5 Points To Consider When You Move Your Child From A Public School Into A Home Schooling Environment
By:
Donald Saunders
If you find that a child is struggling in a public school and is getting more and more discouraged as the weeks roll by then home schooling could be something which you ought to look into. If so, prepare yourself for a transition period after taking the child out of the public school system before leaping into 'full-time' home schooling.
If your child is presently in public school then you will have to begin by determining the home schooling laws in your state. Make sure that you can meet all of your state's requirements before you do anything else. Once you are confident that you can comply with all of the laws of the state you must contact your child's school and inform them that you are removing. If you fail to formally withdraw your child then this could lead to truancy issues in the future. Also, be prepared for the school to ask questions and perhaps to resist your action.
The procedure for withdrawing your child will be dependent on where you live but it will frequently involve simply writing a letter to the superintendent of your child's school system. You will need to inform the superintendent that you have chosen to school your child at home. You may also have to provide proof that you are adhering to the laws of the state and are legally allowed to withdraw your child from school. If you can quote part of the state regulations in your letter then this will show that you are familiar with the law and your rights to home school your child.
Once you have taken care of the formalities you should then consider the following:
1. Your child is no longer imprisoned by the rules of the public school system and should be permitted a little bit of time adjust to the change. Against this background, you ought not to rush headlong into full time schooling but ought to allow your child some time to adjust to this change in lifestyle.
2. Take a bit of time to get to know each other. You may consider that you know your child but it is entirely possible that you do not know him at all. You could unearth areas of your child's character which you did not know were there and he might also discover a few new things about you as well.
3. You could notice that your child does one or two things which he has grown used to doing at public school. Some new home school children will raise their hand when they want to ask a question or if they need to use the bathroom. It could take a bit of time but those school habits will disappear eventually.
4. Try to hang on to the better habits which he has learned. If, for example, your child has been used to doing spelling tests on a particular day then continue to keep that schedule. If you let him stop doing everything he has become used to in public school then you could end up with more problems than you solve.
5. Do not forget to enjoy the process with your child. Electing to home school is of course principally for the student but it should also be a pleasure for you. Try not to take things too seriously and cut yourself some slack and have fun. Possibly of prime importance remember just why you decided to home school and enjoy the independence which home schooling affords.
