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Answering Your Homeschooling Middle School Questions

You asked, and we are answering your homeschooling middle school questions!

Not too long ago, many of you answered a question from our Facebook page:

“If you could ask a seasoned homeschooler any question about homeschooling middle school, what would it be?” 

Without further adieu, here are your questions about homeschooling middle school, along with comprehensive answers, links to helpful information, and much more!

homeschooling middle school - answers to your questions

Answering Your Homeschooling Middle School Questions

1. What grades are considered middle school? Is it really necessary to separate grades?

The question about what grades are designated as middle school is a common one. As a general rule, grades 6-8 are considered middle school. However, many schools consider middle school to be 7th and 8th grades. First through sixth grade are considered elementary school while ninth through twelfth grades are the high school years.

Back in the day, as you likely know (especially if you read the Little House on the Prairie books), all grade levels learned in a small one-room school!

As homeschoolers, the designation of grade levels is not something on the “must-do” list. It isn’t unusual to find variance and flux in the grade level of a homeschooled student. You might have a student who is ahead in some subjects, for instance, and who isn’t on the same grade level in every subject.

The freedom you have in a homeschool family, whether you’re homeschooling middle school students only or teaching a wide age range, is that as long as you check all the boxes by the time your child graduates from high school, you have flexibility in how you go about it. If that means you ignore the “middle school” category and call it something different, as long as your children are learning what they need to be learning, that’s perfectly fine.

homeschooling middle school - mother and tween daughter in front of laptop

2. When homeschooling multiple kids, how do I find the time for my middle school-aged student?

The age-old question of balancing time. Homeschooling multiple children is definitely a juggling act. When you are homeschooling, a primary goal as you work toward middle and high school should be independent learning where you become more of a sideline pinch hitter and less the hand that does it all.

That being said, if you have younger children who require much of your time and cause it to be difficult to spend enough time working with your middle schooler, here are some ideas on how to work around it:

  • How to Care for Toddlers While Homeschooling
  • When you have younger students, try organizing your schedule so they can be engaged in something independent (an educational movie or reading time, a puzzle of some kind, some curriculum work, or a workbook they can do on their own) to give you a block of time for homeschooling middle school children.
  • Choose a less hectic time of day. Maybe your homeschooling middle schooler is an early riser (or a night owl). Use that time to your advantage by spending that time with him or her one-on-one while the others are not up and about yet.

3. Does the curriculum have to greatly increase for middle school?

Yes and no.

The depth of the work a middle school student is doing should be deeper and more challenging than that of the elementary years. As far as the number of subjects, it doesn’t have to be more, but if your student is capable, and /or interested, there are things that can be added.

Your base subjects are still the same: math, science, language arts, history, art, and PE.

Things you might add could be a foreign language, practical arts (or life skills), music (singing or an instrument), or some other topic of interest.

homeschooling middle school - teenage boy working at desk

But the primary jump comes in high school when you add electives into the mix.

An important thing to focus on while homeschooling middle schoolers is working toward independent learning through making important life skills part of your homeschooling, such as time management, critical thinking, goal setting, etc.

4. As my kids get into middle school, how should I grade?

Grading is a very personal and individual thing. If you grade every assignment, every day, and you are teaching several children at multiple grade levels, you might find it becomes time-consuming and tedious. One option is grading only your kids’ tests, quizzes, reviews, etc. This can be a great way to evaluate what your children are learning and how well they learning it without having to grade every problem and every paper.

You know your child better than anyone. You know what areas they are strong in and where they need help. Having a specific grade for every bit of work they do is not necessary, even in middle and high school. For each subject, you can choose a few key things to specifically grade and use as your guide. You can record these grades in any type of homeschool planner, spreadsheet, etc. that works for you.

What steps can I take to ensure my child can get into the college of his/her choice?

If your child is in middle school, you have some time yet. But by the time they reach high school, you’ll want a plan for the high school years outlining exactly how to graduate your homeschooler.

For now, as your child finishes each grade level, you should make sure to assign a grade to each of the courses completed and save any pertinent work for each subject as a portfolio of the work.  These things will serve as a solid record of your child’s accomplishments and grades.

As far as getting into college, as students progress into middle and high school, you will need to pop on the hat of a high school guidance counselor as you look specifically at what your child wants to pursue. Not only will the degree program matter but so will the college as far as expectations. Teaching time management and good study skills to your homeschooling middle schoolers will give them a foundation for learning how to learn. These will set them up for success in whatever they pursue.

5. What length of papers/essays should they be expected to write?

This is very subjective. Some parents focus more on grammar, spelling, and comprehension skills, leaving critical writing and formal essays until high school. Reading and comprehension are vital skills for middle school students to have. Check out some of the articles below for some help on writing and teaching kids to write.

6. How do I get my kids motivated about their work?

This starts by having encouraged a love of learning in your house, as well as a mindset that some tasks (i.e. schoolwork) are necessary, even if you don’t love them. As adults, we all do things we don’t love (laundry, cooking, going to work, etc.) but they are necessary tasks. Teaching kids from an early age that not everything is fun will go a long way to help them get through their work when they are not motivated.

Having a chore chart and reward system of some sort can help. Your homeschooling middle schoolers will learn the life skill of delayed gratification, finishing their tasks before moving on to the things they love. You might also ask yourself if they are protesting some task or school subject because they are struggling with understanding something. If so, that needs to be addressed.

You might also consider using incentives for getting things done. “If you do this really well, then you can skip the next assignment.” Find what your kids love and use that to your advantage. If your middle school daughter loves reading books (which is a great thing to love!) make sure that she finished her math goals before jumping into language arts.

homeschooling middle school - girl reading on couch

7. How do I find a balance between setting my son up for a successful future and letting him still be a kid?

Ah, yes. The “where a kid can be a kid” dilemma. This goes along with some of the time management, independent learning, and motivational things we have already talked about. If they were in school all day, that would allow much less time to be “a kid.”  At home, you can set up a routine including what you feel your child needs to set him or her up for the future, as well as time for him/her to be a kid and enjoy the freedom of doing kid things.

8. What changes do I need to make to ensure an easier transition as my child prepares for high school?

If you look back through this article, you’ll find a lot of links to our other articles, many of which have practical advice and helpful tips on these subjects. Also, make sure you visit our sister site, Weird Unsocialized Homeschoolers, which focuses on homeschooling middle school and high school.

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