Deciding to Homeschool is for families that are coming to realize that traditional education just isn't working anymore. It identifies the major questions that parents have when considering their other options for education, particularly homeschooling. This free ebook is not designed to sell you on homeschooling. Rather, it aims to help you re-examine the way you view education and evaluate whether or not homeschooling is right for you.

1. FROM NO AGENDA HOMESCHOOL
by Christa Johnson
DECIDING TO
HOMESCHOOL
FIVE QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER BEFORE TAKING THE PLUNGE

2. Deciding to Homeschool: Five Questions to Consider
Before Taking the Plunge
© 2012 No Agenda Homeschool, LLC
Please feel free to post this e-book on your blog or email it to whomever you believe
would benefit from reading it.
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page i

3. CHAPTER 1
INTRODUCTION
Education, in the broadest of truest sense,
will make an individual seek to help all
people, regardless of race, regardless of
color, regardless of condition.
~George Washington Carver
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/pasukaru76/5268559005/

4. Section 1
You’re starting to get suspicious. There’s this nagging little
COULD I BE A thought in the back of your mind. It’s been there for a while and
HOMESCHOOLER?
it’s developing into this all-consuming force that can’t be ignored.
MAYBE TRADITIONAL SCHOOL
ISN’T RIGHT FOR MY CHILD.
Something’s not right. Perhaps something’s going on at school.
It could be bullying, a changing social dynamic, a teacher that
doesn’t mesh with your child’s style. Perhaps something’s going on
with your child, maybe they’re losing their interest in all things
academic, getting stressed out over the content or rigor of school,
or getting to that age where the cookie cutter model of education
just isn’t working anymore.
Whatever it is, something’s not right and you need to look for
a solution. Have you considered homeschooling?
Of course, there are tons of alternatives for parents struggling
with their current school. Private school, cyber school, Christian
Ideal teachers are those who use themselves as school, military school(!), and so on. These are possible solutions
bridges over which they invite their for families that like the idea of groups of same-age kids learning
students to cross, then having facilitated together from a professional, with an established curriculum and
their crossing, joyfully collapse, traditional classroom environment. Those might be worth a try!
(And that’s OK!)
encouraging them to create bridges of
There’s security in outsourcing your child’s education. There’s a
their own.
staff of experienced professionals, there’s a level of accountability,
~Nikos Kazantzakis
there’s a built-in social network, and there’s simply that extra level
of support. There are teachers, administrators, counselors, and
page 3

5. coaches that wor k together to create an all-in-one , homeschooling. These families have different backgrounds, race,
comprehensive environment for your child to develop religion, lifestyles, pocketbooks, educational beliefs, and motivations
academically, socially, and emotionally. that drive them to consider homeschooling. One thing they all
have in common is the desire to provide individualized,
quality education (Home Educated and Now Adults, Table 3,
BUT WHAT IF THAT’S NOT Ray).
ENOUGH?
Parents who start to think of homeschooling as an option
LEARNING DOESN’T HAVE TO
often struggle with the same five questions:
HAPPEN IN A SCHOOL.
• How will I know what to teach? Todays public school system has only been around for 150
• What will we do all day? years. It was established in a time when a large-scale, factory
• Does it work? Really?
model was necessary (check out Horace Mann and his now-
• Can we financially afford to homeschool?
• How do I know I’m doing the right thing? outdated thoughts on universal public education).
Standardized and compulsory education was introduced to
The homeschooling movement is gaining significant ensure everyone had access to quality education. It started with
momentum and it’s for all kinds of families. In the the rural one-room schoolhouse. This was a
past, it seemed there were two extremes of learning environment comprised of multiple age
homeschoolers: the folks who wanted to integrate groups and different abilities working in the same
religion and faith into every aspect of their child’s 2 MILLION room with a young teacher who facilitated
life and the anti-establishment revolutionaries who CHILDREN ARE learning. Likely, the sole teacher, an unmarried
wanted to grow organic gardens and learn from HOMESCHOOLED woman who had advanced education but didn’t
life. As Mark Twain said, “All generalizations are
(2010).
necessarily have a degree, covered subjects like
false.” literacy, penmanship, arithmetic, and etiquette. This
SOURCE: NHERI
Nothing wrong with either of these extremes, style of education gave rural children the
but homeschooling is becoming much more broad opportunity to learn basic skills that they would
a n d i n c l u s i ve , w i t h a l l k i n d s o f p e o p l e
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6. not naturally have encountered. function is to create the workers we need to fuel our economy,
The one-room school house was originally a child’s only we need to change school, because the workers we need have
opportunity to improve their situation and develop a relationship changed as well” (p.11).
with an educated adult. The modern world is entirely different. What do you need to know about homeschooling?
Now, access to education is abundant and schools, once the sole
source of learning and enrichment, no longer have a monopoly on
this. Anyone can design a unique form of education if they know FIRST, IT’S NOT FOR EVERYONE.
where to look, who to talk to, and have the confidence to trust
themselves. Any veteran homeschooler will say that you’ve definitely got
This is exactly what homeschoolers are doing right now (and to want it bad. (Isn’t that what they say about being a musician, a
have been for over 40 years). lawyer, or a priest? If you can imagine yourself doing anything else,
They’ve rejected the traditional school model that just doesn’t do that instead.) They’ll also tell you it’s the most rewarding thing
seem to work and found a working, viable, and healthy alternative. they’ve ever done. But go into it with open eyes.
This book will introduce you to some common questions and
concerns that new homeschool parents experience. I’ll provide
COULD HOMESCHOOLING BE my perspective based on
RIGHT FOR YOU? field research, interviews
with hundreds of
The news is peppered with homeschool stories, both positive homeschool parents, and
and negative: spelling bee successes, overlooked abuse, nonstop a general knowledge of
We need
t
field trips, and legal battles in foreign countries. This movement is the homeschool world. school b o change
getting an increasing amount of media time as more parents I’ll also give you some workers ecause the
we n
discover that it’s not just a fringe activity anymore. Homeschooling resources to do some changed eed have
as
is for parents who want to save their children from a system that more reading if you’re #homes well
chool
is designed to get students into a factory or a cubicle, not to still on the fence.
create happy, self-sufficient, creative adults that are capable of At some point, it
learning without enforcement. Seth Godin writes about this might be nice to know Click&on&the&
change in purpose in his ebook, Stop Stealing Dreams. “If school’s why other parents are text&to&
tweet&it&
page 5

