevaluate your decision. (Gina, don't try to correct someone else's spelling mistake and make the mistake yourself with the same word)

I just want you to know all the facts. You may have made the decision and your feelings are strong, but you really need to consider the future. You don't know if 5 or 6 or 10 years down the road you will, for whatever reason, need to send them to school. It would be a complete injustice if they are sent to school and are not prepared for the world of public education.

I told you about my friend that succeeded in homeschooling, I also know of another child that was homeschooled by her 20 year old half-brother while the parents worked. This school year they sent the girl to school (3rd grade) and she ended of being in my son's class. I have seen her work. This past summer, she was playing with my kids out in the front of the house and they were playing "school" and what I saw was SCARY! This 8 year girl cannot read and has the handwriting of a 3 year old.

Now, I'm not saying that you're going to slack. I'm just giving you my experiences and observations. Homeschooling is an incredible commitment. Just make sure you're ready for it. Starting with making sure that you correct your mistakes; spelling, capitalization, and punctuation when you are writing.(I noticed this from your post) Children watch us and mimic everything we do. If you become their educator, you must be on top of everything at every moment and never letting down your guard.

Here are more resources for you to read:
http://www.illinoishomeeducation.org/onlineresources.htm
http://lds-nha.org/ft207.php
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/ilassoc/Homeschooling_A...
http://homeschoolfun.com/new/default.asp?pc_id=5#il
http://hsislegal.com/

One last thing, know for sure by having evaluations done that none of your children require special services that you will not be able to provide by homeschooling. Homeschooling a special needs child adds to the already stringent commitment. I know that you previously posted about one of your child's speech delay. This issue must be addressed.

This is another reason that my children go to school. My son requires special services which I cannot provide at home.

Good luck with your decision.

I've just started a preschool program with my twins who are almost 3. There is a homeschooling conference coming up in Saint Charles - http://www.homeeducatorsconference.org/ that is supposed to be pretty good. Illinois is a great state to homeschool because there are no "requirements". You don't need to meet with the school boards, you don't need to keep records of what the kids are doing (although I think this is a good idea to do in case you ever move to a stricter state) The JOhnsburg Library has a Homeschool Resource Center, so I'd recommend just browsing there for a bit. Depending where you are there are also some homeschool co-op groups in the area. Feel free to contact me if you have other questions. I'm new to it, but have done a bit of research!

I would recommend Homeschool Legal Defense Association. Join that, and they have all the information you need to help you get started. They have a terrific website. We are in our 12th year of homeschooling and my kids are all teens. You are welcome to e-mail me with any questions.

I'm so excited to see that someone else is interested in homeschooling. I plan on homeschooling my little girl when the time comes and have already attempted to start weeding out info. I know that Illinois is homeschool friendly and that it's considered "private school" should you choose to do so. I have some links I have found that might be of use. Thanks for throwing the subject out there, I'm curious to see what others can contribute to the search! Keep us posted!
http://oldfashionededucation.com/
http://www.design-your-homeschool.com/
http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/teacherslounge/articles/
http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/teacherslounge/styles/
http://www.homeschool.com/new/
http://heartofwisdom.com/about.html#

HI J.!
We are a happy homeschooling family!
Feel free to e-mail me...
R.

HI J.,
IL and Texas are the best states you can be in if you want to home school your children. I have 6 children and home schooled 3 of the children for years. There are lots of homeschooling support groups out there. In Gurnee there are Home Run Kids at the Village Church of Gurnee. They supplement a home schooled education. I did that for a while, but it's not necessary. Their is a group at the Lackland Church in Gurnee that offers support to moms. They meet every month and plan activities to go to such as field trips and gatherings. If you aren't in this area just call them and they can direct you to places that are in your area. One more group is called the Lake County Home School Group. They are moms all over IL banding together trading ideas and materials. When you google IL Homeschooling you should find your way to it. Make out lesson plans and look for teachable moments 1oo's if not thousands of families share your feelings. In my area alone, let alone all of IL. When they are little keep it simple. Have fun because as they grow so does what they need to know in the real world. All you can do is try it. Even if you just do it for a few years or your a trooper and make it all the way through. You are molding and shaping your children and I'm convinced it has impacted my children on who they are today and who they will be. Your home education is labeled private education so name your school, make up business cards naming you as an educator and you will have a handy tool to give out to other homeschooling families when your paths cross.
God bless your future.
J. H.

