by Elizabeth Blankenship

Created on: May 16, 2008   Last Updated: October 02, 2008

Helpful Dos and Don'ts for homeschooling families. To be successful ensure that you and your partner are on the same page. Ask each other why you have decided to homeschool. Make a commitment to work together and support each other.

~ Do sit down together and make a list of goals that both would like to see achieved educationally with your child. This activity can be very enlightening for a family. Many goals will be similar but a few may differ. Take your goal plans and use them to develop a general homeschooling philosophy. Keep track of your families successes and areas that need improvement.

~ Do think about how difficult it is to home school unless one parent is able to remain at home. This can cause economic hardship at first while your family adjusts to less income. Before you make the decision to home school, it is helpful to develop a household budget and cost cutting plan.

~ Do not expect to live the same lifestyle you lived with two incomes coming in.

~ Do prepare to make a real commitment. Homeschooling entails a lot of preparation, time, follow through, and flexibility. You will need to allow your child time to plan, implement experiments, and complete activities. You will needed to grade your child's work, prepare lessons, and schedule field trips.

~ Do not just place a bunch of books in front of your child and tell them to learn if they want to.

~ Do prepare to give up your own personal time. You will be spending a lot of time with your child. Be sure to set aside time for yourself as often as possible. Also, set up time for your child to spend with friends and family. This may mean connecting with other homeschooling families and building a home schooling community that supports each other. It is always OK to ask for help. Time away from each other will ensure that you keep your relationship with your child fresh and fun.

~ Do not forget that both you and your child still need to be social and make connections with peers. Homeschooling families can feel isolated. The nice thing about homeschooling is that you are in control of the types of social interactions your child will have.

~ Do utilize Homeschooling Internet communities and your local community resources. The Library is a great place to meet other home schooling families and a place to obtain important resource information.

~ Do maintain a structured schedule. Be sure to allow for some flexibility. Distractions to you and your child should be kept to a minimum. Taking time to explain your families

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