How Does a Parent Homeschool as well as Earn a Living

You’ve got a mortgage. And you’ve got bills coming in. How on earth are you going to homeschool on top of all this? I got this question from a reader the other day, and I wanted to share it with you. I wanted to share it because it is typical of many emails from many of my readers who struggle with this question.

I hope you enjoy reading this blog post. If you want to do my course on how to homeschool, click here.

The email I got was as follows:

Hi there Rebecca,

I came across your website How Do I Home School.

I’ve always wanted to homeschool my children even before I became a mum.

My struggle has been more so with working full time to pay for the everyday needs of life.

So homeschooling has unfortunately taken a second priority.

How’s does a parent homeschool as well as earn a living to support the family?

[Parent]

So my answer was as follows:

How Does a Parent Homeschool as well as Earn a Living? #homeschoolparent #homeschoolwork

Hi,

Great question. In short, it’s difficult. I think choosing the right curriculum is a big one. If you choose something that is essentially an online school, there’s a lot less work for you.

And then, if your kids are past 12, they practically do it themselves (especially if they’ve been homeschooled they’re whole lives and have become self-motivated learners).

If children are very young, they need so much more help and therefore it’s a lot more time-consuming for you.

But, you’re right. You can’t be in two places at one time.

So part-time work could work well and you can try to squeeze in academics on your days off. (Many people opt for a 4-day-homeschool week which is what I’ll be doing).

And then there’s the mortgage. Trying to get one that is so low that it only requires one parent to pay it off or for the mom to work only one or two days a week at most.

I know this isn’t possible if you’re living in a city and you want a house close to your family (prices are often high and you can’t opt for a lower priced house). My husband and I almost had to move 5 hours away from our family when we were looking for a mortgage that was low enough to fit into this category. We almost did and then our family kindly stepped in to help us.

And that brings me to family. If you you have some who can help you out with homeschooling while you work, that is another option.

But, the least head-achy way would be to get a cheap mortgage.

I hope you find that helpful.

Rebecca.

Dear Reader,

Are you in the same boat? Would you have anything to add to this reader’s thoughtful question? Would you please comment below because I’d love to hear your thoughts?

Rebecca