Locating resources within the homeschooling family or access to others in the community who are homeschooling will be important as families get a sense of effective tools and experiences.
Questions to consider:
- What community resources are available to support your child’s education? For example, are there museums, zoos, cultural centers, or summer programs that offer educational opportunities for children?
- Does your family or town have dedicated space or organized sports programs to promote physical activity?
- What computer or technology resources are available to your child?
- How comfortable are you in taking on a teaching role with your child(ren)? For example, managing their behavior during instruction and learning activities?
- Do you have access to a public library and/or books at home that will engage your child and promote learning?
Direct, in-person, active learning is most beneficial for young children. When young children first learn about topics they have not encountered in their home environment (e.g., different types of animals), they remember that information better if it is learned in a meaningful context (e.g., a zoo). Their memory will have more connections to retrieve that information in the future. Providing opportunities for children to interact with items to be learned in the “real world,” and for discussing their observations with others, usually results in enhanced memory. That is why children learn more if they participate in follow-up discussions after watching an informative video. Games are a great way to practice using numbers or reading information. When children create drawings or models of their learning, they notice new things and deepen their knowledge and understanding. Finally, setting routines is important for children’s learning experiences. Physical activities and play can be a regular part of that routine.
The academic resources and expertise that are necessary as students begin learning more advanced topics may be beyond those readily available within a homeschooling family (e.g., additional knowledge in a particular academic domain). It may be necessary to pool resources across homeschooling families and access resources within the community or online to support students as they transition into middle school and subsequently into high school. At this developmental stage, middle school students will delve into more abstract concepts. It will be important to know when to push, when to pull back, and how to facilitate retention by building on their existing knowledge. Most middle school students will become more independent in their learning and will take ownership of their instructional planning. Middle school may seem early to begin thinking about college and careers; however, consideration at this point will help to ensure that middle school students develop the prerequisite skills and experiences necessary for college and careers. It is important that homeschooling families understand college expectations and ensure that the curriculum they choose is aligned with or surpasses those expectations.
Family and community resources are very important for high school students: mastering more advanced concepts may require extracurricular activities to facilitate a detailed understanding of academic subject matter. Because peer relationships are a crucial component of adolescent social development, active engagement with peer organizations and activities also becomes critically important in the high school grades. Many local school districts will allow homeschooled students to participate in extracurricular activities (e.g., chorus, athletics, clubs), and these opportunities can be invaluable. High school students also need supervised experience in planning, time management, study skills, and independent exploration of academic and career interests; all of these experiences can be supported through family and community resources. Fostering connections with the community for high school students can facilitate work-related experiences, which may aid in the transition from high school to a career or, for college-motivated students, to postsecondary education.