by M. Halyard

Created on: March 05, 2011   Last Updated: March 06, 2011

Home schooling: Is it right for your teenage son or daughter? You've heard the horror stories about being picked on by peers. You've talked to your child's teachers, and discovered that he barely participates in class. His grades have steadily declined, and he says he hates school. Is it time to withdraw your child from the public high school, and take on the responsibility of guiding his path to educational enlightenment? If you decide the answer is yes, then here are some tips to help make the home schooling experience successful. 

1.  Most importantly, you must make sure that your teenage son or daughter is enthusiastic about studying at home and will be self-disciplined with time usage. It is a good idea to test his resolve with a little trial before withdrawing him from public school: have him take an online class at home, and see if he keeps up with assignments and studies for tests without your intervention. If he does, it is a very good indication that he will be a responsible home-schooler. As a parent, you probably do not want your relationship with your teenager to deteriorate into one unending argument about whether they've done their homework.

2.  Let your teenager help develop the learning schedule. One of the great advantages of home schooling is that it can be worked into your home schedule. If your teenager wants to sleep until 9 or 10, let him. However, you will have to agree upon some regular hours of study. If he wants to work on school from 10 am to 2 pm and then 9 pm to 11 pm at night, fine. The important thing is not when he studies, but that he studies regularly.

3.  In a best-case scenario, you (the parent) are a college graduate, love and have patience with your teenage son or daughter, and are willing to put in the substantial amount of time that it will take to tutor your child through increasingly-difficult English, math, science, and social studies coursework. NOTHING beats one-on-one tutoring in terms of educational achievement, so if you will devote a good part of your day to studying with your child, then you are certain to see phenomenal gains in his education.

4. However, if you are not qualified to teach your child one or more subjects, there are several options: online virtual school, hiring subject-specific tutors, taking one or more subjects at the public high school, or taking a dual-enrollment course at your local community college.

5. Ideally, your teenage

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