There are three ways you can homeschool in Florida and meet the state statutes.

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1. Establish a home education program by registering with your local county school board. In order to register, you must send in a Letter of Intent within 30 days of beginning your homeschool program. For a sample letter that you can print out for your personal use (click here).

According to state statute (1002.01)

"The parent shall maintain a portfolio of records and materials.

The portfolio shall consist of the following:

1. A log of educational activities that is made contemporaneously with the instruction and that designates by title any reading materials used.

2. Samples of any writings, worksheets, workbooks, or creative materials used or developed by the student.

"The portfolio shall be preserved by the parent for 2 years and shall be made available for inspection by the district school superintendent, or the district school superintendent's agent, upon 15 days' written notice."

Inspections rarely take place, so don't stress out over this.

When your child is ready to graduate from high school, you make up your own Certificate of Graduation.

Tips: Your portfolio can also be used for your annual evaluation, should you decide to go that route. Evaluations will be explained later.

If you tend to be somewhat less than organized or maybe you don't feel like going out of your way to make things easy for the evaluator/inspector, the fastest, easiest way to meet the requirement is to make sure everything the children do is dated. Most folks just throw all the children's work into a box. All that is legally required of you is to prove that progressive learning is taking place. If an inspection is called, the onus is on them to sort through the box to determine that learning has taken place. Having everything dated gives the evaluator/inspector a timeline.

If you are a moderately organized person, you can keep a notebook with a sampling of work done throughout the year. A couple sheets from each subject from the beginning, middle and end of the year is sufficient. It need not be anything extravagant. Doing it this way makes the evaluator/inspector's job easier, but is certainly NOT required. You can also jot down on your calendar daily as to what you did that day.

If you are highly organized, you can date as well as color code by subject and child all of your work. The sky is the limit as to how fancy you'd like to make it. Some people create an actual scrapbook for their portfolio to have as a keepsake.

Whatever works for you is what you should do.

If for some reason you do undergo an inspection, I would suggest you get the inspector to sign some sort of document for you to keep which states that everything was found to be in order and acceptable under state statutes. Here is a sample form that you can use, if you like.

(http://helpsonline.org/HELPS/page22.html)

NOTE:
It is highly recommended that you send your Letter Of Intent in such a manner that a return receipt is issued. By doing so, you have proof that the letter made it there.

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2. Enroll in private school that is set up for homeschoolers. These schools are often referred to as "umbrella" or "600" schools. This is a school that generally has no real campus. Provided you abide by the rules set forth by the private school, you can homeschool your child the same as if you were enrolled with the county. Private schools are less regulated than the homeschool option set up by the state. The only things required of a private school by statute (1002.42) that concern the students (meaning other than the paperwork and licensing that the school owner has to do) is that they have a copy of immunization records and an attendance record for each student enrolled. You must provide an attendance record to your private school. Each private school then decides what rules and requirements they wish to make of their students.

NOTE:
Annual tests and evaluations are NOT required of private schools by state statute! Any private school that requires an annual test or evaluation is doing so as a matter of school policy, NOT state law. To read what the DOE itself has to say about non-public schools (click here).

When you child graduates high school, the private school you are enrolled with will offer some sort of Graduation Certificate.

Tips: There is a plethora of private schools available to homeschoolers. You can find everything from schools that tell you what curriculum to use and even offer classes in a classroom setting, to schools that you will only hear from once or twice a year to collect your attendance records.

Some private schools are expensive, some are reasonably priced and some are even FREE! You're sure to find one that suits you if you look around enough.

For a couple of lists of some of the private schools available to homeschoolers (click here) or (click here). There are lots of other schools that aren't listed on these two sites.

For a comparison chart of homeschooling through the school board and homeschooling through a private school (click here). This page also has a Q&A section to help you decide if the private school option is for you.

You can also start your own private school. It's cheap and easy. To learn how to do this (click here)

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3. Hire A Private Tutor. This option is rarely used due to the expense involved. However, I know a homeschooling family comprised of a working, single mom and her three children. A private tutor costs her about the same as it would to put all three children in daycare as they are not old enough to be left alone while she's at work.

Using the private tutor option is somewhat similar to enrolling in an "umbrella" school in that the student is considered to be a private school student as opposed to a homeschooler and must meet attendance requirements.

The person tutoring the student must: “hold a valid Florida teaching certificate to teach the subjects or grades in which instruction is given” as well as “keep all the records and make all the reports required by the state and district school board and make regular reports on the attendance of students in accordance with the provisions of statute....as found in state statute (1002.43)

The following are various thoughts, opinions and advice on homeschooling in general. And they're all mine. You can take them or leave them, but hopefully, you will at least give them a thought or two and maybe even find some of them useful.

General Thoughts:

1. Most important is for you to relax. As totally intimidating as things are right now, it really isn't hard at all. Public school teachers aren't any smarter than you, nor do they possess any special power or knowledge.

2. The mere fact that you care enough to do this will ensure your success.

3. You needn't "bring school home" by emulating a typical classroom setting. You can do what you want, how you want.

Note: My son does spelling while swinging on the swing set. I give him a word to spell and he spells it (or tries anyway). We both enjoy that time immensely.

