As a homeschooling parent, we worry a lot! We worry that we’re not giving our children enough of our time. We stress that we’re not doing enough for them. And we agonise about how to fit it all in!
Thie blogpost may contain affiliate links. See Disclaimer for more information.
In episode 33 of the Raising Mums podcast, I share with you some practical ways that you “squeeze” more learning into your children’s lives, and reframe the way you look at your homeschool.
This episode of Raising Mums was brought to you by Miraj Stories!
You can save up to 25% off on this Islamic app for children aged 4-9, with an exclusive Discount Code just for Our Muslim Homeschool fans! It includes Islamic audiobooks, picture books, songbooks and games.
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The government announced that schools in the UK would not reopen this January 2021 for at least 6 weeks. This has thrown many families into a state of worry and, in some cases, panic as they come to terms with the fact that they will have to homeschool their children through this lockdown.
Families are concerned how this lockdown will affect their children’s education, and want to know how they can effectively homeschool them.
Parents also want to know how they’re going to be productive and get everything done, whilst also homeschooling their children.
In this episode of Raising Mums, I share a realistic and sustainable way to homeschool your children during the lockdown, and give you several time management hacks to help you stay productive during this difficult time.
If you’re struggling to make sense of the 5 Steps to Start Homeschooling…then you’ve got to WATCH THE VIDEO!
How to Start Homeschooling Course
Launch Your Homeschool is an online course that will you hold your hand and walk you through the beginning stages of homeschooling, built upon the framework of the Charlotte Mason philosophy.
I teach you how to choose the right subjects for your homeschool, how to chose the right resources and plan out your year to create a homeschool experience that aligns with the values and beliefs of your family.
I show you the essential teaching techniques that you’ll need to now to get started. There’s even an entire module on how to manage your time so you can still cook, keep the house tidy and take care of yourself, all whilst homeschooling your children!
It’s hard to know where to begin when you first decide to start homeschooling.
There are so many options! It seems like a blessing to have plenty of information about homeschooling available online.
However, access to so much unfiltered information can also make homeschooling appear a lot more complicated than it actually is.
Read on to find out how I can help you feel confident to start homeschooling in a stress-free way!
How do you start homeschooling?
It’s not difficult to research the benefits of homeschooling for your family. It’s easy to find a multitude of options for curriculums, reading ideas and crafty activities to do with your child.
But how do you use all that information to teach your child in the most efficient way possible?
How do you know which curriculums are best for your unique family?
How do you maintain a beneficial schedule without homeschool lessons taking over your entire life?
Is it possible to still have time for yourself when the homeschool day is done?
How do you do it all?
All these questions build up in your mind and often lead to crippling self-doubt. Do you have what it takes to handle the full responsibility of your child’s education?
How do you finally take the plunge and start homeschooling?
Start homeschooling with ‘Launch Your Homeschool’
‘Launch Your Homeschool’ is an online course to help you find your own homeschooling path as a Muslim family. This course uses a combination of Charlotte Mason philosophy and crucial Islamic values to give you the confidence to develop your own homeschool curriculum that is suitable for your family.
Instead of feeling anxious about the magnitude of the task before you, feel excited! You will gain the skills needed to design your own path in home education, a path which reflects your children, your family and your values.
Launch Your Homeschoolis dedicated to Muslim families who are striving to design their own unique homeschool life and develop their own curriculum to suit their family dynamic.
This course is for you if:
⭐ The thought of homeschooling appeals to you but you’re not sure where to start.
⭐ You’re feeling overwhelmed by all the different options, curriculum choices and activities to do with your children.
⭐ You want to join the homeschool movement but find yourself confused and unsure how to practically get started.
⭐ You have a busy, hectic life (like most mums!) and need a self-paced course to complete in your own time
⭐ You’re a Muslim family hoping to find the right balance between your child’s Islamic and secular education.
? Accompanying fun-sheets to guide you through the lessons
? A supportive Private Facebook community
? Your very own homeschool planner
?And lots of special bonuses – CLICK HEREto find out what they are!
You have lifetime access to the course materials so you can work your way through at a pace that suits your schedule. With pre-recorded lessons, you can watch them whenever you want, pause and replay as you need to. This course is designed to be as convenient as possible, because I know how hectic life as a mum can be!
