New to Homeschooling

I am interested in homeschooling, but I don’t know where to start!

Where can I find out more information on the ins and outs of homeschooling?

1. Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) has been around since the early 1980s, supporting and defending our right to homeschool. They have put together a wonderful guide to homeschooling that is a great place to start!
2. The National Home Education Research Institute has been around since 1990, providing research-based information, statistics, facts, and scholarly articles on homeschooling since that time! Lots of information on this website. You will be encouraged that you are on the right track!
3. Talk to others who have homeschooled. They typically understand what it’s like in this area and can relay their journey to you. You can gain lots of tips and advice doing this!

What does the Missouri law say?

Here is the Missouri Homeschool law (from Families for Home Education).

In a nutshell

• Compulsory attendance age 7–17 years old.
• For ages 7 to 16, you need to do the following…
  1. You need to keep track of work samples of your child.
  2. You need to keep a record of periodic assessments.
  3. You need to have documentation showing a thousand hours of instruction during the school term that you set. (This is not as hard as it sounds.) A plan book, diary, or other written record indicating subjects taught and activities engaged in.
• You need to keep records for transcripts only after age 16. Each child homeschooling for high school needs a transcript showing all high school level classes, credits, grades and GPA.
• You do not need to send any records to the state or local school district.
• There are no assessment requirements or teacher qualification requirements necessary to homeschool.

Click here and scroll down for a break-down of all that wording from HSLDA.

How can I get 1000 hours of school?

• 1000 hours breaks down to a little less than 167 days of school x 6 hours a day.
• You need 600 hours of core subjects – reading, writing, language arts, math, science, history, etc.
• You can do more than 600 hours of core subjects, but it must be at least 600. The other 400 hours are non-core subjects – music, art, PE, drama, life skills, etc.
• You need to do the majority of your core hours (400) in your ‘home’ location of your homeschool, whether that is your RV, a friend’s house, or your home.
• Some families call Bible core; others log it in non-core. It can be history, language (building memory skills, for example), life skills or all of the above.
• Awana, Bible Quizzing, Field Trips, Vacation Bible School, Sunday School, piano or other music lessons, sports practices, etc., can all be counted as school hours.

Can I pay someone else to homeschool my kids?

No. In Missouri, the parent is the one responsible for the homeschool. You cannot hire another person to take that over.

You can pay for classes that come alongside what you are already doing at home. That is what SCCHE is for. HeartStrong, the Learning Center, band, and choir are a supplement. They are not the homeschool. Hours in class can count toward the hours you record. The records, the samples, and the plan still belong to you.

How do I withdraw my students from public school?

You need to submit a withdrawal letter to the superintendent of your school district. It doesn’t hurt to send it return receipt requested. Also, out of courtesy, you can let your child’s school know. For a child being withdrawn from Kindergarten in the fall, you will need to reach out for guidance as the student is not yet 7 and may need to have a separate withdrawal letter.

You can request records by using this form.

Where do I start?

1. Meet other homeschoolers. Get involved in a local support group (like SCCHE) and plug into some of their activities, classes, etc.
2. HSLDA has some great advice on getting started.
3. Homeschool.com also has some great tips and advice on getting started – it will just take a bit more time to read! Lots of links for other resources can be found on this site.
4. Check out Rainbow Resource – a huge homeschool curriculum discount company – for write-ups and descriptions of an enormous amount of homeschool curriculum choices! Plus, their homeschool forum has lots of video workshops, reviews, articles, and more to help you out! Rainbow Resource has also been around a long time – since 1989!!!
5. Join HSLDA – You get even more access to helpful homeschool tools as a member, and you get lots of discounts on products, such as four cent copies at Office Depot! Plus, you are supporting the folks that help protect our right to homeschooling and you have access to legal advice without charge if your homeschooling is ever challenged. Plus, if you are a member of SCCHE, you get a $15 discount on your HSLDA membership.
6. Answers in Genesis has some great advice on getting started with homeschooling: Five Tips For Beginning Homeschooling
7. The Family Vision Library has a wonderful Consignment Store where you can see lots of curriculum and get a better idea of what is out there. Plus, they have all sorts of Christian books (and some curriculum) that you can check out as well. Their address is: 2020 Parkway Dr., St. Peters, MO 63376.

What else do I need to know?

1. Relax and enjoy the ride. Enjoy time spent with your children and family.
2. Expect hard days. It’s not a piece of cake, but worth the effort!
3. Don’t purchase curriculum right away! Take some time to assess what you need. Seek advice on what to use. If it doesn’t work, you are not stuck with it. You can switch to something else. That’s a fairly normal homeschool experience!
4. Don’t think you have to be like a traditional school. Do fun things with your kids – like baking cookies, taking walks, and reading aloud. That can all count as school!
5. Seek advice from friends or veterans in your homeschool group. They’ve probably been there and done that!
6. Welcome to the exciting and adventurous world of homeschooling!