If you’re making the homeschool leap mid-year, there are many benefits that homeschooling offers. Most importantly, homeschooling provides you with the freedom and flexibility that traditional schooling doesn’t offer. You set the rules, generate the schedule, and choose the curriculum.
But before you get started homeschooling, there are several things you should do. Choosing an educational path that suits your children’s needs, following your state’s requirements, and keeping your children’s educational records can be overwhelming – especially for new homeschoolers. But don’t worry, there are people and places that will lend a helping hand.
Can You Start Homeschooling Anytime?
Yes! Once you’ve made the decision to homeschool, you can start doing so any time, even if it’s in the middle of a semester or school year. However, before you begin your homeschooling adventure, make sure you become familiar with your state’s homeschooling laws so that you don’t encounter any issues. Below are several important steps that will help make your transition into homeschooling a smooth one.
Let’s get started.
Know Your State Requirements
Every state has different requirements that you must follow as a homeschooling parent. For example, there are some states like New York with stricter laws and others, like Georgia, with more lenient ones. The amount of foot work you’ll have to do depends on which state you live in. You can easily find your state’s requirements by doing a quick online search or by visiting our homeschooling by state resources.
Some requirements that may or may not impact you include:
- Notifying educational officials of your intent to homeschool
- Parent qualifications — some states require the parent have a high school diploma or GED.
- Required subjects that you must cover
- Record keeping — some states require a portfolio of your student’s work.
- Assessments requirements to make certain your student is making academic progress.
Withdraw Your Student
Depending on your state laws, you may be required to notify your school district that you are withdrawing your child from public school. It’s also a good idea to notify your school district. Truancy laws vary in each state, but each one has some law on the books. With that in mind, you should make certain that every entity is properly notified in a timely manner.
File an Intent to Homeschool
Many states require that you submit a notice of intent form when you begin homeschooling. Twenty-nine states require an annual form. The information on the form varies for each state. In some states, the intent form only requires the name of the homeschool and the administrator (the parent). Other states require a basic curriculum plan and maybe even your child’s name, grade level, and a copy of their birth certificate. Again, a simple online search for your local or state homeschooling organization will help you learn about your state’s requirements.
Many states offer the option of homeschooling under an umbrella (aka cover) school, which avoids the NOI altogether. Do a quick search to find out if this is an option in your state.
Explore Homeschool Curriculum Options
Homeschooling gives you the flexibility to pick and choose the lessons, assignments, materials, tools, and activities you’ll use when teaching certain subjects. For example, you can use web-based tools for math and science, and text books for reading if that fits your child’s learning styles and needs. There is no one perfect curriculum. You fashion the curriculum around your educational goals and your child’s strengths and weaknesses. You have the flexibility – take advantage.
Set Up Your Classroom & Create A Schedule
Classrooms can be set up in many ways. Some homeschoolers utilize one room for their students using traditional chalkboards or whiteboards, desks, and a dedicated area where they keep their supplies. Other parents utilize different rooms in their home, like the kitchen table or couch, and some have learning stations for different subjects. And for a just about all homeschoolers, the world is their classroom. The experiences gained from travelling can be just as invaluable as any learned in a classroom environment.
As far as scheduling out your day, a stringent school schedule, such as one public schools use, does not work for every child. A flexible schedule, on the other hand, lets you teach your children at the optimum time. For example, some children learn better in the morning while others prefer the afternoon. You not only maximize their learning, but your children can also learn at their own pace — not the pace designated for a whole classroom. It’s OK to do things outside the box if that makes you and your student happy.
Plan and Set Goals
The first important thing to do before you start planning and setting goals is something called deschooling. This is the process of shedding the traditional schooling methods that your children have experienced in public school. In other words, you are not bringing the classroom home with you. It is a time when children decompress, break away from the traditional learning process, and start adjusting to their new educational experience. Many parents don’t do any schooling during this time. They often read aloud to their children, practice real life skills such as cooking or baking, play games, and discuss the future with their children.
Next comes the goal setting and planning step. Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the poet and the author of The Little Prince, said, “A goal without a plan is just a wish.” And since your new homeschooling endeavor is seriously important to you and your child, creating a plan should not be just a “wish.” It’s a reality.
First off, evaluate your child’s education. Write down their strengths and weaknesses. Note the subjects they thrive in and the subjects that give them trouble. Have a meeting with your children and discuss what they enjoy about learning and what styles of learning they prefer. Some children like a more visual learning style, others prefer verbal learning. Once you know what curriculum you’ll be using, start preparing your lesson plans. Some homeschoolers like to plan out the whole year, others like to take things on a week by week basis.
Starting homeschooling mid-year may feel overwhelming for both you and your child, but it helps to allow everyone to decompress and take things slowly at first. Remember, homeschooling is an adventure. And all adventures have their challenges, their highs and lows, and their most inspiring moments. You will experience all these things as you and your children begin the process. Enjoy the adventure and don’t forget to have fun!
Mid-Year Homeschool Transition Guide
Download this FREE resource to help new homeschoolers transition into homeschooling mid-year. This guide also helps experienced homeschoolers transition to a new curriculum in the middle of the year.