The main skills you learn during the course are centred around homeschool planning and time management. Once you are confident in these areas, all the other homeschool obstacles will become easier and more manageable.
With the course, you learn how to maintain motivation and consistency in your homeschool and feel confident about your journey. You will learn how to avoid common homeschooling pitfalls so you are well-prepared for your homeschool life.
Learn all of this ANDhow to still dedicate time to yourself so you don’t experience homeschooler burnout!
Will you start homeschooling with ‘Launch Your Homeschool’?
What are your biggest concerns when deciding to start homeschooling? Do you struggle with deciding on the best options for your family? Or maybe the thought of adding even more to your to-do list is extremely stressful!
You’re busy…I know! But despite all the things you have to do already, you dream of homeschooling your children. But how can you?! How can you find the time to homeschool your children?
In this episode of Raising Mums I talk about how anyone can find the time to homeschool, or do anything else they need to do, with the right time management skills.
With a good understanding of how to manage your time, you CAN homeschool too.
If you can learn these time management skills you can create the life you have always dreamed of for your family.
Time management allows you to be present with your children. You can be that chilled out, joyful mum you’ve always wanted to be, because you know you’ve got everything covered!
This FREE eBOOK is full of information that you really need to know if you’re planning to homeschool you kids. I know that you’ve got a lot of questions, that’s why I put this ebook together for you! It will help you to lay a strong foundation n your homeschool and ( I hope) calm your worries!
Launch Your Homeschool is an online course that will you hold your hand and walk you through the beginning stages of homeschooling, built upon the framework of the Charlotte Mason philosophy.
I teach you how to choose the right subjects for your homeschool, how to chose the right resources and plan out your year to create a homeschool experience that aligns with the values and beliefs of your family.
I show you the essential teaching techniques that you’ll need to now to get started. There’s even an entire module on how to manage your time so you can still cook, keep the house tidy and take care of yourself, all whilst homeschooling your children!
Let’s talk money! How much does homeschooling cost?
If you’re trying to plan ahead, and work out if home education is a feasible dream for your family, you need to know how much it’s going to cost.
You need real figures, real numbers!
Typically if you’re searching online for the cost to home educate your children, you’ll hear a lot of advice that sounds something like,
“Homeschooling is possible for families of every budget. With careful planning you can homeschool for very little.”
And honestly, I’ve said that myself!
But after thinking about it, I realised that that statement is not very helpful at all!
What would be more helpful would be a number of how much it costs a real family to homeschool their children today.
And that’s what I’m going to do here…
I’m going to tell you how much homeschooling costs our family!
I’ve NEVER seen this done before, but in this episode of Raising Mums…
I get out my calculator and talk about: ?How much does Homeschooling cost each year ? What are our biggest expenses? ? How could we reduce these costs?
Being honest about the costs of homeschooling will help you to know if homeschooling is truly a realistic ambition for your family, and it’ll help you to plan ahead.
This FREE eBOOK is full of information that you really need to know if you’re planning to homeschool you kids. I know that you’ve got a lot of questions, that’s why I put this ebook together for you! It will help you to lay a strong foundation n your homeschool and ( I hope) calm your worries!
Launch Your Homeschool is an online course that will you hold your hand and walk you through the beginning stages of homeschooling, built upon the framework of the Charlotte Mason philosophy.
I teach you how to choose the right subjects for your homeschool, how to chose the right resources and plan out your year to create a homeschool experience that aligns with the values and beliefs of your family.
I show you the essential teaching techniques that you’ll need to now to get started. There’s even an entire module on how to manage your time so you can still cook, keep the house tidy and take care of yourself, all whilst homeschooling your children!
Listen to our story and learn how to start homeschooling! If you want to homeschool your children, one of the quickest ways to learn how to start is by learning from other experienced homeschoolers and their stories. Learn how to start homeschooling from our story!
In this video I share:
-Why do we educate our children at home? -How we started homeschooling? -What struggles did we face in the beginning? -How did we overcome them?
Have you decided to homeschool but you’re uncertain how to start?
When we start homeschooling, many often hit Google and Facebook groups desperately searching for answers to our many questions. Instead of answers, we often find an ocean of differing responses and come away with even more questions than when we first started!
How do you homeschool your kids when everything is so confusing?
Read on and find out what’s included in thisessential guide,how it can kick-start your homeschool and put all your worries at ease.
