Take your time decompressing from a rigid school schedule. Focus on the key skill areas (like reading, math, and language arts) for a few hours a day. A lot can be accomplished in just 30 minute blocks of time and your kids can continue to learn! See sample schedule ideas here.
It depends. Special education refers to instruction or assistance in traditional academic areas such as math and language arts. Related services, on the other hand, are aids to a child—like speech therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. These services indirectly improve a child’s ability to learn but are separate from traditional academic curricula. Under federal regulations, homeschooled students are entitled to seek related services in states where homeschools are considered to be private schools.
Because HSLDA’s emphasis is on guarding the freedom of homeschoolers from public school oversight, we generally do not help homeschooled students obtain access to special education in public schools. HSLDA may, however, assist member families seeking related services if they live in a state where homeschools are considered private schools. You can learn about your state’s provisions here.It’s important to note that accreditation only applies to academic institutions and programs as a whole, not to specific curricula. For example, Abeka Academy is an accredited homeschool program, but their Arithmetic or Language Arts curriculum cannot be accredited.
No US state requires homeschoolers to use an accredited program, so your family has freedom to decide which curriculum to use. While accredited programs have a ‘seal of approval’ from an accrediting body, it is worth noting that many homeschool programs used by families are not accredited and may still be high-quality and effective.
If you’re an HSLDA member and have additional questions about accreditation, feel free to contact us for more information.