Can you do one subject for a whole week then switch it to the next subject for the next week or do you at least have to do each one of the subjects in a week
Hi Tory. Absolutely! Time4Learning is a curriculum, not a school, so we don’t have any usage requirements. We actually have many members who tell us block scheduling (what you described) works well for their students! Please don’t hesitate to let us know if we can answer any other questions for you! https://www.time4learning.com/contact-us/
I am planning to start home schooling my 2nd grader and may be pulling him from public school over the winter break. I was wondering if I would be able to either test him into where he should be starting with the Time4Learning online curriculum, if I can adjust it for the 1/2 way point, or if we would have to have him start the 2nd grade program from the beginning and having him complete the whole “years worth” of curriculum from the start.
Hi Mimi. Thanks for your interest! Since Time4Learning is a curriculum and not a school, parents have total control. Students automatically have access to a grade above and a grade below the grade you place them in, but parents can also set each subject at a different grade level and can make grade level changes as often as necessary. You’re never locked into a full year or grade level or anything like that. You will have access to all lesson plans, so you can start your student wherever they need to start.
If we can help answer additional questions or help you get started, please don’t hesitate to reach out! 🙂 https://www.time4learning.com/curriculum/contact_us.php
With the COVID-19 i am considering make the switch to homeschooling my 8th grade son here in Maryland. What are my options and if I withdraw him from public school now will i be able to enroll him a public high school?
Hi Chris. Great questions. There are so many unknown variables surrounding school closures! Many families who are finding themselves educating at home during the school closures, are still enrolled as public schoolers. If you truly want to withdraw your student from public school and homeschool, we recommend that you start by reading this page. It’s a great way to try and familiarize yourself with Maryland’s homeschool laws. https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/maryland/
Additionally, we would recommend checking with your school district so you can make sure you have everything you need (records, tests, evaluations, etc.) for re-enrollment. Good luck! Please don’t hesitate to reach out if we can answer additional questions. 🙂
Dealing with bad cyber bullying, really hateful remarks, etc. kids have been suspended for it- it somehow our 6th grade daughter is still the victim. School district in Texas is no help at all.Is it possible to start homeschooling with 4 weeks of school left in the year. Looking for some options. New to all of this. Please advise. Thanks!
Hi Ben. Sorry to read about the trouble you and your family are having. You can start homeschooling at ANY time! Here is a page where you can get more familiar with TX homeschool information (laws, groups, etc) – https://www.time4learning.com/homeschooling/texas/
After that, please download this free e-book that can help you get started: https://www.time4learning.com/homeschool/how-to-homeschool.shtml
We have a parent forum you can join(https://www.time4learning.net/), and we have a very active facebook group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/Time4LearningFamilies/) where you can connect with other TX homeschoolers.
Good luck! Please reach out to us if you need additional help!
I’ll take any tips and advices
Hey there, Amy! Here are a couple of links that can help you get started with homeschooling.
https://www.time4learning.com/homeschool-curriculum.htm
https://www.time4learning.com/homeschool/how-to-homeschool.shtml (this one also has a free e-book you can download!)
Please know that you can contact us if you have additional questions – via email, phone, or on any of the social networks. 🙂
Am very interested in this program
Hi Cecilia, thanks for your interest! Here’s a great page to tell you a little more about how Time4Learning works: https://www.time4learning.com/curriculum/how-it-works.html
If you have more questions, you can definitely reach out to us here, on social media, or by contacting our office. 🙂 https://www.time4learning.com/curriculum/contact_us.php
I live in Spain and cannot get a answer weather home schooling is legal or ilegal.can you help
Hi Sharon! We can’t give legal advice, and are not as familiar with international homeschooling laws as we are domestic/state homeschooling laws. I did find this link that might prove helpful (https://www.citizensadvice.org.es/faq/homeschooling-allowed-spain/), but I would definitely recommend that you continue to try and reach out to someone who can provide more explicit direction.
Also, you may be able to connect with other homeschoolers in our Time4Learning Families group on Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/groups/Time4LearningFamilies/). There are quite a few international families in the group, and they may be able to help.
Good information
The world is my classroom_ a goal without a plan is just a wish
Hello my name is Lia, and I have a daughter who is dual American& Indonesian (my husband is American) which currently living in Indonesia since 1 grade and she’s attending local school, now she’s in 3rd grade, I’m interested to switch my daughter to ahome school, please share me the information on how doing online home school, thank you, regards~Lia
Hi Lia! We are unfamiliar with many international homeschooling laws/requirements, but this page might prove helpful: https://a2zhomeschooling.com/regional/asia_homeschooling/indonesia-jakarta-homeschooling/
Time4Learning, while aligned to U.S. educational standards, can be and is used successfully all around the world. If you’d like more info about Time4Learning, you can view our activity demos here: https://www.time4learning.com/curriculum/demos.html
Good luck! Definitely feel free to reach out if you have additional questions or would like to speak to a customer support team member. 🙂