The Sunshine State Homeschooler

Overview Page
Purpose
The purpose of this site is to provide new homeschooling families and
families that are contemplating homeschooling, information about
homeschooling in Florida.
Objectives
o Provide information on how to begin the homeschooling process
o Provide insight on choosing a curriculum
o Provide resources for support groups
Audience
The audience for this site is parents who plan to homeschool their children,
and parents that are nee to homeschooling in the state of Florida.

Content
Overview
Homeschooling has continued to grow in popularity. There are now
thousands of parents homeschooling across the country. Making the decision
to homeschool is a big one. Unfortunately, making decisions about
homeschooling dont end there. This website is design to provide a small
amount of guidance to parents who are new to homeschooling or just
deciding to homeschool in the state of Florida.

Getting Started
The first thing you need to do is file a Notice of Intent to home school for
each child you plan to homeschool. This can be a letter that you type or you
check your local school districts website, because they often have sample
letters or online forms that you can complete. For the record, you do not
have to use the schools sample or online form even if they have them. They
are only suggestions. A typed letter with the appropriate information works
just as well. Once completed, you can either hand deliver, mail, or email to
them. The letter is sent to the district, not the individual schools. Most
district sites offer the appropriate local contact person or department for
your area. This is vital because you want to make sure that you follow the
correct steps and be in compliance with state laws.
Here is exactly what the state of Florida Statues say is requires in a Notice of
Intent:
The parent shall notify the district school superintendent of the county in which the parent resides of
her or his intent to establish and maintain a home education program. The notice shall be in writing,
signed by the parent, and shall include the names, addresses, and birthdates of all children who
shall be enrolled as students in the home education program. The notice shall be filed in the district
school superintendents office within 30 days of the establishment of the home education
program. Section 1002.41(1)(a)

Notice of Intent is required for all children who will be six or older on
February 1st of the school year you are filing for. This means that if your child
is already five and will turn six by February 1st of the school year you are
homeschooling, you must file a Notice of Intent. If your child is five but turns
six after February first of the school year you are homeschooling, then you
do not have to file a Notice of Intent for that school year, but you will have to
file one for the next school year.

Please be aware that Kindergarten is mandatory in the state of Florida so if

you choose to not enroll your child into a public or private school until first
grade, you have to file a letter of intent for the kindergarten year that your
child remains at home. You will also have to provide proof of your child
completing a kindergarten curriculum.

-All Notices of Intent must be filed within 30 days of beginning your

homeschool program.Note: You only have send this letter once. It is not required that you send in a
new one each year. The only time it is required to send this notice in again is
if you officially terminate and place your child in a public or private school. If
you decide to resume homeschooling, you will have to send in a new Notice
of Intent

Here are a few examples of Notices of Intent

Royal Palm Beach Notice of Intent

Sample letter from Parents educating children

Termination
If you choose to end your homeschooling program and resume public or
private school, you must complete a letter of Termination. All this letter must
contain is the same information about your child that was in the Notice of
Intent (name, date of birth, and address), as well as the date of termination.
You do not have to state why you are terminating or what school your child
will be attending.

Choosing a Curriculum
Choosing a curriculum can be a daunting task. There is no set homeschool
curriculum for the state. Many parents choose to use the standards or
curriculum that the public schools use as a guide. The state of Florida is
currently using the Common Core Curriculum. How the information is taught
is strictly up to the parents. Parents can choose from Secular, Religious
based, or an Un-schooling Curriculum or teaching style. You may also choose
to do a combination of the three. Another option you may choose to do is the
FL virtual school online or the K12 online curriculum. For the online schools,

students follow the state curriculum and are taught by certified teachers.
Look for curriculums that cover what you what your child to know. You can do
this by looking at homeschool curriculum review blogs. If you are unsure of
where to start, then look at the State of Floridas curriculum for your childs
grade.
Here are some links to a brief description of each type curriculum as well as
a list of resources. (Note: These lists are not meant to be comprehensive.
They are only for reference and or starting points)

