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by Michelle Kretzschmar
www.diycollegerankings.com
Is it legal?
Who do I have to register with or report to?
What is a letter of intent?
Is there a required curriculum?
Does the school district have to approve my curriculum?
Do I have to have specific qualifications to homeschool?
Do I have join a homeschool group?
What are the different kinds
of homeschool groups?
Will my child have to take the TAKS?
Do I have to test my child?
Will my child receive a diploma?
Can I deduct the costs of homeschooling from my taxes?
How do I withdraw my child from school?
Where can I get curriculum?
How do I pick curriculum?
Do I have to keep attendance?
Can I hire
someone to teach my child for me?
Can my child go out during the day?
What
should I do if a truant officers knocks on my door?
Can my child go to college?
What if I want to send my child back to
public school?
Can I get special education services for my child through the school?
How much does it cost?
What is a statement of faith?
What is the difference between inclusive and exclusive groups?
Can
my child play football with the local high school?
Do I have to keep Records?
What is
Decomposition/Deschooling?
How will I know if
they are learning?
How Can I teach what I
don’t know?
Will my child be truant if I do not have a curriculum before I start
homeschooling?
Who do I have to register with or report to?
You do not have to register with your local school district or with
any government organizations. As a private school, you are not subject
to any regulations regarding public schools.
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A letter of intent is a letter that states that you are educating
your child at home and that you are providing "a curriculum designed to
meet basic education goals of reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics
and a study of good citizenship." A letter of intent is not required for
withdrawing your child from school although it can be used to meet any
requests from the school district.
School districts which become aware of a student who is potentially
being home schooled may request in writing a letter of notification from
the parents of the student regarding their intention to home-school the
student. This letter may require assurances that the home-school
curriculum is designed to meet basic education goals including reading,
spelling, grammar, mathematics, and a study of good citizenship. Please
note that a letter of this type is not required each year (from
the April 20, 2004 Commissioner's Home School Policy Letter)
You may want to provide a letter of intent when you withdraw your
child from school to provide any necessary assurances.
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You must follow a curriculum that is "designed to meet basic
education goals including reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics, and a
study of good citizenship." This does not have to be a packaged,
commercial curriculum.
Homeschooling Methods:
Charlotte Mason
Homeschooling Methods:
School at Home/Structured
Homeschooling Methods: Waldorf
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No. The school, nor any other state organization, has authority to
review or approve your curriculum. You do not to have your curriculum
before you withdraw you child from school. Your child will not be
considered truant since he will no longer be enrolled in school.
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No. You do not have to a teaching certificate, college degree, or
high school degree.
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No. You have no legal obligation to join a homeschool group. Many
homeschoolers join groups for support and group activities. Anyone may
form a homeschool group for support.
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No. The TAKS test as well as any other state mandated tests do not
apply to homeschoolers. You may download previous years tests from the
TEA website to administer yourself. You may also pay to take national
achievement tests such as the Iowa or Stanford.
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No. The State of Texas does not require any testing of
homeschoolers. Some homeschools do test their children with programs
such as Iowa Testing Program to measure their progress, but this is a
personal choice.
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If you provide one. The state will not provide a diploma. As a
private school you award your own diploma.
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No. Just because you choose not to use the public school does not
mean that you can somehow "recover" the money you spend in school taxes.
We all pay for government services that we don't use.
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According to the Commissioner's Home School Policy Letter "Students
should be disenrolled by school officials when they receive written
notice either by signing withdrawal forms or sending a letter of
withdrawal. It is not necessary for the parents to make a personal
appearance with school officials or present curriculum for review." You
can send a letter of intent by register mail so that you have proof the
school received it. You should also bring paper and pen and record the
name of everyone you deal with for future reference.
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You can purchase curriculum online, through local homeschool book
stores, or used curriculum sales. You do not have to purchase
curriculum. You can design your own using your local library resources
and free resources. Most museums and organizations that have education
outreach, have material that is aligned to state or national curriculum
standards. You do not have to purchase curriculum before withdrawing
your child from school. Your child will not be truant since she is no
longer attending the public school.
Curriculum Resources
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There are a bewildering number of options to choose from. You can use
the state's
Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills curriculum as a guide which is
available on the TEA website. I've written more on this at
"I've Decided
to Homeschool--now what?"
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No. There is no minimum number of days you are required to homeschool
or any set number of hours during the day.
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Yes. In Texas you are a private school and you can consider it the
equivalent of hiring a teacher.
There are a variety of daytime curfew laws across the state. There is
no problem if you are accompanying your child. In general, these curfews
do not allow children outside their house alone during school hours
unless their school is not in session. You will need to check the
ordinances in your locality.
