Is homeschooling an option for an autistic child?

Homeschooling is indeed an option for an autistic child, and actually one of the best options, according to many parents. Although teachers, friends, and relatives may try to persuade you to keep your autistic child in public or private school, many parents find that their cihldren do much better when homeschooled.

Advantages of homeschooling

The obvious advantage is being able to work with your child, one on one, which most schools cannot do, or at least not to the full extent a parent at home can. Even if you are homeschooling more than one child, you can almost always give your child more attention and one on one time than the average public or private school teacher can.

Another advantage is that you can control the environment and activities to accomodate your child's needs. Does your child focus better in low lights? Do flourescent lights bother your child? Does the noise that other children make bother or upset your child? Does your child need frequent breaks? Does your child learn better with certain activities than with others? Does your child learn well with American Sign Language (ASL) or with flash cards, or with toys that can demonstrate for your child (like a doll that can try to activity first)?  All of these things present some degree of challenge for a traditional classroom, but are easy to accomodate at home -- and all of these are typical needs of autistic children.

Many autistic children have trouble sleeping, and have many doctor appointments and therapy appointments. It is much easier to accomodate these issues, by starting lessons a bit later, or rearranging the schedule for appointments, when the child is learning at home. With homeschooling, these problems do not become problems because they can be easily worked into the schedule without actually missing any schooling time. In traditional settings, a child who was too sleepy would just miss most of what was worked on at school that day, or maybe have to stay home if they were up all night. And they would miss school work for appointments, too. But at home, these lessons could just be moved to a different time. Homeschool can start later on a daily basis if needed, or operate on a split schedule. So much less school time is missed.

Disadvantages of homeschooling

Homeschooling is not always possible because of financial need and work schedules. Although many families have made it a goal to work toward and thus have managed to eventually be able for one parent to quit a job to homeschool the kids, it is simply not possible for some families.

Packaged homeschooling programs (curriculums) can be very expensive. You can find all that you need, and more, for very little and sometimes free, but that takes a bit more time to research and choose.

It is necessary to understand NC state laws regarding homeschooling, and be sure to comply. This is not particularly difficult but it does add one more item to the "to do" list.

Where to start?

There are many resources online for homeschoolers, and some good resources for special needs homeschoolers.  If you want to homeschool, the first place you should visit is Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). This is an excellent online resource that will give you the information you need before you start home schooling. There is much information there available for free, and even more assistance available if you become a member. No one should homeschool without this resource. Sometimes homeschoolers do have run ins with the authorities, although it is not always deserved. This website will tell you how to start your homeschool program and keep it running, according to the laws of your state. Also be sure to check out their page dedicated to homeschooling children with special needs, including laws that may apply specifically to homeschooling special needs kids.

Another excellent website is http://giftsnc.com, which has some information and also provides workshops to help parents. They have a page full of website resources that are excellent.

It's good to also find a forum for homeschoolers, particularly those with autism, and get the support of parents in a similar situation. This is also a good idea if you are curious about homeschooling but not sure. You can get the straight scoop, directly from parents who are already homeschooing their autistic children.

Look at homeschooling as an adventure, and an opportunity to control your child's learning, rather than passively allowing what happens to happen. In some traditional settings, the main goal, whether stated or not, is to prepare your child for the bare minimum expected for his or her life. If you believe that your child has more potential than that, you should definitely consider homeschooling.