We've also just started homeschooling our two preschoolers, plus we're supplementing our school-age child's education after school.

IL has very convenient homeschool laws - first off, if your child is under 7, they aren't legally required to be in school. Secondly, all you have to do (if memory serves) is write a letter to the school district officially withdrawing them to your "private school." Google IL Homeschool Laws for more info.

As far as our experience so far, I've found two things that have made this adventure much easier:
* Planning. I'm the type that needs a plan, so that I am reassured that we don't end up completely ignoring something (like math!) It also helps my son when we check off each item on the plan, so he knows where we are in the day. I write the plan on a big sheet of newsprint and tack it to the wall near the homeschool cupboard.

* Flexibility. Since my children are so young, I have to step back and evaluate how they're doing periodically. But that's the beauty of homeschooling - if they aren't done with art at the time I estimated they would be, it's not a big deal. We can finish art time, have some lunch and quiet time, then pick up where we left off after a break.

Good Luck!
T.
Living at the Speed of Life - http://www.triciaballad.com/blog/

I think that if you do a google search or yahoo search for your area, you can find guidelines that you will need when teaching your children at home. Also I think that the school district that you are in might be able to provide for you the curriculum and objectives for each grade level you need.

I don't homeschool but I do work with my 5 year old (who will start kindergarten in the fall), three year old and a 4 year old neighbor I babysit. I downloaded the kindergarten and first grade objectives for the state of Illinois by doing a search on the internet. I also have obejectives from my aunt and mother in SC (actually they are more stringent and demanding than IL) I use them in working with my kids.

I've also found many sites for homeschooling that I found lots of useful resource materials on.

I typically go to Google.com then type in search words like homeschool curriculum, Illinois 1st grade objectives, pre-school activities, teaching pre-schoolers to read, and so on. You can be on those sites for hours believe me. I had to start to limit the time I spent at night when the kids went to bed because I would be up for hours printing material.

I strongly recommend that you set up an area specifically designed for this purpose if you can afford it and have the space.

You will also need to start a routine and schedule that you stick to no matter what so that they take school seriously.

Then get very organized.

*Get three ring binders to keep resource materials in.

*Search bookstores, office supply stores, and book sections of retail stores for resource books.

*visit discount stores for good deals on supplies you could use...bookshelves, kids books, and so on.

*get a good printer, fax, scanner...that prints cheaply. My hubby researched ours and it prints at about 2 cents a page. The cartridges cost me about $10 to $12 at Walmart sometimes I can get black cheaper at Costco (paper too). We have a Canon PIXMA MP780...they probably have a better one out now since we have had this one for two years of so.
Print in grayscale to conserve ink. I go through black cartridges about every three months or more. The color lasts me longer because I don't need to use them much.

*visit websites for used furniture so you can set up a real classroom setting...with a place for each child to sit, bookshelves, reading area, arts/crafts area, worktable, old file cabinet for filing curriculum guides and things of that nature. They have many web sites for suggestions on how to set up your homeschool area.

*go to Lowes or a store like that to get yourself a big sheet of white board (used as shower wall material) Mount this with a simple frame made from baseboards (hubby can help hopefully) and then there is your white board in which you can use dry erase markers when teaching math and things of that nature. A cheap bottle of window cleaner works great for cleaning them...don't use water and a sponge it deteriorates the board quickly.

*visit your library for resource materials. You would be amazed at what they have. They have phonics kits you can check-out, SRA materials, and computers set up with educational games the kids can play, educational dvd's like Signing Time, LeapFrog reading dvds, Popular Mechanics for kids...(atleast the one here in Huntley does)

*Google search your area for homeschool networks.

