Multi-Age Home Schooling Legal requirements

Multi-age home schooling is a very popular type of education these days. Whatever the age, the pupil can be educated in his own home after a schedule that is convenient for the family.

Knowing the legal terms is the first step you need to make if you wish to home school.

In the United States of America, homeschooling is legal in all the states, with every state having its own rules and guidelines. A good way to find out the rules that apply to your state is to check with a local public school for trustworthy information.

In the majority of states, the parents or tutors are required to write a letter of intent to their local public school and even take part in several preparation lessons which help them get started on the right track. Also, some states require you to send a copy of the lesson plans for their approval, before you can begin to home school.

Your child/pupil may be required to take several tests supervised by qualified teachers on an annual basis, but this only applies in some states and it’s not mandatory, only recommended.

It is better to be safe and take these tests as they will give you better general understanding of your child’s/pupil’s level of preparation.

Another thing that differs with each state is the graduate guidelines, as some have graduation requirements while others don’t.

A good idea would be to find a local homeschooling community in your area and seek guidance, as there can be no better help than that of experienced multi-age home schooling families.

Multi-Age Home Schooling - Starting And Practicing Algebra

As I’m sure you know algebra and mathematics in general, needs a lot of practice if your child/pupil (whatever the age) is to completely own the subject. Of course you can easily find books and even interactive online lessons or courses that can help you a lot but you must be prepared to practice – if not, you will fail.

It is difficult to learn the hundreds of theories and equations only by reading them to your child/multi-age pupil; algebra is not a poem you know.

What you need to do is have a plan. It’s quite easy actually: you need to make every step slowly but surely. You open the book and start with the fist theory/equation by making a lot of exercises until your pupil understands the theory completely. It can take between a couple of hours to a couple of days. Remember that it is important to have patience with home based schooling.

By following this simple plan you’ll notice that the pupil will begin to understand every concept and become very good at algebra. He may even start to like it.

The next important thing you need to consider is teaching the basics at first, practice them a lot, and only when your child completely understands them, move to medium equations. Many people mess this part up and the results are accordingly.

Algebra and mathematics in general are vital to a person’s development as it helps them solve problems or apply strategies which will help them later in life, so be sure to get it right.

Having Fun With Home Based Schooling

With the many influences public schools can have these days, parents are more and more worried that their children’s behavior is constantly changing while at school.

This is one of the main reasons home based schooling was created so that parents can have another option if they don’t want to send their child to a public school. With home based schooling, parents can supervise the development of the child’s personality and instill in them principles they want them to have.

However, there is a little known fact by parents these days. One of the top reasons homeschooling is a great alternative to public schooling is that the family can have fun while learning everything together.

Parents can make the learning process a lot more fun compared to public school systems where the teaching can become too strict at times.

Here are a few tips that should help you make teaching your children fun:

It has been proved that if you manage to incorporate fun in the learning activities, children are more responsive as it makes the lessons easier to understand. For example, let’s say you are teaching your child to read. It would be a great idea to read to them funny stories or stories that will enhance their imagination, this way helping them realize how fun reading can be.

Be sure to develop the right connection between them and the books, one different from the standards of public schools. If your child is comfortable with the program them homeschooling can become a very fun activity, and he will see it that way. He will become more and more enthusiastic each and every time he participates in the development.

Lastly, parents should use fun examples every time they need to explain different lessons as a child would again be more receptive to such a fun way of homeschooling.

Tips To Reduce The Cost Of Multi-Age Home Based Schooling

Multi-Age Home Schooling can be a much more expensive choice for the family than Public Schooling, as there are a lot of expenditures that need to be made.

This hasn’t stopped families to home school their children, realizing this way is a much more effective and flexible option. That being said, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t ways you can reduce costs. Here are a few tips that will help you do just that:

You don’t have to buy the textbooks and all the other materials – just the ones you can’t borrow from the library or from local schools where you should be able to lend them or buy them at a cheap price. Other materials you can just download from the internet and print them at your convenience.

Visit the online multi-age home based schooling communities and just ask where you can find free or cheap learning resources.

Another great way to teach your child at a very low price is to simply go to the zoo, botanic gardens or if you want to teach history you can easily visit museums or historical sites. Culture can be taught by visiting various cultural locations or by going to the theater. Many of these are free, and the others cost very little.

Every neighborhood has its home based schooling community. By joining these home based schooling communities, you can learn from other homeschooling parents by sharing experience.

The community can ask the local public school for donations of used textbooks, and other useful materials. The home based schooling community can develop a fund together and negotiate with publishers for cheaper prices.

You should take these tips into consideration and reduce multi-age home schooling costs so you can use the money for other pleasurable activities for you and your family.

Homeschooling vs Public Schooling

The time has come for your child to begin his education, and you are faced with the ever present question: What should I choose? Homeschooling or Public Schooling?
Both offer advantages and disadvantages and we will discuss some of them in this article as it is best to know all the facts before making the decision.

Advantages of Homeschooling

Probably the main advantage that home based schooling has over public schooling is the flexibility. You can set the learning periods after your schedule and the lessons can be fitted to suit your child’s learning style. Also the homeschooling system allows a lot of changes to the curriculum thus making it easier for you and your child.

The learning activities are more practical as home based schooling is an unstructured educational program and parents can develop the lessons in a fun way that will make the child more eager to learn.

The other big advantage of homeschooling is of course lower expenses as nowadays public or private schools can be very costly. You can save the money for involving your child in different social activities that will develop his or her social skills.

Advantages of Public Schooling

The biggest advantage of Public Schooling is the social development of a child. While you can definitely involve him in other social activities none will be as effective as being part of the same group for several years.

Public schooling also gives you more time for yourself, your job and for the many household chores you need to do. Homeschooling can prove to be very time consuming for the parents as they have to be with their child all through out the lessons and also correct the worksheets.

You should make the decision by taking into consideration all these facts, by thinking about the time you can invest and the effects that homeschooling or public schooling will have over you child.

How To Successfully Home School Your Child

Homeschooling your child has many benefits nowadays as private schools get more and more expensive, and let’s face it, that’s not going to change any time soon. Home education also allows much more flexibility as the family can choose convenient schedules for them and their child. Because of the structure of multi-age home schooling programs, all the lessons can be fitted to suit the child’s learning style, pace and capability.

The first thing you need to do after deciding to home educate you child is to develop a clear curriculum. The flexibility that comes with home based schooling allows you to teach something in many different ways which can be a positive thing but also a negative one, because you risk providing an unbalanced education that can affect your child’s learning experience.

Setting a clear learning plan will help you be more effective as a teacher. A good start would be to look at the standard curriculum for his grade in a public or private school. This way you could notice the expectations for any given subject and decide on your targets and timeline.

Another very important aspect of multi-age home schooling is discipline as you must draw a line between home and learning at home. The familiar environment can prove to be a distraction for your child. That’s why you, as the parent, must focus 100 percent on his education between “school hours”. Imagine teaching your child at the same time as trying to cook dinner or watch the Monday night sitcom. This attitude will send him the message that his education is not a main priority to you and he will treat it likewise.

As you and your child learn together, not only will you develop a priceless learning experience but you’ll also strengthen your relationship with him – a very important benefit.