Homeschooling Laws

Good Rules to Follow

While you need to make sure you follow the homeschooling laws for your state, teaching your children at home is no longer a "novelty."

I have been home schooling for so long, that I can remember the "old days" when we were warned not to go out in public during school hours :)!

I can remember my children being "grilled" by store clerks when we told them we homeschooled..."Who was the 21st president of the United States?"..."What books are you reading?"..."You can read - can't you?"

Thankfully, those days are over. It seems that everybody knows somebody that homeschools now, so we don't have to go through those situations anymore!

Even though my children aren't "grilled" by store clerks anymore and of course, we follow all of the legal rules, we still go by some rules that are good to follow.

First, I never let my children run around the neighborhood by themselves during school hours. My children are older now and occasionally my 14-year-old wants to jog around our subdivision for exercise.

The answer is, "No." He must wait until at least 2:00 pm so we don't raise any eyebrows. Pretty much everyone in the neighborhood knows we homeschool, but you never know when someone may decide that home schooling just isn't good and think it's their duty to report us.

So...don't let your children run around your neighborhood unsupervised during school hours.

The same thing goes for field trips and shopping trips during school hours. Keep your children with you at all times. While your busy picking up some groceries, don't let them go by themselves to the toy section.

As a general rule, don't spank your children in public. I am a firm believer in discipline, but whether you home school or not, people will report you for this.

If you spank your children - wait until you get home. If you are reported for spanking your children in public and the Department of Human Resources discovers you homeschool - you may have problems. Don't give your neighbors any reason to report you. Even if your children are young and finish school in record time, don't let them play outside for hours without being outside with them.

To your neighbor, who thinks homeschooling is "weird", this is a great opportunity to turn you in for "not really teaching your kids."

As I said, because I have been a homeschool mom for 16 years, I can remember having to be really careful about not attracting attention. Homeschooling laws are much more relaxed these days, but it is always good to follow some common sense and keep a low profile.