*Google search Illinois sites, parks and such to get to the state website for tourism and such. I put in a request for brochures and I got manilla envelope after envelope full of brochures about places to visit including petting zoos, museums, aquariams and all kinds of neat stuff that I could take my girls to...most free or very inexpensive.

Hope that helps. I have thought about homeschooling but I just don't think I have the confidence. Which is pretty silly because I taught middle school for nine years and did a good job according to the parents I worked with. I just can't get over my own insecurities and fears....Or maybe I just want my kids to get out a little...who knows. We are going to send our daughter to a private school run by our church, so I didn't venture far from homeschooling...I can perfectly understand your reservations about sending them out to public school.

I taught public school and went to public school as a child, but things have changed drastically...lower expectations, drugs, violence, sex and so on. Kids are exposed to so much now and even the schools are over stepping their bounds in many cases these days teaching moral issues that I really believe is a parent's responsibility and choice. I'm pretty conservative and believe the Bible is the word of God. I can understand why others don't and I would never expect them to adopt my views,,,,,but in the same respect there are just some things they teach in public schools now that go 100% against my beliefs and I don't think they have the right to do that. In other words I really feel like public schools these days are forcing parents like me and my husband to accept their views while telling me that I have no right to dicuss mine in that forum. Seems really one sided and I don't like it. I don't pretend to think that any of those feelings you share, but if you do I can understand.

So I support you whatever your reasons for homeschooling and hope that any of the info I gave you helps. Network, take trips, even get your kids in a sport when possible and they will socialize well. That would be the only downfall to homeschooling and it's minor in the whole scheme of things.

Goodluck!!!!

Hi J.,

I'm the mother of 4 children ages 25, 24, 20 and 17.
I have home schooled the 25 and 20 year olds through graduation. The 24 year old wanted to learn building trades, and other 'men' type jobs, I didn't have his heart or cooperation, so he went to the public schools. I am still homeschooling the 17 year old, with some classes also at the high school, he is taking Art and Design, I couldn't help him in that area.

When I wanted to begin homeschooling we prayed about it first and forever more. Keep it in prayer! God will show you and lead you.

My children were in public schools already when we decided to homeschool, so I wrote a letter to the principle to tell him the children wouldn't be back the next year, very pollitely thanking him, and asking for my children's school records.

Next, I teamed up with a friend that decided to homeschool also. We found a group of families at our Bible based, Christian church that homeschooled also. There was a support group formed already.

Each states have their own laws on homeschooling, you may want to search the web for laws in your state. Some states make it very hard for you to homeschool. But it's becoming more acceptable.
There is a group called Homeschool Legal Defense that can give you a lot of information on each state, and if you join, at a fee of course, they will advise and help you with any legal issues you may come into.

Do you have a curriculumn picked out or know where to find any?
There are schools that will sell you a program and you correspond with them for them to keep records for you, some will sell just the curriculumn and you keep track, or you just choose from different curriculumns. If your child will be going to college, I would recomend using the correspondance type, at least for the high school years.

Remember, your children will be looking to you for examples of how to live. You will be their role model.

Email me if you'd like, I'll give you updates on my graduates or any other things you'd like to talk about.
____@____.com old are your children?

Enjoy your children and treasure all that seems to be going right, as well as all the challenges also, you will be learning too.

May God Bless you on your new endevear.
C.

Hi- I've been homeschooling my 3 kids (now 16, 13 and 11) for 6 years and we love it! I know it's not for everyone, but it's great for us. Illinois is a great state to homeschool in- they consider homeschools private schools. the only requirements are that you must teach in English, and teach similar subjests to your local school. You are able to use whichever curriculum you choose. I would HIGHLY suggest going to the northern Illinois Christian home Educators conference in May, which i believe is held in Naperville this year. Even if you're not a Christian, there is so mush valuable info for you. There is a huge curriculum fair, and about 100 different sessions you can choose to attend on everything from getting started, to teaching handicapped kids, math games, manners, marriage issues, parenting and discipline, to taking college entrance exams. It's so helpful. I think you can find more info at ICHE.org. If that doesn't work, e-mail me directly at ____@____.com, and I'll find more info for you. Bless you as you start this endeavor- it is a lot of work- I consider it my career- but it is SO worth it! My kids are turning out to be all I'd hoped for. Good for you!!!

