Homeschooling And The Need To Hire Tutors

Many parents feel very strongly that they wish to opt for homeschooling but also feel that it will be difficult to cope with teaching their children alone. In addition, there are often areas in which they simply do not have the knowledge or skill necessary, typically in subjects such as music or languages. There are of course many solutions to these problems but one is to hire a tutor.

Before you throw up your hands in horror and dismiss this idea as being far too expensive, this can of course be an expensive option but it does not have to cost you an arm and a leg.

The first thing that you need to do is to consider the type of tutor you are looking for and this will vary according to the style of homeschooling that you wish to adopt.

If you decide to adopt a classical approach to homeschooling, based on a tradition of monastic education, then you will need to find a tutor who is highly educated, has a keen mind and a wealth of experience and who will be able set your child a rigorous set of challenges and stretch his or her mind.

By contrast, if you decide to adopt an increasingly popular style such as that devised by Dr Maria Montessori in which education is very much a matter of focusing attention on and observing and reacting to the child, then you need to find a tutor who is far more flexible in his or her approach and who is innovative by nature.

Whatever approach you adopt the important point when it comes to finding a suitable tutor, regardless of the area or areas of study, is that the style and approach adopted by the tutor must match your own desired teaching style and the needs of the child.

So where do you start your search?

One good place to start is in your own local area because you will certainly not be alone in looking for a tutor and local homeschooling groups and other homeschooling parents in your area may well be able to offer you advice and even to recommend individual tutors to you.

Your next port of call might well be the Internet. The Internet has grown considerably in recent years and now provides one of the finest research tools available. Indeed, many homeschooling parents find the Internet is invaluable for sourcing teaching materials and researching topics when preparing their lesson plans. Start your search by simply typing in 'homeschool tutor' and you will find a wealth of information and avenues to explore.

As with hiring a stranger for any purpose however you need to exercise care and judgment and take your time to check out anybody who might at first sight appear to be suitable. You'll find that this is not as difficult as you might think as the Internet provides many online community sites and forums these days where people will post details of their own experience and where you contact people directly to ask them about their experience and seek recommendations.

The Internet has also provided an ideal vehicle for tutoring in many subjects with tutors providing lessons and teaching material online and communicating with students by email. Indeed modern technology now allows for the use of video lessons and even interactive video conferencing. Perhaps most importantly from the perspective of the homeschooling parent, the Internet can provide an excellent and low cost solution to tutoring needs in many subjects.

Homeschooling is not necessarily an easy option but Internet access has certainly made it a lot easier than it used to be and places an amazing array of resources, including tutoring, with the reach of homeschooling parents at a cost which will not break the bank.