7. 0 20 40 60 80 and distribute as they see fit. With
Private School is Expensive
mobile technology and constant
Problems with School
Common Reasons internet access, the easy answers can
Safety of Child
to Homeschool be found within a single keyword
Guide Socially
School Not Challenging *Source: Worldwide Guide search in Google. The real education
to Homeschooling
Individualize Learning is not what to learn, but how to learn.
Learning Environment The real education is how to find
Develop Character
knowledge, analyze, reason, think
Values/World View
Better Education critically, and answer your own
questions.
What better way to provide your
child with a real education than to
model it yourself? If you’re the kind
considering homeschool. We’ve all got our reasons, regardless of of parent that’s even thinking about
whether or not we actually take the plunge. Hearing the homeschooling, you are also the kind of person that is a problem-
motivations of others to homeschool might resonate with you, solver. You probably:
reassure you that there are others who have the same fears and • fall into the out-of-the-box thinking in other areas of your
life
hold the same desires for their kids.
• are a confident individual with a bit of a wild side
Here’s the big question: are you ready to be a student again? • like to create, whether it’s starting an herb garden or
That’s right. You’re going to be teaching yourself not only how to figuring out how to change the oil in your car
homeschool, but you will become a math, science, history, English, • get energized by the prospect of spending more time in
museums and finding little gems in your town that could
and foreign language facilitator. And you know what? You can do be teaching opportunities
it! No question in my mind. You’re actually demonstrating the
exact role model of what your child needs: learning how to
learn.
As we said earlier, access is now abundant. Content isn’t
contained in a classroom for only the privileged and elite to use
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8. This ebook will address the most common questions that
parents have when considering the switch to homeschool.
1. How will I know what to teach?
2. What will we do all day?
3. Does it work? Really?
4. Can we financially afford to homeschool?
5. How do I know I’m doing the right thing?
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9. CHAPTER 2
KNOWING HOW
TO TEACH
It is the supreme art of the teacher to
awaken joy in creative expression and
knowledge. ~Albert Einstein
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kalexanderson/5960680027/

