Homeschooling in the Military
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By
Tanya Warpula
- Apr 11, 2024
How many professions require the whole family to move every three years?
Certainly the military is one.
My husband joined the military when our kids were six to twelve years old. Shortly after arriving at our first duty station, we quickly realized we needed an education option that provides flexibility, stability, and continuity. That’s why homeschooling was a natural choice for our five kids.
Enter BookShark
I was excited to find a curriculum that covers all the main subjects needed to teach my brood of children, many on one level at once. I absolutely adore the literature-based approach, as my children and I are avid readers. The science books and activity pages are colorful and keep my kids on their toes while learning. Four choices of math fit all the different needs of the family--perfect! Even better is the four-day schedule that allowed my busy family a day to surf, horseback ride, play the piano or just simply to rest. The flexibility and consistency we enjoy with BookShark have been an asset.
Charter School Options
Our family chose to homeschool through a state-funded charter school in California. We were assigned a teacher who guided us in curriculum selection and provided us social events for the kids to gather with other homeschoolers. The charter schools provided each of our students with funding to use on curriculum and extracurricular activities. In return you give work samples from each subject to the assigned teacher for each learning period. State testing is also a requirement. BookShark is an approved vendor for many charter schools all over the USA. This was an excellent experience for us not only financially, but it kept us accountable as well.
Military Homeschool Resources
The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) has been a useful resource for military families. They have a long list of organizations and military agencies who offer support and valuable information. There is also a list of legal requirements for each state as you move around the country.
Attending Homeschool conventions can be extremely helpful to learn what tools and resources are available. This is also a way to discover new curricula, learn about vendors, and listen to motivational speakers.
Combining the Family into One Level
Combining kids on one level was a life saver for me! At the time I had three middle school students and two elementary students. I grouped them all on Level D. My older three were expected to do harder writing assignments than the little ones. The little ones did their own grade level of language arts, and we worked as a family on history and science. We paired the kids up this way until the older three were of high school age. Once they entered the ninth grade, I paired them off on one level and moved the younger two to their own level. This was so helpful to me as a mom who was juggling many hats. Reading aloud together as a family was a special experience that I hope our children always remember.
We are now finishing up our 8th year of homeschooling with BookShark, we’ve moved two more times since starting our homeschooling journey. Three of our students have graduated, are enrolled in colleges, and are thriving. We still reminisce about books we read as a family together over the years. The selection of books included in the program are memorable and stay with you for many years. Our last two teens are tackling the high school levels together. We take time off to explore and dive deeper into Pearl Harbor or trips to Kitty Hawk to learn more about The Wright Brothers. The experiences and flexibility we have had together as a family have been unmatched.
