Mentoring is a phenomenon that is gaining momentum in homeschooling circles across the country and beyond. You probably have a general concept of what mentoring is, and that it would ideally be a great idea – especially if you have the extra time, money, and resources to fit a mentoring program into your current schedule. Realistically however, we know that most homeschool parents struggle to get it all done in a day, and don’t exactly have a lushly flourishing money tree growing out in the backyard! So what’s the real skinny on homeschool mentoring – and how do you know if it’s right for your family?

I couldn’t keep myself from sharing this awesome advice from veteran homeschooler and Bridgeway Homeschool Academy Advisor, Annette Faust.

Do you sometimes feel that there are just not enough hours in the day?  Do you roll out of bed at the crack of dawn, fall back into bed long after the entire neighborhood has gone off to sleep and still feel like you need a few more hours to get everything accomplished that you set out to do? Read More. 

I heard a great quote the other day that cannot go unrecognized:

“Don’t lay down in the cemetary until you have to”

This was a passing comment made jokingly by my brother when his son’s game of catch went a little too close to the cemetary border (he had tripped and fallen as he reached for the ball).

One of the best moves we made as a homeschool family was to establish a homeschool support group. At the onset, we were simply a group of families who planned field trips, met for “physical education” classes, shared ideas and supported one another through the rewards and the struggles. As the years passed, we began to work together to provide specialty courses for our kids:

This is step one in a ten part series on the ten steps to starting homeschooling.  To skip to step two, scroll to the bottom of the page.

Step One-Commit to Consistency

1. Be sure to commit to a full year-one year at a time. For many first time homeschoolers, the thought of years of running a homeschool can be daunting-in some cases, so much so that they have trouble making the decision. And although we believe that you will continue for years to come, your level of commitment should be one year at a time–one full year.