Ever wondered what it’s like to homeschool your kids in Texas? This week for Red Kite, I sat down with Holly, a local homeschooling mom, to find out!

Holly got real with us about the struggle to juggle the lesson plans and socialization – and the occasional existential crisis – that comes with teaching your own children. Spoiler alert: turns out public school might take longer than necessary!

And believe it or not, there are even scholarship opportunities and discounts on resources for homeschoolers, too. Let’s get into it!

1. How long have you been homeschooling?

   a.  I’ve homeschooled from the beginning, so five years. Seven, if you include the early years of preschool.

2. Why did you choose homeschooling over traditional schooling?

   a.  So many reasons! I didn’t want my children to become a product of the public school system that dumbs kids down and churns them out like identical little robots who follow “the system”. Education is not one-size-fits-all. Kids thrive in many different ways, and I wanted to be able to cater to my children’s interests and needs. I wanted them to be independent thinkers who understand that learning is lifelong and something to enjoy, not dread.

3. What homeschooling philosophy or approach do you follow (e.g., classical, unschooling, Charlotte Mason, etc.)?

   a.  For the early years, I leaned towards Waldorf. Once formal schooling started, we did Classical Conversations. It didn’t take long for me to realize that was not how [my son] would learn best. So after a year of Classical, we switched. I am eclectic who leans towards Charlotte Mason and unschooling. I’ve done both. I quickly realized I don’t do well with being told to do x,y,z on Monday and a,b,c on Tuesday.

4. Were you a teacher before you decided to pursue this path? If so, what did you teach? If not, did you have to take any credential courses?

   a.  No, I was not a teacher, and no formal courses are needed. There are so many programs and curriculums that it’s fairly easy to help your kids learn without being formally trained. To be fair, I do have a natural teaching ability, though.

5. Do you follow a set curriculum, or do you design your own lesson plans?

   a.  For reading and math, I do follow a set curriculum, but everything else I piece together from lots of different resources and make it my own.

6. What subjects do you find easiest – and most challenging – to teach?

   a.  This is hard… both kids are dyslexic. I’ve essentially had to teach myself how to be a reading specialist. It’s literally been 5 years of research on my part trying to stay up-to-date with research and the science of reading. So that is by far the hardest.

   I also find history hard, because I’m committed to teaching real history and not the watered-down “Americanized” history. Finding the balance of accuracy and then sensitivity to my children’s ages and appropriateness for said ages has been challenging.

   Art is easiest for me because I love it. Nature study has also been pretty easy, because it’s fun and hands-on.

7. What resources (books, websites, programs) do you rely on the most?

   a.  I rely most on the Science of Reading body of knowledge – and teachers with Instagram accounts who utilize the Science – my Rooted in Language curriculum, the Charlotte Mason philosophy, and the other moms in our co-op.

8. How do you handle assessments and measure progress without traditional grading systems?

   a.  Essentially, I don’t move on until my kids are proficient in something. Since it is just the two kids, it’s pretty obvious what they know and don’t know.

   For high school, I will start keeping records of everything for college purposes. Their reading and math curriculums have assessments, but everything else is just a matter of common sense on my part.

9. What strategies do you use to balance homeschooling with other responsibilities (work, household, personal time)?

   a.  Most of the public school day is managing 30 kids. It only takes 2-3 hours to do school at home. There is so much free time for field trips, time with friends, and housework/cooking/errands. You would have to be on your phone all day – or just wasting time – to not fit those things in.

10. How do you ensure your students have socialization opportunities?

    a.  Austin has a huge homeschool community, so socialization is easy. There are meetups, co-ops, etc. all over the Austin area. We joined a co-op to have consistency in activities and friends. So, the same families/friends are together every week. On Thursday, we have a school day with our co-op, and then every week there is either a field trip or hike/play date.

11. What extracurricular activities or community programs do you participate in?

    a.  I guess I kind of answered this already. But the kids have also done some sports through the Y.

12. Are you aware of financial aid or scholarships available to homeschooling families?

    a.  I have reached out to [coursework] companies directly and been met with very generous responses. I was unable to afford part of their reading program a year ago, and the company gladly gave me the resource for free. A lot of times you have to ask directly, but if you do, it usually pays off with some discount.

15. Where do you go to find resources that normally a school district would provide?

    a.  You can go through your school district to get dyslexia testing and other special needs assistance/programs. Because I pay taxes, I am entitled to those resources, even though my child doesn’t attend public school. You do have to enroll your child, but it’s specified that they do not actually attend.

16. If you could improve one thing about financial aid or scholarship access for homeschoolers, what would it be?

    a.  I wish it were common knowledge and thereby eassier to access. You can join the Texas Homeschool Association to get all that information, but you have to pay a yearly fee. I would love it if it were easier to access without having to join the HSLDA.

So there you have it – homeschooling in Texas, straight from the source! Holly has proven that you don’t need a teaching degree or a bottomless supply of patience (though the latter probably helps) to give your kids an incredible education at home.

And if you’re a homeschooling parent looking for scholarships, Red Kite is here to help. Because let’s face it, if you can teach your own kids math, you definitely deserve a financial break.

Sign up for Red Kite today for access to over $27 billion in financial aid: www.myredkite.com

By Jane Cooper