Can you be homeschooled in high school? This is a common question among homeschooling parents.
Are you considering homeschooling through high school. A lot of homeschoolers wouldn’t consider homeschooling high school children – the subject matter is pretty advanced, the teenagers may be a bit difficult to work with, and they might want to go to certain public high schools.
Considering the many curricula and resources available to homeschooling parents, subject matter shouldn’t be an issue anymore.
Of course, you will need to work with tutors at some points, just to make sure your children get a solid grasp of everything – but most textbooks and DVD packages allow you to teach as you learn. Couple that with the many reasons to homeschool high school students – such as being able to focus on whatever is relevant for their future careers – and you’ll soon notice that all the extra work is definitely worth it. All in all, the benefits of homeschooling high school children outweigh the disadvantages of a lack of expertise.
Teenage problems might still be a serious obstacle, however. There’s no easy way to go around it – your kids may have all sorts of issues, from smoking, to premature sexual experiences, or even choosing to close communication with you for a certain period of time. Being homeschooled in high school may also be perceived as not-so-cool by their friends, which may put additional pressure on their shoulders.
While the likelihood of that happening is less serious than if they went to public school, there’s still the possibility – and you want to be prepared for it when it comes.
Always communicating with your children is very important– and being honest is crucial. You want to tell them why they shouldn’t do certain things, and you shouldn’t do them yourself, either. Unless you’re willing to have an open conversation with your children, you’ll never be able to be their teacher.
If you want to be relaxed homeschooling high school children, you’ll need to be comfortable with each other when you’re not teaching, too. We’ll give you some guidelines on how to homeschool high school students, but you should know that most of the hard work will be on your shoulders.
How to Homeschool High School Students
9th Grade Homeschool
The first year of high school is very important. It’s now that you and your children make more informed decisions about their future careers – making sure on which subjects you’re going to focus is essential.
Homeschool 9th grade students: Cognitive and Social Development
As their bodies mature, your children’s minds begin to show signs of maturity, too. It’s during these years that they show stronger interest in the opposite sex, and sometimes a powerful drive towards being independent. While you need to allow your children some time away from you, it’s important to always know what they’re doing.
9th Grade Homeschool: Language
English in ninth grade has a lot to do with getting your children prepared for the more demanding later years of high school. It’s now that your children begin to fully understand literary concepts like themes, symbols, irony, and parallel structures. Using classical works of literature is essential in illustrating these concepts, and in teaching your children to be critical readers.
Ninth graders should also be familiar with narrative, expository and persuasive writing, as well as constantly develop their vocabulary. A first introduction to APA or MLA style guidelines won’t hurt, either.
Homeschool 9th grade students: Mathematics and Sciences
Ninth grade mathematics depends a lot on what your children is interested in. If they want to pursue a career in medicine, for instance, you might want to skip the most complex mathematical concepts out there.
As broad guidelines, your children should be familiar with algebra concepts such as irrational numbers, vectors and matrices. They should also be able to understand two and three dimensional geometric objects, and perform operations such as rotation, symmetry, and dilation.
Science skills also depend on your children’s interest. They should develop a solid understanding of the types of matter and its structural properties through different chemical and physical changes, they should understand the conservation of mass and energy, and they should be able to use research tools like and data collection tools, spreadsheets, and projectors.
10th Grade Homeschool
Tenth graders slowly become more focused on the particular skills that are relevant to their career of choice, without neglecting the rest of the curriculum.
Homeschool 10th grade students: Cognitive and Social Development
By the age of 16, your children’s personality will roughly be fully developed – socialization patterns such as how much time they choose to spend with friends, or the number of dependable friends they have, tend to remain constant.
However, tenth graders will still be prone to episodes of depression and loneliness, and they’re still vulnerable to negative peer influence. While some of them may show strong academic inclinations, you shouldn’t despair if your children seem sad or lonely – you just have to help them through their crises.
Homeschooling 10th Grade Students: Language
If you homeschool 10th grade students, you should give them plenty of critical listening practice. They should not only be able to show solid critical thinking skills – identifying positions and arguments, identifying biases and contradictions - they should also deliver a convincing and well-argued speech.
Reading comprehension skills now move into the realm of non-fiction – students should be able to identify things like bias and intention in a non-fiction work, and they should be critical in their understanding of different texts.
Research skills are also very important – tenth graders should be able to develop citation pages, use quotations properly, analyze sources, and bring relevant evidence in support of their arguments.
10th Grade Homeschool: Mathematics and Sciences
Again, it all depends on your children’s interests. Common curriculum requirements include algebra concepts like quadratic equations and polynomials, and geometrical concepts like quadrilaterals, n-gons, the properties of the right triangles, and the basics of trigonometry.
Homeschooling 10th graders means teaching them some economy, too. Notions like tax, budgets, wages and income statements shouldn’t pose any particular problems.
Homeschooling - Grade 11 and 12
As your children approach the end of their high school years, it’s important to prepare them for the college they’d like to go to. This means additional research, as you’ll have to be ready for any standardized tests that some colleges require.
Homeschool Grade 11 and 12: Cognitive and Social Development
Late high school children are now near the end of puberty, and this begins to show more seriously in their perception of their bodies, as well as in their relationship with their peers.
You should be prepared to deal with stuff like eating disorders and depression based on body image – which means you should encourage your children to do at least one hour of exercise each day, and mind their diets, too.
While time out with their friends is important, you should also encourage your children to develop study routines of several hours per day, which will prepare them for the oncoming college years.
Language skills – 11th and 12th grade students
Homeschooling 11th grade students means familiarizing them with a variety of non-fictional and academic texts. They should be able to write complex texts, including narrations of historical events and descriptions of scientific experiments. Developing argumentative devices such as claim and counterclaim is another important skill.
If you homeschool 12th grade students, you need to familiarize them with academic writing. Reports, essays, and research papers in various fields are types of texts they should be able to produce by the time they get into college. They should also be able to create and hold convincing speeches on a variety of topics.
Mathematics and Sciences
Depending on your children’s career preferences, homeschooling 11th grade students might not involve as much instruction in mathematics for those who want to follow a career in language or media, for instance.
However, there are some common maths and sciences skills that your children need to develop. If you homeschool 12th grade students, you need to make sure they’re able to work with logarithms, sequences and series, conic sections etc. A solid understanding of statistical elements such as probability and regression is also important.
High School Diploma and Accreditation
Being homeschooled in high school shouldn’t be a disadvantage in getting accepted to a US college.
Many universities do not require an accredited high school diploma – the interview, portfolio, and academic experience count more toward getting in. However, you still have the possibility to issue a high school diploma after K thru 12 homeschool, if you get in contact with an accreditation agency, and undergo the necessary standardized tests.
Conclusion
You can do homeschooling through high school; in fact, there are many reasons to homeschool your high school children – you’re in close control of what and how they’re studying, and you can focus on the skills they’ll later need in their careers.
You don’t need to stress out over the many challenges you’ll have to face. Take them one at a time, and your children will, too. Be relaxed while homeschooling high school students – losing your cool will make them nervous and less likely to perform at the best of their abilities.
K thru 12 homeschool is definitely doable – you’ve got plenty of resources to choose from, and you can benefit from the experience of many who have already succeeded. Don’t be afraid to hire tutors for more difficult subjects, and, most importantly, always be open to communicate with your children – especially during these challenging teenage years. Be determined and hard-working and you’ll soon reap the benefits of homeschooling high school children.
Resources
http://www.hslda.org/highschool/faq.asp
http://www.hslda.org/highschool/