Whether you are considering home education as the method of choice for your family or are a new home educator, it is important that you make an informed decision.  The following are guidelines designed to guide you through the decision making process and get you started off on the right foot if this is the path you choose for you and your family.

2. Research the Virginia law:

3. Join homeschool service and informational organizations:

4. Decide on a curriculum:

1.      Individualized

2.      Approved correspondence

3.      Unit approach

4.      Standards of Learning

5. Purchase supplies:

6. Set goals:

7. Establish a schedule:

Visit Free with a Homeschool Consultant!

New Life Christian Stores is excited to offer a Free service available to all Central Virginia Home Educators! Every Tuesday, in our Homeschool Headquarters, our very own Homeschool Consultant is available from 1pm to 6pm for you to visit with. If you have questions about curriculum or teaching methods, or just want to talk with someone who's "been there", come by and visit any Tuesday. At New Life Christian Stores, we are here to serve you!

Recommended Reading List

Getting Started:

Baker, Virginia Birt Teaching Your Children at Home, Self-published, 1981. Mrs. Baker gives detailed advice on setting up your own home-school program, including scheduling and curriculum tips.

Ballman, Ray The How and Why of Home Schooling, Crossway Books, 1987. Just as the title says, Rev. Ballman starts with why he believes home schooling should be the educational method of choice, then goes on to tell how to go about it. His book includes an excellent chapter for grandparents of home-schooled children and another on answering common questions about home education.

Beechick, Dr. Ruth You Can Teach Your Child Successfully, Arrow Press, 1988. What and how to teach your child in grades 4-8.

Beechick, Dr. Ruth The 3 Rs Series (K-3rd): An Easy Start in Arithmetic, A Strong Start in Language, and A Home Start in Reading, Arrow Press, 1986. Learn to teach your children naturally, using common experiences and tools from your everyday life.

Bell, Debra The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. Motivating the reluctant learner, guidelines to tailoring a program to match your child's needs, and creative solutions to the some of the most common home-school problems.

Boyer, Rick and Marilyn Home Educating with Confidence, Homeschool Press, 1996. The Boyers share what they've learned in 15 years of home educating their 13 children. Includes information on curricula, classroom procedures, and the father's role.

Boyer, Rick and Marilyn The Socialization Trap. The Boyers refute, with humor, the common assumption that home taught children are at a disadvantage.

Butterworth, Bill The Peanut Butter Family Home School, Revell, 1987. The humorous, well-written story of one family's first year of home schooling.

Clarkson, Clay & Sally The Whole Hearted Child: Home Education Handbook, Whole Hearted Ministries, 1994. How to use whole books and real life to teach and train four- through fourteen-year-old children. (Available through HEAV.)

Colfax, David & Micki  Home Schooling for Excellence, Warner Books, 1989. The Colfaxes home schooled their four sons in a rural California setting, then sent them to Harvard University. Written from a secular perspective.

Farris, Michael The Home Schooling Father. Mr. Farris is the founder and president of the Home School Legal Defense Association. He and his wife Vickie have nine children and have been home schooling since 1981.

Graham, Gayle How to Home School A Practical Approach. Here's help with organization, goal setting, and teaching the basics. Includes reproducible charts.

Hunt, Gladys Honey for a Child's Heart. How to select excellent children's literature.

Klicka, Chris The Right Choice, Noble Publishing Associates, 1996. Mr. Klicka is Executive Director for the National Center Home Education. After contrasting public education and home schooling and discussing the Biblical reasons for home education, he focuses on legal challenges and how to deal with them. (Available through HEAV.)

Macaulay, Susan Schaeffer For the Children's Sake. Crossway Books, 1984. While not strictly about home schooling, it's difficult to imagine any other application of Susan Macaulay's ideas on what a child's education should be. A wonderful book on the joy of teaching children.

Mason, Charlotte The Original Home Schooling Series, Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., 1935. Charlotte Mason wrote six wonderful books at the turn of the century on teaching children. She believed in structured instruction, teaching recitation, a noble character, a fine mind and afternoons spent with nature, reading and creative play. Also see For the Children's Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macaulay.

McCollough, Bonnie and Monson, Sue 401 Ways to Get Your Kids to Work at Home, St. Martin's Press, 1981. Practical advice on teaching and motivating your children to help with the housework.

Moore, Raymond and Dorothy Home Grown Kids, Word Books, 1981. Dr. Moore presents his case for home education in one of the earliest home-schooling books.

Moore, Raymond and Dorothy Home Style Teaching, Word Books, 1984. This excellent book for beginning homeschoolers outlines how to organize and get started teaching your children. It includes Dr. Moore's philosophy on why you should teach your children to work and a list of ideas for home businesses for children.

Moore, Raymond and Dorothy The Successful Homeschooler. Why home-schooling parents sometimes "burn out" and how to avoid it.

Pride, Mary Schoolproof, Crossway Books, 1988. Mrs. Pride does a wonderful job of debunking educational myths while showing you how to teach your child at home and enjoy it.

Shackleford, Luane and White, Susan A Survivor's Guide to Home Schooling, Crossway Books, 1988. Mrs. Shackleford and Mrs. White present a humorous, realistic look at home schooling along with many practical suggestions for making it work.

Walsh, Lisa The Good Steward Cookbook, self-published, 1994. Available through Great Books & Gifts. Many home-school moms are finding that they can save time, energy, and money by cooking and freezing meals for 30 days at a time.

Wade, Ted The Homeschool Manual, Gazelle Publishing, 1994. Describes various curriculum available.

Aslett, Don Clutter's Last Stand, Writer's Digest Books, 1984.

There is not a word about your child's education in this book, but Mr. Aslett will teach you to clean your house so quickly, and keep it clean, that you can read all the other books on this list!

Barnes, Emilie More Hours in Your Day, Harvest House, 1982. A wealth of time management and household organization tips!