J., Check out this website for information about homeschool support in the Bloomington-Normal area: http://www.cahsa.info/

J.

J.,
I am in Chatham and am in a homeschooling network. My husband and I are homeschooling our preschooler and plan to continue through high school. I know that there are many homeschoolers in the area as well as homeschooling resources such as Homeschool PE class, Homeschool music class and a Homeschool coop. If you would like to get more information feel free to email me and I will give you the info I have. Good luck on homeschooling!
J. S
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Hi J..

I live in Rushville, IL and am going to homeschool our son. He is 3 so we don't necessarily "do school" yet. I tried to implement worksheets and turn our home into a school, but that definitely does not work for him. While he does learn from those, he also gets bored with them very easily. I found that playing games is how my son learns the best.

I'm going to wait for him to mature a little more, and be able to sit for extended periods of time, before I start any kind of curriculum. Right now, we go to the library every couple of weeks and I check out the books that would interest him. He wants to be an astronaut and has loved planets for a long time, so we check out books on planets and such. I also want him to learn to tell time, so I borrowed a book about telling time. We also play lots of games (board games, mostly) or he'll choose a letter and we'll go around the house and find things that begin with that letter. There are TONS of learning games online.

The beauty of homeschooling, I've found through research, is that I can tailor-make his learning experience to fit his personality and learning style. While worksheets may have worked for me (I still love filling in blanks, crossword puzzles, surveys, etc.), it's just not working for him. I just have to be more creative.

Just keep up the good work. Join some Yahoo groups in regards to homeschooling. I don't know if you have boys, but I'm part of a group called HomeschoolingBoys that has lots of ideas. I also receive a daily email that is very encouraging. It's from Alpha Omega Publications called Daily Focus: www.aop.com.

Feel free to email me if you want to talk. :)

Hi J.,

I too am planning on homeschooling. My kids are still young but I have started some preschool curriculm at home with my 3 year old. I was homeschooled for a few years and I think it is a great option if you can do it.

There are ALOT of support groups out there. We are plugged into a group that meets once a month to go over different topics of homeschooling and is also part of the legal HSLDA group which handles alot of the legal issues that come up with homeschooling, this is a group through our church. OUr church is Westbrook Christian Church.

There is also a moms group that meets once a month with the kids to share teaching that day and interaction amongst the kids. They also have a regular calendar that has educational field trips planned and playdate oppurtunities.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like more info on either of those options. I don't have the info in front of me but if you are interested I am more than happy to help. You can contact me here or just give me a call ###-###-####.
Good Luck!

Hi J.,

Congrats on your decision to home school! That's exciting....and little scary too, I'm sure. We have home schooled our son, now 12, from day one....and we love it! It has not been without it's challenges...but the rewards far outweigh them. I'm not sure how old your kids are, but I have a friend who lives in Skokie and she has home schooled her daughter for several years. I'm sure she'd be willing to talk with you about things available in your area. Just shoot me an email if you'd like her info. and I can talk to her about contacting you.

Good luck & God bless!
J.
____@____.com

Hi,
Just a quick note to add...I'm only three years into homeschooling and am just NOW learning that there are a million ways to do it, a million options for curriculum that may or may not be right for your child any given year...so it's okay just to try stuff and see if it works and do you best and trust with the rest because it may be a different situation the next year anyway. I bought too much and worried too much so far. Hopefully, as I do this longer, I'll learn more and more that it's very unlikely some one decision I make about a group, a curriculum choice, a community class, etc will make or break my kids' education...but there is so much pressure some times to prove that it's not a foolish choice that I think I've let that dictate how much stress I carry as I figure this out. Groups have really helped us too.

Blessings,
J.

Home School Legal Defense Fund is a good investment for protecting yourself in case of any legal action by the state or local authorities. Some home school groups give a discount.

