Last Saturday, my wife and I went downtown to do some shopping for our home.
We also took the opportunity to buy some supplies to prepare for the start of homeschooling.
As we mentioned before, we are already actively studying the subject, and although we knew it would be a challenge, now that we're more immersed, we see that it's quite complex, especially because of the language barrier. My wife is focused on literacy and has discovered how difficult the process can be. But, as we also said before: no one said this would be easy.
In addition, we currently have the inconvenience of our other son having several doctor's appointments a week, on different days and times. This makes daily planning quite complicated. Therefore, we are trying to reorganize these appointments: ideally, concentrate them on a single day, or at least group them into morning or afternoon shifts, to facilitate the overall organization of the week.
We're also actively gathering information: researching websites, downloading materials, reading everything we can find about homeschooling and how to adapt it to our family's situation.
For now, our son will continue attending school while we prepare. The idea is to begin with an afterschool approach until we're ready to move to full-time homeschooling.
And well, we also noticed something important: we're going to need to print a lot of things. So we're already looking to buy packs of paper, and we've come to the conclusion that a printer will be essential. I'm looking at options on specialized websites and Amazon, as well as watching YouTube reviews, trying to find the best cost-benefit ratio. We want one that will allow us to print a lot of paper and that will be convenient when it comes to changing cartridges or refilling toner.
So if anyone has any recommendations for good printers for homeschooling (that are durable, affordable, and easy to maintain), I'm all ears!
It's a process, but we're facing it with commitment and dedication.
@Undisciplined --->Giving the first update
Where are you, children who are learning at home are forced to take school exams?
many US states also have this requirement. Washington State requires yearly exams. NY also has a yearly testing requirement, but also makes parents file quarterly reports.
Here in Portugal, it's also mandatory to do periodic exams and reports, and what's more, whoever teaches has to have a university degree, no matter which one.
Part of this first stage is getting to know the depth of the legality, because as I said before, it's not prohibited, it's just within the legal framework, so it's good to be well-informed...!!
Talk to parents who have been in this process for years, and seek out parent communities as well.
We live in Brazil, and from what I understand, if you homeschool, you're not required to take exams, but you are required to follow certain school curricula, meaning you have to complete certain levels over a period of years.
We're really studying the entire homeschooling process.
I was reading a bit and noticed it’s a recent law, pushed by Bolsonaro. You should probably look into it properly, because I got the impression there are yearly evaluations.
That is, it is as I was saying, the tests to level up, or at the end of the course, should be, I don't know what it is called...maybe we are entering this world, we are studying and taking the steps little by little, we are already talking with some friends from church who also do homeschooling, in addition to which we are also looking at the issue of all the legality and so on, since here it is not prohibited but neither is it allowed...so we have to be clear about everything.
I'm just finishing up getting our third child fully reading on their own. We're doing it in English, but I have a feeling some of the following tips will translate to most reading:
I think what you say about perseverance is always the most important thing. We tend to give up on things when they don't go the way we want them to, but we shouldn't decide. In our case, our child likes us to read stories to him, and he's always with his books for us to read to. Sometimes we find him reading (or pretending to read) to his younger brother, and it's an impulse that we want to take advantage of.
I'm curious about the availability of free resources in Portuguese. We use Khan Kids and Duo ABC, which are really well developed in the English versions.
Haha, we've already looked at those two resources, both for Spanish and Portuguese, they're very good tools.
Near to themselves like Italian and Spanish have lot of similar terms, German is little far from Portuguese and spanish
The German language is a real headache... just thinking about it hahaha
Buying packs of paper is costly nowadays.
Sometimes it's cheaper to buy in bulk; you save money, and in the end, it's a resource you've already secured and that you'll end up using sooner or later.
Exactly as buying a paper is not past time or a hobby. It is a necessity.
Can confirm. Also there's no such thing as a printer that doesn't suck. Given that...
A cheap (second hand even) deskjet you can get refilled carts for... mine is almost 15 years old and if it dies I won't care if I have to replace it because they're cheap, plentiful and easy enough for my wife to deal with.
I'm going to see how much HPs are coming out here in Brazil. Today I want to take the time to check it out. I was seeing that the Epson EcoTank L3250 is also cheap here.....!!!
I really admire the intention and effort you both are putting into this. Homeschooling is no joke — especially when you're juggling a language barrier and regular medical appointments. The afterschool transition sounds like a wise and smooth move.
And yes, you're absolutely right about the printer! It becomes a core tool before you even realize it. I'd recommend looking into Epson EcoTank or Brother laser printers — long-term, they save a ton on ink and are pretty reliable.
Wishing you and your family strength and clarity as you build this new rhythm. You're doing great already just by being this intentional. 💪📚🖨️