Mike Smith:
Although homeschooling is a widespread movement—homeschoolers live all around the world—the homeschooling community is exceptionally tight-knit. And this strong sense of community may be a good way to build your homeschool program without adding costs.

Consider starting an educational co-op with other homeschool families in your area. You may be surprised to discover the academic and artistic expertise of many of your fellow homeschooling parents. Ask one parent from each family involved in the co-op to plan a course in their area of knowledge, whether it be science, history, art, or music. If there aren’t enough homeschoolers nearby to make a full-scale co-op possible, then consider trading classes with just a few other families.

If you need to fill a specific gap in your students’ coursework, look for someone in your church or community who has experience in the field and see if they would be willing to teach a course.

You may also be able to find used curriculum from other homeschoolers in your community or at a local homeschool organization curriculum fair. Or, another homeschooling family with children of different ages than yours might be willing to trade curriculum with you for a year when they’re not using it.

Take advantage of the resources the homeschool community has to offer. As you enhance your own program, you’ll be helping other families as well.

Until next time, I’m Mike Smith.