Try Googling Home Schooling and find local home school groups where you can connect with like-minded moms for encouragement and assistance as well as have peers for your children who share a similar value system (for play days and field trips). Our group is found at catholichomeschoolinggroup.com .

Take it one day at a time and don't worry about next year or the year after that. We use Mother of Divine Grace and find it a beautiful way to home school. It is most important to find the system that works for you, the mom, because if you are not comfortable teaching the material, your child will not benefit, no matter how good the program is.

Remember that you will have lots of interruptions at home, but your child would also be wasting lots of time learning how to stand in line to wash hands, to eat lunch, etc. in a classroom.

Don't think you have to be the expert. It is also a good lesson to your children to admit that you don't know all the answers but that you do know where to find the answers!

Good luck and may God bless you in your vocation to home schooling.

W.

Hi J.

We are also homeschooling. We have a 4.5 year old and a 1 year old. My best advice is to find support groups. My biggest concern was socializing them. Our groups are more unschooling. They have given me the encouragement and excitement that I needed. My children have met some really wonderful kids. There are so many activities to take part in. There is a bowling league (over 60 children involved), homeschool gym, homeschool Pump It Up, Earth Scouts, Music Group, and many more. There are also field trips. Here is my direct e mail. Feel free to write any time. Good luck.
____@____.com

N.

Heres a list of groups I belong to

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/ElginAlgonquinYoungHomescho...
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____@____.com

I have been hoemeshooling my ten year old for little over a year and my preschooler as well. We did it for medical reasons. My oldest has Ulcerlative Colitis and missed so much school do to her illness and always in and out of the hospital. I do commend you on doing it, it is extremely hard and timeconsuming, but if you are well organized, we get school done by noon and usually have monday or friday off, so we can do feild trips and such. We have a friend who homeschools also and they do projects together. We use a christian curriculum that we found online and check with your village for homeschool activities like gym class(we don't do it they both dance) and we do a cooking class on mondays. Legally, in the state if you gave the school a letter and recieved their files, it is all you. If you are using the schools books and programs, then they still recieve your tax money and good luck getting help from them. Good Luck

Hi! I homeschool my two kids--email me at ____@____.com and we can talk offline!

Good for you. I envy you the opportunity to home school. I know there is support out there for you. I have seen some things on line. I am sure if you google "home school support" you'll find plenty of info. There is also a company called Learning Ascent 1-###-###-#### It is based in St. Charles. They do tudoring. I know the owner of the company and she loves to work with home school kids. She's very creative and I bet anything she would have some good ideas for you and she would be more than happy to talk to you. Her name is J. Chapman. Good luck..

What ages are your sons? The reason I ask is because I work with some home school parents on providing curriculum, state standards, writing curriculum maps so they have a guide line to follow. I teach fourth grade but I can help with younger ages and older ages as well. Also, once you have a map in place you can go to a teachers store and get matierals. I do know you do have to submit some kind of documentation to the state as well. If you are interested or want help creating a curriculum map or if you are not familiar with the state standards, please feel free to email me at ____@____.com, I am more than glad to help out.
M.

My niece homeschooled her two children. They were extremely intelligent but never learned social skills to "get along" in this world. Play dates will be important. Call the preschool in your area and talk to them. All teachers have "weekly planners" to follow. That should get you started.
p.s. learn to spell descision (haha)

Hi, J.,

My info contradicts some other posts you have had, so you'll want to do some independent research to satisfy yourself about accuracy. I recently sent my kids to school after several years of happy and satisfying home schooling.

First find out what the laws of your state require. If you're in IL, your home school is categorized by the state as a private school and you are under no obligation to report your philosophy or curriculum or your kids' progress to anyone. For more info on that, you can check out http://www.illinoishouse.org/index_b.html. I live in IL and that's why I had this handy. Use your online savvy to find relevant laws for your own state if not in IL.

Second, get involved with home school groups in your area. This is a great way to make friends who will be available while the rest of the world is in school, which will become more and more important as your kids get older. Don't be shy! You will really benefit from making connections with other families, and so will your kids. Many times I was ready to throw in the towel and my homeschool support friends helped me not to give up.