Secular Curriculum
This type of curriculum is for parents who choose a non-religious based form
of homeschooling. There are less curriculum choices for this form of
homeschooling, but they can be found.
Here are a few resources:
Florida Virtual School
Oak Meadows
The Secular Homeschooler
Pearson Homeschool Division
Time 4 Learning
ABC Mouse
K12 Online

Religious Based Curriculum

A religious based curriculum is one that incorporates religious teachings into
the lessons.
Here a few resources:
Alpha and Omega Publishers
Bob Jones University Press (BJU)
A Beka
Rod & Staff
Sonlight

My Fathers World
Christian Liberty Academy

Unschooling
Unschooling is not a curriculum based form of homeschooling. It is more child
centered and child guided. Most unschoolers generally do not use any form
of structured learning. Students are allowed to learn through guided life
experiences.
Here are some resources:
Free Range Learning: How Homeschooling Changes Everything (Book)
The Unschooling Handbook: How to Use the whole world as your childs
classroom (book)
Unschoolers Online
The Beginners Guide to Unschooling

Testing and Evaluations

If you homeschool in the state of Florida, it is not mandatory that your child
take the FCAT test, but you must submit an annual evaluations due the
anniversary date that was placed on the Notice of intent.
From the Florida Statues:
The parent shall provide for an annual educational evaluation in which is documented the students
demonstration of educational progress at a level commensurate with her or his ability. The parent shall
select the method of evaluation and shall file a copy of the evaluation annually with the district school
superintendents office in the county in which the student resides. Statue: 1002.41(1)(c)

Annual evaluations can take several forms. The evaluation you choose is
completely up to you. One thing you make want to think about is how your
child learns and which evaluation will best suit your childs personality.
Note: You need to maintain a yearly portfolio of samples of your child or
childrens work. You need to keep this portfolio for at the minimum two years
in the event that the superintendent requests an inspection. This rarely
happens but you need to be prepared in the event that it does.
Forms of Evaluation:

1. A teacher certified in the state of Florida can evaluate the students

educational progress through review of the childs portfolio and
discussions with the child, parents, or both.
2. The student can take any nationally normed student achievement test,
but it must be administered by a certified teacher (ex: ITBS or Stanford
Achievement Test)
3. The student can take the state assessment test. In this case the FCAT
when it is administered by the school district.
4. The student may be evaluated by any other valid measurement tool as
long as it is mutually agreed upon by the parents and the districts
superintendent.
Once your child has been evaluated and you have turned in a copy to the
district, you should keep a copy for yourself so that you can evaluate your
childs strengths and weakness.

Support Groups
An often overlooked component of homeschooling is support groups.
Homeschooling can be a very lonely endeavor if you dont have any outside
support. There are many different forms of support groups online and
possibly some in your area. Support systems can take the form of online
community groups, blogs, and co-ops that you can take part in. These groups
do not need to be based in your state, but it is sometimes good to have a
resource that is close to you.
Online Community Groups:
These are groups of parents that get together and talk discuss things like
curriculums, behavior, motivation, resources, and field trips. Many of these
type groups are inclusive or have a particular theme like Christian, Secular,
or Unschooling. Try multiple groups.
Blogs:
These are web logs that are kept by homeschooling parents. They are
generally only persons perspective (the blogs creator), but usually provide a
lot of insight and resources.
Co-ops:

A homeschool co-op usually consists of a group of homeschoolers getting

together to provide social and educational activities for the children. There
are not co-ops in all areas. Some co-ops only provide educational classes,
while others only offer extracurricular activities like, robotics, art, and music.
Still other co-ops offer both educational and extracurricular classes.
Starter list of Resources:
SecularHomeschool.com
Central Florida Mensa
Hoagies Gifted Education Page
Florida-Homeschooling.org
Florida Homeschool Yahoo Group (online Christian homeschool support)
TheHomeschoolMom.com

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