How to homeschool in your country
Legal issues are incredibly confusing for most new homeschoolers. When you first decide you want to homeschool, one of the biggest obstacles your way can be the confusion over how to legally and successfully start educating your child at home.
Home education can be simple and natural in many ways, but the legalities around it can be complicated and unclear!
When you start homeschooling your children, it often feels like you’re going against the ‘norm’. If you have come into contact with this kind of attitude from friends, acquaintances, even family members, preparing yourself with knowledge of the expectations and legal requirements in your country will give you confidence in your decision and help you to move forward and even reassure family members around you.
With a main focus on UK and US homeschool legal issues, this eBook answers many of the major questions you have when you first start to homeschool. And don’t worry if you live in other parts of the world, I have you covered as well with links and resources to help you find the legal homeschool information for your country!
The Home Education eBookwill give you much-needed answers to the main questions we ask ourselves before we start homeschooling:
? How involved will the government be in my homeschool?
? What is the best way to communicate with my local government?
? Do I need to deregister my child from school? And how do I do that?
? Do I need to contact my local education authority regularly?
? Can I get financial aid?
Start your homeschool by navigating the legalities with confidence!
Knowing your legal rights is only the start of your journey. Many new homeschoolers feel overwhelmed by the task at hand and even doubt their ability to deliver a decent education to their children.
But how do you do that? How do you know you’re making the right choices? What do you need to think about to ensure your children get the best education possible?
? Do I need teaching qualifications to homeschool my children?
? Does my country require me to track and report assessments for my kids?
? How do meet with other homeschool families?
Stop telling yourself you can’t do this.
With the right tools, you can provide your child with a fruitful home education.
Tackle home education challenges
As beautiful as homeschooling is, it isn’t always simple. In fact, many of us find multiple challenges and obstacles standing in our way before we even start. However, many families continue to homeschool successfully, despite facing some tricky situations.
The Homeschool eBook offers advice regarding some tricky homeschool challenges:
? How will my children find chances to socialise?
? Can I homeschool successfully with multiple children?
? Is it possible to homeschool an only child?
? How do I juggle working and homeschooling at the same time?
Challenges such as a job or multiple children don’t prevent you from bringing home education into your family.
If you really and truly long to provide your kids with a home education, don’t let these challenges stand in your way.
Every homeschool is different and that is the beauty of home education. With a variety of family dynamics and circumstances, home education is not only possible but preferred as it can fit around your unique family life.
Home education beyond primary
Most homeschool blogs and Instagram accounts seem geared towards the younger children, usually up to age 11. But what about our teenagers? What will happen to our happy home educated children as they begin to approach the age when they will need qualifications and to prepare themselves for going into the world of work or university?
TheHome Education eBookaddresses this concern. It helps you paint a picture of what the options may be for older children and those wishing to apply to colleges and university. Will home education be a crutch or a valued stepping-stone? Read the eBook to find out!
Want to get your hands on the eBook?
No matter how old your children are or where you live in the world,this eBook is a valuable resource to have on hand. Save yourself the trouble of scrolling through Google and reading confusing information for hours and hours. This eBook brings all the essential information into one easy-to-read document. All you have to do is Sign Up!
Many parents of children with special educational needs have seriously considered homeschooling. For special needs kids, there is a lot to consider.
If you want some honest, and real advice about the pros and cons of homeschooling a child with special educational needs, read on!
I’m delighted to welcome Sal Shah, a Special Educational Needs mentor, into this space today to share her insight into homeschooling children with SEN.
The following was kindly contributed by Sal Shah, a special educational needs mentor.
Is homeschooling the best choice for a special needs child?
The truth is, I can’t honestly answer that because it is so unique to each child. I can only share my experiences and the knowledge that I learnt on my journey. It is a deeply personal choice and there is no right or wrong answer.
Each child with special needs has their own journey through education.
While some have a seamless journey post diagnosis and attend excellent schools with appropriate resources and supportive teachers, this is not the case for many SEN students and I like so many others, was pushed into the situation of home-schooling.
What I learnt in those few short months was how important unschooling was. How important it was to let go of expecting to control everything, to go at my child’s pace. I learnt that education is everywhere. In every single thing that we do.
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We baked, we went outside and explored nature, we read books, we met with other families in our situation – special needs children forced into homeschool because their schools failed them.
