Homeschooling high school can seem like uncharted waters to many of us homeschoolers.

But it doesn't have to be this scary beast we sometimes make as moms. It can be pretty surprising when doubts and worry start to set in as you approach the high school years. You are super confident for elementary school, super confident for middle school, then all of a sudden high school comes, and you're like, "Whoa, I don't know what I'm doing. I don't know if I'm doing it right! I don't know if I'm doing enough."

When it came to homeschooling high school, I was pretty overwhelmed when I began to think about it. It came from a place of fear and doubt. Satan likes to attack you in those areas, especially when you are confident in your abilities beforehand.

Friend! Let me encourage you. Even if you haven't been homeschooling for long, YOU can teach your child in those upper levels just as you have in the younger years. Your capabilities as your child's teacher don't just go away. Look at how faithful God has been to give you what you need to teach your kids everything you've taught them thus far. The Lord is faithful to see his work to completion and the work he began in the spiritual lives of our children and in us through the sanctification of homeschooling. He WILL complete the work he starts in their educational and academic areas through you and your dedication.

One myth I have had to overcome in homeschooling high school is the idea that it will not be the same because we won't be doing things as we have been in the past. Why? I had to ask myself that question. Why do you think a grade level change would prevent us from taking field trips, doing crafts and projects, baking, and living life? Why do you think that high school will halt every fun thing we do in our homeschool? These were the questions I asked when I felt this idea pop up. Then I realized high school is another level change in coursework. High school is a progression from what they learned the year before. That is no different from a child progressing from third to fourth grade or fifth to sixth grade. Each year the level of coursework increases, but your homeschool atmosphere can stay the same. The only thing that truly changed for me was the level of coursework my daughter was taking and the level of planning on my part.

So let's dive into two near and dear topics: planning and connection. In the rest of this post, I share how I planned for the high school years before they arrived, how I do it now, and how I stay connected with my high schoolers. I hope this information encourages you as you walk through homeschooling your high schoolers.

Planning High School

My goal has never been to meet the public education standards but to exceed them. However, I use the standards for my state as a loose framework to ensure I am hitting what I need to in addition to other courses.

If you live in a loosely regulated state, it is up to you as the Mom to structure the high school years on what you'd like your child to accomplish year to year. So how do you plan out those critical years? Let me walk you through what I did step by step.

Before my daughter was ready for high school, I began planning.

Research. Research things early. Look at different styles of homeschool curriculum. Whether they are accredited or not.
Look and Plan Ahead. Think to yourself, in 9th grade; this is what we're doing. See how you can implement things you wish to do in high school into your child's last year of middle school. Think about whether you plan to have your child in dual enrollment.
Research different tracking systems. Keeping good records during your child's high school years is essential. It helps your child meet the state requirements while also the requirements of a college application.
Locate different testing sites for SAT/ACT. Yes, it is time for your child to take the SATs. It is pretty daunting thinking that what you taught them is about to be tested. I suggest you find out where testing is offered in ou your county or city and have an idea of when you want your child to take the test.
Have a meeting with your kids. Think back to your public school years when you would sit down with the counselor to plan the next four years of your school life. Take time to set goals with your kids and hear their hearts and desires.

To plan for high school each year and as a whole, I focus on three areas: Courses, Transcripts, and Testing. Take a closer look at how I plan these areas below. Remember, though, this is just what I do. If it doesn't work for you, then don't use it.

Courses: I printed out my state's graduation credit requirements and planned them out. I created a high school record-keeping sheet to help organize all four years. I did this by printing out four sheets for the four years of high school. Then I looked at my state's requirements and planned out each subject based on how many years of that subject were required. For example, my state requires four years of English, so I wrote English on each year's sheet. I did this for each required subject, and it helped to give me a bigger picture of what each year will look like during the high school years. This also provided a general overview of each individual year and what needed to be taught. As each upper-grade level approaches, I fill in what we use for each required subject.

Transcripts: The high school record-keeping sheets will help me prepare my child's transcripts when the time comes. To create a transcript, I will simply gather the information from all four years of my high school record-keeping sheets and use a template to fill in a transcript. If your child is college bound, it is helpful to look at the different colleges your child may attend in advance. That way, you can see their requirements for students wishing to apply. This also helps to ensure your transcript reflects what is required of the school your child wishes to attend. It can be helpful to write down the descriptions of your courses. This is because some colleges require an extended transcript, basically like a course description of what they took. So be sure to write down a description of what they learned during a course or what a course taught them or covered.

