Answers Junction ? How do I go about homeschooling myself?

Question by shygirl93: How do I go about homeschooling myself?
I?m 16 years old, and i?m going to be a junior in high school, and I want to do homeschooling. I?m thinking about taking classes on the computer, and maybe something else. But I need to know the basics. I live in Georgia if that helps. I need to know some good curriculum, and stuff like that. Also can you explain the benefits of homeschooling so I can show my mom. Thanks!

Best answer:

Answer by K
Be sure to look up the homeschooling laws in your state?each state gets to decide their education laws, so what works for you in Ohio is gonna change once you move to Georgia or for your buddy in Michigan. Local homeschool support groups are pretty good for this; they know the state laws well, and have insight as to how the local law enforcement views them; you may live in a place where homeschooling is well-accepted and pretty lenient, or your local superintendent may be on a power trip to see how much authority s/he thinks s/he has. These groups also keep up to date with changes in the laws, which is helpful. Try Googling your nearest metro city with the words ?homeschool support? to find a few near you.

The next thing to realize is that there?s a whole spectrum of what?s called ?homeschool.? Some people sign up with an online version of public school; that?s really technically not ?homeschool,? since you?re counted as public school student and you?re assigned a teacher, a strict schedule, and predetermined workload as determined by the school district, etc. The dirty little secret here is that the district gets to keep the federal funds for you, as you?re a public school student this way. (Quite obviously, your school district will like this option best. Often when one queries the school as to the options available for ?homeschool,? the school administrators will smile sweetly and mention just such an arrangement, conveniently omitting the rest of your options. This ?lie by omission? quietly implies that this is the one and only way ?homeschooling is done.? There?s a quite a debate in the homeschooling community about whether or not this constitutes an effort by the educational bureaucracy to redefine the meaning of homeschool, and what effect that would have on legislation and regulation of more traditional homeschool. But I digress.)

Other people may choose to buy materials from companies and enroll with online schools, but they?re ?independent? of the school districts, and they don?t owe anyone a darned thing?their test scores (if any; few homeschoolers in the traditional sense are obligated to take state standardized tests) are their own business, as is the pace, order or depth at which they choose to go through the material.

Other people make up their own curriculum, based on their own personal criteria. Some states want you to keep a portfolio of material to prove you?re doing something there at home, other states want you to submit your curriculum for the year for approval, others may require testing that could send you back to public or private school if you fall below a particular percentile?just in case. Again, depends on the state.

Still other people endorse what they call ?unschooling,? and they throw out all books and tests altogether and simply follow what interests them. (See the writings of John Holt, or Google ?unschooling? for more on that theory of education.) A good book for anyone over 12 years old is ?The Teenage Liberation Handbook: How to Quit School and Get a Real Life and Education,? by Grace Llewellyn. Here?s an excerpt:

?Did your guidance counselor ever tell you to consider quitting school? That you have other choices, quite beyond lifelong hamburger flipping or inner-city crack dealing? That legally you can find a way out of school, that once you?re out you?ll learn and grow better, faster, and more naturally than you ever did in school, that there are zillions of alternatives, that you can quit school and still go to A Good College and even have a Real Life in the Suburbs if you so desire? Just in case your counselor never told you these things, I?m going to. That?s what this book is for.?

Even if you don?t hold with what the author has to say, the point of view she has is dramatically different and can be a great springboard to help you get in touch with what you believe school and learning should be like. The book also outlines a very nice reference for curriculum, as well as chapters about dealing with your school, convincing your parents, and getting a social life. It?s meant to be a very usable book.

As with many things, there?s a wide spectrum of ?unschoolers,? as well. Many of them have a certain set of concepts they want their kids to get and don?t care HOW they get the information, while others take a much more laid-back approach and allow the student to set the list of concepts themselves?or not set one at all. All of these people will still consider themselves ?unschoolers.?

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