What is Deschooling? How to Make the Transition from School to Homeschool

Everything You Need to Know

What is Deschooling? When it comes to homeschooling there are SO many questions you will encounter. 

Especially as you are just starting out or thinking about starting to homeschool your kids. Deschooling is right up there with those questions. 

I’ve come up with some of the most frequently asked questions about deschooling and answered them all below. 

So, what is deschooling?

So what exactly is deschooling? Well it’s what it sounds like – learning how to “de” school your child and yourself. It’s a transition period between leaving a traditional school setting and starting to homeschool. 

A time that is super necessary to allow your child or children and you to ease out of one “routine” and into another. 

It starts the process of teaching your children that all learning doesn’t have to be “during
school hours.” That learning and loving to learn can and does happen so naturally throughout every day. 

It can also be very helpful for children who may have struggled with traditional schooling, educationally or socially, or are just burned out. Kids these days have a TON more stress and pressure on them in so many ways. Way more than any other generation before them!

Taking some time to adjust and relax and breathe is so important, and deschooling can do just that. 

One thing to note is deschooling is not doing nothing all day. It’s quite the opposite. It is just focusing on other ways you can learn and grow together while loosening up on the old ways and routines traditional schooling brings. 

How long should we deschool?

As for how long that needed adjustment time of deschooling is, it varies for everyone. There is an idea out there that for each year of schooling your child attended traditional school, deschool for a month for each year. 

Another school of thought is to take it one month at a time. And yet another is to make it like a summer break – completely relax with all things education focused for a couple of months. 

One thing is agreed upon however, and that is, the longer your child was in a school setting the longer it will take them to adjust to homeshooling. 

I tend to agree, but also am a huge proponent of every person and family is different. You will know what’s working once you jump in and give it a go. 

You know your children better than anyone on the planet – even if the thought of homeschooling is completely overwhelming. 

You made it this far in the homeschooling process for a reason. You can and will always be your child’s best teacher in life. 

Trust yourself!

Why deschool?

Benefits of deschooling are endless. But the main benefits are:

Time

The biggest and best gift of homeshool in general, is time. More time for your kids to be kids, more time together with your kids, more time together as a family and more time for learning. 

Getting to really know your kids

You know your kids, I get that. But if they’ve been in school learning all day, you, and they, may not really know what they like to learn about. Sure they have had hobbies and interests outside of school. But allowing them the time to learn for fun (without it being obvious that they’re learning haha) is an amazing opportunity. 

Learn your schedules

Learning about your kids extends into this one. Allowing time to deschool will let you learn more about what schedule your kiddo and you, work best with. Are you morning people? Not having to be up at a certain time, but wanting to be up early, will give you an idea for when you’re planning your homeschool days. Or maybe afternoons are when – your kids have their most energy. Deschooling will let you see this, with no pressure, making the transition to homeschool even easier.

FUN!

A huge perk of homeschool in general is the fun you can and will have! Deschooling should especially be fun! Go on some fun field trips, or play games. Watch documentaries and read, read, and read more together. Connect and enjoy this time together. 

Who is deschooling for?

All kids (and again parents) who leave a traditional school setting can benefit from deschooling. No matter what homeschool style you think you’ll align with, it’s a very beneficial time for your family. It’s not just for “unschoolers”. 

Unschooling is a style of homeschooling where the education is child led. Unschooling was a term brought to life by educator & homeschool advocate John Holt. Holt believed that children are natural learners. 

The idea behind this style is to allow your child to follow their interests as the guide for their learning. 

This may sound similar to deschooling, and it is, but deschooling is more focused on unlearning how your children have learned. I’ve mentioned it before, and so many other homeschooling parents will tell you, homeschool is not recreating school at home. 

Homeschool is a chance to create a lifelong love of learning. It’s a chance to embrace all the many interests your children may have. To explore way more than what is traditionally taught in schools. 

Just a side note, I have an incredible respect for all public and private school teachers. Homeschool just allows for a truly customized education for your children, something that is impossible in any other school setting.  

How do you deschool?

How you choose to approach deschooling yourself and kids is important. Again, it’s not meaning a hard change from up and dressed and out the door for school by 7am to sleeping until 10 and staying in pjs all day.

You should still have some idea and structure to your days and here are a few ideas how to do just that:

Relax

If you are relaxed and enjoying yourself, it’s likely your kids will be the same. I heard once that a mom/wife is like a thermostat for the household, setting the temperature. So true! If you are calm and relaxed with this transition time, it will benefit the whole family. 

Research

Everything! Homeschool styles, different types of curriculum, (Cathy Duffy is my go to for curriculum reviews and recommendations) and most importantly, research your own kids! See what interests your kids, explore your neighborhood or local parks. Also, research what kind of local homeschool support system you may have near you. Facebook is great for this. 

Get out & explore

Like I just said above, explore your neighborhood or local parks for slow paced nature walks. Maybe bring along notebooks to draw anything that catches their eye, a bird, bug, cool plant or tree. 

Read & library

Make lists together of all topics they may want to learn about then go to the library and let them check out as many books as you can find on those topics. Or, just go to the library and explore without a list. 

If you have reluctant readers, read together as a family out loud, or leave books around to invite them to pick up and flip through. Time to be slow with books often encourages a new found enjoyment in reading.  

Games

Playing games is one of the best ways for everyone to learn, not just kids! If you’re having fun, you’re more likely to remember what you’re learning! Simple sight word hopscotch with chalk in the driveway to geography or parts of speech bingo are great learning games. But learning can be found even in Monopoly or dice or card games. Whatever games you have or play, just have fun!

Realize your “why”

 A wonderful tip for when you’re getting started with homeschool. Everyone’s “why” they decided to take the leap to homeschool is different. There is no right answer here, just sit and think for a minute about what this change for your family means to you. 

Envision the life you want your family to have, schooling and otherwise, because our children are always learning. 

I am a visual person, so for me writing out our “why” or actually “whys” we chose homeschool helped me to focus on that when I felt overwhelmed, especially in the beginning. 

I still come back and read these at the beginning of every new school year and at least once every few months. 

Remember you are not recreating school

Such an important piece of advice worth repeating!

Also, don’t get caught up in what you think your kids “should” be learning. Of course you will do your research and make certain you will meet your state’s legal requirements when it comes to homeschooling. But don’t think you have to teach your kids certain things at certain times. 

Homeschool is about learning to love to learn! The math facts and grammar rules and important dates in history will stick, no matter in what order or in which way they are learned. 

Embrace the deschooling phase!

As with all of parenting and life in general, try to just be present and enjoy this time. You will absolutely make some mistakes with homeschooling your kids, but guess what, it’s ok! This time of deschooling is a great time for you to relax and find a new rhythm for your family.

Do you have other ideas for deschooling or have you deschooled your kids? Leave a comment below – I love to learn from others!