I receive many inquiries asking where to sign up for homeschools. Many people, as a last hope for their children, try to find a homeschool to send them to. The problem is that homeschooling is done by the parent at home.

Although I believe it is important to protect homeschooling as we know it by keeping homeschools independent of the public school system, there are many home educating options available and each family must consider what is right for their children. There are different types of homeschools - different philosophies, beliefs or practices. Maybe one of these options will meet the needs of your family.

Over the years, I've had my children in coop classes, junior high classes two days a week, and even tried an online virtual school, complete with avatars and whiteboards. All the programs I participated in were privately operated and independent of the public school system. Personally, I liked the low-key coop classes. But the junior high classes two days a week and the online school took away too much from my homeschooling time. I didn't feel that I had the control in the education of my children. I'm more from the traditional homeschooling stance, although I see the benefit the other options can offer. The question is, are these other programs diluting the purity of homeschooling as we've known it? Does it put our homeschooling freedoms at risk?

What's your opinion? Should these alternative methods be considered homeschooling?

Photo: Getty Images

As you consider your purchases for your homeschool books and supplies, visit these sites for homeschool classifieds ads to find used items at a savings. Post your own ads to sell your items you are no longer using, or post a wanted ad listing the items you are looking for. These sites are all free to post your ads.

I've purchased and sold many used homeschool items over the internet. It is a good way to get your curriculum at a discount, try out a curriculum without spending a lot of money, and resell the items you're no longer using.

A homeschool coop is a group of homeschooling families that join together to share in the education of their children. Back in the day, we called our homeschool coop "Friday School" because the classes were held on Fridays. We taught everything from manners, to cooking classes, to Algebra, to writing composition. Learn the benefits of Homeschool Coop classes.

Abeka Books is a popular choice for Christian homeschoolers. ABeka Books is dedicated to providing quality education from a Christian perspective. Abeka Books offers 3 methods for using the Abeka Curriculum in your homeschooling.

In using Abeka Books with my own children, I did not use the extra drills and tests. Because I worked closely with my children, I didn't feel the need to test on the material. Any concepts they didn't understand, we went over again. Your curriculum should be a tool used to teach your children, don't feel tied to it. Don't be afraid to use the topics in the books as a springboard for unit studies.