Frequently Asked Questions
How much it costs to homeschool depends entirely on your budget.
Over the past 20 years, we've had times when we've spent almost nothing and other times when we've splurged.
I'm a single mum - and I know the importance of affordable schooling. We work hard to provide you with everything you need to homeschool well on the smallest possible budget.
We know the importance of affordable schooling and we work hard to provide you with everything you need to homeschool well on the smallest possible budget.
- A Simply Homeschool membership offers fantastic value for money as you have access to the full curriculum for all members of your family. This means you are able to use the one family membership for all your children and cater for different interests, learning styles and needs.
- Our core programs are based on books. You choose when and where to purchase these books depending, on your budget and needs. Many of these books can be borrowed from your local library or can be sourced within our Buy, Swap, Sell Community.
- We choose our books carefully. We intend every book in core programs and Just Good Books to be good value for money. If a book is more expensive, we think it's worth it.
- We offer various payment options to fit most budgets. Our pay-by-the-month membership allows you to try before you commit for the year. Our 12-month membership offers great savings.
Read more:
https://simplyhomeschool.com.au/blog/how-much-does-it-cost-to-homeschool
Many homeschool kids go on to university. My three older children have gone on to tertiary education without ever going to school. There are various pathways that make this possible. Some of the main options:
- TAFE: A Tafe Cert 4 gives you access to a variety of university courses. This is possibly the most popular way for homeschoolers to go on to university. One of the main advantages of this pathway is that a Cert 4 provides students with a qualification in something before beginning university. This means they are often able to work in a skilled job part-time while they study. It also means they can try a particular field before they begin their degree. Students might choose a TAFE course connected to their main field of interest, such as a Cert 4 in Mental Health before studying Nursing or Psychology. Alternatively, a student might choose another interest for variety, such as studying a Cert 4 in Fitness before studying a Media Degree.
- University Bridging Course: Some universities offer bridging courses that provide an ATAR for students to go on to university. The advantages of these courses are the university-like structure and the focused nature of the courses. The course might include academic essay writing as a compulsory subject. Students can study a bridging course at a local university and then apply for the university of their choice based on their ATAR.
- Open University: Open University offers online courses with no prerequisites. Students need to gain a certain level of achievement in a number of courses and these can then provide entry into the University and course of your choice. This is often a pathway used by gifted students who are ready to study at university level in early high school. You can use these courses as part of your homeschool study. They may also provide credit for the course of your choice.
- Return to school: Some students choose to return to (or begin) school for the last few years of high school. In my experience, these students have done very well as they are focused and intentional.
With all these pathways, check the details carefully as regulations vary in each state and for each university and course.
Read more:
We know sometimes life is tough. Families face all types of complex challenges that can make homeschooling valuable, necessary and daunting all at the same time. We know. Between our staff, we've experienced many significant challenges and we're here to support you and help you make a plan to do this.
So, take a deep breath. Take one step at a time. We're here to help.
Once you have a Trial Membership, we invite you to join our Simply Homeschool Community Group.
We can step you through the registration process for your state and help you create a Learning Plan to get started.
Many of our staff are trained teachers and also trained in neurodiversity. We write our core programs to cater for kids with a wide variety of learning needs and interests. There are a few very special things to help you out:
- You know your child. We have created a smorgasbord of learning for you to choose what to put on your child's plate. If you need help to create a tailored Learning Plan for your child, please e-mail us and make an appointment.
- We know parenting and homeschooling through tough times is exhausting. We've done all the work to make this as easy as possible for you.
- Our core programs are designed to cater for children with learning needs that are at a different level to their age. For example, a core program in the 5-7 and 8-11 age brackets works well for an 11-year-old who struggles to read and write. A core program in the 8-11 and 12-14 age brackets works well for a gifted 9-year-old.
- You set the pace - you are never behind. Each day, you just keep moving forward with your child, at their pace. Watch Creating a Daily Timetable to Cover the Syllabus to see how this works.
If your child or your family needs extra support, please let us know.
Read more:
Yes! We provide information to help you register in various states.
We also sell registration documents through our Resource Shop for paid members of Simply Homeschool. Our templates/assistance costs $120 for the first child and $100 for each child thereafter.
Our registration resources are available here:
https://simplyhomeschool.com.au/support/registration-and-reporting
At Simply Homeschool, we recognise that learning is integrated - as we learn about one area, we are also applying skills from other areas. Therefore, rather than separating learning into different subjects, Simply Homeschool offers an integrated learning program. Each program holistically incorporates a range of skills and subjects. We call these programs cores.
Each core is typically based on a book (not a textbook) - an actual fiction or non-fiction book! The book is a diving-off point from where learners will explore a range of subject areas through hands-on activities, including research projects, critical analysis, art projects and science experiments, as well as English skills starting from phonics right through to identifying reliable sources, note-taking and essay writing.
A core contains lessons and activities. You work through the lessons at your own pace. There is no time limit and no due date. At Simply Homeschool, we know that every child is different and will approach learning in their own unique way. As such, you have complete freedom over how you choose to work through the cores.
Once you have completed an activity, you have the option to click ‘completed’ and add photos/comments for record-keeping. You also have the freedom to skip activities that don’t interest or suit your learner. It’s ok to skip! Part of the Simply Homeschool approach is trusting that children learn best when they are interested and engaged. Go deeper into another activity that interests your child and skip the ones that don’t.
You know your learners best! Start with one core plus maths and find your rhythm. Once you have found your Simply Homeschool flow, look at adding another core to your week. You can add cores at any time. You don’t have to work in school terms. It’s your homeschool, so make it work for you!
A goal of 4-6 cores plus maths in a year is standard. However, you know your learners! At Simply Homeschool, there’s no guilt about not getting ‘enough’ done and there’s no minimum yearly requirement! If your learner takes a whole year to really deep dive into a small handful of cores, then that is a year very well spent!
One of the unique aspects of the Simply Homeschool program is its ability to adapt to multiple ages. Simply Homeschool is not grade or stage based. Instead, we recognise that an 8-year-old can be just as interested in marine biology as a 12-year-old. Our core programs are flexible enough to cater to multiple ages and abilities.
For example, let's say an activity asks learners to research species of fish on the Great Barrier Reef. An 8-year-old and a 12-year-old are both able to complete this task by working at their own level. Since Simply Homeschool is not an online learning program with predetermined levels of content, learners are able to engage with the activities in a way and at a level that suits them best.
Each core differs in length. Some cores have less than 10 lessons, while other have over 100! You have the freedom to work through them at your own pace. There is no expectation to complete a core within a term. It’s your homeschool, so take as much time as your unique learners need.
When you sign up for a free trial you are automatically given 4 cores in your Family Learning Plan to look at. You do not need to do these cores as they are just suggestions and allow you to see the layout and style of the lessons. On the free trial membership, you cannot add cores into your Family Learning Plan or remove them. If you see a core you would like to look at more closely, please contact us and we can swap it in for you.
This is not a big issue. As soon as you join back up to a paid membership, all your cores and saved work will still be there waiting for you.
Absolutely! You can contact us via e-mail at info@simplyhomeschool.com.au or call our homeschool hotline on 0485 829 839.