FAQs

What does it mean to homeschool?

• It means different things to different people. Some families try to duplicate school at home, complete with textbooks, report cards and field trips. For others it's teaching their child what they feel is important to learn at the same time meeting the basic standards each state requests.

How do I know what I should teach my child?

• Each state has standards for every grade level and every subject. Teachers are required to plan their daily lessons to teach their state standards for the grade they teach. Parents can do the same thing by printing out those same standards the public school teacher uses and design their daily lessons to teach those skills. Its even easier if the parent chooses a curriculum that is standard based, which most are. Everything in those package curriculum programs are usually designed to meet state standards. Most of the states have similar standards for each grade and subject. For example most standards state that a third grader will be able to perform multiplication facts up to 12.

What if my child wants to learn something I can't teach?

• Parents don't have to be the expert in every area. One of the most powerful learning experiences for a child is to have a parent learning with them. In today's world parents have access to an endless supply of resources to teach subjects they are not comfortable. There are correspondence courses, video classes, support groups, local tutors, community centers, colleges, and endless online classes in every subject.

What requirements do parents or guardians need to be able to homeschool?

• There are no specific state requirements to be a homeschooling parent or guardian in the state of Nevada. Homeschooling teachers have various backgrounds and levels of education. The greatest requirement is a high level of motivation and a desire to provide the best education possible for your child. The advantage of being a homeschooling teacher is that the method of achieving this goal can be based upon the childs interests and abilities and not an agenda that has been set for mass groups of children.

I am concerned that I will have personality conflicts while trying to teach my own child, is this a common concern?

• Being a homeschooling parent does have its trials and tribulations as with all forms of interactions. However, the rewards are substantial. For those children who have been in a traditional setting, a change to homeschooling may bring with it times of conflict as he or she is transitioning into a new learning environment. Even for parents and children who have been exclusively homeschooling, parents will have their doubts as to if their child is getting enough both academically and socially. Moments of doubt still affect those parents who have homeschooled for years. In time, though, any concerns eventually diminish and the benefits of homeschooling will become evident.