10. Section 1
IN THE BEGINNING
HOW DO I DO
THIS?
I’m going to answer this question with a question: how did
your kids learn to walk, talk, or eat? Were you a part of that? Did
you have formal lessons on how to get your child to learn their
first language? Some of those super-organized, neurotic planner-
type parents may have, but you probably just figured it out
through trial and error, right? Maybe you Googled it, talked to
some friends, or went to the library and checked out a few books
on what a parent should do to get their child talking.
SAME THING WITH
HOMESCHOOLING.
You know your kids and you know what you—and they—are
capable of. Teaching a classroom of 30 students (times six classes
each day) can be really intimidating and why many people choose
not to get into education. Thank goodness there are teachers who
actually like that kind of environment because it’s rough, no
question.
You, on the other hand, don’t have 180 students to teach.
Just one. Maybe two. You know what they like (and don’t like),
If a child can't learn the way we teach, you know their personalities, and you know their strengths and
maybe we should teach the way they struggles. That’s a much greater starting point than your average
teacher gets in September every year. So don’t sell yourself short:
learn. ~Ignacio Estrada
you know more than you think!
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11. It’s not the easiest thing in the world to educate your child, when we needed. This is a prime example of self-directed learning,
but it’s certainly not as hard as you think. It requires thinking about with “teachers” and “students” taking on many different faces.
learning in a different way. In fact, recently, I was talking with It will take some time to get used to this new role and your
someone about professional interests, dabbling in different areas child too will need time to adjust to a parent/teacher hybrid. This
of alternative education. She said, “Well, why don’t you just go and process, known as deschooling, could take a few weeks or, more
teach?” I burst out laughing. “Absolutely not! Been there and it’s likely, a few months. In this time, you’re not just figuring out how
not for me.” “But you’re interested in education… What else to “start homeschooling,” but also forgetting all that traditional
would you do besides be in a classroom?” school has instilled, mastering a new schedule, and getting used to
Education doesn’t have to happen in a school. It just takes a a change of scenery. Not going to school on the bus every day is
new set of eyes to realize when and how learning takes place. a big change for a child; we’ve been indoctrinated into this system
Once your viewpoint changes, educating at home takes on a of expectation. Remember Leave it to Beaver? The Cleavers taught
whole new meaning and becomes much easier to process. us to pack a brown bag lunch, put the kids on the bus, and see
Guerrilla Learning, from the wacky minds of Grace Llewellyn and them for a few hours in the evening when they got back.
Amy Silver, charges you to "start to see learning not as the You’re throwing out this standard and setting a new one.
province of experts but as the province of the family. Learning Pretty cool, huh?
belongs to you, not to schools and government administrators. It's
a function of human wonder and curiosity and love for the world."
I got into photography when I was teaching English in Japan.
It’s such a photogenic country that even my point-and-shoot
Canon let me take some beautiful shots! When I got back, I
Educati
o
wanted to take quality pictures “on purpose,” so my dad and I have to n doesn’t
h
took a half-day photography workshop in Washington, DC. The school # appen in a
homesc
instructor taught us about aperture, shutter speed, lighting, and hool
other basic skills in the gardens of the National Cathedral. We
then spent the next few hours wandering on our own, inside and
outside, finding those perfect shots, and asking him questions
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12. Section 2
SO HOW DO YOU BEGIN?
LEARNING
STYLES
Before you figure out what to teach, take some time to get to
know how your child learns. You probably already have a pretty
good idea of this. You’ve known your child all their life. That’s not
trivial. Learning styles are a hot topic in education right now and
proving quite challenging for teachers. Luckily, you don’t need to
adopt different teaching styles and methods of interaction for
each of your 30 kids. You’ve just got the one. Whew!
As a concept, learning styles sound rather overwhelming and
for good reason. Everyone has their own opinion about what it
means. Does it include personality? How about intelligences?
Environment? Depending on who you talk to, these could all be
overlapping or completely separate concepts. I’d like to introduce
you to the major schools of thought to get you started and if you
find yourself more interested, I’ll provide some resources where
you can learn more.
First off, let’s go over the major learning styles that I refer to as
“The Big Three”: Visual, Auditory, and Kinesthetic. These
are the best terms to know for the new homeschooling parent as
they will dictate the optimal way your child will acquire knowledge
and demonstrate mastery. Adapting to learning styles is also a
Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a unique benefit to homeschooling! When you are in a classroom of
fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will 30 kids, there’s no way your child’s teacher can take everyone’s
live its whole life believing that it is learning style into account. Try as they may, even the best teacher
stupid. ~Albert Einstein will struggle to constantly address their class with all three modes.
If your child is a kinesthetic learner, it’s highly unlikely that there
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13. will be the space and
Kinesthetic
5% environment for your
child to jump, skip, tap, Visual learners learn by SEEING.
Auditory and so on while he or
30% she learns. And even if
there was enough room,
they’d be a distraction Auditory learners learn by HEARING.
Visual
65% to other students. Again,
this is not the fault of
teachers to suppress
this form of learning; it’s Kinesthetic learners learn by DOING.
the fault of the system
that chooses to group students by age instead of learning style or
intelligence. No surprises here.
Also a word of warning, don't worry about finding that one How do you pinpoint
style; most people are some combination of at least two or even your child’s dominant
three. The cool thing about homeschooling is you can take the style and how do you
time to figure out what style they learn towards and modify your help him learn better?
teaching to their optimal way. It might vary by gender, age or even Adaptin
#learnin g to
subject. Most teachers make an effort to teach things in a multi- g styles
a great is
sensory way, but few have the time to teach the same thing in advanta
of #hom ge
different ways. Your child may be a total visual learner in history, eschooli
ng
and a kinesthetic learner in math. You have the bandwidth to
figure these little nuances out!
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14. Let’s start with the Visual learners. These make up the anything they have seen and most schools are quite skilled at
majority of us, which is convenient for a traditional school setting. providing worksheets, textbooks, and supplemental visual
Around 65% of Americans consider themselves visual learners, materials for learning (Dunn, Dunn, & Price,1989).
which makes us easy to manage in large groups (Bradford, 2011). Does your child...
They take written tests well, they easily follow lectures that are • Talk with his hands a lot?
supported by board work or Powerpoint presentations, and they • Like to use different colors when drawing or doodling?
read well for long(er) stretches of time. Overall, they recall • Use his “mind’s eye” to “see” places from memory, recall
information, or give directions?
MOVIE 2.1 Learning Through Pictures
TIPS FOR THE
VISUAL LEARNER
• Use maps, timelines, and pictures
• Outline everything!
• Take notes on reading, videos, etc.
• Use color-coding
• Highlight/underline words
• Diagram when possible (venn
diagrams, sentence diagramming)
In this TED Talk, Temple Grandin shares her • Flashcards (color cards and/or
markers, especially for vocabulary)
ability to “think in pictures” and how the world • Use different kinds of charts (pie,
needs people who see things differently, noting bar, line, flow)
that people on the autism spectrum often • Use educational videos to reinforce
lectures, books, or other topics
have unique ways of learning and thinking.
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15. Next, the Auditory learners. These learners also make up a Watch this clip from A Beautiful Mind (2001). Notice how
huge chunk of most learners, about 30%. Lectures don't bother John Nash is whispering the letters out loud as his eyes graze over
them because they learn best with their ears. They might visualize the highlighted code? This is an example of a combination visual/
the words you're saying and then the next time they see them auditory learner.
written, they'll actually "hear" the words they read. They like to Instead of learning a language with a textbook, the auditory
discuss things in study groups and will read their notes out loud in learner would benefit from CDs like Pimsleur or Living Language.
order to hear if they “sound right.” Find lectures on tape and incorporate discussions into any and all
Does your child... new content or material.
• Talk to himself?
• Read lips or follow directions that were given verbally
better than those given through a note?
• Recall names better than faces? TIPS FOR THE
AUDITORY LEARNER
MOVIE 2.2 A Beautiful Mind (2001) • Read books aloud when possible
• Use word association for facts/dates
• Listen to podcasts/recorded
lectures
• Use videos when appropriate
• Discuss subject matter aloud, either
in discussion or debate
• Create stories out of material
• Listen to audiobooks
• Read notes aloud and record
• Repeat things aloud when possible
Mathematician and codebreaker John Nash • Study in groups with discussion
demonstrates two types of learning styles in • Turn off television and radio as
they’ll interfere with “audio”
this brief clip. memory
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16. Last, let’s take a look at the Kinesthetic learners, also In the movie Akeelah and the Bee, Akeelah taps the book to
known as Tactile Learners. They learn best by interacting or recite a large word (and later discovers that jumping rope helps
experiencing things around them. These learners typically struggle her focus). If you haven’t seen this movie, be sure to check it out.
the most in traditional school environments and as they make up Kinesthetic learners benefit from hands-on engagement, rather
about 5% of the population, are the most overlooked. than listening to a lecture or reading from a book. They like to act
Does your child... things out and use their bodies to remember facts, such as
• Use his hands to list, count, or name things? “dialing” a phone number into their hand. Prolonged quiet or
• Check if something “feels” right (versus “sounds right” or sitting still will make it very difficult for them to concentrate.
“looks right”)?
• Use his body (hands, fingers, arms, etc.) to get his point
across?
TIPS FOR THE
MOVIE 2.3 Akeelah and the Bee (2006) KINESTHETIC LEARNER
• Take frequent (brief) breaks
• Hands-on activities, such as
experiments and historical
reenactments
• Build models
• Enroll in multiple classes, such as
dance, kickboxing and sports
• Emphasize adventure/action books
• Incorporate games, construction
sets, etc.
• Involve role-playing and acting
Young Akeelah from LA shows her kinesthetic • Study in groups with frequent
breaks
learning style while studying for the National • Use flash cards for memory
Spelling Bee.
page 15

