Transitioning from Public School To Home School

Considering a switch in how your student is learning? Transitioning from public school or a traditional classroom to homeschool offers families key benefits! These benefits include: 

• Flexible Days
• Increased Parent oversight in Learning Mastery and Values Taught
• Supportive Partnerships with Online Educators
• Comfortable and Safe Learning Environments

Flexible Days

Homeschooling often takes significantly less time than a traditional school day because  your student is not physically transitioning from class to class and is not waiting on teacher instruction or on classmates. Your school time can be focused on just a few hours of each day. This will open up time for family priorities, travel, extracurriculars, a job or sport, or deeper learning in areas of interest. 

Take some time with your student to talk, dream and plan about how to best use your time each day. This proactive conversation will give you an exciting and strong start in your homeschool journey. 

While your day is flexible, it is important to still have a plan. Work through these questions together so that everyone has a voice, ownership, and enthusiasm about your plan. 

• What time of day is best to work on school work? 
• How long should each work session be? 
• What extra things do you want to learn or experience this year? 
• Is there a day you don’t want to have school work? Plan which days would be best to fit that extra work in. 

Each week may vary and that’s ok! Having a plan for each week greatly increases your student’s growth and progress each year.

Parent Oversight

When homeschooling, parents will gain full visibility into what their child is learning and how they’re progressing. If you are using a variety of curriculum or a bookwork style, the parent will need to initiate the flow and direct instruction to ensure the student is progressing through their year. You will be able to give immediate feedback, customize pacing (speeding up or slowing down), and alignment with YOUR family values.

Partnership: Strong Online Teacher & Resource Connections

Homeschooling doesn’t mean going it alone! Transitioning to a homeschool setting can be much easier when you are partnered with an online school like Southeast Academy. While still receiving a personalized schedule and direct parent insight to your student’s learning, you will have the full support of qualified teachers to daily guide your student through new concepts and provide encouragement and excellence throughout your year. As a parent, you will not have to worry about record-keeping or if your transcript will transfer because we have full accreditation. (Read more about our Cognia Accreditation.) This partnership with an online program creates a balance—parent-led structure with professional guidance where needed.

Intentional Learning Environment

At home, you can design a dedicated, distraction-free study space tailored to your child’s needs—whether that’s a quiet desk, an interactive kitchen table setup, or even an outdoor learning area. Getting started on your learning each day is best when the study area is prepared to be a place of focus, comfort, and productivity. Additionally, plan ahead to have some days spent learning alongside a friend in your space or at a fun coffee shop. From distraction free to fun, enjoy the environment you are learning in!

Have the right tools! 

In addition to a productive environment, have tools ready to assist your student in learning. Have on hand good old fashioned notebooks, pens, colored pencils, and some of the following tools: 

• An easy (FUN!) way to work out math problems is on a boogie board or a white board. Try this online white board. 
• Math Cubes can help younger students visualize math concepts.
• Calculators: Typically used in 6th-12th grade. It can be helpful to have in place of a phone to reduce distraction in your learning space. 
• Spelling Help: Use an outside resource to assist an elementary student in their spelling study.  
• Math Help: Students at Southeast Academy have access to a math club for live help or direct one on one tutoring. 
• Free programs like Khan Academy have excellent visuals and practice for your student. Simply search the concept you are studying!
• Supplemental Programs: There are many online resources that help fill learning gaps OR increase an accelerated learner’s growth. Southeast Academy uses MyPath to help students in these areas. MyPath assesses where your student is at and then gives them the lessons to guide them in those areas. Content is engaging, gamified, and fun! 

Taking the Step

Making the shift from a classroom to home learning can feel like a BIG step, but it also opens the door to a more personalized and peaceful rhythm for your family. You’ll have the freedom to move at your child’s pace, celebrating their areas of strength, and giving extra time where it’s needed most. Enjoy the flexibility, parent insight, partnerships, and learning environments that come with homeschooling. It’s okay not to have everything figured out right away—consistency and care matter more than perfection. Be ok with re-evaluating together with your student each week until you move into the rhythm that works best for your family. 

If you’d like a partner in your home school journey, consider Southeast Academy. We’re ready to come alongside your student!