I’m sooooo overwhelmed… How can I start?

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  • March 9, 2009 at 5:56 pm
    kelsymomof3
    Member

    OK so I have my son and my daughter to homeschool. My son will be preschool, and my daughter will be in 3rd this fall. I would like to start homeschooling this summer. My friend reffered me to the CM method. I love the concept but I’m so overwhelmed. What to do? Curriculums seem easier because its more step by step with whens and hows and all that stuff. I just don’t know where to start? How to teach? Its a really scary decision. Can anyone help me with this?

    March 9, 2009 at 6:45 pm
    csmamma
    Participant

    Hi Kelsy!

    So good to have you here! Have you read all the introduction pages and free e-books on this site? I suggest you start here.

    I wish that I would have come across “Simply Charlotte Mason” when I first started homeschooling. It would have saved me so many headaches and $ worth of curriculum.

    You are so blessed to have a friend that referred you this early on. Is she using CM methods then?

    Look forward to getting to know you more.

    Heather

    March 10, 2009 at 2:04 am
    richpond
    Participant

    Hey Kelsy,

    You are searching in the right place. This website has lots of great resources to start with. Like Heather suggested, look at the curriculum guide here to get a good start.

    I would also suggest going to your states homeschool curriculum fair. At the fair you can browse through all the different resources and weed out the stuff that wouldn’t work for your family. Before I go I like to look through lots of catalogs and have a list of items to look for at the fair. This helps me not to feel overwelmed with the “tons” of resources out there. I have saved a lot of time and money by seeing first hand the resources before I buy something.

    The thing to keep in mind is just to have good books, a loving, God honoring atmosphere in your home and a mommy that loves to be with her children…you can’t go wrong with that combination. All the other stuff is just icing on the cake.

    Glad you are here,

    Shelly

    March 10, 2009 at 4:09 pm
    Gem
    Participant

    Hi Kelsey – take a look at Queen Homeschooling Supplies. They offer CM packages and resources that really make things easy. I am doing CM with a preschooler and 3rd grader this year. They both use Queens Lang. Lessons books, we use math mammoth and focus on multiplication and geometry, we use a Queens book for cursive practice and picture study combined, and besides that we read good books every day (about history and science), do a little in our Book of Centuries and nature journal and play outside a lot. This is working great.

    I came to CM from a packaged curriculum (Oak Meadow) and I truly enjoy the freedom and CM is so much less expensive!

    My daughter would not have been happy with starting school in the summer, LOL. But if you start a read aloud schedule in the summer, you can get adjusted to a CM way of life and start math and cursive practice in the fall. This way you can ease in, and the kids will just think they are getting quality time with mom (which of course, they will be!).

    If you haven’t already, read the free ebooks here on SCM – Education is and Masterly Inactivity. You will learn alot.

    Don’t try to do too much. When in doubt, read aloud more and do less worksheets. Play outside. You will all be happy and learn!

    Good luck!

    Gem

    March 10, 2009 at 7:21 pm
    lynhallewell
    Member

    I really recommend Queen’s Homeschool too. They have some really helpful resources available. Have you looked at the curriculum guide on SCM? Here’s the link http://simplycharlottemason.com/planning/scmguide Also “getting started” would be a good section for you to read http://simplycharlottemason.com/basics/started

    Read through the free ebooks on here. If you are looking for a simple book to help you then try Catherine Levison’s “A Charlotte Mason Education.” It is inexpensive and is a really good, short, simple overview of how to home educate using the CM approach. It will help you get started and as you become more confident you can then move on to read the bigger Homeschooling series by Charlotte Mason

    March 16, 2009 at 2:38 am
    kelsymomof3
    Member

    How about the future for homeschooled kids? As an adult, I’m terrible with math. How will I be able to teach my child something I’m not great at? And what about college? How do homeschooled kids get into college and get high school diplomas.

    March 16, 2009 at 2:51 am
    missceegee
    Participant

    Take a deep breath! There are lots of resources available. Check out Prof. B Math, Systemath.com, teaching textbooks, math-u-see – all of these have video or computer teachers to help!

    A great site for reviews is homeschoolreviews.com

    You can do it! Pray and ask for lots of wisdom from the Lord.

    Check your state’s requirements online. Go to hslda.org to get started on the right path.

    Blessings,

    Christie

    March 16, 2009 at 5:59 am
    kelsymomof3
    Member

    The requirements are low…in the green requiring no notifications. So that makes it easier. 😀

    There is just soooooo much information out there.

    March 16, 2009 at 12:07 pm
    lynhallewell
    Member

    A great resource for math if you’re not too confident is Math-U-See.

    The best advice I was ever given was to review your homeschooling at the end of each school year. Check you are happy with the resources you are using and that your children are happy and learning. High school is still a way off. Lots of homeschoolers go on to college. Like Christie wrote, take a deep breath. Start taking pigeon steps before you try the huge strides or else you will become completely overwhelmed.

    When you first start out don’t try to do too much. Get an idea of how your children learn, what interests them etc. Read through this link http://simplycharlottemason.com/basics/started/transition/ follow the basic steps at first and then progress as you are more comfortable.

    Once you begin this journey you won’t look back 🙂

    March 16, 2009 at 1:52 pm
    Esby
    Member

    Welcome!!!

    It does seem overwhelming at first, but please be patient with yourself and realize that’s it wonderful to be able to ease into homeschooling. You don’t have to jump in over your head on the first day! 🙂

    Charlotte Mason style of learning is both gentle and challenging. Start with what appeals to you about the style. I recommend starting your summer studies with a wonderful read-aloud, lots and lots of time spent outdoors observing nature and getting exercise, perhaps start drawing from nature, and add poetry readings and clasical music to your lunchtime. That sounds like a nice way to start your homeschooling and a nice way to spend your summer.

    Again, welcome!

    March 16, 2009 at 8:19 pm
    kelsymomof3
    Member

    Thank you everyone so much for your encouragement and advice!!!

    April 15, 2009 at 2:00 am
    mommix3
    Member

    I was worried about math as well. It was always my worst subject in school. This is only our 2nd year homeschooling and I have learned more about math in these last two years than I did the whole k-12 years. And it has actually been one of the easier subjects for me to teach. It could be the curriculum that we use,I don’t know. But if I had been taught the way that I teach my kids, I could’ve gone a lot farther than I did. Take a deep breath, you’ll do just fine.. ((hugs))

    Angela

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