Secrets of Homeschooling

Secrets of Homeschooling

*Photo credit: Lightstock.com*

This is my second year homeschooling.  I remember being scared, not knowing a thing about homeschooling, and having no idea where to start.  All I knew was that I had a calling on my heart from the Lord and I had to honor that.  I wanted to share some helpful hints today that have made my life easier and I hope it will make yours easier as well!  Whether you are praying about the idea of homeschooling or you are a seasoned pro, there are definitely an abundance of resources!

One of the first steps is to pray on this decision and what you think will be best for your children.  The next step is to talk to your spouse and see how they feel about it.  You can talk to friends and family, but ultimately this decision is between you, your spouse, and God.  Sometimes family and friends have the best of intentions, but people fear what they don’t know.  Take all of their opinions and love them for their concern and care for you and your family, but have them respect that this is a decision between you and your spouse.

We have all been new at something, whether it is a new job or what about the first night as a parent with your new baby?  We learn through experience.  Homeschooling is no different.  If you are just at the beginning stages of homeschooling, here are two excellent books to give you some insight into homeschooling:

The Simplicity of Homeschooling by Vicky Goodchild

How to Homeschool: A Practical Approach by Gayle Graham

If you are ready to dive in after reading these amazing books, contact your state to see what the homeschool laws are where you live.  There are also wonderful homeschool support groups out there that have field trips, meetings, and gatherings for you and your family.

Believe it or not, you are pretty much on your way at this point.  You will have the confidence and research done to know that you can do this.  Not everyone homeschools the same way, just like no one parents the same way.  There will be bumps and bruises along the way, just like anything new that we start.  I can’t tell you if this is the right path for you.  I can only share what I have experienced and what has worked well for me.  The only thing I can tell you is to have faith and honor your calling, whether it is to homeschool or not.

 “Have faith in God,” Jesus answered. “Truly I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, ‘Go, throw yourself into the sea,’ and does not doubt in their heart but believes that what they say will happen, it will be done for them. Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” Mark 11: 22-24

My Favorite Places to Find Homeschool Printables and Ideas for Free or at Discount:

• CurrClick
• The Mailbox
• TeachersPayTeachers
• Educents
• Pinterest

Check out these amazing articles on how to stay organized in your homeschool year:

When organizing and saving homeschool files onto your computer, I found the best way to do this is to save it in a folder on your computer with the grade level that the specific file is for.  I used to divide it up into topics, like reading and math, but when it came to time to put everything together for that year, I was going through way too many files!  At least having everything together under Kindergarten, for example, will help you decide what to use for your homeschool that year.

Where to Homeschool & My Top 3 Organization Tips from Abby

End of the Year Homeschool Portfolio from Kelly

Here are some helpful articles for the homeschool parent needing a refresher:

Some Days You Just Need to Breathe from Thaleia

Encouragement From the Weary Home School Mom from Abby

21 Ways to Enjoy a Break From Homeschooling from Kelly

Shirley has you covered for teaching younger children and toddlers:

Bible Memory Beginnings for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Three Pre-k Home School Strategies

Are you considering homeschooling? Do you have questions? Leave them below!  

If you are an experienced homeschool parent, what advice would you offer to a new homeschool parent?

This post contains affiliate links.

The following two tabs change content below.

• Bio
• Latest Posts

Kelly

My name is Kelly and I am a child of God and married to my high school sweetheart. I am a second year Homeschool Momma to two wonderful little boys. I like to document our activities that we do weekly. Most of the information I find is from preschool to first grade level. I also like to write inspirational articles that encourage people about the Lord, marriage, family, homeschool, home, recipes, and crafts.

Latest posts by Kelly (see all)

• My Husband, My Best Friend - December 17, 2014
• Secrets of Homeschooling - December 10, 2014
• Be the Light in a Dark Room - November 20, 2014