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4 Reasons Homeschooling High School Isn’t As Hard As You Think

My oldest daughter will be a junior this year, meaning we have survived two years of high school!

Now I know there are many of you amazing homeschool moms out there who have already graduated multiple children and you’re still homeschooling, and right now you’re rolling your eyes because you’ve been there and done that so many times my little two-year success story means nothing to you.

Homeschooling high school

I get that.  And kudos to you for your success!

But I also know there’s a mom out there, (no doubt more than one!) whose oldest child is maybe 8 and is struggling to read and she has a 5-year-old with a 6-second attention span and a toddler who likes to run through the house wreaking havoc the entire time she’s trying to teach the other two. Her body is exhausted and her brain is already hurting and that mama looks ahead to high school subjects like algebra and biology and she says, “Oh. My. Goodness. NO!  I don’t think I can do that!”

4 Reasons Homeschooling High School Isn’t As Bad As You You Think

And I know where she’s coming from.  Homeschooling high school, especially to the mom already feeling overwhelmed with the task of homeschooling younger children, can seem so impossible.  But as I can tell you from experience, it’s not as bad as you think.  Here are four reasons why:

1. High schoolers are able to do so much more of their work independently.

Listen, homeschooling a 16-year-old is very, very different from homeschooling a 6-year-old.  Both have their unique challenges of course, but remember that a teen is more likely to read better, to be a better self-motivator, and to stay on task longer than younger children.  That means they can work on their own far more and far better.

So stop imagining your homeschool of the future exactly as it is now, except with a taller child! It won’t be the same.  There will be difficulties, but they’ll be of a different nature, and you won’t have to stand over your teens working through every problem and every sentence with them.

2. More and more homeschool curriculum companies are offering high school courses designed with the less confident parent in mind.

Curriculum companies realize that not all moms and dads are mathematicians or a chemistry majors.  They also know that more and more homeschooling parents want their children to take more difficult college-prep courses.

But demand drives the market, even when you’re talking homeschooling curricula!  That means, of course, that curriculum companies are producing more high school courses that are both parent- and student-friendly.  Many of these offer great instructional videos and very helpful online or phone support, so you don’t have to feel so intimidated by higher math and science.

3. There are more resources available to help than you may realize.

The amazing homeschooling pioneers of the 70s and 80s homeschooled their children with unbelievably limited resources.  It should teach us all that homeschooling can be done and done well even under less-than-ideal circumstances.

But today the sources of help for homeschooling families are almost limitless.  Besides the wealth of materials available from homeschooling curriculum companies, public libraries, and homeschool groups and co-ops, the internet alone can connect you to a world of help and information.  Often a quick online search can yield articles, ideas, and videos galore to help your high schooler conquer any subject.

4. There is usually someone you can ask for help.

Sometimes pride or stubbornness (or both!) can keep us from asking for help when it’s available to us.  If you hit a tough spot with your high schooler and you have the money to do it, it’s okay to seek help from a tutor.

But often there are people close to us who can offer help, too, like the brother-in-law who is a math whiz or the man at church who teaches high school chemistry.  It’s okay to ask for help from people who might be able to give it.  Even if they don’t have the time or opportunity to help you themselves, they might be able to direct you to someone else who could.

Don’t be intimidated, Moms!  Homeschooling high school isn’t as difficult as you might think.  So relax.  Breathe.  Yes, it’ll be here before you know it, but there’s really no reason to fear those high school years.

Have you survived homeschooling high school?  What words of advice would you offer the mom feeling so intimidated by those high school years?

You May Also Like:

How to Survive Homeschooling Your Teenage Son

 

 

3 Ways to Plan for High School with Your Middle Schooler in Mind

 

 

 

Homeschooling High School with Your Child in Mind

 

Should You Homeschool Your College-Bound High Schooler?

 

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2 Comments

  1. What do you do when your 15 year old wanders around the house and is no longer interested in studying anything. You try to engage them and they either take all day to do a task or don’t do the task at all?

    1. I think you need to look into why this is happening. Is he/she depressed or having some kind of medical issue? If so, you need to get medical help. Most of us occasionally lose interest in doing tasks we don’t especially want to do (like a school subject that isn’t especially a favorite), but if your teen had been doing school well and with interest and has stopped doing that, you need to find out the reason for the behavior change. If it’s just a teen who’s being rebellious and refusing to do school work, that’s a different matter altogether. When my teens occasionally tried this, I had to have them complete all school work before being allowed to do fun things like visit friends, have screen time, and that sort of thing. I didn’t beg or nag at all. I just gave him/her a piece of paper with the assignments for the day written on it, and I let him/her know that I was available if he/she had questions or needed help. Then I left him/her to get the work done. If it didn’t get done, then leisure activities weren’t allowed until it did get done.

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