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The truant officer can only enter your house if he has a warrant of
you give him permission. You have the right to ask for the request in
writing. You do not have to let him talk to your children. Visit the
THSC website for
specific information on what to do in such a situation.
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Colleges accept homeschoolers. You will have to provide your own
transcripts or portfolio for your student. Your student may still have
to take a college entrance exam such as the ACT or SAT. Some community
colleges allow homeschoolers to enroll in dual credit classes. Entrance
requirements vary by college but many actively recruit homeschoolers.
Homeschooling and Higher Education
5 Elements Homeschoolers must have
on their High School Transcripts
Do It Yourself College
Rankings
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According to the Commissioner's Home School Policy Letter" Students
transferring from home schools should be afforded the same treatment as
students transferring from unaccredited private school." What ever
method the school uses to place students from unaccredited private
schools should also be used for assessing and placing your child in the
public school.
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It depends. Districts used to provide some special education services
regardless of a child's enrollment status. Section 25.086 of the
education code states that:
(b) This section does not relieve a school district in which a child
eligible to participate in the district’s special education program
resides of its fiscal and administrative responsibilities under
Subchapter A, Chapter 29, or of its responsibility to provide a free
appropriate public education to a child with a disability.
However, in recent years, schools have been deny homeschoolers
services, presumably with some legal basis to do so (remember, I'm not a
lawyer.)
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As much or as little as you want. There will be no shortage of
companies offering to sell you curriculum and supplies. Some packaged,
comprehensive curriculums with teacher support cost more than $1,000 a
year. Your local library card is free.
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Many homeschool groups are based on religious principles. They may
compile these principals into a single document referred to as a
statement of faith.
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Some homeschool groups restrict their membership based on religious
values or education philosophies. These groups are considered exclusive.
Groups that do not restrict membership are considered inclusive. There
are groups that have a statement of faith but allow people who don't
share their beliefs to participate.
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Not in Texas. While individual schools may allow homechoolers to
participate in some school extracurricular activities, the University
Interscholastic League (UIL) does not allow them UIL sanctioned
events. In other words, you wouldn’t be able to play in the games or
participate in the competition for any other activities. Homeschoolers
have set up their own teams to compete in baseball, basketball,
football, softball, track and field, and volleyball.
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No, not in Texas. But it’s probably a good idea to, especially if
you’ll be moving to another state or plan on returning to public
school. You don’t have to create a report card or transcript unless
you want to. At the younger ages, you know how your child did; do you
need a transcript to tell you? You might if she is applying for summer
academic programs. By high school, a transcript or portfolio
substitute is a requirement for virtually all colleges. There are lots
of ways to keep records but probably the most critical information to
keep is a list of textbooks used. If you have that, you can probably
create a transcript even three years after the fact.
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Decomposition or deschooling refers to the time period that many
children need after withdrawing from school to adjust to
homeschooling. Depending on the situation, some kids have been so
traumatized by their school experience that they’ll reject anything
that resembles school, including homework and tests. Others may take a
while to get used to mom (or dad) as the teacher and performing
without the threat of a poor report card. This period can be
especially important for kids who are leaving a toxic situation at
school. It’s important not to recreate the situation at home that was
causing problems in school.
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You can always test them. Some states require homeschoolers to be
tested or evaluated each year—not Texas. Just remember, testing isn’t
the only way to determine if a child is learning. Are they progressing
in their math book? Can they explain to you what they just read? Do
they attempt projects seen in videos or on the computer? This is a
natural feeling for you, “have I screwed up and they’ll be living
under a bridge for the rest of their lives?” In my case, these bursts
of panic, which happened every 9 to 12 month or so, ended up with me
printing out the seventh grade TAKS or similar test for my son to
take.
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There many possibilities. Learn it with your kids. Hire someone else
to teach it. Join a co-op so that they can learn from others. Take an
online course (the child, not you.) If it’s important enough, the kid
will probably learn it himself—people learn to read for all kinds of
reasons. Maybe it’s not as important as you think since you’ve managed
to go through life without knowing it.
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No. Truancy happens when a child enrolled in a public school doesn’t
show up for class. So if you child isn’t enrolled in public school,
what can she be truant from—your own homeschool? There are no set days
or hours for homeschooling in Texas. In other words, just because you
aren’t teaching on a certain day doesn’t mean that your child is
truant. Anyone who tries to tell you that your child will be truant if
you withdraw them from public school and don’t have your curriculum
yet is just trying to sell you curriculum.
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