How to Temporarily Homeschool
I get tons of questions about how to start homeschooling. I’ve talked about how we got started homeschooling in the past and shared some helpful tips for beginning your own homeschooling journey, including discovering your homeschooling philosophy, finding your child’s learning style, and exploring curriculum options.
However, if you’re really just looking for information about how to get started homeschooling for a short period of time, this article is for you. For those of you who maybe aren’t in it for the long haul, for the parents just trying to survive the school year, here’s everything you need to know.
What You Need to Homeschool Temporarily
If you’re not planning to homeschool forever, the questions you have and the goals for your child will be different. For one thing, you are probably worried about keeping up with the public school because you plan for your children to go back to school in the future. If that’s the case, you want your children to be prepared. You want your children to thrive when they go back to school, so what can you do now to homeschool in a way that will help them when they return to a school setting?
Choosing the right curriculum is going to be critical to keeping up with the public school schedule and keeping your sanity as you homeschool this school year. Here are the things you need to look for in a homeschool curriculum:
Open & Go Curriculum
You don’t want to spend hours putting activities together and planning games. Choose a curriculum that’s easy to use. Choose a program that you can just open and begin using, without a lot of extra prep.
Minimal Investment
Don’t spend lots of money on a curriculum you only plan on using for a short period of time. You’re likely to be frustrated if you purchase an expensive curriculum and only use it for a few months or one year. Look for curricula that are budget-friendly.
Streamlined
Look for curriculum options that are streamlined and minimalistic in nature. You don’t want something with lots of moving parts and manipulatives. You don’t want tons of books all over the place. You’re looking for a curriculum that’s all contained in one or two books, making it easy to use and simple to keep up with.
Follow State Standards
Let me begin by stating that I personally don’t believe children can fall behind in learning. However, I do understand the desire to keep your child learning the same things as their public school peers. If your plan is to return to public school, it’s important to keep your children learning the same things. Choose a curriculum that follows the state standards for learning so your child can go back to the school system without being behind.
My Favorite Curriculum for Temporary Homeschoolers
Currently, I think Evan Moor’s grade-specific homeschool bundle is a fantastic option for checking all the boxes this school year if you’re planning to return to a public school setting in the future. All of the books are amazing fun, plus they’re open & go.
The grade-specific bundle includes reading, writing, languages, spelling, math, science, and social studies. We had lots of fun with the history pockets book! These books hold your hand through the entire homeschooling process, so they’re perfect for families trying to homeschool through COVID or any other emergency that may have caused you to homeschool temporarily.
The Evan Moor books are affordable and follow the state standards. The books are set up to be completed over 36 weeks, the same as a traditional public school year. Also, the teacher portion is inside the book so everything you need is contained in each individual subject book.
Plus, currently, Evan Moor is giving away a homeschool planner when you buy the grade-specific bundle. The planner includes everything you need to organize your homeschool year. It even tells you where you need to be at the end of each week to stay on track! The helpful checklists for each subject make it perfect for paper-clipping to the front of each book and just checking it off as you go.
Even if you choose a different homeschool curriculum this year, I hope the helpful tips I’ve shared with you don’t just help you survive this year of temporary homeschooling, I hope you thrive! Don’t hesitate to ask questions or share your thoughts in the comments, I’d love to help you in any way I can and welcome you to homeschooling, even temporarily.