What was your first year (or first several years) of homeschooling like? What have you learned since then that you would do differently if you did it all over again? I'm particularly interested in those who homeschooled from the get-go, but I'm open to hearing anyone's experience. Thanks!

I would be more relaxed. I really wanted to get a lot accomplished and used plenty of curriculum with my little ones. Now I realize that hardly any curriculum is needed. :0)

Why do you ask?

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It makes me giggle! We didn't even know "homeschooling" was legit or legal or allowed but we knew we didn't want our kids in the jr high. Then we found out our church could let us buy curriculum from their private school (ACE - School of Tomorrow) and we started on our pioneering journey.

We found desks for the kids and we had a set schedule and basically did "school at home" for the first year. I relaxed a little after that letting them do their work wherever they wanted and we met some other homeschoolers.

I was worried that I couldn't teach them high school stuff so put the older ones back in when they reached high school. I don't think I should've worried.

It was amazing to teach the youngest how to read. The moment that it clicked was more joyous for me than anything before that. I started realizing that it was more a love of learning and teaching them how to learn the things they wanted to learn that was more important. There's no way to cover all the subjects in depth but if they can learn on their own they will be miles ahead.

I also discovered that opportunities that came along were very important. My oldest ds went to Mexico on a missions trip, my oldest dd got to go to the Philippines on a mission trip, my youngest dd got to work with a veterinarian and work at the Vietnam mini-wall with her dad. There were many opportunities they had including getting jobs during the day! That probably taught them as much as what they learned in their curriculum! : )

Thanks for your responses. I ask because I have a toddler and I am beginning to consider homeschooling him when he's ready, but I have basically zero experience with homeschooling and don't really know what it looks like or how to wrap my mind around it yet (finding some good resources on this site, though). I thought it couldn't hurt to hear about what it was like for some of you starting out and maybe glean some wisdom for what 'mistakes' to avoid as a new homeschooler. I have plenty of time still, but I know that I need that time to prepare myself mentally for taking the plunge, so I'm trying to learn all I can and make it seem more doable and less scary.

I'd love to hear more!

I came from a long line of teachers. My Mom was a professional teacher. She always said that it really worked well for her to be a super-strict teacher at the beginning, then lighten up and have fun the rest of the year after discipline was established. She said the teachers who tried to have fun the first weeks of the year were often screaming at their students by the end of the year.

I took that to heart, and our first preschool year, I focused on discipline and then mastery of basic skills. I would tell my daughter that it's never easy to learn things at first, but when you master things, they're lots of fun. I used crawling (she used to cry and cry when she tried!) as an example, as well as my own experience. We did fun projects from time to time, but it wasn't our primary focus.

For us, this route has really paid off. We have made huge gains academically, but more importantly, I'm seeing character benefits - a wilingness to persevere at difficult tasks - and ENJOY doing so! This year, we're having a lot of fun and looking forward to school!

Some reading that helped me:
1. "Why Johnny Can't Read" by Rudolph Flesch - on how to teach reading.
2. This book on discipline http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/11667
3. I also read a great essay by a parent of a special needs child (that I cannot find or recall the title of!) . She said that what her child needed most to succeed in the world was character - more than academic education. I thought "Of what human being is that NOT true?" and decided that Spiritual Growth and Character would be my first focus. As a side-effect, academics do better than they would have without this focus!

Wish you all the best as you start out homeschooling - I wouldn't trade it for the world!

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Just remember, you are "homeschooling" your child way before you realize it. Teaching them to walk, talk, obey, share.... it just goes on from there. You're probably teaching your toddler 1,2,3 and A,B,C. ? That's it.

Very helpful! I will keep this in mind. Self-discipline, perseverance and other character issues were lacking in my education, to my detriment, and I am now having to go through the process of learning them as an adult, with regrets as I think about how much better my education could have been. I really hope to change this for my children.

What exactly do you do for those character lessons? Just talk about them and practice them? Ever any worksheets or other projects on them? I'd love to get a better picture for what that training looks like for your family. Thanks, Anna.

Well, it's kinda ubiquitous and informal : )

What I've found helpful so far:

The book I mentioned (#2, above) is a BIG help- it's from a Christian perspective and has great ideas.

Insisting a child does what is right helps teach them to do what is right.

We read Bible Stories every day and talk about the good & bad in the story. I read one, my DD reads one or two, too - so we usually have 2 or 3 Bible stories a day. Steve Green's "Hide em in your Heart" music - as recommended by friends here - plays in the car radio a lot. One day dd was being very good, and when I praised her, she told me "Well, it (the Bible) says, 'Do everything without arguing or complaining'!" - who can argue with that?! : )

Going to Church, taking Holy Communion, family prayers at night - it all adds up.

I like this verse, "Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up." Deut 6:7 - it needs to be a constant thing, interwoven with life.

Of course - these are my ideals - I'm still an imperfect human being!

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You already know your child, and have hopefully built a relationship full of trust and love. You don't need to change a thing to homeschool. Children learn through play, so when they reach "school age" and that is different state to state, you don't have to create a school atmosphere. You are at home, your child will continue to learn if you provide a nurturing environment full of interesting things to play with. As they become interested in something/anything, provide choices and chances to explore that idea/item/project. Books/movies/board games/card games/video games/computers are all equal in worth as learning tools. Each child is different in personality/learning style/interests, so provide what works best for the individual. Keep things joyful and interesting (the child's interests, not the parents because often they are not the same thing LOL).

Our first year started with "school at home" with little desks and all the typical supplies. That lasted a very short while and we found that the floor, couch, dining room table, beds... all made better places to learn. We then started looking around at the different approaches that people were taking and discovered there are too many "ways to homeschool" to do them all, so over the years we found what worked best for our family, and for each unique child (we have 5). The more relaxed and less structured we became, the more the kids learned, retained, and explored the world around them. Some loved to read books early, some read late. Some like games, some liked hands on projects. All did a bit of everything, but usually not at the same time. Kids will learn what they need, when they need to know it. They just will. If you are involved with them throughout the day, you will know them, their interests, their way of taking in information and what is most important to them on any given day/season of life. Be a partner to them and you will build an amazing relationship with them that will last way beyond the "schooling years".

I'm going to keep this quote in my notes.