Posted on by mamaleotashomeschool

What I learned teaching my children to read

Mama Leotas Homeschool, Homeschool Mom, Homeschooling, Florida Homeschool, Learn to read, Hooked on Phonics, Explode the Code

You see this guy? Well that’s my baby, the youngest of five kids. Sometimes I think he got the best version of me as a mom. Let me explain…

When I first started homeschooling, I literally had no idea what I was doing. Our oldest sons had started their education in public school so they already knew how to read, write, and do basic math. There is a seven year gap between them and the three “littles” as I like to call them.

I’m pretty sure I had a panic attack the moment I realized that I had to teach them how to read. How in the world was I going to do that? Thankfully reading came easy for my daughter and she picked it up quite quickly just going through the Hooked on Phonics books. Then we got to our fourth son and boy was that a challenge! I’m pretty sure we were in tears on a daily basis. But hey, he had to learn how to read by first grade, right? Well, he was reading by the end of kindergarten but we were all miserable during the entire process.

Mama Leotas Homeschool, Homeschool Mom, Homeschooling, Florida Homeschool, Learn to read, Hooked on Phonics, Explode the Code

Now enter our “baby”. I did what I’d always done, kindergarten at five years old. And for the most part, he liked it but when we got to reading, that was a whole other story. He just could not catch on and then came the tears again. I remembered a podcast I heard about boys and reading and that they typically take longer to learn how to read and that it will just “click” around eight and nine years old sometimes even later. As scary as it was, I decided to give it a shot. I wasn’t going to push my son to read…we weren’t going to do any traditional reading lessons at all. I was simply going to read to him and let it happen naturally.

Children are made readers on the laps of their parents. 

Emilie Buchwald

One day while watching a foreign film with the kids, my son started reading the subtitles out loud! We were all stunned and just looked at him in shock…he could read! He was around eight years old when I started him on reading lessons. We did Hooked on Phonics and Explode the Code. By the time he was nine he was reading chapter books. Now at age ten he is reading beyond grade level and his comprehension and retention is impressive as well! I’m thankful I followed my instincts and took a more gentle and natural approach with him. We are all happier for it!

I hope this post encourages you. Drop me a line or a question, I’d love to hear from you! ❤️

Disclaimer: Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. That means, I get a small commission if you purchase through this link. I  will only ever share tools and resources I truly love and use. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration.

Posted on by mamaleotashomeschool

I’ve decided to homeschool, what now?

Mama Leotas Homeschool, Florida Homeschool Mom, Homeschoolers, How to Homeschool, Homeschool Family, How to Start Homeschooling, Homeschooling, Homeschool Encouragement

Congratulations! As overwhelming as you may feel in this moment, I promise you it is the best decision you could make. I remember back when I first started homeschooling and how lost I felt. I didn’t know where to start and felt scared and in over my head. In this post I will share with you three things I did when I first started homeschooling.

One of the most important things I did was research my state’s homeschool laws. Each state varies in their requirements to legally homeschool your children and if not followed, can result in your children being reported as truant. You could end up in court and the judge would decide if you could continue homeschooling, or if he/she felt you were negligent, could actually force your kids to attend public school. I don’t say this to scare or deter you, it’s just important that you are fully aware of the homeschool laws in order to protect yourself and your children. The best resource I’ve found where you can find all this information is at the Homeschool Legal Defense Association‘s website. You can also look up each individual state’s laws at this link here. HSLDA is pretty a much a one stop shop for all things homeschool. Their website is filled with valuable tools and information to get you started on your journey. You can read more about their mission here.

“From the day you became a parent, you also became a teacher, and you are equipped to teach your child.”

Anne Campbell

Once I knew what was required for me to homeschool in my state, the next thing I set out to do was figure out what to actually teach them and what curriculum and books I needed for each of my children. I have to be honest here…I had no idea where to start but after quite a bit of research, I came across a gem of a book called Home Learning Year by Year: How to Design a Homeschool Curriculum from Preschool Through High School by Rebecca Rupp. I love this book because it is a great guide to everything you need to teach your children at every grade level. It includes subjects to be covered within each grade, standards for knowledge that should be acquired by your child at each level, recommended books to use as texts for every subject, and much more. I loved how each grade level was broken down by chapter and easy to find. Each year I would simply tab each grade of my kids and refer back to the book as needed throughout the school year. Keep in mind that this is guide and not meant to be followed to the letter.

Homeschool Mom, Homeschoolers, How to Homeschool, Homeschool Family, How to Start Homeschooling, Homeschooling, Homeschool Encouragement

Finally, we come to the third thing I did in the beginning which was read all the homeschool blogs I could find! I’m guessing that is how you stumbled upon this post yourself. I absolutely loved (and still do) looking at other mom’s homeschool rooms and reading through the different books and curriculum they recommended. I would spend hours soaking it all up like a sponge. I must advise though, be careful of falling into the comparison trap. No two homeschool families are alike so don’t expect yours to look like the next ones or mine for that matter. Each and every one of us are created with special gifts and talents and that is what makes homeschooling so much fun and unique. You know your children better than anyone and there is no one better than you to decide what they need.

“The most important work you and I will ever do will be within the walls of our own homes.”

Harold B. Lee

Well there you have it! These are the first things I did when I decided to homeschool my kids 12 years ago. These activities paved the path for me and gave me confidence to start on my own homeschool journey. I was encouraged by all the resources and was even more sure that homeschooling is what I’ve been called to do. This all led to choosing curriculum and books, setting a schedule, organizing and setting up a “classroom”, planning out an entire school year, etc. All of which I plan to cover in future blog posts. I hope you choose to stick with me as I share all the things that have helped me as well as the things that didn’t. I am thankful you are here! ❤️

Disclaimer: Some of the links on this page are affiliate links. That means, I get a small commission if you purchase through this link. I  will only ever share tools and resources I truly love and use. Thank you for your thoughtful consideration.