4. A lot of people use a prepared curriculum their first year. It is certainly not required, but it does help give you a more secure feeling.

5.Be Prepared! You will probably try quite a few things before you find what works best for you. We all have a closet in the house somewhere that is full of things we bought but didn't like. It happens. Don't fret over it. Besides, that's what curriculum swaps are for!

6. Get involved with a support group. It will help you to feel as though your children are being "socialized" which is a concern for most beginners. However, bear in mind that socialization does not mean being surrounded by 30 or 40 children of the same age for 8 hours a day. Socialization is really more about how well a child can interact with people of all ages out in the real world. Fortunately, this is where homeschooling shines. Because our children are not lumped together by age, and are not stuck in a classroom all day, they spend much more time out in the real world learning real social skills.

A support group is also good for the parents as it helps them to see they are not the only ones out there doing this. It's sort of like group therapy. You can also glean a lot of information from fellow homeschoolers.

7.Be Prepared! Homeschoolers are terribly opinionated people and are not afraid to share their opinions with you. It only stands to reason that if we are bold enough and have strong enough feelings to buck the system, that tendency will trickle over to other subjects as well.

8. When you're first starting out, take the time to get to know your children and have fun with them. You needn't start formal schooling right away. It is far more important that you spend quality time together. You'll be surprised at the things you learn about each other. It also gives the kids time to adjust to not being a number any more. This period of time is known as De-Schooling. It is widely thought that you should de-school one month for each year the child was in school. Example; a 3rd grader should have four months of de-schooling. If you really feel the need to do some kind of schooling during this period, go to a store like Barnes and Noble and pick up a workbook or two for the children to work out of.

9. Homeschooling does not take nearly as much time as public school. A couple hours a day is all it takes in most cases. One on one is a much more efficient method of teaching. Studies have shown that out of the average 50 minute class, by the time you factor in taking attendance, quieting the class down, passing out and collecting papers etc., only about 10 minutes of learning takes place.

10.Be Prepared! Different people teach different subjects. Different children have different interests. Homeschoolers tend to have a much more in-depth knowledge of the subjects they study because they study subjects the children are interested in.

My first exposure to homeschooled children in an open environment (outside of the 3 family support group that we were loosely associated with) was when we signed my 5 year old son up to play T-ball with a homeschool sports league. Somehow, I ended up being 1st Base coach that day. I was chatting with the 5 year old 1st Baseman and the 5 year old runner on base when a small plane flew overhead. These two children got into a heated argument about whether the plane was a Cessna Model 6 or Model 8. These were 5 year olds, mind you.

If ever there was a time to be intimidated, this was it!

Until that very moment, I had been quite proud of the fact that my son knew his ABC's.

That evening, as I was lamenting what a terrible teacher I was and how far behind my son must be academically, my husband gently reminded me that our son, who was a motorcycle enthusiast at the time, could tell you the brand and sometimes model of a motorcycle just by its sound....and he knew that not through any formal schooling, but simply through his insatiable interest in them.

11. Homeschooled children tend to be self-taught.......given the chance. See the motorcycle reference above.

Keep the avenues of learning broad.

I'd like to share an observation that I've made over the years. I have known families who do school in a very formal way. Unlike their counterparts who casually insert learning into even the most mundane things, to them, school is an event. It takes place at a specific time and place. I've noticed the children from this environment tend to close their minds to learning if they are not in their specific "school mode."

Make sure your children know that learning can take place anywhere and at any time.

I've also known families where the mom is the sole teacher. For whatever reason, the family doesn't get out much. The children don't play sports nor do they have outside interests such as learning to play an instrument. All of their knowledge comes from their mother. I had the privilege of taking care of three children from a family like that once. We spent a little over an hour together while their parents were at a meeting with a lawyer. We took a walk through the woods. The children had absolutely no interest whatsoever in anything I had to say as I tried to show and teach them things. Once their mother returned to pick them up, the children were all full of questions for her. A lot of them were things I had tried to talk to the children about.

Make sure your children have people other than you to teach them things.

Relax and Have Fun With Your Children

You are in for the adventure of your lifetime!

If you choose to homeschool by registering with the school board, you will have to have your children's progress evaluated once per year. According to state statute (1002.41) you have the following options in meeting that requirement.

"1. A teacher selected by the parent shall evaluate the student's educational progress upon review of the portfolio and discussion with the student. Such teacher shall hold a valid regular Florida certificate to teach academic subjects at the elementary or secondary level;

2. The student shall take any nationally normed student achievement test administered by a certified teacher;

3. The student shall take a state student assessment test used by the school district and administered by a certified teacher, at a location and under testing conditions approved by the school district;

4. The student shall be evaluated by an individual holding a valid, active license pursuant to the provisions of s. 490.003(7) or (8); or

5. The student shall be evaluated with any other valid measurement tool as mutually agreed upon by the district school superintendent of the district in which the student resides and the student's parent."

NOTE: Your evaluation is due one year from the date you sent in your Letter of Intent. On occasion, the school board will try to get you to turn in your evaluation in May, at the end of their school year. Asking you to do so is above and beyond state statutes and cannot be forced upon you.