Homeschooling: Where To Start - 8 Easy Steps Guide
Perhaps you are new to homeschooling and you find your mind wandering, asking yourself questions like… Homeschooling: where to start? What will I need? Can I even do this? Those are very normal questions, and you are taking some wise steps right now by seeking answers to your questions.
EZ-Teach would like to join you in the journey by providing some guidance. In this blog, you’ll discover an 8-Step Start-up Guide as well as a section called Starting Homeschooling Resources, where we will provide links to some online resources that we think you’ll find helpful. Keep reading or click on one of the links below.
Section A: 8-Step Start-up Guide
Section B: Starting Homeschooling Resources
Get your family into a groove with this guide, Homeschooling: Where to Start.
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Homeschooling: Where to Start
Section A: 8-Step Start-up Guide
In this section of our blog, you will find an 8-Step Start-up Guide, specifically meant to help new homeschoolers. If you skip to the next section, Section B: Starting Homeschooling Resources, you’ll see a list of some resources we recommend. Let’s get started!
Learn your legal obligations before you set out to homeschool.
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1. Research Requirements & Legal Obligations
It is important to know what your province or state requires of you as a homeschooling parent. In this blog, we will consider the expectations as it relates to education in Ontario, Canada.
First of all, when a child is 6 years old, education in Ontario is compulsory. The Government of Ontario expects you to inform your local school board of your choice to homeschool your child(ren). You will need to provide them with a letter expressing your intent to homeschool your child(ren) before or by September 1st and with information about each child you intend to homeschool, including their:
Name
Gender
Date of Birth
Your Telephone Number
Your Home Address
It is advised that you inform the board of this information each year as you continue to homeschool. No other information is required, such as your teaching plans, curriculum choices, etc., unless an investigation is initiated due to concerns about a child’s well-being in which case you will need to be prepared to provide further details. For more information and for a sample letter, visit the Ontario.ca website.
Some provinces and states require homeschooling parents to provide more information like progress reports and assessments, while others are not so strict. If you live in Canada and are curious about your province’s homeschool laws and regulations, visit this Homeschool Canada page.
Before scheduling your long term and short term plans, set goals.
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2. Set Your Goals
It is important to understand what your goals are as a homeschooling family. The Canadian Homeschooler suggests that you Know Your Reasons Why, because there will be challenging days when you are ready to throw in the towel, days when someone else challenges your choice to homeschool, and days you get off track and forget why you’re even doing this!
Think about why you want to homeschool and what is important to you and your child(ren). Here are some questions to ask yourself:
What do we want to accomplish (in a year, in 5 years, in 10 years, etc)? How will we best accomplish this?
What can I offer my child(ren) that they can’t receive from an educational institution?
Besides academics, what other types of education would benefit my child(ren)?
What sort of extracurricular and social activities would be beneficial to my child(ren)?
Remember to ask your children about their goals, too. It is a wonderful way to teach them about creating and developing goals. Plus, you may find that they will take more initiative in their learning if they are part of the goal-setting process.
Oh, and don’t forget to make your goals SMART - Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timely.
It is important to connect with other homeschooling parents and children.
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3. Join A Homeschooling Group
We always say don’t go it alone. It is important that you have some support, and we all need it - including you as the teaching parent and your kids, your students. Homeschooling can feel lonely and isolating without it.
A great way to network with other homeschooling families is to join a homeschooling group or co-op. Not only does it help you create or develop a social network, but it can also relieve you of some of your teaching responsibilities. Perhaps there is a subject another parent is offering to teach a group of kids from the co-op. They may teach a class once a week while you offer to teach another class later that week.
Parents may even have the opportunity to teach an extra-curricular class or lead a special event or field trip. Kids get to learn in a group setting and parents get a bit of a break. Plus, another advantage of joining a group is the chance to swap ideas and resources.
You can also join the Ontario Federation of Teaching Parents to connect with other homeschooling parents in Ontario and receive homeschooling news, too.
