Dear Renee, Welcome to the club!

Let me begin by saying that the state you live in will determine some of this. Some states regulate homeschooling more than others and may have requirements for you to meet. Check in with your state dept of education and your state homeschool association for the legalities of homeschooling in your state. For CA, where I live, www.hsc.org is an awesome resource. It may, even if you do not live in CA, answer many questions.

Your state department of education will have the standards for every grade level available on their website. You can refer to these if it makes you feel comfortable and you desire to teach your child according to the standards she would be exposed to in public school or use them just as a guideline. But remember that the beauty of homeschooling includes the ability to teach to your child's learning style and interests. One of my favorite websites for figuring out what methods and curriculum might work for the family is www.homeschooldiner.com. It has an overview of most ideology and curriculum pertaining to homeschooling, as well as a handy quiz if you just aren't sure.

I would also join some online discussion groups, definitely local and possibly some national, where you can get some support and more information. Also be sure to meet up with some local homeschooling groups for park days and field trips, and if one doesn't fit- try another until you find a group that you feel good about. Veteran homeschoolers have a lot of wisdom and resources to share! Just remember to listen to yourself and your daughter and what you both need and you will be fine!

Finally, your daughter is very young and at this age there is not much need for a formal curriculum. Follow her interests and passions, go places and have adventures, expose her to the world in a variety of ways- and you will be amazed at how much she learns!

Good luck and I hope this helps! -Sam

I am currently homeschooling my son for Kinder.  When I was looking for lesson plans and curriculums, I went with my faith.  I chose Seton Home Study, Catholic based curriculum.   They provide plenty of resources including access to school counselors to help you through the way.  Although, you really do not need a curriculum to homeschool, I still chose a curriculum to follow since I am a person that works better with structure.  Hope you find what you need.  Homeschooling is a blessing.

If you choose a packaged curriculum or any packaged materials they usually have lesson plans set out for you to follow.  If you are doing it yourself you can follow the plans set out in one of the books for the different approaches.  Classical approach families tend to follow the Well Trained Mind book.  There's also the books by Ruth Beechick- The 3 R's covers Kindergarten through 3rd grade, You Can Teach Your Child Successfully covers grades 4-8.  If you search the internet you can also find a lot of information out there for free.

Yes, welcome to the homeschooling. Since you didn't say what state your in requirements are hard to comment on. If it is PA, like my family, Ask Pauline website is helpful. This website is likely helpful to HS families in other states too (she posts lots of forms and templates that are great time savers).

HSLAD is another good place to look for info on the laws in your state.

Both websites are below.