Homeschooling in Ohio

Hello Ohio homeschoolers! My name is Jennifer and homeschool in Ohio! I've got six kids, ranging in age from 16 years to 11 months old. We pulled our kids out of Ohio public schools to homeschool them a few years ago and have never looked back.

If you have questions about homeschooling in Ohio, or want to learn more about our experiences in the state, you can contact me in the Ohio Homeschool Parent Forum .

Ohio Homeschooling Resources

Homeschooling your kids in Ohio means you have to "notify" your local school district of your decision to homeschool, and send a list of the curricula you plan to use to cover each required subject area. This list is only tentative; you can deviate from it without further notifying anyone about your change of plans.

At the end of each school year, you'll need to send the school district either your child's scores on a national standardized achievement test of your choice OR a signed statement from a certified teacher who has reviewed a portfolio of your child's work and deemed it to be adequate annual progress for that individual child. Sometimes these requirements can really seem like a pain in the neck, but remember, it could be worse!

An Eclectic Homeschooling Approach

My family follows an eclectic homeschooling approach, meaning we do a little of this and a little of that. Each child has a slightly different learning style, and one of the beautiful things about homeschooling is your ability to tailor your child's experiences to what works for them. We use Time4Learning several days a week and I like to have one child on T4L while I'm working with another child on some different topic. I also really strive to incorporate elements of different educational methods into our day. We do a lot of unit studies, but Montessori, Waldorf, and even unschooling concepts find their way into the homeschooling here at my house too. Our days are pieced together with these various building blocks and lots of public library resources thrown into the mix as well.

My daughters belong to a Girl Scout troop of exclusively homeschooled kids, and we've done the same with Boy Scouts in the past. I belong to several online groups for homeschooling families in our local area to connect, plan field trips, and share ideas. There are several of these on Yahoo Groups and Meetup. We also belong to a homeschool co-op group that meets weekly for field trips and other activities.

The Time4Learning Homeschool Curriculum

For families with more than one child, choosing a homeschool program can be more problematic. What works for one child may not work for another. What works for one subject may not work on the next. What works one year, may fall flat the very next year.

Time4Learning's experience shows that there is no single, best homeschool material. Rather than feeling torn between homeschool resources, parents should select a diverse blend of materials and activities.

Some of the features that make Time4Learning so successful include:

• Time4Learning appeals to a wide range of learning styles. Our online learning materials are especially well-suited to children who are visual or kinesthetic learners. These children can take advantage of Time4Learning's interactive, multi-media materials.
• Children like using the computer to learn. It's a convenient, interactive homeschool resource that provides a welcome change each day to paper-and-pencil workbooks and textbook-based lessons.
• Parents like that it tracks progress and helps children advance by clearly presenting and reinforcing each lesson.
• Time4Learning's self-paced, modularized lesson plans allow you to move forward and back through the materials whenever you want. You can skip lessons that teach concepts your child has already mastered and repeat those he or she has not. The choice is yours. With Time4Learning, you are always in control.

Time4Learning is proven effective with homeschoolers, has a low monthly price, is easy-to-use, and provides a money-back guarantee so you can make sure that it works for your children!

Sign up for Time4Learning as part of your overall homeschool program.