17. Incorporating projects, manipulatives, and physical engagement as in the classroom. Personally, I’ve discovered that chewing gum
incentives, the kinesthetic learner can effectively learn. actually helps me write, but that was never allowed when I was in
There’s also plenty of research that supports a multisensory school.
education. The world won’t change to meet your child’s learning You can consider the best combination of these experiences
preferences, but with homeschooling, you can begin teaching them to help your child learn most effectively. Schools don’t have this
how to learn and systematically integrate other styles. freedom. What if children bring in smelly food? What if there’s a
fire drill and 10 kids are sitting in bean bag chairs? How do you
schedule a 9am start time for the high schools when elementary
schools need the school buses? Take these considerations out of
OTHER INFLUENCES ON the equation and focus on what’s best for your child.
LEARNING
Beyond simply looking at the style of learning, homeschoolers
are lucky in that they can consider the other factors that influence
effective learning.
Environment or location: Do they like learning in the
dark or in sunlight? A cold room or a hot room?
Furniture: Does your child like being at a desk or sitting in a
bean bag chair?
Scheduling: Does 6am feel a little early? Would they learn Schools
don’t h
better if they slept in a little? It doesn’t matter what time you bandwid ave the
th to
incorpo
wake up when you homeschool, just that you get enough time for #learnin rate all
g styles
learning. system . I’m a
of one!
Food: Does your child need a little snack mid-morning? Does #edrefo
rm
that boost of sugar or even the simple act of eating help them
focus? Most schools have rotating lunch schedules, which attempt
to give students a mid-day break. Few schools, if any, allow eating
page 16

18. Section 3
WHICH STYLE MAKES SENSE
HOMESCHOOL FOR ME?
STYLES So now you've got a pretty good idea of how to start
narrowing down your child's learning style. Great! It may take
some time, but you'll get there, don't worry.
Why else do you need to know? What kind of a homeschool
style would you like to have? Depending on why you're
homeschooling, you will go for a certain feel in your home.
Perhaps you want to completely duplicate the traditional school
experience, which means your homeschool will be designed with
desks, chairs, and a blackboard. That's fine and many homeschool
parents default to that kind of setup because it's what they’re
familiar with. Some parents say, “I've never designed a homeschool
so I'm not sure what it's supposed to look like. I have, however,
been in a school and feel confident I can make that at home.”
The only problem with this default setting is that it may be the
exact reason you're taking your child out of school. It is limited
thinking and while you may want to delineate the home from the
school at the beginning, there may not need to be such a dramatic
separation. Until they went off to school, learning and life were
If you employed study, thinking, and one and the same. This doesn’t necessarily have to change. John
planning time daily, you could develop Holt, one of the founding fathers of homeschooling, asserted,
and use the power that can change the “Living is learning and when kids are living fully and energetically
course of your destiny. and happily they are learning a lot, even if we don't always know
~W. Clement Stone what it is.”
page 17

19. With that in mind, take a quick look at some homeschool between" styles. Because the motivations behind homeschooling
"rooms" I've come across. Sometimes it's easier to look at are so different (see the earlier section), so are the educational
something tangible before moving to the intangible. Do any of pedagogies. I don't think you need to worry exactly about what
those look like you? your philosophy of education is right now. Rather, this will present
itself and evolve as you design your homeschool.
As you get more comfortable with homeschooling, the
more your homeschool style will develop. Most
parents say that they began thinking they were one
kind of homeschooler, but grew into something
different as they met more homeschoolers like them
or homeschoolers that they wanted to be. Either way,
this is a natural evolution; the more practice you get at
something, the more secure you feel in letting go a
little or trying something new.
Below is a diagram that summarizes the popular types
of homeschool styles that you’ll likely come across.
These are balanced across 4 spectra:
•structure
•independence
•driving “force”
•traditional
My favorite style of homeschooling is Unit Studies.
They're the perfect blend of child- and parent-driven,
The term "homeschool style" means slightly different things, optimizing all the advantages of homeschooling. Unit Studies are
depending on the source. Let’s consider it a combination of lesson plans that are organized by a theme or topic, rather than
curriculum choice and personality. There are dozens of styles that by a subject. They are short, usually four weeks in length. They are
have popped up over the years and many more that are "in easy to tailor to children of other ages and learning styles. And
page 18

20. most of all, they are interesting! You can buy one or two at a time,
and constantly modify because they're only four weeks at a time.
Other curricula require you to purchase an entire year's worth of
Homeschool Styles Diagram
content in the beginning. That just makes no sense for the new
homeschooler. You can't possibly know where you will be in three
months, let alone 12. Save your money and go month to month.
For more information on Unit Studies, check out No Agenda’s
website. If you’d like more detailed explanations of each
homeschool style, I’ve written a book that addresses these
questions, Homeschooling: A Guide for Regular People, available
on the iTunes Store.
#Unit St
u
Interest dies rock!
-led
is the be learning
learn! # st way to
homesc
hool
page 19

21. CHAPTER 3
KNOWING WHAT
TO TEACH
It wasn't in books. It wasn't in a church.
What I needed to know was out there in
the world. ~Robert Fulghum
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/tinker-tailor/4284883477/