For me, sending my son back to a school where the teachers really understood his needs was vital. It would have been easy to label all teachers the same after I dealt with so many who had a very poor attitude, but I also worked with many in the time that he was home who showed me what empathy and understanding led to and how a good relationship with a scared child can work wonders.
The pros of Homeschooling
Anxiety
Many homeschooled children have reduced anxiety as they don’t have to play to the demands of a formal setting like school. For a lot of special needs children, particularly those with anxiety, the anxiety vanished, sleep was restored (not worrying about going to school), so this was the biggest benefit.
Rebuilt confidence and self-esteem
When a child goes through a pretty traumatic time in school, they are often left damaged and this was the case for our son. We spent most of the time at home rebuilding that confidence and working on his self-esteem. A lot of the work I did with my son was about boosting his confidence and giving him lots of opportunities to do this.
Therapeutic approach
My son was seen by a team of specialist teachers who came to our house in the interim of finding a new school. We had also hired a behaviour therapist who taught us techniques as a family to help him through his experiences and anxiety. This wouldn’t have been available at school unless it was written in his EHCP – education health care plan and at that it wasn’t.
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The cons of Homeschooling
Juggling everything
I found it very hard to give all my children the same level of attention because one, they were all different ages and two, with a special needs child, things can take twice as long and sometimes you can be met with extra resistance depending on their needs.
I am not an expert
Of course, I know my child better than anyone else, but I also found that in some situations, a trained expert was needed.
Some children thrive better at home, but my child thrives better in a school setting with teachers who are experienced in dealing with special needs.
I am a massive believer in early intervention too. The earlier you can offer support to your child, the better chance they have at succeeding in later life.
It can be costly
If you have a special needs child, often you will need to buy more things and possibly access speech therapy, occupational therapy, etc and these costs can add up. Of course, if you apply for an EHCP (Educational Health Care Plan) you can request for a personal budget to help you pay for these therapies.
Routine
Although you can have some sort of routine at home, many special needs children thrive on routine and at school there is always a routine. At home, things can sometimes crop up and as mother of 3 children, I was juggling a new baby, school run for my other child and running back and forth to clubs, so this effected our learning a lot and for a special needs child this can be further damaging.
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You have successfully joined our subscriber list and can now access the FREE RESOURCES LIBRARY!
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Home-schooling is a fantastic way to learn and of course the benefits outweigh the cons, but you have to look at works best for your family. Once my son started his new school, his behaviour, learning and outlook completely changed and ultimately, we Plan, but Allah is the best of planners.
Our journey may have been tough at times, but Allah led us to the place that was best for him and taught me that education is everywhere.
Author Bio
Sal Shah is a special educational needs mentor from Surrey, in the UK. She has a background in journalism and communications, and recently has recently undertaken training with the National Autistic Society and IPSEA. She also volunteers at a local specialist school in the UK and hopes to start her teacher training in 2021. Sal is highly passionate about special educational needs and ensuring all children can access the education they deserve. Sal helps mentor parents by providing them with information regarding diagnosis and where to receive further support. She also advises parents in regards to what to do if there are issues at school or with the local authority. Her ultimate goal is to empower parents so they are prepared for their childrens future. You can find out more about Sal and the services she provides on her website.
Wasn’t that wonderful! SO real and honest!
Thank you Sal, for sharing your insight with us all about homeschooling children with special educational needs.
I pray that this valuable piece finds the families that need it most. Ameen.
Peace and Love,
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The new school year is here and homeschool prep is at the forefront of our minds. This may be your first homeschool year and you’re wondering how to get started. How can you homeschool if you’ve never done it before? These 5 essential steps will show you how to homeschool easily throughout the year!
We often start the year with good intentions, meticulous plans and well-prepared resources. However, after a few weeks, we risk the ‘homeschool slump’ when the enthusiasm dips and the good intentions we started out with are difficult to maintain. With these 5 key steps, you’ll be in control of your homeschool life!
This blog-post contains affiliate links. Please see Disclaimer for more information.
1. Work out your daily rhythm
To discover how to homeschool in the best way possible you must realise that everyone is different. There is no one correct way to do things, so spend some time figuring out what works best for you and your family.
During the day, structure your homeschool subjects in a way that makes the most sense for your child. If your children are more focused in the morning, get the difficult topics (like maths) out of the way first. If your children start to get a little tired around early afternoon, use that time for gentle and relaxing Poetry Time.
