“Sometimes in the waves of change we find our true direction” — author unknown.
“Honey! Guess what?” said my husband with a distinct ring of excitement in his voice. “I have an opportunity, but we will need to move. What do you think?” Over the years he repeated this “greeting” several times. Amusingly, it always came during the fall of the year, specifically in September. Our moving slowed down once we started a family. We stayed in the same area where we had a good homeschool support system, friends, and solid relationships for our kiddos. However, as the kids grew so did the busyness and we had less time to visit our home state. We were missing valuable time with aging parents and siblings. We felt like we were being prompted by God to do something different but what, when, and honestly, how? After a lot of prayer, reasoning, and research, we decided if it was truly from the Lord, it would all fall in place. So, we started to prepare: our hearts, our home, our children. I won’t even start on the mega-list of things that needed done to our acreage. And sure enough! After a year of working and waiting when September came (No joke) the “Honey! Let’s go!” signal came too.
Having homeschooled in a state that was very home school friendly, I was used to flexible state requirements. I was hopeful that transferring our school to the next destination would be seamless. I started by getting advice from the state rep at HSLDA to learn the requirements. I also searched that state’s Board of Education website for further information about required coursework, reporting, etc. After gaining an understanding of the home education laws, I began seeking information about things like co-ops, sports, speech, and debate teams and the like near where we would settle. I also choose to contact several of the area school districts to get a feel for how they accepted homeschoolers in public-school classes or extracurriculars, should one of our children become interested. We personally looked for a home with the home-school friendliest district.
Often as home educating parents, it can be helpful to be innovative and resourceful to find opportunities for our children. Initially, the state we were moving to required that all 5 core subjects be taken at public school before a home educated student participate in any competitive activity including sports, music, or FFA at the discretion of the school district. I started investigating other options, like nearby private Christian schools regarding their participation policies for home educated students. I searched social media for homeschool groups and co-ops in the area. Libraries, churches, local museums, and sports clubs (like Tae kwon do) sometimes offer special programs for home school students. These may also have contact info for homeschool groups. When I came up short of a co-op that seemed fitting, I called the consultants at Rainbow Resource Center and gleaned great info since we were moving near their location. I hope this encourages you to be creative, to find ways to meet the needs of your kiddos should you transition to a new area.
As our move progressed, we ran into SO many trials and snags, but thankfully, due to a little pre-move preparation and investigation our children quicky seemed to adjust. They became acquainted with new friends through a Christian school sports team and choir, continued a few online classes, and joined the youth group at church and 4-H club. We found a high school homeschool group that met regularly for fun activities.
Now, a few years down the road my children have graduated and are moving on to the next phase of life. Our lives have changed so dramatically, but with change comes opportunity and growth. We simply must look for it with an open mind and step out of our comfort zone to move forward. Be encouraged and go forth! Blessings! ~ Judy