22. Section 1
ONE DAY AT A TIME
WHAT AM I SUPPOSED
TO TEACH? One of the biggest concerns when starting to homeschool is
knowing what to teach. What on earth do I teach them now that
they're with me 24/7?!? Tip from the experts: don't think about the
entire year. As I said earlier, you will most likely find that you would
like to change your style a few months after you begin, so don't
even bother. Plus, you could drown in the worry and stress of
planning an entire year at once. Professional educators don't do
that; why should you?
Start small and simple. Figure out the legal requirements of
your state (check out HSLDA) such as required subjects, numbers
of hours, and so on (every state is a little different so make sure
you are clear on yours). Once you have an idea of what you have
to learn, break it down. Remember: your average homeschool day
is about 3 hours long. You're in a small classroom and can be
much more efficient with your time—isn't that great? And
something else to keep in mind, you only need to be one day
ahead of your child. Not 10, not 100. Just one. You can do that,
right?
Let us think of education as the means of developing
Looking at your state’s academic standards will give you a
our greatest abilities, because in each of
great place to start. They may be called something different, such
us there is a private hope and dream
as standards of learning, core curriculum, or content standards.
which, fulfilled, can be translated into
Finding them may take some time, but if anything, a cursory search
benefit for everyone and greater with your favorite search engine will certainly produce a starting
strength for our nation. ~John F Kennedy point. (For example, enter “California,” “content standards,” and
“history.”) Here, your state will tell you exactly what public school
page 21

23. students are studying. You We have Homeschool With Confidence kits available for the most
Tip fr don’t need to stick to it popular states for homeschoolers; shoot me an email if you have
experts om the
: don’t t verbatim, but it will help any questions.
about th hink
year, jus e entire you develop a framework,
chunk! t the fir
#homes st a high-level view of the
chool k i n d s o f t h i n g s yo u r HOW DO I TEACH THOSE
children should study and TOUGH SUBJECTS?
master in each grade.
These documents, typically Homeschooling doesn't mean that you are now your child's
organized by subject and exclusive teacher; it means that now you are responsible for
then grade, will provide crafting the best education for your child from as many sources as
excr uciatingly clear you need. You’re less a teacher and more a guide. If you happen to
guidelines to the content public schools will be introducing. be an expert in nuclear physics, great! But if you're like the
Depending on your state, you may choose how closely you'd like majority of homeschooling parents, you just need to find the right
to follow these guidelines. How rigorously you choose to follow solution, be it a tutor, software, or community college. Most
your state’s curriculum depends on whether or not you are parents feel comfortable homeschooling until around 8th grade.
required to: Then the subjects get more specialized and parents begin to
doubt themselves.
• take standardized or state tests
• submit quarterly reports documenting the content and A representative from Classical Conversations, a classical
your child’s progress education curriculum provider, said they typically see a huge drop
• the style in which you’re choosing to homeschool off at the end of the middle school years. Parents who had
• your personal educational philosophy or beliefs. confidently homeschooled their children for several years
This process can often take a fair amount of time. Most
homeschool parents say they spend between three and six suddenly became intimidated with teaching the high school years.
months deciding to homeschool and figuring out how to get But I barely remember trigonometry. And I never even took
started. This can be a helpful discovery process, wading your way chemistry! How do I teach my child these subjects?
into this new way of thinking. Alternatively, No Agenda offers Say it again: I'm not a teacher. I'm not a teacher. You are a
comprehensive kits with all that searching already done for you. problem-solver. You are a facilitator. If the “problem” is chemistry,
how can you get your child access to the right learning
page 22

24. environment? You find a tutor, a textbook, another homeschool
parent or child, some software, community college class. You find
something! While you might not know ever ything about
everything, you certainly can find someone who knows about one
thing, right? As Joy Hakim, author of A History of US, said at a
recent homeschool conference, “The best skill we can develop is
to learn how to find out what we don’t know.” Helping someone
else find it is just as important.
Many parents struggle with confidence to teach at home,
particularly the more challenging subjects of high school, but one
reason for this may be the misdirection of the word “teach.” The
same way that “homeschool” really isn’t “school, at home,”
teaching takes on a new definition too.
By choosing to homeschool, you’re not replacing all the I’m not a teacher! I’m
teachers in your child’s school; you’re replacing the principal. The just keeping it all
principal (or administrator) makes sure that students have access together! Done!
to all subjects, opportunities to participate in enrichment activities
and mentorships, support to address problems, and guidance in
their preparation for the years to come.
page 23

25. CHAPTER 4
A REAL DAY OF
HOMESCHOOL
Educating the mind without educating the
heart is no education at all. ~Aristotle
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/billward/2854449690/

26. Section 1
HOW WILL YOU FILL 8 HOURS,
WHAT WILL WE DO EVERY DAY OF THE WEEK?
ALL DAY?
Wondering what to do all day is probably the scariest part of
homeschooling. What are you supposed to do for eight hours a
day, 5 days a week? This is the same reason many people fear self-
employment: no dictated schedule. You have too much freedom.
Someone has always told you what your children should be doing.
Now, you have to reverse that mindset and consider what your
children would enjoy doing (in addition to what they should be
doing). In reality, once you develop a routine, it's like anything else;
it will become natural. Until then, a framework of training wheels
isn't a bad idea.
Good news! A homeschooling day is more often three or four
hours, not eight.
Let's start with what do you teach. How do you identify what
is required? What is optional? What would be fun?
A unique opportunity now is not only learning what your
state tells you to learn, but adding subjects that you would never
have the opportunity to study in school, at least not until you
enter higher education. You can take as much or as little time with
The difference between education and subjects as you'd like. Before you begin, take some time to
experience? Education is when you read "deschool" yourself, by reminding yourself what learning is and the
the fine print. Experience is what you conditions under which it happens. Does it only happen at school?
get when you don't. Or did you learn something at the museum last week? How about
~Pete Seeger at dinner last night when you calculated the tip? Identifying
learning opportunities will be a critical skill in homeschooling and
page 25

