There are many reasons why a family may decide to homeschool. Sometimes these reasons don’t coincide perfectly with the end or start of a school year.
Homeschooling is legal in every state in the USA as well as almost all countries. The main exception to this being Germany. You are only permitted to homeschool in Germany if you are a part of a foreign military.
When Can I Start Homeschooling?
You are able to start homeschooling your child at any point in the school year. Every state has different laws and requirements in regards to homeschooling however.
It is important that you follow these laws in order to make sure that your child isn’t marked as truant from school. A good place to find out the laws for your state is at HSLDA.
Each state also varies in it’s requirements of the parents. If you are interested to know which states are the easiest or most difficult to homeschool in, I would suggest reading this post here.
If you can it may be easier logistically and sometimes emotionally to pull them out mid year during a school break such as spring break for example. However if this is not possible you can absolutely start homeschooling mid year at any time.
How Do I Start Homeschooling Mid Year?
One of the drawbacks of homeschooling mid year is that your child has probably covered a lot of topics and subject matters already. You probably don’t want to go back over and reteach lessons they have already learned.
If you are going to go with a boxed curriculum for different subjects like math and language arts then most of those will have placement tests that you can complete. These tests will give you an idea on what your child has mastered so far and what is still required for them to learn.
Once you have an idea of what they need to learn then simply skip to those topics in the text book and leave the sections they already know.
For subjects like science, history and geography etc you can just ask your child or their previous teacher what topic was already covered that year, then you can just choose one that has not been covered yet. History and science are great subjects because you can never learn it all in one sitting. So if you happen to overlap with lessons already taught it isn’t really a problem.
Other approaches include just following your child’s lead. This is called child led learning or unschooling. In this homeschooling method you let the child decide what they want to learn and then facilitate that learning process for them. Many parents head in this direction when pulling their child out mid year to homeschool while they figure out what their long term goals and plans are going to be.
Contact Some Local Homeschool Support Groups
When you first start homeschooling it is vital that you have some support. If at all possible I would recommend seeking out groups in your local area. They are going to be the best people to connect with because they will know what is happening in the area. These parents will also be able to direct you to the right places for different services you may require and set you up with co-ops and field trips etc.
If you don’t happen to have any homeschooling groups nearby that you can connect with, then the internet is going to be your next best choice. There are many homeschooling groups available for you to garner the support you need. Homeschooling groups are available for different religions, curriculums, countries, homeschooling methods and age groups. I have no doubt that there will be one there for you.
If you are still unsure about how you are going to homeschool exactly, especially if pulling your child out mid year was unplanned for, these parents are going to be a good source of knowledge. You can ask them for ideas on curriculum, schedules, methods, and all kinds of advice that they will be more than willing to share with you.
Transitioning to Homeschool Mid Year
When you decide to homeschool it is important that your child is aware of what is happening and why. A mid year transition can be a bit more difficult than starting the year at home.
If a child has already been at school for a few months or more they are likely already in the rhythm of school. There are most often events, trips and activities they are looking forward to as well. For some children this can be a difficult move if they have been happy and enjoying school.
One way to combat this problem is to talk about the fun activities and adventures you have planned for you year too. Children can often fear that they will not see their friends any longer and be lonely. Before you pull them out see if you can organise some play dates or a time to catch up with school friends. It would also be a great idea to get involved with other homeschooling families so that they can continue to make friends and develop those important friendships.
There are children however who are in the opposite camp who have had a very difficult time at school and are thrilled about coming home. There will still most definitely be a transition period.
Homeschooling Curriculum
If you have pulled your child out mid year you may not have had time to research homeschooling curriculums. Don’t feel like you need to rush to have something put together the day after the come out of school. It is actually advisable to give your child a period of deschooling. Deschooling is an amount of time where they are able to reset and adjust to being out of the school system. This post here goes in to much more depth about deschooling and it benefits as well as how to deschool effectively.
When you are researching your curriculum choices you should look at what kind of approach you want to take to homeschooling. Are you after a more of an unschooled approach? or more of a traditional homeschool? Perhaps you are after something a more in between the two.
Once you have decided on what kind of vision you have for your homeschool then take your time researching curriculums or resources that well work alongside you to deliver a good quality education.
If you are still feeling overwhelmed and unsure many parents find that an online school is a great option for when you first start out. They provide all the learning materials as well at tutorage and teacher oversight.
As you can see homeschooling mid year doesn’t have to be as scary as you may have thought. There are so many resources available to you and people willing to lend a hand to point you in the right direction. Many times the unknown is what is the most nerve wracking, but hopefully this post has brightened the path a little for you and you have a better understanding on how you could proceed.