Testing: As far as SAT/ACT testing, if your children are college bound, you need to help prepare them for these tests. There are books you can buy that will help prepare them. You want to find out where and when those tests will be held so that you can ensure your child can take them. My children will take the SATs two times.

Encouragement for Staying Connected

As you approach the high school years in your homeschooling, the thought of your children growing up and leaving the nest can be heartbreaking, especially if you have homeschooled for a long time. I found myself mourning the idea of my oldest daughter growing up and leaving even before we reached her first year of high school. I realized that these are some of the greatest times I can spend with my older children.

It is such a blessing being the prominent voice and influence in their lives apart from God. However, this is not the time to push them away from being fully independent. That is what adulthood is for; even then, you hope they will come to you when they need your help. No, I firmly believe these are some of the best years to connect with your teens on a deeper level.

Now that I'm two years into my high school homeschooling journey. I want to share some things I've done that have helped my teens and me stay connected in our homeschool.

My 5 Tips for Staying Connected

Keep connection a priority. I was mourning the idea of my older kids being separated from the learning taking place with my younger two, where I am still very much active in their education. If you have a connection with your teens as a priority, it won't only be a blessing in your homeschool but a blessing in their lives. Your teens need you more than they even know what to say. They don't have the words to communicate how much they need you as their parent during this time in their life. Not only are they going through huge physical changes but also mental and spiritual growth. Therefore connection has to be a priority. Connection with your teens will look different than mine because we are different people. Connection in my home is found in praying together, reading God's word, having family discussions, and laughing at a book together.
Implementing weekly check-in points with your teens. Naturally, when your children get older, they might be doing some computer programs for a particular subject which means you may not be the primary teacher. If you're like me, on the day-to-day, you may have less contact with your high schooler regarding those subjects. We will have quick discussions throughout the week regarding a lesson she may need help with, but if I didn't have a weekly check-in scheduled, the weeks would fly by without me checking in to see how their learning is progressing. Having those weekly check-in points is very helpful for maintaining that connection and feeling that level of involvement in their education since someone other than you may be the primary teacher for specific subjects. Every day I make it a point to check in with my high schoolers. And then, on Fridays, we sit down together and review their grades in those online classes. I enter their assignments that go into their grade books.

3. Be open to discussion. Make time to talk to your teens. It's important to start young. When you speak with your kids in the younger years, they will want to talk to you in the older years. Take time to hear their hearts. Schedule time in your day to speak with your teens. They have a lot to say, and it's imperative you take time to listen. This helps build that strong connection because they know you care about what's on their heart.

4. Read God's word together every day. Make sure you are discipling your teens. Your teens need you to speak truth into their lives and over them. They will struggle at some point with believing the enemy's lies, and it is your job to talk about the truth to them in those moments. Being connected through the word of God with your teenager is valuable for maintaining that connection in your homeschool.

5. Keep some things as family subjects. Your teenagers can learn some subjects, such as history, with your younger children. Don't banish your high schooler to a computer completing all their subjects while missing out on family interaction taking place while you teach your younger kids for the whole school day. It can discourage your teens, especially if, before they entered the high school years, you were doing fun things during your homeschool day. Please don't hear me wrong; they need certain levels of curriculum that you may not teach, but that doesn't mean you have to isolate them in ALL their learning.

Homeschooling through the high school years can be very rewarding if you approach it the right way. Let me close with these thoughts. The time you spend during these older years can provide many blessings.

First, the time you spend with them before they leave the nest is a blessing. You will never regret having time with your older kids. It becomes even more apparent when you reach the high school years. It is a true blessing to be able to say that you have shared in every single day of your child's life.

The second blessing, in my opinion, is the level of conversation you can have with your child. The conversations you have with your teenager are so important, especially about living in the world we are living in today. Teenagers go through many changes emotionally and intellectually, and it's essential to have conversations to hear their hearts. The time you spend with your teenagers in meaningful conversation is a gift from God. You get to be the one to help them understand God's truth and how it applies to every situation they will face in life. In addition, the subject matter you get to teach leads to great discussions as well. Christian Apologetics has been one of my favorite courses to teach my high schoolers, and we have had such wonderful, thought-provoking conversations while learning together. If you are sowing in those younger years, you will start to see the harvest in the teenage years. Teenage homeschooling is very fruitful.

Love,

Ashlee