Homeschooling is when children’s education is based at home with their parents’ guidance rather than through enrollment in a public school or private school. That said, the insider joke is, “Homeschooling isn’t much like school, and we’re never home.”
That’s because many homeschoolers find emulating classroom approaches to education is not as effective as the home-grown version, and in many places, there are lots of opportunities for homeschooled kids to learn with friends and out in the community.
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Homeschooling can begin with kindergarten and go through homeschooling high school. As formal preschool has become more popular, more parents who do not send their kids to preschool also refer to homeschooling in preschool or pre-K.
What are the Benefits of Homeschooling?
Homeschooling is widely known for its flexibility, allowing parents to help children learn in the ways that work for each child. Parents and kids do not need to follow the conventions of school when they’re homeschooling; they can customize, choosing their own curriculum or approach. Homeschooled kids are widely accepted at colleges and in the workplace. You can read about the wide range of benefits of homeschooling, from building positive family relationships to homeschooling through illnesses and challenges.
How Do I Homeschool?
Find the information you need to start homeschooling at Six Steps to Get Started Homeschooling.
Deschooling
A surprising factor in the adjustment to learning at home is the idea of deschooling. Both parents and children need to transition to learning outside of the school classroom that is the predominant method of education today. Experienced homeschoolers recommend a period of deschooling before homeschooling, and they suggest that families continue over time to get “school defaults” out of their heads so that learning outside of school will flourish.
Choosing Curriculum
Parents can choose their homeschooling curriculum, taking into account their overall approach to learning, their children’s strengths, the amount of one-on-one time they can provide, their children’s age and stage of development, and what their child enjoys doing. Some homeschoolers use a curriculum similar to what is found in schools, but many do not.
Homeschooling is Legal and Accepted
Homeschooling is legal in all fifty states in the United States and in many countries around the world. In the United States, the relevant laws are unique to each state. Find individual state laws and guidance for following those laws at the websites of statewide homeschooling organizations in each state. National and international homeschool organizations tend not to keep up with the changes and nuances of state-by-state laws, and they often lack the clarity and accuracy of state homeschool organizations.
Homeschooled graduates can be admitted to college, join the military, get good jobs, start businesses, and live creative lives.
Homeschoolers are Independent
Homeschoolers have the freedom to do what works. They don’t need to follow the education laws for public schools, and in the U.S., they don’t need to follow any one specific approved or accredited curriculum. Some states and countries have more regulations than others regarding what parents have to do to meet the home education law; however, in general, one of the benefits of homeschooling is that parents have the freedom to customize how their children learn. This includes freedom to choose their approach and the resources that will be used. Homeschooling families can typically learn on any schedule that works for them.
Can Someone Else Homeschool My Child?
What if you want your kids to be homeschooled, but you can’t or don’t want to be the person who is personally homeschooling them? Laws vary on this depending on where you live, which parents should consider, but many homeschooling parents outsource parts of their kids’ homeschooling, since the kids take classes, participate in co-ops, and work with tutors and mentors. If you’re looking for someone to provide part or all of your children’s home education, read Can Somebody Homeschool My Kids?Â
How Many Homeschoolers Are There?
According to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES)  in the United States, “Overall, about 3 percent of students ages 5 through 17 were reported as being homeschooled, representing 1.7 million homeschooled students in 2016.” Most states in the U.S. also keep track of the numbers of homeschoolers in their state.
Why Do People Homeschool?
The main reasons people homeschool are concerns about the environment in schools and dissatisfaction with academic instruction. This is contrary to the stereotype, which assumes that most people who choose homeschooling do so for religious reasons.
