The meaning of homeschooling has changed dramatically over the last decade. In the traditional sense, homeschooling meant searching for textbooks or building your own curriculum for each subject for each grade level of child you would be teaching.  Once the curricula has been established, the lesson planning begins.  Over the course of a school year, each subject is broken down into the daily lessons that will be covered.  Lessons would be graded through various assignments, projects, recitation, or other means.

While the traditional model is still preferred by some parents, the level of effort to prepare and teach the material to your student can be greatly reduced by using various tools and resources that are now readily available.  Curriculum options abound.  Many local bookstores carry new and used homeschool curriculum.  Of course, there are too many choices to count when exploring your options online for both book-based and digital curriculum.

Some internet platforms offer a full online curriculum with digital textbooks and interactive lessons.  These often included automated grading of much of the coursework, student attendance management, report cards, transcripts and more.

Today, homeschooling can mean almost anything you want it to mean in terms of how you choose to prepare, teach and execute your day-to-day learning plans.  The primary meaning still includes you, the parent or guardian, directly taking on the responsiblilty of the how and when your child receives their education.

So, you think you'd like to try homeschooling?  GREAT!  We'll help you get started.  There are a few things you need to understand in order to begin this journey. 

One of the first considerations is how you will comply with your local education laws as it pertains to homeschooling.  There are two primary ways most families can choose to begin homeschooling.  Families can choose the independent homeschool route or use an umbrella or cover school that offers a homeschool program.

Independent Homeschool

In most cases, you may file a "letter of intent to homeshool" with your local education agency (LEA).  You will need to comply with the local regulations for selecting curriculum, submitting attendance and grades and submitting testing scores as required.  This option can offer great flexibility, but may also require a significant amount of planning time to prepare and execute the instruction.

This option is usually comes with no enrollment cost.  Of course, books, supplies and other needs are the responsiblity of the parent.

The majority, if not all, independent homeschoolers must submit to standardized testing at the appropriate grade levels.

Umbrella/Cover School

An Umbrella or Cover School is a state-recognized, and usually private, school in which parents can enroll their children.  Since LEAs recognize these as private schools, the curriculum, attendance and grades are managed direclty by the umbrella school and the LEA is not involved. 

Be sure to select an umbrella school that offers a homeshcool program where students are officially enrolled, however, parents still have the freedom to homeschool in the traditional sense under the guidelines of the school.  Most schools provide guidance counselors who can offer mentorship and educational recommendations to parents as needed.

Fees for enrollment in an umbrella school which handles management of your records and attendance range from less than $100 to as much a several hundred dollars depending on the number of students and their grade levels.

Many umbrella programs do not require standardized testing of any kind.  Be sure to research the requirements of any umbrella you may consider.  Some umbrella programs do require testing.

Here's a quick checklist of additional things you should consider.

• Which homeschooling model will be used?
  • Traditional
  • Charlotte Mason
  • Classical
  • Un-schooling
  • Other?
• What type of curriculum format will be needed based on the chosen model?
  • Standard Textbooks
  • Online Curriculum
  • Hands-on Manipulatives
  • Music
  • Literature
• Is there a designated space for homeschooling to occur?
  • The kitchen table
  • A spare room turned classroom
  • A student desk
• Who will provide the primary instruction?
• Is the primary instructor able to provide consistent weekly instruction?
• Will the student have a quite place to work when independent study is needed?

There are many other things to consider, but the list above will help you get started.

YES!  However, depending on the state or region in which you live, you will need to be familiar with the laws of your local education agency (LEA).  Many states allow you to file a "letter of intent to homeschool" with your LEA.  Each LEA has their own requirements.  They may dictate who can be considred the primary instructor for a student, whether or not a parent must have a high school diploma or GED, how many days of school must occur and how many hours each day you must provide instruction.

In addition, most LEAs require you to manage and submit periodic attendance and grades reports in addition to requiring annual standardized testing for certian grade levels.

Many families prefer to enroll in an umbrella or cover school to handle records management allowing them to spend more focused time educating their children.