The first step to homeschooling is making your decision to home educate your child. It is important to become informed and knowledgeable about some of the main concerns you may have. Explore these areas of our website to learn more about the initial decision to homeschool.
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| Making Your Decision |
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The reasons people decide to educate their children at home are varied and can be unique to each family. Some look towards a better educational experience, others are concerned with moral and social issues, some are concerned with safety, and still others have special needs that they wish to address. Explore these reasons and others that have led families to homeschooling.
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| Advantages of Homeschooling |
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Ask anyone who loves homeschooling what the advantages are, and you'll probably hear a long list of the benefits of educating children in the home. Homeschooling is a journey and an adventure, with benefits and rewards for the entire family. Come find out what these advantages are and decide if homeschooling is right for you.
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| Teaching Your Own Children |
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Are you qualified to teach your own children? The answer is yes! It is challenging, but rewarding, to educate your children in your home. Find out what these challenges are and how to address them.
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| Socialization |
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"But what about socialization?" So the typical question goes to anyone who homeschools. Find out what socialization means to homeschooling families and strategies to engage your children and your entire family in social activities and connections.
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| Research & Statistics |
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Learn about current research and statistics involving homeschooling families, the homeschool movement, and the educational system.
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| Public School Issues |
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Many parents are basing part of their decision to homeschool on issues with public schooling, from bullying to poor academic performance to problems with governmental control.
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| Community Outreach |
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Want to help homeschooling integrate into the community at large? Are you a homeschool group leader who talks with the media or provides information to new and curious homeschoolers? Here are tips to help you present homeschooling to the public and the media.
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Talking About Homeschooling With the Media |
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Celeste Land |
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Discussing homeschooling with the media doesn't have to be a nightmare. It can be a positive and productive experience for both homeschoolers and reporters. Read on for some ideas for how to handle some common concerns about media relations and homeschooling. |
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The Heart of Homeschooling is Love |
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Grace Jorgensen |
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A veteran homeschool mom discusses how love for one's children fosters the desire and courage to take on the responsibility of educating them. |
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Homeschooling - ERIC Digest |
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This Digest discusses the extent of contemporary homeschooling and its legal status, describes available resources, presents evidence on the performance of homeschoolers, and notes how public opinion regarding the practice has changed over time.
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The "S" Word |
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Cafi Cohen |
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The freedom of homeschooling gives children a chance to spend the time and energy necessary to develop and maintain good friendships. Cafi Cohen shares how homeschoolers develop friendships in much the way adults do--via shared interests. Even though they are available in one form or another, those pivotal social experiences (proms and graduations) plus daily age-peer contacts are not needed to produce a socially-competent individual. Real world socialization experiences (regardless of the size of that world) far better prepare kids for the challenges they will face. |
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The Rise of Home Schooling Among African-Americans |
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Significant growth in black families’ participation in home schooling is beginning to show up on the radar screens of researchers. The National Center for Education Statistics computed African-Americans as 9.9 percent of the 850,000 children the federal agency figured were being home-schooled nationally in 1999. Veteran home-schooling researcher Brian Ray figures blacks are currently about 5 percent of the 1.6 million to 2 million home-schooled children but he agrees that black home schooling is growing rapidly.
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