NCES has collected data on why people are homeschooling. Their report, “Parent and Family Involvement in Education: Results from the National Household Education Surveys Program of 2016,” says, “When asked to select the reasons parents decided to homeschool their child, the highest percentage of homeschooled students had parents who said that a concern about the environment of other schools, such as safety, drugs, or negative peer pressure was one reason to homeschool (80 percent). The highest percentage of students’ parents reported that among all reasons, a concern about the environment of other schools was the most important reason for homeschooling (34 percent). Seventeen percent of homeschooled students had parents who reported dissatisfaction with academic instruction at other schools as the most important reason for homeschooling, while 16 percent reported a desire to provide religious instruction as the most important reason for homeschooling” (page 4 of PDF).
Homeschooling Styles
There are so many ways to homeschool; homeschoolers call the different approaches homeschooling styles or homeschooling methods. Different styles work for different families because their situations and their children are different. You will find one person who loves a particular approach and then another person who finds fault with the same approach. People often start out with one approach and evolve to a different approach, or they combine aspects of several approaches and call themselves eclectic homeschoolers. It’s not unusual for new homeschool parents to try to replicate school at first and switch approaches when they encounter resistance.
Grandparent Guide: Supporting Homeschooling
Our Grandparent Guide to Homeschooling gives grandparents concrete ideas for how to help without interfering and suggestions for how they can further build their relationships with their homeschooled grandchildren.
Education Hybrids are Here
In some states, there are various education hybrids due to families combining some elements of homeschooling with classes and programs offered by public schools, private schools, charter schools, colleges, and online schools. Some hybrid models are illegal in one state while legal in a neighboring state. Not all hybrid models of education are considered homeschooling by all homeschoolers, even if the education is mostly taking place within the home. That hasn’t stopped some from calling these newer combo-types of education hybrid homeschooling instead of hybrid education.
FAQ
Visit our Frequently Asked Questions page for answers to other questions you might have about homeschooling.
Hi I am truly interested in homeschooling my daughter who will
Be a junior. Is it too late? Worried this will affect her college acceptances. This is all very new to me. I live in Florida and there is a great virtual school not sure what the difference is. Any suggestions how to do more research?
Hi Simone,
My older daughter went to a private high school for 9th and 10th before we decided to homeschool for the rest of high school, so it’s definitely not too late. Virtual school is actually public school at home, which is a significant difference from homeschooling. You’ll want to read about the pros and cons of virtual schools before deciding whether to use it.
We have lots of resources on the website for homeschooling high school; these will get you started:
College Admission Requirements: Homeschooling High School
Homeschool Transcripts Explained
Bad News/Good News of Starting Homeschooling in High School
Resources for Homeschooling High School When Mom’s Not the Expert
Homeschool to College: Outside Evidence
I hope that helps!
Wow this site is great, lots of information. We have a question, can a non resident with legal status be homeschooled? We have Investors visa and our son will get his student visa soon, he´s 16 and he´ll be in his last year of high school in our home country, Costa Rica. Can he be transitioned to homeschool in Tennessee? Is there any help to get started for people like us that are not customed to homeschool since that´s not possible in our country?
Great website!
Hi Gustavo – TheHomeSchoolMom isn’t able to give advice on homeschool regulations since homeschooling in the US is regulated by the state and not federally. Our decentralized way of regulating education in the US makes for a lack of consistency in homeschool laws, and adding in a student visa adds an additional layer of serious considerations.
If I were in your position, I would check with the US State Department (as the agency issuing the student visa), the local school district in Tennessee, and your country’s consulate for answers. Being on a student visa may come with requirements that affect the ability to homeschool, and running afoul of student visa restrictions could have serious repercussions.
If you find out that homeschooling is a possibility for your son, you should also consider what he may need in terms of proof of graduation when he returns to Costa Rica. If he finishes high school by homeschooling, he will not have a government-issued diploma or transcripts. You as the parent would be the one issuing the diploma and transcripts. If your country doesn’t recognize homeschooling, that could potentially be a problem if he wants to enter college there or get a job.
Your question is a good one, and I would love to know what you find out. Enjoy your time in the United States, and best wishes to your son, whichever schooling option he ends up using.
Bless you and your knowledge! I have been researching homeschooling for over a year now. Why your site has not popped up until now is a shame. You have fantastic, useful, well written information here. I greatly appreciate you! Thank you!
