Hi Friends!

In my time homeschool group leader and homeschool consultant, one of the situations I have my brain picked about often is what happens once you remove a child from public school to homeschool them?

What To Do Immediately After Public School for New Homeschool Families

 

A good number of families I consult are leaving the public school system to homeschool. Homeschooling is becoming a common solution to public school issues. In most cases it had been on the mind of the parents for some time, and in others some unforeseen incident occurred that was the catalyst to remove the child all together from the public school system.

The reasons run the gamut for withdrawing from public school, and I hear countless sad stories. Various reasons are ranging from violence, bullying, students slipping through the cracks, students falling behind, testing anxieties, and teacher/parent disagreements. Many of the homeschoolers I know on a personal level also have similar stories of what led them to homeschool after public school experiences.

There are many websites and information regarding how to withdraw your child from the public school system, but what happens afterward? That is where many parents seem to feel lost. They know their child shouldn’t remain in the public school system for whatever reason but what exactly do you do once they are home?

I should preface the following by stating that if you are thinking about withdrawing your child from public school, you must first check all the requirements in your state and speak directly with your local school officials. There are many sites that offer direction for homeschoolers in this area – HSLDA has a page that will direct you to your states requirements. I am not giving instructions on how to withdraw your student from public school. Rather, some tips and resources on what to do immediately after public school for new homeschool families.

I coach many distressed families through this same scenario, and I will share with you what works for most. Many of them withdrew their kiddos and immediately felt like they weren’t doing enough. Resist the urge to make decisions in haste and purchase any curriculum you haven’t researched, or print out binders full of online printables.

Do Not Try to Replicate “School” at Home

One of the biggest mistakes we make is thinking we need to “do school” at home. For the majority of us we attended public school, so the mentality is to replicate what that day typically covered. We end up trying to complete worksheets or workbooks, fill our day from 8-3, and other public school mentalities. When what we should do is almost the opposite.

Back to the Basics

Remember Why You Chose to Homeschool. It may seem silly, but really – Why are you homeschooling? For many it’s the freedom to teach our children the way we see fit, that includes the “when” and the “how”! What do I mean by that? Well, you aren’t going to homeschool just to be completing worksheets all day from 8-3, you aren’t homeschooling so that your child repeats the same things that you just removed them from. Now is a fantastic time to reflect on why you are homeschooling and change things to fit into your families learning style and lifestyle. You have a clean slate; you can rewrite your new educational plan. We homeschool for educational freedoms, our timelines, to mesh our family life and education together, and so many other reasons; embrace your why and new freedoms.

Public School DETOX!

I recommend this to all families coming right out of public school. Detox! Take some time off to allow your child to de-stress from whatever was happening at school. This may not feel productive to you, but I promise you it is necessary for your child. They need time to acclimate to the new change, so you don’t want to thrust them right into a new endeavor; you are better off easing them in. Many times the child may be apprehensive about what homeschooling is going to look like, they may be stressed thinking they won’t see their friends as often or make new friends. They may be sensitive to the changes.

So what does detoxing look like?

• Playing at the park, reading a lot, and enjoying home life. If your child doesn’t enjoy reading on his own, then read aloud to the family or listen to audiobooks. Enjoy your time together by watching educational videos, cooking together, (that counts as math, science, and life skills) and go grocery shopping (also math and life skills.)
• Play all types of games, write a letter or make a card to send to a family member (language arts), create art & listen to music – basically, you are sneaking in learning without them realizing it!
  Once you have detoxed enough to ease back into a schedule or routine with more structured curriculum you can. This may take some families a week and some may take longer, but you gauge your child for when they are ready to move forward.
• This time will also allow for you to pray for your homeschool and your direction. It will allow you adequate time to make clear, informed curriculum choices. It will also allow you time to unofficially gauge where your child is at academically and understand what type of learner your child is, this will help tremendously when choosing curriculum.

Remember you aren’t in a race, there is no rush to your child’s education. You are about to embark on a beautiful journey with your child that is indeed a gift. No one knows your child better than you. Enjoy the journey friend!

I want to encourage you to join a local support group or homeschool group, find a mentor or veteran homeschool mom, and enjoy the new adventure. Visit here to join our online Facebook community for homeschool families. 

I will also happily tell you 99% of the families I coached through these similar situations are all thriving homeschoolers that are confident in their decisions to homeschool now.

If you are seeking assistance, I offer various options to help you get your new homeschool up and successfully running.

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