Sounds like a tough decision! As far as I know, you CANNOT write up homeschool expenses. I did a little search line to verify it and everything I came across suggested that you cannot run your homeschool like a business or deduct expenses for materials. For instance, I found this article pretty useful -- http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/122362/is_homeschooling_a_tax_write_off.html

I am a homeschool mom in Idaho and my 15 yr old daughter has Asperger's. I home school our 15, 11 & 4 year old.
While it is true that you do not get tax credits for homeschool expences. You can homeschool for free or very little expence. What state are you located in?
There are millions of free homeschool offers on the web. Also there is a place called the Book Samaritains and they will loan you curriculum for free. What ever you need.
There are also charter schools. If you tell me where you are located I can give you better ideas.
Let me say one more thing about homeschooling ... It is by far the BEST thing we have ever done for our kids. People worry about socialization but that is so much NOT a problem. We are in fact more social then when the kids were in public school. We have more time for that sort of thing... We are closer as a family and have a better and bigger network of friends.
I highly recommend homeschooling :)
Traci

we are looking to home school our 11 year old daughter with high functioning asperger's.she was doing so well when we lived in florida 3rd and 4th grade plumb elementary aaawwwesome schoollll!!!! they had a great self contained special ed teacher and classroom setting.she made a honor roll all year, but now the school she's at the special ed teacher is horrible.my daughter has not been wanting to go to school anymore,because they are so hard on her.she been put into a gen ed class and has struggled from day 1 and (they say she's just not trying)so long story short i'm a heartbroken mother of a beautiful,funny,loving quirky 5th grader.we would loving any suggestions or info about homeschooling an autist middle schooler.we are scared for her in wake county public middle school.

I too have a child with Asperger's and we took him out of 5th grade and have noticed a great change in his attitude.  He has fewer meltdowns and is easier to handle, but on the flip side the areas that he dislikes (reading and esp writing) we are having a very large problem.  Trying to get a handle on this has left us asking "did we do th right thing"?  I have noticed that the cost, because we still need a "teacher" is $1000/mo. because kids won't do for you what they will for others,  I have a 5yo home too thats finishing preschool so to say this has been a treat is a long stretch.  NO NO NO the expenses aren't tax ded. UNLESS you have a homeschool business, then it gets real sticky and sometimes costs more.  We have a 529 plan for our son, but can't use it either to homeschool.  We are thinking a school about 30min away that deals with these kids.  Public school sys had to help with this and transportation too.

Hello,  We have an 11 year old also, and we recently (Dec 2010) pulled our son from the public school system.  Our son has various issues, including a reading and writing disability, speech apraxia, and sensory integration disorder.  While in 5th grade in the public system he was becoming depressed and was diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, all from the stress of being in a general ed classroom.  Our son is on an IEP, however, this made no difference, they just didn't know how to teach him.  His reading level is only at the 2nd grade level and was showing little improvement.

The best thing we did was pull him and begin homeschooling.  Yes, it can be difficult at times, but is well worth it.  Be prepared for resistance the first couple of months, mainly from the change, but you will get through it.  We currently use a program called "Time 4 Learning" which is an online program, it costs $20 per month.  We are also beginning a CD math program called "Teaching Textbooks" ($120 per grade level).  Our son is very computer literate, so these work well, even with his reading challenges.

Based on our experience, homeschooling is a blessing and I would highly recommend.  We had a lot of fears entering into it, but they have all worked out.  Good Luck in whatever you decide.
Dianne G. in Colorado

My son is 11 years old with a similar condition not clearly diagnosed.  As a parent, you have the right to your child's education.  My son through his IEP, has smaller classes, actually one-on-one for some classes that overwhelm him like math.  

There are SELPA programs for misunderstood children like ours.  It is very useful to talk with a program director about this sort of thing before you decide on the home schooling route.  There is a large range of programs through the county, but most schools have smaller classes specifically designed to help educate children that get overwhelmed.


With lots of love and attention my son does much better.

Good luck!  

Laurie

I think it would be best for your son if he can attend school online.  There are a lot of online school out there that offers online education for free. You can try searching them via google. Make sure to supervise your child in his daily activities.