Welcome, new, future and potential homeschoolers!

We are so excited to have you join us in what may be the greatest adventure of your lifetime!  Is it scary to contemplate beginning to home educate your children?  YOU BET!  However, the reality is that you have alot good company and great resources to support you.  They can help you achieve results beyond your wildest hopes & dreams.  Also, I believe that you already have the internal skills to accomplish your goals:

• an enjoyment of your children's company (most of the time!)
• curiosity, wonder & excitement about the world around you
• the desire to impart that curiosity & love of learning to your children
• a moderate amount of discipline (for them) and self-discipline (for you) --
  we're talking about something akin to self-employment here.
• time to give to your children
• the ability to read

While homeschooling is not for every family, it may be just the ticket for yours.  It's not easy, but it may be the most pleasurable work you've ever done.  Although the pay is terrible, the rewards are incalculable.

Here are some things that you can do to make your launch a successful one:

• Read alot about homeschooling.
  
  On this website you can access lot of helpful information for newcomers behind these buttons:
  
  --Bibliography
  --NHERI
  --Why Homeschool?
  --FAQ's
  --Curriculum Resources
  
  The curriculum guides mentioned there (by Mary Pride, Cathy Duffy & Debra Bell), also contain basic, but thorough and wise information on subjects that may still be a mystery to you, such as:
  
  --determining & accomodating your children's learning styles
  --different styles of homeschooling & finding the one that fits your family's learning style
  --sorting through the 100's of curriculum
     (or designing one yourself -- this is easier to accomplish after your first year)
  --setting goals
  --assessing progress
  --recordkeeping
  --finding a balance between learning & real life demands
  --preventing "burn-out"
  
  Here is an online article you may find helpful:  "How to Start Homeschooling in 8 Easy Steps" by Gail Felker, that appeared in the Jan / Feb 2000 issue of Homeschooling Today Magazine.
  
  
• Buy, beg or borrow a copy of the booklet, "First Things First" (click to order), published by Families for Home Education (FHE).
  
  This booklet has been designed specifically for new homeschoolers and for homeschoolers new to our the state of Missouri. It has TONS of valuable information, and most importantly will tell you how to set up your homeschool to conform with Missouri state laws, thereby avoiding unnecessary encounters with public authorities.
  
  At the same time, check into what FHE does for you as the largest & oldest statewide organization to establish, promote and protect homeschooling. Membership is FREE!
  
  
  
• Find out where your closest local support group is, who their contact person is, and CALL THEM!
  
  This link will help you find your FHE Regional Director, who can refer you to your local support group. Christian Home Educators Fellowship (CHEF) and Missouri Association of Teaching Christian Homes (MATCH) can also connect you to their affiliated support groups.
  
  Get your kids started right away, even before they start homeschooling, attending group events, making friends. They can keep their previous school friends (at least the ones you can tolerate!), but they will need some homeschooled friends to feel normal and proud of being a homeschooled kid. They are taking on a new identity. If you find after several events, that this support group doesn't fit your family well, then try another one, and keep trying until you find a good fit. Our responsibility as homeschool teachers is to provide social and recreational experiences for our students, in addition to academic ones. I have seen "failure to thrive" in kids deprived of enough time to play with their friends. I have even seen some homeschools fail over this issue.
  
  The secret is that the homeschool teacher will get as much pleasure and education from these groups as her kids, but we can pretend that we're doing it all for them.
  
  
  
• Consider checking out the following pages in this website and others about:
  
  --Missouri Law related to Homeschooling
  
  --Reprint of an article from the MVHA Newsletter, that offers suggestions for new homeschoolers, that were solicited from all our members at the time it was published.
  
  --Reprints of two articles about the importance of recordkeeping
  
  --Ideas for & samples of Recordkeeping according to Missouri Legal Requirements.
  
  --Beware!  And, read these reprints of two FHE articles about repeated attempts by the public school to collect information from homeschoolers (maybe you?) that you do NOT have to provide! Public Schools will often try to obtain this information from parents at the time they are removing their children from public school. It is recommended that you contact your FHE Regional Director before signing any forms provided by the school when removing your child from public school. Also, I recommend never giving out any information to the public school system about other homeschoolers you know, no matter how friendly and helpful the public school officials may seem.
  
  
  
• Before removing your child from a Public or Private School, create a letter (click to see or download the letter recommended by FHE) informing the school of your intention to remove your child to homeschool.
  
  By notifying them in writing, you relieve the Public School of the responsibility to send a truant officer to your home. FHE has a sample letter (click link above) available for your reference, which you may also download from their site.
  
  
  
• Do as much research as you can stand, before purchasing a curriculum.
  
  Yet know that you will probably find fault with it anyway, and choose a different one the following year!  But, getting as close as you can to a fit will make for a happier school year for all concerned.  While custom designing a curriculum for each child may be the ideal way to go in the long run, the truth is that first year, you probably will not have enough information, self-confidence and energy to pull it off.  I recommend that first-year homeschoolers find a curriculum that fits best (including fitting your budget), and then focus their energy on making the transition (shifting gears) from play to more guided learning experiences, or from public school to homeschool (called by some "de-institutionalization").  Just learning this new style of living, and experimenting with new styles for everything will keep you & your kids busy enough!  A complete curriculum will allow you to relax about whether the kids are getting what they need academically, which will worry you more at first, as incredulous family & friends turn their magnifying glasses on you, than it will later.
  
  Remember:  Cathy Duffy, Mary Pride & Debra Bell, mentioned above, are the "Cliff's Notes" of curriculum research. For those looking for a Secular Curriculum, check Mary Pride's book first. There are Catholic, Mennonite, Muslim, Waldorf, Secular and many other specialized homeschool curriculums out there.
  
  Check out the "Curriculum Resources" button on this website for much information with clickable links.
  
  Check out the "Homeschool Resources" page on the FHE website.
  
  There is a homeschool bookstore, The Homeschool Sampler, in St. Louis (Kirkwood) where you can practically drown yourself in information, and view "hands-on" a number of Christian Curriculums. I recommend freezing your credit card in a block of ice before you visit.
  
  The Rainbow Resource Catalogue is practically an encylopedia of all the best general books about homeschooling and many more. (I am still trying to get their contact information.)
  
  Try to arrange it so that your curriculum materials arrive at least two weeks before you want to start school, so that you will have time to get familiar with them, and will have time to create lesson plans (that is, if you are not "Unschooling", using the curriculum-free approach). If you should decide to Unschool (refer to homeschooling literature by John Holt), I recommend consulting with your local support group leader and/or your FHE Regional Leader for advice about recordkeeping, which can more challenging for Unschoolers, but very critical, in case of a legal challenge. You are living & educating in the "Show-Me State" !
  
  Take it easy with pre-schoolers & kindergarteners, whose main job at this time is to learn through play. Attempts at education should be so informal with them as to blend unnoticably into their day. You are not required  by Missouri law to begin formally educating your child and recordkeeping until the school year (you determine when it starts & ends) during which they will turn 7 y.o., even though you may choose to get serious about formal education before then.