•Not required in Texas, but recommended. Especially for those in the military or other
careers that may require frequent interstate moves by the family.
•Daily lesson plans and yearly goals
•Records of educational activities (field trips, art, music, etc….)
•Permanent folder for each child, including school records, attendance, health records,
samples of work done, and extra-curricular classes attended, etc…
•Pictures of projects too big to keep.
•Annual written progress assessment report for Language Arts, Mathematics, Social
Studies, and Science.
•If your students will be tested using a nationally standardized testing program, keep
records of these tests and scores.
Choosing Teaching Materials
Choosing teaching materials can be an overwhelming task because there are so many excellent products available and each one claims to be superior to all others. Many veteran home schoolers suggest that you stick to a "prepackaged" traditional curriculum for the first year or so. Others encourage new home schoolers to consider correspondence schools. We do not completely agree with these recommendations, because for many it seems to perpetuate a mentality of home schooling as being "school at home" instead of an exciting lifestyle of learning. We know that it takes some experience to determine which materials are best suited to your teaching style and your children's needs, but we are also convinced that the Lord can lead concerned parents to the teaching materials and methods that work best for their family. ...read more
From HSLDA – Getting Started Tips:
Homeschooling is rewarding, but hard work. You’ll need friends and resources along the way. Here are a few ideas to get you started on your homeschooling journey:
1 Get Plugged In
Join your local and state support groups, participate in local homeschool events, and talk with veterans who can show you the ropes. Our homeschool organizations listing is a good place to start.
Most of us who home-school strive to give our children positive experiences with relationships and try to limit their exposure to people and circumstances that reinforce teen rebellion. So why, in home-schooling families, do we have children who begin to pull away from their parents as they reach puberty? I have watched this happen time after time in close-knit Christian families, and I have also seen the stress this causes between parents and children. Even when the child-parent relationship seems strong, children can begin to develop a sense of "otherly- ness" when they reach the teen years, and too often parents interpret this "pulling away" as rebellion or rejection. ...read more
What You Need to Know About Homeschooling Before You Start
(from Sonlight Curriculum)
The Benefits and Disadvantages of Homeschooling
So you're trying to figure out whether homeschooling will work for your family or not, right?...read more
Are you new to home schooling?
Or just considering home schooling?
This page has some information that we hope will be of help to you. Scroll down for some great articles!
Some helpful web-sites for first time homeschoolers:
•www.heir.org: Home Education Information Resource.
•www.hslda.com: Home School Legal Defense Association
•www.thsc.orgTexas Home School Coalition
•www.crosswalk.com. Click on “family”, then “homeschool”.
If you are new to home schooling or just need some encouragement, you may want to be a part of our mentoring program we call Navigators.
Laurie Pollock will be glad to match you with one of our more experienced home school families. She tries to match families based on things like the number of years in the area, ages of children, special needs, military, etc. Her number is 940.696.3108
Texas Home School Coalition
http://www.thsc.org/defaultpage.asp
One of the benefits of membership is legal assistance when faced with problems related to home education. The Association’s full time staff gives prompt and vigorous attention to the needs of member families when they have been contacted by local government officials challenging the right of the family to home school. These experienced staff members intervene with government officials by phone, in writing and/or with legal counsel to end the confrontation and confirm the right of the parents to teach their children at home.
In addition, the helpful resources in the THSC Association online store may be purchased at 10% off the regular prices. Members can also take advantage of special prices on magazines, programs, and services from different benefit providers.
Need information about Standardized Testing? Click here.
Below are portions of the Texas Education Code which deal with compulsory attendance. Home schools are exempt from compulsory attendance according to Section 25.086(a)(1) because they have been determined by the Texas courts to be private schools. Included are the portions of greatest interest to Texas home educators. Read the Texas Education Code. --http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes/docs/ED/content/htm/ed.002.00.000025.00.htm#25.085.00
Sec. 25.085. Compulsory School Attendance.
(a) A child who is required to attend school under this section shall attend school each school day for the entire period the program of instruction is provided.
(b) Unless specifically exempted by Section 25.086, a child who is at least six years of age, or who is younger than six years of age and has previously been enrolled in first grade, and who has not completed the academic year in which the child's 18th birthday occurred shall attend school.
(c) On enrollment in pre-kindergarten or kindergarten, a child shall attend school.
Sec. 25.086. Exemptions.
(a) A child is exempt from the requirements of compulsory school attendance if the child:
(1) attends a private or parochial school that includes in its course a study of good citizenship...
(5) is at least 17 years of age and:
(A) is attending a course of instruction to prepare for the high school equivalency examination; or
(B) has received a high school diploma or high school equivalency certificate...
Legal Defense—Home School Legal Defense Association
HSLDA provides legal representation at no additional cost above your membership fee should you ever need legal defense of your homeschool. Go to www.hslda.com for information on becoming a member. For a yearly fee of $100.00 (less if you join as part of a group). They also provide the Home School Court Report to keep you up-to-date on anything that might affect your homeschool. This is highly recommended. (540) 338-5600. Check with a THSS board member to find out if we have a group membership available.
