So, you have decided to homeschool. Unless you have been around the homeschooling block a few times or are surrounded by homeschooling friends, you may be wondering, now what? There are so many things to consider and choices to make, from curriculum to classes to co-ops.
If you are new to homeschooling, you are most likely a bit overwhelmed and maybe even tempted to throw in the towel before you even get started. But homeschooling will be the best decision you make for your children’s education and future, and you can do it!
This three-part blog series will help you, well, figure out how to homeschool! That involves answering questions along the way, such as:
How does homeschooling work?
How do I homeschool my kids?
What are the benefits of homeschooling?
In Part I, we discussed how homeschooling works, including various forms and styles of homeschooling. In Part II, we answered the question, “How do I homeschool my kids?” In Part III, we’ll show you the MANY benefits of homeschooling!
What Are the Benefits of Homeschooling?
There are several benefits when it comes to homeschooling–benefits that you simply won’t find with any other type of learning. As a former homeschooling mom myself, I truly valued the flexibility homeschooling provided as well as the ability to customize my child’s education to how she learned best. But those are only the tip of the iceberg. Here are the many benefits of homeschooling:
Accommodation of Learning Styles
Every child learns differently. That’s why brick-and-mortar schools’ practice of cookie-cutter teaching is failing students more and more each year. Homeschooling allows you to build an education around your child’s learning style, which sets them up for success.
Accreditation
Accreditation demonstrates that an institution cares about the quality of the education it provides. How? By having its enrollment methods, staff qualifications, materials, resource allocation, program effectiveness, and more assessed annually. It shows that an institution is always seeking to improve its standards, quality, and systems. And that it has a history of reliability and trustworthiness. Accreditation guarantees a quality accredited education no matter where you live in the U.S. or abroad. This is important when it comes time to apply to colleges and universities or switch schools.
Grade-Level Flexibility
Your child is literally one of a kind. So it’s important to conduct in-depth placement testing to see where s/he excels and where s/he may need some extra help. Rather than just place a child in a specific grade level according to age, a program can be catered to your child to address their areas of opportunity and build on their strengths.
Overall Flexibility
By enabling you to determine the months and days that your child receives instruction, you’re empowered to create a truly customized school year. Homeschooling gives you the freedom to create flexible daily goals that allow your child to learn at a time and a pace that make the most sense for your lives. In addition, you have the flexibility to determine which subjects you focus on each day.
Why? Because sometimes children need more time in a particular subject in order to fully master a skill or concept. And your child certainly won’t get that kind of time in public or private school, where lesson plans and when they’re delivered must be strictly adhered to in order to finish the school year on time. Taking extra time in class to thoroughly explain or review a concept your child might not be grasping? Not going to happen. With homeschooling, you can take as much–or as little–time you need to ensure your child is fully understanding the lesson before moving on.
Choice of Curriculum
When homeschooling, it’s important to have your own choice of curriculum rather than stick with what some homeschooling partners recommend based on bias or financial agenda toward one particular curriculum. You should be free to choose from top curriculum publishers around the country to create a truly customized course of study.
Selection of electives. One of the greatest benefits of homeschooling is the ability to allow students to pursue their interests, gifts, and abilities. Look for a program that offers electives in music, art, foreign languages, and more.
Specialized tracks. Your child has unique goals and dreams. Recognizing that, make sure your homeschool program offers specialized academic tracks, including college prep, AP courses, and dual enrollment.
Performance
I’ll let the numbers speak for themselves…
87% of peer-reviewed studies on social, emotional, and psychological development show homeschool students perform better
98% of home-educated students engage in an average of five activities outside their homes
30% of homeschooled students typically score 15 to 30% higher than public school students on standardized academic achievement tests
25% of homeschooled students have enrolled a grade above their recommended grade as per age level
10% More homeschoolers graduated from college than public school students
The Benefits of Homeschooling with Bridgeway Academy
If you’ve decided to homeschool, congratulations! You’ve made a wonderful choice for your child’s future, no matter how you decide to homeschool. When you partner with Bridgeway Academy, however, you and your child get an even more rewarding experience thanks to our:
Support. Make no mistake…even the most experienced homeschoolers need support throughout the school year. Our caring, enthusiastic academic advisors are teachers and former homeschoolers who understand the challenges and rewards of homeschooling. They are available to answer questions on any subject and provide you with tips and techniques to better explain concepts to your child. Our resource-rich, members-only website and online tutorials round out our environment of support.
Teacher assistance. A good education involves more than just learning facts and memorizing formulas, which is why we have created Homeschool Instructor’s Guides for every course. Your Instructor’s Guide provides day-by-day pacing, notes to parents, and ideas to take learning further. From websites to interactive activities to hands-on projects and critical-thinking activities, we’ve done the planning for you.
Emphasis on learning styles. Bridgeway Academy has developed a unique learning and personality style assessment that gives you insight into how your child learns best. The results allow us to tailor curriculum to your child’s unique strengths and challenges to make learning fun and keep kids excited about what’s next!
Specialized academic tracks. Bridgeway offers technical/vocational, academic, college preparatory, honors and Advanced Placement, Dual Enrollment college courses, and the ability to receive an associate’s degree while still in high school!
Live online classes: For the student who learns best in a classroom environment that offers teacher-led instruction, discussion and participation with classmates, and a sense of independence, our Live Online program is the right choice. It includes full enrollment in Bridgeway Academy with up to seven live-instruction online courses. Plus all curriculum, full support, accreditation, assessments, placement testing, and membership in the Bridgeway Academy community.
Award-winning curriculum. Bridgeway gives homeschoolers of all ages the tools to become independent learners. That means a curriculum with built-in creativity, flexibility, fun, and individual challenges, along with easy-to-follow guides for both students and parents. And we’re proud winners of Homeschool.com’s Back to Homeschool Award for best all-in-one curriculum in 2021!
Innovation. Through learning centers, online platforms, publisher partnerships, teaching resources, and more, we are constantly innovating so your child receives the best education possible. As an example, check out Elephango.com, our online curriculum companion that offers a huge variety of interactive lessons based on learning and personality style. We bet you and your child will love it!
Reliability. We’ve been around for more than three decades and don’t plan on going anywhere—except wherever you need us to go.
I hope that this blog series has been helpful as you navigate the homeschooling path. To learn more about homeschooling with Bridgeway Academy (or homeschooling in general) or to enroll, call (800) 863-1474 today!