You can find info online, which is one thing that makes this a great time to be a home schooler. Our family all agreed that home school was wonderful and that we were ready for a different kind of learning. We may return to home school at some point if we feel it's a good fit for us.

best of luck to you,
S. C.

Hi J.! I don't know where you live but I wanted to let you know I work for a store in Woodstock called Knuth's School & Office Outfitters that carries lots of educational materials, toys, games and workbooks that you might want to check out. We get alot of homeschoolers that come in and if you don't see what you're looking for we can usually order it in for you. We also have an online catalog with over 10,000 items that you can order from directly at www.shopknuths.com. (Teacher Store link) Let me know if you have any questions!
Good luck!

Hi J.,

Home schooling is an option I have thought about. Although my son is only two, I know that he will be school aged before I know it. If you could share with me what lead to your decision to homeschool your children I would sure appreciate your insight and opinions. Thanks!

J.

Hi J.,

We are in our 4th year of homeschooling our now 10 year old daughter and absolutely love it! When she was 3 years old we enrolled her in a well-known, expensive private school in Chicago. By the time she was 7 we were so dismayed with the level of education she was getting for the amount of money we were spending. Our daughter has always been an excellent student and what was happening was she was being totally ignored in the classroom or being asked to help the children who were struggling (which she enjoyed doing but she herself wasn't being at all challenged). When she was 7 we tried a second well-known, expensive private school in Chicago only to find that, in spite of all the promises we were given when they "accepted" her into their school, she was bored stiff and even less challenged than before. So, after 5 weeks at that school, we took her out and have been homeschooling her ever since.

My husband and I have our own business so are able to be somewhat flexible to accomodate the homeschooling - we both work with her so it doesn't fall completely on one of us. Having said that, however, because we do have to tend to the business, we decided to use a homeschooling program called "K12" - http://www.k12.com (it is a fully accredited homeschooling program). This program has the curriculum for each level - kindergarten through 12th grade already planned for you. You purchase the books and other learning materials and access to the website - for our daughter it costs about $1,000 a year. It depends on how many classes you sign up for - she is taking a full load - math, literature, grammar and spelling, art, history and science. Also, what is nice is that you can do classes at different levels. My daughter is very advanced for her age in math and literature so is taking a higher class level, whereas, with history and science we decided to have her take her class level because she had gotten so little of those subjects in private school. They also furnish teacher guides and the answers to all the tests. Some of the lessons - especially in science are done online - which I find my daughter really enjoys. Anyway, K12 has been very valuable to us because we don't have to spend a lot of time working out a curriculum and schedule ourselves - plus we find that it is very thorough and our daughter is learning so much more than if she were in a public or private school. And so are her parents! It is really a lot of fun!

We also do supplemental things with her which may or may not tie in with her K12 schedule. If it is a beautiful day, we may just take the day off from her regular schedule and go to the Chicago Botanic Gardens to walk and sketch whatever we see - or maybe go to a museum - or build a snowman! It is just so nice to be able to that together - and not worry about her missing a day of school!

We have had so many people tell us we should be concerned about socialization. Then, when they spend time with our daughter, they see how well-adjusted and friendly she is - how she easily carries on a conversation with anyone and what a great sense of humor she has. Please don't let anyone use that issue to dissuade you from homeschooling. I have also had people say that we should be careful not to raise her in a "cultural bubble" meaning that she is not experiencing the "real world" because she is not in a "real" school. Well, if it means she has to deal with a friend of 6 years who does attend a "real" school telling her that she is no longer "cool" because she doesn't have certain things or do certain things, then I am happy to raise her in a "cultural bubble" - she probably knows more about the real world than a lot of kids because she is involved in our business on a daily basis plus we discuss things with her - we get her opinion and listen to what she has to say.

We have not yet been involved in any homeschooling groups but we do subscribe to "Home School Legal Defense Association" -
www.hslda.org. They keep us updated on any legal issues in Illinois plus their website has all sorts of information for homeschoolers.

I wish you much luck in your new venture! No matter how you choose to go about homeschooling, I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!