Vanguard Parents

Topic

Getting started

The first weeks: the legal step, deschooling, telling your kids, and what not to buy yet.

19 pieces on this topic

Families connected around a shared community
Guide

How to organize a homeschool park day

Plan a simple homeschool park day: choose a place, invite moms and dads, confirm the details, and help new families feel welcome. Includes an invitation template.

22 Sept 2026

A wall planner beside a checklist with several items ticked off
Guide

Record keeping and portfolios — ten minutes a week, no dread

What to keep, what to bin, and a system that satisfies any state requirement in ten minutes a week — including for families who don't use a curriculum.

24 Aug 2026

A head in profile filled with brightly coloured connected nodes
Guide

Homeschooling a neurodivergent child — ADHD, autism and dyslexia at home

Why home education suits many neurodivergent learners, the accommodations that do the heavy lifting, and how to get assessed without a school behind you.

24 Aug 2026

A savings jar beside a rising bar chart and a dotted growth line
Guide

Homeschooling on a budget — a complete year for almost nothing

A genuinely free curriculum for every core subject, where to buy used, and the few purchases actually worth paying real money for.

24 Aug 2026

Alphabet blocks and a spinning top on a floor near a sunny window
Guide

Homeschooling the early years — what a 3 to 6 year old actually needs

How little formal work is genuinely required before six, what to do instead, the readiness signs that matter, and how to resist the pressure to start early.

24 Aug 2026

Five families arranged in a circle, connected to a smiling centre
Guide

How to find — or start — a homeschool co-op

Where local groups actually hide, what to look for before you commit, and a realistic plan for starting one from nothing with three families and a living room.

24 Aug 2026

A bench facing an open horizon at sunset, with a book left resting on it
Article

Deschooling — the month that makes everything else work

What deschooling actually is, how long it takes, what to do during it, and why families who skip it usually end up doing it later after a much harder month.

24 Aug 2026

A clock beside a simple list of the day's blocks — morning basket, math, break, reading
Article

The 12 mistakes almost every family makes in their first homeschool year

Collected from parents who made them: the expensive purchases, the imported school habits, and the one that actually makes families quit.

24 Aug 2026

A globe marked with pins showing home-educating families across four continents
Article

Homeschooling statistics 2026 — and why every number you read is wrong

How many families home educate, how fast it is growing, and an honest account of why the headline figures disagree with each other so violently.

24 Aug 2026

A parent working at a laptop across the table from a child with an open book
Article

Single-parent homeschooling — how families actually make it work

The four models that work when there is one adult and an income to earn, what to drop without guilt, and the support structures that make the difference.

24 Aug 2026

A clock beside a colour-coded list of a day's blocks
Resource

Six homeschool schedule templates that survive real life

Loop, block, morning basket, four-day, shift and unschooling-with-anchors — six real schedules with the household each one suits, and the failure mode of each.

24 Aug 2026

Resource

Your first homeschool year checklist (free printable PDF)

A one-page checklist for your first homeschool year — legal steps, a light routine, core subjects, and a 6-week review.

11 Jun 2026

A fountain pen on a notebook — the paperwork side of home education
Article

Homeschooling legally in the UK: the 2026 guide

A clear, current overview of home education law across England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland — what you must do, what you don't, and where it's changing.

15 May 2026

A person standing by the sea at sunset, arms outstretched
Article

Homeschool burnout: 7 signs and what to do about them

Burnout is the #1 reason families quit homeschooling. Here are the seven warning signs to watch for and the recovery plan that works.

14 May 2026

Parents working on laptops around a shared table
Article

How to homeschool while working full-time — without losing your mind

A practical guide to combining a full-time job with homeschooling: schedule templates, the four models that actually work, and what to drop.

12 May 2026

A group of kids laughing and playing together outside
Article

Homeschool socialization: the real, evidence-based answer

The most-asked question about homeschooling, answered with research, real numbers, and 25 specific ways families actually socialize their kids.

10 May 2026

Guide

Choosing a homeschooling method — a parent's field guide

An honest comparison of the main homeschooling approaches — Charlotte Mason, classical, Montessori, unschooling, eclectic — and how to pick one.

1 May 2026

A fountain pen resting on an open notebook, ready for planning
Start here

Your first 30 days, hour by hour

A realistic, gentle 30-day plan for new homeschooling families — built around rest, rhythm, and one good habit at a time.

30 Apr 2026

A young child covered in paint, grinning mid-art-project
Start here

How to begin homeschooling — without overthinking it

A calm, practical orientation for parents who've just decided to take the leap. Five things to do this week, four to ignore.

28 Apr 2026

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