27. one that comes easier than you may think. We get used to
ENGLISH
thinking that teachers establish what we are supposed to study
and set the contexts in which we learn. 30 minutes of reading every
day. This can be reading aloud as a
group or reading individually. This may
NOT ANYMORE. include comic books, audio books,
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/
paper books, electronic books, poetry,
So let’s first look at what you’re supposed to teach those kids photos/starstreak007/3882191947/
plays, newspapers, journals, or articles.
all day! Thinking of an entire year at once is overwhelming and
These may support the unit you are currently studying or be
often destructive. Start with a week. You want to cover the big
unrelated. If you’re in the middle of a unit on Space and your child
guys: English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Science,
finds herself interested in Japanese history, take her to the library
and History. You may also want to incorporate language
or a bookstore and pick up some Japanese anime books. 30
learning, the arts, physical education/health, and technology. You’ve
minutes of reading is actually not that much when you think of all
got plenty of time to work on all of that! How much should you
the ways words are presented. This is a suggested schedule,
“teach” of each?
reading a little each day, particularly for those kids who have lost
their love of reading. However, a typical child who enjoys reading
Shoot for this:
can do an entire week of “required” reading in a single day! If
• English/Language Arts: 300 minutes per week (60 minutes, they’re in the zone, continue along with path where there’s
5 times a week)
• Mathematics: 200 minutes per week (40 minutes, 5 times interest.
a week) 30 minutes of composition, three times a week.
• History: 180 minutes per week (60 minutes, 3 times a “Composition” seems like a pretty serious word, evoking images
week)
of quills, parchment, and long sessions of formulating great works
• Science: 180 minutes per week (60 minutes, 3 times a
week) of literature. That may certainly be the case in some families. This
word also encompasses more everyday pursuits: diary entries,
nature journals, poetry, short stories, and book reports. In a given
week, your child should spend 90 minutes writing. Writing
anything! Send them outside with a journal and a pen. They can
page 26

28. write a response to a section in the book they’re reading, Language
reflections on a news story they just read, or any other type of Arts Description
writing that takes thoughts from their head and puts it on paper. Activities
30 minutes of grammar, two times a week. Take • Games: Scrabble, Boggle, Hangman, Mad Libs
some time each week to focus on building Language Arts skills. • Read aloud with family
Reading
Sentence structure, vocabulary, parts of speech, punctuation, style, Activities • Word searches/ unscramble
and so on. These don’t have to be separate from Composition, • Use your iPad to read short stories and learn new
words, using built-in dictionary
but actively dedicating time to it each week ensures you’re
systematically building up your child’s writing arsenal. • Take a writing workshop
More important than how long you should spend on each Composition • Set writing challenges
subject, which of course will vary by your child’s age, aptitude, and Activities • Create a blog
• Family newsletter
interest, is changing how you view learning experiences. Here are
some examples of each that would qualify as learning. • Visit birthplace of famous authors
• Attend poetry reading
Field Trips
• Tour local news station
• Go to the movies and write a review!
• Words of the Day
Worksheets/ • Grammar
“It is wh Quizzes • Phonics
a
when yo t you read • Reading Comprehension
u
to that d don't have
what yo etermines
u wi
you can ll be when
't he
#oscarw lp it.”
ilde
page 27

29. MATHEMATICS
Math
Description
30 minutes of learning math every day. This can be Activities
from a textbook, watching tutorials through online sources like Preparing a meal takes more skill than a parent
Khan Academy or YouTube, using software (particularly in the later realizes (you’ve been doing it for years, you’re
pretty good by now). This may involve:
years), or finding math books at the library that tackle very
• Measuring ingredients
specific elements of math. During this time each day, your child • Planning dinner time based on cook start time
should be learning something new or building on what they’ve • Buying the groceries
already learned. Cooking
• Changing serving size based on people in the
family
10 minutes of math drills every day. This sounds a
• Coordinating time so all parts of the meal finish at
little scar y and potentially against your philosophy as a the same time
homeschool parent, but this just means that your child should
This can be a group lesson, or individual (with
practice or apply what they’ve learned in some way. This could be parental supervision), but fun either way!
done through cooking, calculating the tip at a restaurant, figuring • Train/Plane arrival/departure times
out how long it will take to get to Grandma’s house, etc. When • Duration of trip
you look at your everyday interactions, there’s actually quite a bit Planning • Budget to complete trip (travel, food, lodging)
of math hidden in there. Here are some other math-related vacations • Budget time to accomplish all sightseeing
activities. • Planning when the trip can happen based on family
budget
Got a kid who’s nuts about basketball? Turn it into a
lesson! Points necessary to win a game, what is a
Sports certain player’s shooting average, different angles to
shoot from, etc.
Another opportunity to work on budgeting, layout
(shapes), algebra (how many seeds times how many
feet), basic chemistry (composting), and developing
Gardening timelines (estimation). Building and maintaining a
garden is actually a great math unit, with a delicious
return on investment!
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/
photos/whatleydude/4923405764/
page 28