Even if you tend to feel stifled by them, plans and schedules help to keep everyone unified and on track.
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4. Create A Plan
You'll want to come up with both long-term plans and short-term plans. It is good to have yearly plans, monthly plans and weekly/daily plans. Preview your curriculum and try to get a general sense of how much time you will plan to successfully complete the work. Besides actual teaching time, don’t forget to schedule the following:
Transition times (younger kids need more time between subjects, tasks, etc.)
Field Trips
Breaks
Meals and Snacks
Play Time
Outdoor Time
Co-op Time & Social Events
Travel Time
Planning Time
Grading Time
Don’t forget that you'll also need time to correct work with your kids when you are teaching. And you'll want to record their progress, especially if you are reporting to provincial bodies.
It depends on your kids, but try not to have blocks of time for any one subject that are too long. As your children's attention span develops, you can increase the amount of time you spend on one subject. But remember, we need breaks to stay productive. With that being said, you may find that your child gets into a groove and they want to keep working! Ask them what they need, but also look for signs such as these that indicate that they need a break:
Fidgeting
Yawning
Restlessness
Confusion/frustration
Irritability
Wandering thoughts/distraction
For more help with planning, check out this article from The Canadian Homeschooler called, Homeschool Planning: The Ultimate Guide To Planning Your Homeschool Year.
Once you settle on curriculum, don’t forget to buy all your supplies!
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5. Choose Curriculum & Gather Materials
Does anyone else here love back-to-school shopping? Well, if you are a homeschooling parent, you get to do that to an even greater extent. Once you have your goals in place, you’ll want to choose a curriculum and then start gathering the materials you’ll need to make learning come to life!
Curriculum
Before choosing a curriculum, consider the following:
Do thorough research
Ask other homeschooling parents what they used and why they liked it - or didn't like it!
Check your provincial curriculum guidelines (Click here for the Ontario Curriculum Guidelines)
Consider your budget (sometimes buying a whole unit is cheaper in the end - Check out this tip on Kindergarten Homeschool Curriculum Packages.)
Materials
Many parents and teachers start this job early simply because it is fun (Ok, and somewhat time-consuming)! Be on the lookout for deals on general supplies, but also preview your curriculum and make a list of the materials you will need. This will be particularly important for subjects like Art, Music, Reading, Science and even Math.
Consider also what you'll need in terms of technology. Will each child need their own laptop or tablet? Will you need headphones for each child? If you have kids of different ages, chances are they may want headphones, especially if the space isn't big enough for you to find individual quiet spaces. Remember how you were on car rides where you and your siblings drew invisible lines separating your space vs their space?
Remember to make room for play at home - inside and outside.
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6. Prepare Spaces for Learning
Preparing the space you and your kids will work and play in is also important. You'll want to think about places for using workbooks, art projects, and science experiments, but also where kids will have quiet reading times or play times.
Also, consider that there are times when it's good for kids to be together (if you have more than 1 child) and times when it is good for your kids to have their own individual space. Think about the room you need for coming together but also for taking space from each other
Here is a link to an article by Family Education with ideas about creating learning spaces for your child.
Now that you have set your goals, create a schedule to guide you all in reaching them! Click on the picture above for your free planner from EZ-Teach!
7. Set Your Schedule
Once you have thought about your short-term and long-term plans, you’ll want to create a schedule. It will help you remember what your goals are and what you need to accomplish in a day to reach your goals. And don’t stuff your day too full - It’s easy to get overly ambitious when having fun! Here is a guide to help you: Your Homeschooling Schedule: Creating The Perfect Schedule.
Be prepared for some rough days - but don’t throw in the towel. Take it slow and steady!
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8. Start Slow & Steady
Whether your child has never gone to school before and is just starting, or your child has been in a public or private school setting in the past, transitioning to homeschooling will be a learning curve for everyone.