Figuring out what works best will go a long way in keeping your days as stress-free as possible. Your rhythm may change throughout the year – you might enjoy Poetry Time over breakfast! And that’s fine. If you pay attention to how your children respond to their subjects, you’ll know instinctively when and how you need to change things up.
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2. Establish morning and evening routines
Even before you start homeschooling, it’s a good idea to get your whole family into a routine for each day. Routines are very different from schedules! Schedules can be restrictive by dictating what gets done and for how long, and if you have a bad day (and let’s be honest, the reality of homeschooling is things rarely go according to plan!) then the whole schedule can fly out of the window leaving you more stressed and unorganised than before!
Routines are different. Routines tell you what order to do things. This gentle structure is very helpful for children in keeping them grounded and focused. They are able to relax by anticipating what comes next in their day – whatever time that may be!
Incorporate a routine in the morning before you start school. For example, your children have to make their bed, eat breakfast, help clear the table and then get their school things out.
When it comes to the evening, nothing helps kids wind down for a good night’s sleep like a stable evening routine. As mothers, we are used to using a bedtime routine to help babies sleep through the night, but older children benefit from a bedtime routine just as much. For example: Once they finish their work for the day, they can put away their school things, eat dinner, clear the table, tidy up their toys, have a bath, read in bed, and then lights out.
A routine is the perfect way to add structure to your day without the restrictions of a tight schedule that can easily go off track.
Chores are something we all hope and pray we can implement with our children, but day after day we find ourselves overwhelmed with housework and it seems like no one is helping! When trying to homeschool, it can be extremely difficult to focus on enjoying the time educating your kids when a long list of chores is distracting you.
By distributing manageable chores across your children, you achieve a number of things:
⭐It’s less stressful for you when you know certain things are taken care of.
⭐It instils a sense of responsibility amongst your kids.
⭐They develop a meticulous love and care of their home and bedroom.
⭐Home economics is an extremely valuable homeschool subject. Giving your children chores will teach them life skills which will prove to be priceless in their older years.
Consider adding ‘Chore Time’ to your daily routine so you can better relax and focus on quality time with your children.
Sign up for our FREE Resources Library!
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4. Plan your meals
Staying with the theme of organisation, meal planning goes a long way in keeping you in control. I talk about how to implement meal planning into your homeschool in my podcast: Raising Mums – Run Your Home Like A Boss
By knowing the week’s menu, you can plan your shopping ahead of time and only buy the items you need each week. This way, you save money and reduce the amount of food that goes to waste!
Get your children involved by asking them which meals they would like to have. Your older children could even help prepare a meal each week. This is a great opportunity for them to learn those all-important life skills!
I use a fantastic online meal planning tool called PLAN TO EAT. If you would like to try it out, they are currently running a30-day FREE TRIAL!
Planning is essential when homeschooling. You need to have an idea what you will use each day, otherwise you find yourself constantly frazzled trying to get resources ready on time.
It can be very easy to fall down the ‘homeschool rabbit hole’ when looking online. The longer you search the more excited are to try every curriculum and every downloadable resource you can find. Whilst this is thrilling at first, after a while you quickly become burnt out by the amount of activities, eBooks, and videos you have at your disposal.
Sign up for our FREE Resources Library!
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Thank you!
You have successfully joined our subscriber list and can now access the FREE RESOURCES LIBRARY!
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It’s impossible to predict what your entire year has in store for you, but you can find the balance between structured organisation and having freedom to change things when you need to:
⭐Yearly: Each year, have a loose plan for how you will homeschool. This plan includes books you will read, Maths and Phonics programmes, Science and History topics, etc.
⭐Every 6 weeks:This is where you can be more detailed. Using the topics and programmes you’ve already chosen, plan 6 weeks in detail. Which subtopics will you cover? Which pages of those books do you need? Which activities and worksheets need to be prepared? Gather everything together and note down your plan so each day your mind is clear, and you know exactly how to homeschool that day.
Remember, you can’t possibly do everything! So, pick the topics you want and prepare the activities you can realistically get done.
When it comes to homeschooling, countless people have plenty of advice! We all need help from other homeschool mums, so please share your advice in the comments below.
What steps do you find essential when starting your homeschooling year? How do you homeschool successfully?
Share with us in the comments below!
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