Where do I start?

New home schoolers. Firstly I want to say congratulations on your decision to home school. We all home school for similar and very different reasons and that's cool. Whatever your reasons, give yourself, your children and your family time to adjust to your new roles and lifestyle, especially if you have come from a school environment. Some of you will need some time to heal - depending upon your personal situation, to recharge, to just 'be' for a while. Give yourselves well deserved time and space for this.

There's a lot of information out there (good chance you'll all become addicted to Pinterest, internet search engines and your local library). During this chill out time, observe your children, see what they like, how they like to learn and so forth. You'll discover your own strengths and weaknesses as you go along, giving you a chance to learn along with your children.

Please don't compete and compare. I think this is a BIG one. Comparing where your child is at to others is not productive. All you need to do is help progress YOUR child from where THEY are. All children have their own pace, style and skills. While they may feel challenged in some areas, they will excel in others. No-one is great at everything. Some kids are academic, some are better at hands on skills, some are a mix. Everyone will do home schooling in a way that suits them, just do what suits your family and enjoy the ride. Move them forward in a time, space and pace that works for them, give them time to learn, explore, question, consolidate and master.

If you picked a resource that is just not working for them (and this is one of the really awesome things about home schooling), you can just change that resource for a different one. Sometimes it can be a bit hit and miss and though that can be frustrating sometimes, again, it's one of the beautiful things about home schooling. Find resources that fit the child vs trying to squish the child to fit the resources. Don't feel like you need to rush out and throw a ton of money at resources. Give yourselves time to see what you think may work for you all and go from there. Borrow from other home schooling families to see if you like a particular resource, see what libraries have to offer, many resources can be made.

So where do you start? Well you just start. You need to find your feet, so what you decide to tackle first does not really matter in my opinion. Maybe you start with lots of excursions, giving you time to observe how your children like to learn, see what they are interested in. Get hands on, make as much of it as interesting, relevant and real life as you can. Build a base to leverage from.

Trust your instincts, no one knows your child better than you. Ask questions, research, read, talk, smile, laugh, cry and laugh again. You'll discover you are smarter than you think, stronger than you thought possible and patience can be learnt. Take one moment and day at a time. Breathe, remember you helped your child get to where they are now, walking, talking, going to the loo - you are still helping them it's just the subjects have changed a bit. You can do this.

Breathe...

How you actually start usually depends on a range of things (this list is not necessarily exhaustive nor complete for everyone):

Where do you live?
What are the education laws, rules and regulations that apply in your area of the world?
How many children are you home schooling?
How do you think you want to home school?
Where is your child at with their learning?
What are each child's learning styles and preferences?
What resources do you already have?
What resources might you need? Where can you find them?
Where do you want to home school? Do you want a specific space in your home or will working around the kitchen table, sitting in a beanbag, lying on the grass etc work just fine?
What home schooling groups are in your area, are they a good fit for your family, do you even want to join one?
What resources are available in your community? You'll be amazed what is right there in your area.
And the list goes on...

Don't be overwhelmed by this list, take your time working through these ideas and more. You can't and shouldn't in my opinion, try to do everything at once. It's an evolution, things will grow and change as your children grow and change - everything is fluid, flow with it.

Home Schooling Bodies and Education Departments in Australia can be found here.

"Every child has a different learning style and pace. Each child is unique, not only capable of learning but also capable of succeeding". - Robert John Meehan

* * *

"Fair does not mean giving every child the same thing, it means giving every child what they need". - Rick Lavoie

* * *

"Sometimes, the most brillant and intelligent students do not shine in standardised tests because they do not have standardised minds". - Diane Ravitch

* * *