To get started in homeschooling your child there are a few things that you need to do.

1. Register with an umbrella school or your public school. Check your local private schools (most offer an umbrella program) or you can check with the public school. They will have a deadline for registering with them. Remember, do your research and choose the best fit for you. Look up you local laws by going to your state's web site.

2. Maintain your evaluations every year. If at all possible do evaluations twice a year. Evaluate once at the beginning of school and then at the end. This will give you a good perspective of where your child is and how to set goals for the up coming year.

3. Have IEP's, you can assemble your private therapist, psychologist, college students, church members, and anyone who works with your child on a weekly basis. If all people cannot come together then meet with the psychologist and the therapist. You can meet the others on a one to one basis. Remember you are not reinventing the wheel, build on the skills that are there. So if your child can point randomly, a goal would be that he/she pointed upon request at a picture of a dog, cat, bird, and horse.

In your IEP's, state where the child is (accomplishment), then building on that (goal) and how you are going to measure progress toward the goal. You can measure through observation, data collection, or sample work pages. There are other ways to measure, just make sure you that you write it down.

4. Building Social activities into your day. Get a goal, for example, we are going to have 15 hours a week of social interaction. Then list how you will accomplish this commitment. Check with your local zoos, aquarium and museums. They may offer homeschooling classes. Also check in the local community to see if they offer co-ops or community sporting events. And, don't forget play dates are available.

An example schedule would look like this;
Monday, soccer practice 1 hour
Tuesday, zoo classes, 1 hour,
Wednesday aquarium classes 1 hour, church 1 hour
Thursday co-op 5 hours
Friday, play date 3 hours
Saturday, soccer game 1 hour
Sunday church 3 hours

For a total of 16 hours of social time.

Your schedule will look different