Homeschooling is one of the oldest forms of education in the U.S. On My Homework Done; you will find examples of homeschooled greats from Venus and Serena Williams, Condoleeza Rice, John Quincy Adams, Theodore Roosevelt, George Washington, and Andrew Jackson. Others include Thomas Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln Leonardo da Vinci, Alexander Graham Bell, and Albert Einstein, among many others. There's no shortage of examples of great people in society who went through homeschooling.
Today, there are over 2.3 million homeschool students in the country. However, teaching your high school teen at home isn't the same as homeschooling younger kids.
This guide offers essential tips on how you can successfully homeschool high schoolers.
1. Give your Teen a Voice in their Study Choices
Homeschooling for your younger child is easy because you are in control. Your kid takes up everything you and the tutor say, but things change when they grow up. Teens have an opinion on everything, and that includes their homeschooling curriculum.
You have to allow the student to make choices in the curriculum. When your high schooler chooses topics to study, they will be more motivated, and you will have an easier time handling them.
2. Give More Control over Time
One of the main advantages of homeschooling is flexibility. As a parent, flexibility applies to your schedule when handling a young child. However, for a teenager, such flexibility cuts both ways.
You have to give more control to the student on time. Time management comes in handy in college, and they need to start taking responsibility early enough.
By handing over more control to your teen, you can observe how good they are at time management. Your role is supervisory at this point to ensure they stick to the time planner.
3. Let Their Creativity Flow
Teenagers are passionate about what they love, and this will impact how and what they study. As a parent, you need to appreciate that this is no longer your small child but a young adult who has an idea about the future.
When making choices as a team, you have to give your teenage the room to exercise their passions. Some parents force their way into their teen's decisions at this point only to ruin an otherwise healthy relationship. You have to embrace the student's passion and show your support.
Their interest might not last long in any given activity, but this allows them to explore and finally find something they can do for the rest of their lives.
4. Prepare the Teen's for Opportunities
Your teen needs to start exploring further into the community as this opens their perspective. You should help them identify great opportunities, including volunteering, interning, talent shows, and other such activities.
The idea is to make the student learn the importance of participating in their community. Through such participation, your child might discover what they want to do in life, and they also start building networks.
5. Learn the High School Basics
Many parents don't realize that laws on homeschooling and requirements change regularly. Don't follow the same guidelines you used in high school but instead look at the up-to-date state homeschool laws and requirements for graduation.
Every state has unique regulations, and you have to learn them to ensure you prepare your child well. The HSLDA website is the best place to start if you want to prepare your teen well for high school and graduation.
Learn about the credits required, both academic and non-academic. Every subject has credit, and you should verify how many your teen needs to graduate.
Wrapping Up
Handling a teen and a young kid in homeschooling is different. You have to step up your game, learn about the regulations in your state, and accord more freedom to your child in the curriculum. Your teen can make choices, and your role is to guide them to ensure they make the right decisions.
