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Success in homeschooling is found in the same way as success in school. The single most significant factor which determines the quality of education that a student receives is the quality of teaching and teaching resources. It requires a parent (or teacher) to have a broad and good knowledge of subject content and curriculum; access to high quality teaching and learning resources ... and for the parent (or teacher) to have lots of enthusiasm, energy, patience and resilience.
Get hold of a copy of your child's curriculum (or scheme of work)that they are following and make an outline plan, at least for the next month. Your child's teacher or school should be able to provide you with this.
Children of all ages need routine. You must provide a structure and shape to their day and week. Draw up a weekly timetable for them (and you) and stick a copy on the fridge door. Of course, this timetable does not have to replicate their usual school timings and can be much more suited to their particular needs and age. This routine and timetable will also likely evolve over the next few weeks and months, as you and your child learn what works best.
Children typically have about 5 hours of direct teaching each weekday at school, but one-to-one homeschool teaching is a much more efficient process, so you do not need to plan for 5 hours of teaching each day. Our experience would suggest Early Years Foundation Stage should be 1.5 hours of planned activity each weekday: Key Stage 1 (Years 1 and 2) about 2 hours: Key Stage 2 (Year 3 to 6) about 2 hours: Key Stage 3 (Years 7 to 9) about 2.5 hours: Key Stage 4 (Year 10 and 11) about 2.5 hours: Key Stage 5 (Years 12 and 13) about 3 hours.
It is important that your child works independently, reading or writing on their own, for a period each day. For younger children this may just be for 10 to 20 minutes; for older children this may be for an hour or so. Create a still point in each day for this, with quietness to encourage them to focus.
Perhaps most important through all is to make this experience as enjoyable as possible. There are a number of benefits to homeschooling, which you will experience. It will give you the opportunity to create a tailor-made education; one that suits the learning needs of your child. One-to-one teaching is more efficient, so your child will make much more progress with much less teaching time. This allows much more light and space in the week for you to do other things. The school day and week is flexible and will provide a much better balance between work and play. There are no school runs nor limitations on school holidays. Lessons can start and finish at times more palatable for teenagers or busy households. You also have a choice about what, when and how your child learns.
