What is the first step to start homeschooling?

Know your "why." Before anything else, ask yourself why you want to homeschool and write it down where you'll see it. You'll come back to that answer on the hard days — it's your anchor.

Should I buy homeschool curriculum before I start?

Not yet. Take the first week or two to feel the rhythm with library books, a notebook and a pencil, and watch what your child is drawn to and where their level actually is. Then buy less than you think you'll need and add through the year.

Do homeschoolers need a set schedule?

Choose a rhythm, not a set schedule. A simple grid — subjects down one side, days of the week across the top — works well, and every day will look a little different. That flexibility is the point.

What does "I do, we do, you do" mean in homeschooling?

It's a simple teaching strategy that works for almost everything in the primary years. First you model it while your child watches, then you do a few together, and then they're ready to do it on their own.

How to Start Homeschooling: 5 Steps for Nervous Beginners

If you’re thinking about homeschooling, you’re in exactly the right place.

You may be wondering: Am I going to give my child enough? Can I actually do this? Lots of questions right now — and I’m here to tell you it is totally doable. Let’s take it one step at a time. By the end of these five steps, you’ll know exactly what to do first.

Step 1: Know your “why”

Before anything else, ask yourself: why do you want to homeschool?

You’re going to come back to this answer time and again — on the days that feel hard, or when you catch yourself asking am I enough for my kids? am I giving them enough? Your why is your anchor.

Mine started when my oldest went into kindergarten. I knew I wasn’t ready, and he wasn’t ready, for a traditional school setting. I couldn’t imagine sending him away all day, every day, when it felt like our journey had just begun. I wanted to see him learn to form his letters. I wanted to be there for all of it.

Homeschool requires your presence — and it is a beautiful, beautiful thing when you get to do that with your kids. Whatever your why is, write it down where you’ll see it.

Step 2: Check your state’s laws

A bit mundane, but important. Homeschooling is legal in all 50 states, but every state has its own rules — some just want a letter of intent, others ask for attendance records or assessments. Look up yours, make sure you’re in compliance, and file it away. (If your child is currently enrolled somewhere, withdraw them officially so they’re not marked truant.)

Do this once and you never have to think about it again.

Step 3: Don’t buy curriculum… yet

This is a hard one, and I learned it the expensive way.

The first year I homeschooled my son in kindergarten, I thought — as we all do about our kids — “this boy is brilliant, he doesn’t need kindergarten curriculum, he’ll start at grade one.” So I bought him five to ten different workbooks, all at a first-grade level.

It caused a lot of frustration between us. Because as brilliant as I thought he was, he was still a five-year-old boy. He was ready for some grade-one material, but not the full load. And that’s okay.

So don’t buy the curriculum first. Here’s what to do instead:

Take the first week or two and just feel the rhythm. You don’t need to buy a thing. Check books out from the library. Use a notebook and a pencil. Use Lego and Hot Wheels cars for math manipulatives. (My free Starter Week is built for exactly this — a realistic week with no extra resources required.)
If you’re a planner and “just wait” makes you twitch because your brain says school starts September 1st — try those one to two weeks over the summer instead.
Watch what your child is drawn to. See where their level actually is in each subject. You’ll choose curriculum far better once you know your learner.

I have three kids — now a sixth grader, a fifth grader, and a third grader — and each of them needs something a little different. My daughter is far more engaged by art, music, and hands-on work. Both of my sons are more analytical; a plain black-and-white workbook page is enough for them. I needed to know my learners to choose right for them.

And as exciting as all the curriculum looks online (I get sucked in every summer too): buy less than you think you’ll need. Start small and add through the year. It’s like cooking — you can always add more salt, but you can’t take it out. Don’t pressure yourself to buy the entire school year on day one.

Step 4: Choose a rhythm, not a set schedule

This was genuinely hard for me. I went to traditional school growing up, so when we started homeschooling I felt like if my kids weren’t dressed, fed, and sitting at the table by 8:00 a.m., our day had failed. I put so much pressure on myself to match the school system’s structure.

Set a rhythm, not a schedule. Don’t plan things down to the hour or half hour.

What I do for my kids is a simple grid: their subjects down one side, the days of the week across the top. On Monday they follow the grid — these are the things I need to do today. (Here’s the daily schedule template I made for mine.) As they’ve gotten older they have more freedom over the order and timing.

Two things I’ve learned along the way:

Do the hard thing first. Math has been harder for my daughter. Some days she asks to leave it until the end; other days she wakes up with a little fire and says, “Can we just get the hardest thing done first?” I’ve been teaching my kids to do the hard thing first. In our house, math or language comes before the fun web-based courses they’re excited about.
Every day will look different — and that’s the beauty of it. Yesterday my kids were about 75% done when I remembered we had library holds to pick up. So we had lunch, paused school, went to the library while no one else was there (homeschoolers get all the places to themselves), came home, and finished. That flexibility is the whole point.

Step 5: Teach with “I do, we do, you do”

This one’s more of a teaching note. I have my bachelor’s in elementary education and taught second grade, and one of the main things I took from my degree is a simple strategy that works for almost everything, especially in the primary years:

I do → we do → you do.

I do. You model it first. In math, I’ll work the equation while they watch.
We do. We work a couple of equations together.
You do. Then they’re ready to do it on their own.

Something to be mindful of: in homeschooling, you are their primary educator. It requires your focus and attention — and who better to get your best focus and attention than your own children?

The other big thing a teaching degree drills into you is the importance of immediate, detailed feedback — and this is where homeschooling shines. You can tell your child what they did right and what to work on while it’s still fresh. It creates better learners and cements the concepts in their minds.

The recap

Know your why. It’s your anchor.
Check your state laws. Once, then done.
Don’t buy curriculum… yet. Take a week or two, see how your child learns, then buy.
Have a rhythm, not a set schedule. Each day will look different — that’s the beauty.
I do, we do, you do. Model it, do it together, then let them go.

I am so excited for you as you begin your homeschool journey. And if you need any help — that’s why Mrs. A is here.

Want a running start? Grab my free Starter Week — one realistic, done-for-you week you can run with a library card, a notebook, and a pencil. It’s the easiest possible first step, and it’s on me. 💛