30. Also during this time each week, your family should do things
HISTORY
other than read! Watch documentaries, re-enact great battles of
60 minutes of History, three times a week. History is history, learn about inventors and statesmen, or create maps. All
one of those subjects where there is always more to learn. World of these options “count” towards your history minutes per week.
History, Ancient History, Religion, Civics, Government, Economics, When you start to think of history in these terms, it becomes
Military History, Geography and much more. And it doesn’t have easier to weave them with your other subjects. If your daughter is
to involve sitting at the kitchen table, systematically reading reading a book by Louisa May Alcott, history during those few
through a history book. In fact, the folks at The Lukeion Project weeks can focus on the mid-19th century in New England. What
refuse to use textbooks! Regan Barr, who spoke at an unschooling was life like then? What was happening politically in other areas of
conference in August 2011 (and I’m sure many since then), gave a the US at that time? What was happening in other countries at
great presentation on how textbooks take the most mundane that time? What major inventions came from that part of the
parts of history, summarize them, and throw them into a world? How did Alcott’s literature impact other writers? Use your
consolidated book, with little to no hope of inspiring kids to learn imagination!
more. Yet, after learning about the histrionics of Caligula, One technique that helps young readers is to watch the
homeschool parents were reminded that history is, in fact, movie first and then tackle the book. With the basic plot and
stranger than fiction! characters in mind, readers get the rich context that isn’t found in
With that in mind, you’re welcome to use whichever kinds of the movie version. Watch The Princess Bride and then read the
books interest you and your children. Susan Wise Bauer, author of book—like many novels, there’s so much more good stuff than in
The Well-Trained Mind, publishes a wonderful series of storybooks the movie!
called The Story of the World, where she presents history as a Below are other ideas of activities you may choose to fill your
series of stories, progressing from early civilizations to the modern weekly history time.
world. You may choose to spend this time reading “real” books,
stories/historical fiction, primary sources such as letters or
newspapers, or religious texts such as the Bible or the Koran.
History is not found solely in textbooks, though potentially they
are good idea generators.
page 29

31. History
Description
Activities
• Historical site near your home
• Visit state capitol
SCIENCE
• Archaeological sites
• Birthplaces of famous people
60 minutes of Science,
Field Trips three times a week. Science
• Historic trail hikes
• Post office (government) (like math) is a subject that Bonsai tree by
• Fire/police station (civics) str ikes fear into the hear ts of many Azuma Makoto
• Attend a service or visit a religious facility homeschool parents, particularly in the middle
• History/art museums and high school years. The elementary years are the perfect time
Museums • Transportation museum to get comfortable teaching (or facilitating) science education! As
• Aviation museum a non-science educator told me, “This rampant fear of science is
So many options with this! baffling. You get to be outside, dig in the mud, find patterns in
• Buy a big map and track places you’ve studied/ nature, and generally examine life around you. How could anyone
visited
Mapping not like science?”
• Make maps of road trips
• Use maps to discuss culture, language, and Because science experiments take time to set up and take
traditions down, it’s a good idea to set aside 60-minute chunks of time,
Read read read! You can study people, countries, rather than breaking it out over more days. During this time, you
and events, not just boring lists of dates.
Biographies, newspapers, historical fiction, may choose to use a textbook, do research on famous inventors
narratives. and their inventions, conduct experiments and observations, or do
Reading
• Read as a group
any other kinds of activities that involve exploration, discovery, and
• Read individually
• Read plays from parts of history
a pursuit of knowledge about the natural, physical, and biological
worlds.
• Documentaries
Watch TV Like other subjects, working from interest will make learning
• TV Dramas (a la History Channel)
(no, seriously, fun and retention easy! And science is more than sitting in a lab
• Historical fiction
it’s OK!)
• Make your own! with test tubes, goggles, and a Bunsen burner. Science includes
page 30

32. astronomy, marine biology, botany, zoology, medicine, engineering, Science
Description
molecular genetics, and computer science. Getting away from the Activities
daunting image of the Periodic Table and complex mathematics, • Aquarium or zoo
science activities can inspire students to begin exploring the world • Natural History or dinosaur museum
around them. These minutes each week can be spent supporting Museum Trips • Planetarium or space museum
the current unit of study, or harnessing a newfound interest based • Arboretum
on a movie they just saw (don’t tell me that first scene in Contact • Robotics
with Jodie Foster didn’t instantly make you want to become an Watching science-themed movies can really bring
content to life! After watching a movie (or parts of
astronomer). Using that example, a meteor shower or lunar it), take time to discuss it as a family. This could also
Movies/ function as a writing opportunity; take the 30
eclipse at 4am on a Tuesday is the perfect time to “schedule” your Documentaries minutes from English composition and write a
60-minute lesson time. A trip to the aquarium with your mother- response on the movie (coolest part, scariest part, do
you feel different having seen it and how).
in-law is another opportunity to learn about marine biology and
aquatic life. Taking advantage of these isolated, and often not-so- Take the family for a hike! In this time, your kids
should bring their nature journals and document
isolated, learning opportunities is an incredible advantage of things they see along the way: bugs, leaves, trees,
Family Hike animals, erosion, pollution, rocks, rivers, caves, etc.
homeschool education. They can draw pictures, write poems, anything
they’d like to document their trip.
Talk to your local hospital and see if observations
are allowed. A homeschool parent told me about
Hospital going to watch open heart surgery with her
daughter! Wow!
Dig arou Don’t forget the value of a good, old-fashioned
outside, nd, be Experiments chemistry set.
ex
how cou ploring— • Dairy farm • Greenhouse tour
ld
NOT like anyone • Factory • Cave/caverns
#sci
#homes ence? • Observatory • Bird watching
chool
Field Trips • The ocean • National or State Park
• Bakery • Local orchard
• Recycling center • Local power plant
• Laboratory tour • Animal shelter
page 31

33. CHAPTER 5
DOES IT WORK?
No man is a failure who enjoys life.
~William Feather
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/hoyvinmayvin/4974355589/

