South Carolina Homeschooling Information

Homeschooling in South Carolina

Hi, my name is Angie and I homeschool in South Carolina. I am a 32-year-old work-at-home mother of five. My kids are between the ages of 3 and 12, and I have homeschooled for two years.

If you have questions or comments about homeschooling in South Carolina, check out our homeschooling tools and resources or visit our online South Carolina support group.

To find out more about the legal requirements for homeschooling in South Carolina, articles, and state-specific resources, you can also visit one of these sites:

• South Carolina PASS Test Prep resource page
• The Home School Mom's South Carolina support page
• Home Education in South Carolina by Ann Zeise
• Homeschool World South Carolina support groups

Legal disclaimer: This section is one family's story and how they meet the mandatory homeschooling requirements in South Carolina. It is not intended and should not be used as definitive legal advice. In most states, parents find a variety of legal methods to pursue the educational approach that they prefer for their child.

Finding Local Resources in SC

I love Insights on Education, one of the local accountability organizations. They have co-op classes, activities for the students and families. In my area, upstate SC, you can join any number of local homeschool associations such as CHE. If you prefer online groups, there are several Yahoo groups for SC homeschoolers including: SCarolinaHomeschool, and SouthCarolinaHSTimes.

South Carolina Makes It Easy For Parents to Homeschool

I think that South Carolina does make it easier for parents to homeschool their children than some of the other states. There are several homeschool accountability associates, as well as local homeschool co-ops that you can get involved in.

South Carolina requires the teaching parent to have a high school diploma. The school day must be four and a half hours a day of studies, and 180 days a year. The subjects required by South Carolina are math, English, social studies, and science. You also have to be a member of an accountability organization. You can add electives and other subjects such as p.e. at your discretion.

My daughter always liked learning, but Time4Learning has turned "like" into love! I've never seen her so excited to do lessons, before!

It's amazing how quickly my kids are learning difficult concepts. The animation really helps them apply the lessons to something tangible!

A Day in Our Homeschool

You might be interested in knowing what a typical day in our homeschool might look like. The typical day for us starts with breakfast, and hen class begins at 8:00 a.m. I give the kids a break at 10:00 a.m.for some fun and active games. We have jump rope competitions or races and these counts as a p.e. class. At 10:30 a.m. it is back to work, and we do not break again until 12:30 p.m. when they have lunch. After lunch, the children have quiet reading time or they finish up assignments that have not yet been completed. We usually end our school day by 2:00 p.m.

How Time4Learning Makes Homeschooling Easier

The first year I spent hours a night preparing for lessons and printing out worksheets, or correcting assignments. I save so much time now that I can spend it with the kids because Time4learning does the work for me. The lessons are interesting and they hold the kids attention. If you can't get them to pay attention, then they are certainly not going to learn or retain any information. It is very easy, even for my 3-year-old, to log herself into the site and make her way to her assignments. The addition of the playground time gives them a goal to work towards, and they love all of the games, songs and coloring that they get to do. I currently have my two youngest (ages 3 and 4) enrolled with Time4learning, and I hope to enroll my three older children next year.

The software appealed to me because you can change the grade level of their instruction, to customize it for your child's needs.

1st graders learn about "parts of a whole"
from Sally and Pong in 'The Art of
Fractions' lesson.

Choosing Homeschool Curriculum

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.

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.

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.

If you have any more questions or comments about homeschooling in South Carolina, head over to the South Carolina Parents Forum.

Some Helpful Tools and Resources

Welcome to Homeschooling Guide - Are you new to homeschooling? This guide was written by seasoned homeschoolers to answer some of the difficult questions new families often struggle with.

Curriculum Lesson Plans - An overview of the number of lessons that are included for each grade and subject. All students have access to at least 2 (and in most cases 3) grade levels of curriculum for each subject, so they can move ahead or review at their own pace.

Homeschool Portfolio Information - Answers common questions about homeschool portfolios and evaluations. It includes tips on organization methods, what to include and how Time4Learning can be used as part of your homeschool portfolio.

The Lesson Activity Finder - One of the many helpful tools that Time4Learning offers its members. The activity finder is a shortcut that makes it easy for parents to preview lessons or find extra practice for their child. You can visit our hints and help section for more information about the activity finder.

Lesson Planning Worksheet - Wondering how many lessons to have your child do each day? Estimate the number of activities per day using this easy to use, printable worksheet.

Online Parent's Forum - Reach out to homeschoolers in your area, join discussions, ask questions and trade ideas on our online community of homeschooling parents. Having the support of seasoned homeschoolers can really help make your homeschooling journey a success.

Sign up for Time4Learning and gain access to a variety of educational materials, which will engage and challenge your child to succeed. Make Time4Learning a part of your children's homeschool resources.

I want to Learn More about Time4Learning's homeschool curriculum or how to use the program for afterschool enrichment.