Thank you for your kind words, Cheri!
I just wanted to say I enjoy your writing style and have learned lots from the great information on your website. Much appreciated!
I’m glad TheHomeSchoolMom has been helpful to you!
hello my name is Kimberly Orellana I am a mother of two girls I have a 12 year old and a 9 year old I was just approved to start home schooling my nine year old daughter I applied to home school her and now it was approved I am not sure were to start my daughter wqs being bullied in school and she got her ankle broke at school and I need some help to start the home schooling process any suggestions you can email me. I am needing help don’t know where to begin thanks again
Hi Kimberly,
Congratulations on becoming a homeschool mom! I’m sorry to hear about your daughter’s experiences in school, and I hope homeschooling will bring her healing and progress. Here at TheHomeSchoolMom, we don’t provide help by email, but we provide information in our articles. Click through on the various links to get to articles that will help you get started. If you need hands-on, local help, look for state and local groups that may have volunteers who can talk to you. Sometimes a local librarian may know another homeschool mom who is willing to talk with you, too. But really, there is a ton of information on our site, and sometimes you just have to give yourself time to breathe and absorb the new information as you read.
Best wishes for happy homeschooling,
Jeanne
I have just started homeschooling my 13 year old daughter and would like to find out information on social activities with other homeschooled children in our community.
Hi Judith,
TheHomeSchoolMom has a tab in our top menu for “Local and State.” If you click on that tab, you can find a dropdown list for co-ops, activities, conferences, homeschool groups, classes, and more. You can also often find local activities by joining a Facebook group of homeschoolers in your area, asking your state homeschool group for their listing of local groups, or by searching on MeetUp.com. Many libraries know about homeschool activities. Drop by and ask them where the homeschoolers are!
Good luck!
Jeanne
Hello i want to know more about this program..
TheHomeSchoolMom doesn’t offer homeschool programs; however, we have a great Quick Start Guide to Homeschooling that will answer your questions about getting started.
Jeanne
I need to get my child in school as possible.e
I work full-time are there educators that my child can go to.
Hi Carmen,
We have an article called Can Somebody Homeschool My Kids that will cover your questions about this. You may also be surprised to know that people do work and homeschool. Sometimes people use regular childcare during school hours and focus on learning outside of work hours, on nights and weekends.
Jeanne
I am homeschooling my son due to his speical needs he learns at a elementary level and i think it is better for him to be home schooled .can you tell me do you have rescources for child with IEP.
Hi Loretta,
Here is a link to a page listing articles about children who have special needs.
Jeanne
I am interested in homeschooling my children any info would be great.
Hi Tameka – You’ll find lots of helpful information throughout our site. Our Quickstart Guide to Homeschooling is full of helpful information and links to topics like deschooling, finding the laws in your state, how to start out right, and more. Best wishes to you on your homeschool journey!
I’m interested in home school for my 8th grader would like to know more and cost per semester’s
Hi Tameka,
To know more, click on the links within this Homeschooling 101 article, so you can become more informed about homeschooling by reading more. Additionally, since you have an 8th grader, you should read about the good news and bad news about homeschooling high school. As for the cost, this is different for every family, and I do mean completely different. Some people create their own program of learning using just the library and online resources, and it only costs the price of internet service. Other people purchase expensive all-in-one curricula that can cost thousands per year. Some people pay hundreds for certain classes but otherwise homeschool without spending much money. Some people live in states with charter schools or home learning options that may be funded and regulated by public schools. In other states, such hybrid models of education are not allowed. You should ask your local school division if they have options besides attending the brick and mortar school.
Finally, while we can’t give you an estimate on how much homeschooling your 8th grader will cost, we can tell you a bit about homeschooling on a budget and where to find free and inexpensive resources.
The cost of homeschooling your 8th grader will depend on your approach to homeschooling, as well as the cost of specific programs, classes, or resources you choose.
Jeanne