It takes time to find your groove, so don’t be hard on yourself or your kids. If you make a mistake, you can correct it. That is what learning is all about, right? Learning from mistakes is a great lesson for kids.
To avoid burnout, try not to schedule too much at once. In fact, if you tend to be the overzealous type, consider scheduling in some downtime.
Homeschoolers are known to finish their work quickly because they can go at their own pace and do not have to wait for other students. Chances are your kids will finish their work in half the amount of time they would in a regular school setting, so don’t stress if their noses aren’t always in the books.
And remember to be flexible - that is the beauty of homeschooling!
Keep reading for tips on resources and helpful links for homeschooling.
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Section B: Starting Homeschooling Resources
In this section of our blog, we have provided a list of resources that we think might be beneficial to you as you consider the question: Homeschooling: where to start?
Consider registering for a conference to connect with other homeschooling parents!
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1. Canadian Home School Conferences
Looking to network with other homeschooling parents? Click on the link above to access a list of Canadian Home School Conferences. Now that people are mingling in person again after a time of isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, you’ll probably be eager to attend a conference where you’ll meet others who can relate to you and offer tips and advice. Plus, there are usually vendors on site so you can get a preview of their materials!
Cost: Costs vary by conference and location; however, you might benefit from early bird rates if you act fast. For example, the Ontario Christian Home Educators Connection Convention is held in May 2023. If you sign up by April 5, 2023, you’ll save! Click here to learn about their early bird prices.
Consider the unique learning preferences of your children before settling on curriculum.
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2. Online Learning Preferences Quiz
As you decide on your curriculum goals and schedule, are you wondering what your child’s learning preferences are? This online learning preference quiz is offered through www.homeschool.com and can help you in assessing what type of curriculum will jive with your child.
Cost: FREE!
3. Curriculum Checklists
Choosing a curriculum is a big task for anyone, let alone a new educator. If you want a guide to curriculum, www.thecanadianhomeschooler.com provides curriculum checklists which you can see by clicking on the link above in the title. It offers suggestions from which you can pick and is available by grade and province (Ontario, Alberta, British Colombia, and Saskatchewan only).
Cost: FREE!
4. Curriculum
We are assuming that, since you are reading this blog, you’re already aware of EZ-Teach’s Curriculum listings. But, if not, click on one of the links above and you’ll find resources for teaching a variety of subjects and grades.
We continue to add curriculum and are always open to finding educators who would like to offer their materials online. In fact, if that is something that interests you, contact us!
Cost: Cost varies by material. Google Slides are often under $10 while full e-books or enhanced books are often $20 or more.
Often you can find checklists and planners online for free!
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5. Planner
If you read the first section of this blog, you’ll see that we promote planning! Even if that doesn’t sound appealing to you, planning is proven to help families stay on track and stay connected to their goals.
But why start from scratch to create your own planners and schedules? We have a FREE planner you can download to help you stay organized on a daily, weekly, and yearly basis. Just click the link in the heading or click right here to get our FREE planner!
Remember to stop and enjoy the moments when your children learns something for the very first time!
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6. Other Tips
Our last resource is actually a video from Angela Braniff, a homeschooling mom of 8 (Yes, 8!). In the following video, she outlines 9 Habits of HIGHLY Successful Homeschoolers. Whether you’ve just begun homeschooling or you’ve been doing it for a while now, we think you might discover some helpful advice and encouragement.
Check out the tips from this video from Angela Braniff.
EZ-Teach
In this guide, we’ve offered just some of the many tips and resources out there. You could end up researching for hours as you plan your start to homeschooling, but we hope this helps direct your search a little bit and offers you some support.
Our EZ-Teach website has a list of some of our favourite Teaching Resources. Plus, you may have a high school student who needs a particular course. See some of the courses offered through Waterloo Independent Secondary School, one of our valued partners!
If you have other questions, please feel free to contact us by clicking here or on the button below. We love to hear from readers and wish you all the best as you find your stride!
