Hello, I’m new to the forum and it looks like a great place to be for current homeschoolers and those doing some research into it’s possibilities. We have been considering homeschooling our 6 and 8 year old but economically it will be a challenge. I think we can do it if I work part time from home but there are many questions around that. Should I not even be considering a homeschool if I still need to work part time? I wonder what percentage of homeschool families have to have a part time income in order to survive? I have looked into a few different things that haven’t appealed to me too much so far. Then the other day my dearest friend said girl you’re not thinking straight about some of this stuff you have looked at. Why not use what you have available and put it to work. She said her sister’s friend has a home based preschool that she just loves. She makes some decent extra money while working just part time with an afternoon class. Apparently it is a lot easier to set up a preschool compared to a daycare. I must admit that it does sound interesting but I’m not sure how that would blend with my kids. My head is so spinning right now. Has anybody here done something similar and if not do you think it is a viable option? I apologize for all the questions and I appreciate any feedback. Thanks so much. Angie
Welcome to the spot! You can work and homeschool and you will not be alone-just in the minority. But-you might also be able to cut corners and stay home as well. Think hard-what monthly bills can you get rid of. Honestly weigh want vs need. Get rid of what you don't NEED or at least prioritize your wants and let those low on the list go. Do you have a landline and a cell phone? Do you NEED both? Does your cell have internet and text on it? Do you NEED text and internet on your cell? Can you raise the deductible on your ins to save on the monthly bill? Do you buy most thing generic? (food, clothing, etc) How often do you eat out? That makes a big dent in the budget quickly. Are you taking steps to save n your energy bill? You know-you can educate your children with spending very little money. (we have no income at all right now-but we're still homeschooling! ) The 3 most important things to us for homeschooling on the cheap is: 1. A full computer set up-computer, printer and internet. The internet opens the whole world up to you, endless information at your fingertips, right in your own home. And there are a ton of free printables, PDF books, interactive websites, etc geared toward homeschoolers. 2. Library. Most people think 'books' when you say library, but many libraries offer much more. Go, look around and ask, you might be surprised what all your library offers. 3. Netflix. Yes, Netflix. My 7 year old is a documentary junkie! LOL He rarely ever watches cartoons anymore. We use Netflix/Roku as our only form of TV-saves us $40/mo compared to dish. They even have geometry and algebra series on disc! Buy curriculum used. You'll save a ton!
I sort of work... we have our own business, where my husband does the work and I do all the paperwork (invoices, quarterly filings, etc.) and run the errands. I typically spend 10-15 hours a week on business stuff. I don't get a paycheck for it, I just keep us from having to give someone else a paycheck to do it. So it is possible. And I agree with Sonita on the key things to have for school. If you already have a computer, internet and printer, you have a great head start.
Welcome! Yes. You can work and hs, I work outside the home and started hs my 9 and 10 yr old this year. I must admit in the beginning it was extremely challenging but once we found our grove it is working out great. I drive a school bus for our local ps. I leave for work at 6am and return at 9. Then I school from 9:30 to around 12. Because I have leave again at 1 for my afternoon run that goes until 4. Any work that isn't completed while I am home is done while I am gone and then I correct it when I get back. As I said, in the beginning it was difficult. But, I have given chores to my kids to help me out. My son is in charge of emptying the dishwasher and my daughter is in charge of one load of laundry a day. I have to say my don't love the idea of the chores but they said if it keeps them home they are fine with it. Before I started to delegate things out to other people I would come home stressed out and yell. I finally sat everyone down and said this isn't going to work the way were going. Everyone agreed so we started to make changes. REMEMBER, to be patient with yourself and your short coming because you will have them. But, all the kinks will get worked out!
I've been homeschooling for 6 years and working part-time for almost 5 years. I decided to go back to work (after being a SAHM for 12 years) for extra money. I figured that evenings and weekends would work well with homeschooling - still allowing me to be with the kids all day. Dh emailed me something promising, so I threw together a resume and cover letter and emailed it out. I got a return email the next day. After 2 interviews I started 6 weeks of paid training and have been there ever since. I work for the cable company, in the sales department. I work 5:30pm-9:30pm with Tuesdays and Fridays off. It's a 15-minute drive away. I didn't expect to get something so perfect on my first attempt. The money is excellent, I have a corporate membership to all the museums and cultural centers in NYC, and I absolutely love it. If it sounds like something you'd like to do, see if there's something like that in your area. Working and homeschooling works! I feel I'm a better mom for it and I love having extra money to do more things with the family.
Welcome! I recently joined and love it here. It is an exceptional resource. I work part-time from home with freelance writing. I find jobs through the internet. It isn't a lot but it does help with small things. Also, I am more conscious of saving money. We recycle as much as we can and we have cut back on our eating out. I was amazed how much we saved but not eating out as much.
I homeschool and go to school fulltime. I agree with cherryridgeline above when she was talking about having everyone pitch in and help with the chores. Cause everyone now knows if mama gets her homework done that means fun for everyone!!:lol:
I also homeschool and go to college. We have been a single-income family since soon after ds was born. (he's 9 now). It has been a struggle financially, but I think for us it was a matter of figuring out EXACTLY what are priorities are. For us, our family is FIRST. That means no latest-and-greatest anything and dh and I often go without, but our family is very close. Is it hard? Yes, sometimes very. But we manage to pay the bills. Eventually, I will be doing a work-at-home job writing, but for now, this is where we are. I would caution you to look very carefully at the work-from-home jobs offered. I sold makeup from a very well known seller a few years ago. The product rocked, but the income wasn't there, and it was a LOT more work than the company led me to believe. It ended up costing me money instead of earning anything. I certainly didn't get paid for my time!
The first couple of years that I homeschooled I also took care of a baby. It gave me an extra $500 a month. Where I lived then I didn't need a daycare license since I was only watching for one family. That made it much easier for me to get started and just make some money. Now I am not working, instead I am being super frugal to keep our costs down. Cooking everything from scratch, hanging clothes to dry, and using the library for lots of our materials and enrichment has saved a ton.
I am homeschooling my 2 sons and working part-time in the afternoons from 1-5 at the brick-and-mortar school where my daughter is still enrolled. It helps that DH works from 5AM-1:00 PM. I also have been taking on some proofreading jobs on the weekends, which is all computer-based from home. The company for which I proofread has asked me if I can increase my hours, so at the end of this school year I will be leaving my job at the school in order to work only from home, which will allow me the flexibility to participate in local homeschooling group activities. It can be done, it just takes a LOT of planning and organizing. And, I seem to always be sleep deprived!