34. Section 1
Does homeschooling work? Absolutely! Regardless of what
WILL MY KIDS ACTUALLY goal you have in mind, homeschooling has worked for a long time
LISTEN TO ME? and research is showing that it continues to be an effective
solution for many families. Are you shooting for success today? In
a week? A year? A decade? Are you hoping to rekindle a love of
learning? Has an unsafe situation at school caused you to take
emergency action? Are you moving around a lot and hoping that
homeschooling will be the least disruptive way to educate? There
are many definitions of what “success” in a homeschool looks like.
Some common criteria that homeschoolers use to define
success include:
• passion for learning
• discovering and developing interests
• academic performance (standardized tests)
• improved behavior or self-esteem
• educational stability
• safety
• happiness
• serving as a bandaid for a problematic school year
• private school education at fraction of the cost
• more efficient education with time to pursue
opportunities
It can be any of these or none of these. Success is incredibly
subjective, so figure out what that means for you. As you
Learning is not attained by chance. It determine whether or not homeschooling is right for you,
must be sought for with ardor and consider goals you are hoping that homeschool will help you
attended to with diligence. achieve.
Now, every child and every family is different, but the kinds of
~Abigail Adams
families that are choosing homeschool have been diversifying over
page 33

35. the past 25 years. 25% of homeschoolers are minorities. 25% are
Parent’s
not homeschooling for religious reasons. 10% are from one-parent Money Spent
Level of
on Education
households. Almost 60% live in urban rather than rural settings. Education
17% are from religions other than Christianity (Ray, 1997).
And research is demonstrating that there isn’t much variability
in the value homeschooling provides.
No
Parent as Time Spent
Relationship to
IT SIMPLY WORKS. Certified
Teacher Academic
in Formal
Education
Achievement
A child’s academic performance is not dependent on any of
the following factors:
• parent’s level of education
• whether or not a parent is a certified teacher
• how much money was spent on their education Level of Kind of
• how much time was spent in formal education State Curriculum
• level of state regulation Regulation Chosen
• the kind of curriculum chosen
What researchers are finding is that the key components of
homeschooling include small classrooms, a completely invested complex concepts and practicing new skills, but again, no matter
“educator,” and time. With tutoring, where you have a one-to-one how you slice it, you’ve got more time to pursue the things you’d
student-to-teacher ratio, you can be much more efficient with like.
your time. You can accomplish in 2 to 3 hours what it takes 30- Now, the thing that many homeschool families are concerned
person classrooms 8 hours to accomplish. Plus, since you “got the with is those first few weeks. Will my child actually listen to me? I
content right” the first time, you don’t need to assign homework. can’t tell you the answer to that. You know your kids better than
This leaves a lot of time to simply explore, think, create. anyone else and this is certainly a change in your relationship. It
Yes, it will be busy. Yes, you’ll have to do some work finding the may take some time to mentally adjust from parent/child to
right combination of personal and academic pursuits. Yes, as your educator/student, but that may not even be a factor. Many
child gets older, they may need to spend more time learning homeschool parents don’t simply “school at home.” They establish
page 34

36. another kind of relationship entirely. They don’t necessarily choose You want them to have social lives
to become an authoritative figure for a few hours and then switch too.
hats and become the parent for the remainder of the day. Take Of cour se , all parents are
some time to figure out what this new relationship looks like and concerned about proper
find what makes you and your kids comfortable. “socialization.” I hear this word more
Another thought: you’ll never know till you try. Maybe this with homeschooling than I ever hear
homeschooling things turns out to be a big, huge mistake. Your with other forms of education. For
CLICK ME!
kids don’t listen, learn, or benefit from home education. Maybe some reason, administrators don’t
you wanted to try it out for a year as a trial and see how things see drug and alcohol abuse, sexual activity, bullying, weapons, lack
went. This is completely fine and you’ll never be sorry for trying. of respect for elders, and peer pressure as “socialization
Research indicates that even a year or two of homeschooling problems.” They’re school problems. Either way, they’re problems.
shows marked results with students performing 10 points higher And perhaps they are one of the reasons you’re considering
on standardized tests (Strengths of Their Own, 1997). homeschooling. It’s understandable to worry that such a change in
And from my experience, if you’re seriously thinking about your child’s schedule and learning environment might influence
homeschooling, you probably have the kind of relationship with him for the worse. Will he become a recluse? Will he forget how to
your children that would handle this new dynamic well. Same talk to people?
thing with finding Your kids will be who they were meant to be. Surround them
social with people of all ages who pique their curiosity, kids who they
oppor tunities for have fun with, adults who can teach them something and serve as
your kids. If you’re role models. Essentially, do what you did before and just take the
#10,000 even wor r ying school out of the equation. They won’t lose social skills unless you
hours is
magic n the
umber f
or
about it, then actively deprive them of the exposure.
mastery
. What w you’re not likely to With homeschooling, you have the freedom to modify your
your kid ill
s do wit
that ext h all be the parent who course of action immediately rather than wait to adopt new
ra time?
quarantines their standards, curriculum, and teacher training for 50 million students
children in the and 3 million teachers. It’s a system of one. Any concerns you
kitchen for school. have, you can change in an instant. Fear your child is becoming
page 35

37. antisocial? Register him in a few courses and clubs. Your child isn’t What’s the point? Try it! Homeschooling for a year can’t
as happy as he was in public school? Talk with him and come up possibly hurt your kids and it could change their lives (and yours!).
with a new game plan. He isn’t doing well academically? Figure out
if it’s the content, the learning style, or the situation. Perhaps he
can go back to public school for extracurricular activities which
might charge him up for “academic work” at home. (And as
always, homeschooling doesn’t have to be forever.)
You’re going to have fears, doubts, and concerns. That’s
completely normal. Every homeschooling family has felt this to
some degree.
But let me reassure you! Research shows that homeschool
kids…
• Perform 30 percentile points higher on standardized
testing in reading and math (Ray, 2004)
• Read at or above grade level (Ray, 1997)
• Participate in 5 - 7 activities outside the home (Ray, 2004)
• Are more likely to attend college and finish with a higher
GPA (Cogan, 2009)
• Are more like to say they’re happy (Ray, 2004) YOU
• Are more likely to feel capable of changing the world (Ray,
2004)
page 36

38. CHAPTER 6
MAKING THE
DOWNPAYMENT
If you think education is expensive, try
ignorance. ~Anonymous
Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/kalexanderson/6012209875/