Sunshine State Homeschoolers (Sunshine State Homeschoolers | Facebook) is a FL DOE recognized independent organization for homeschool families in the state. We are a supportive community of current homeschooling parents. We see what is taking place in public schools not just around the country, but in our entire state and local communities. The threat of school violence has increased this school year. More than 20 schools across the country have been impacted by gun violence since this school year started, with a mass shooting at a Georgia High School. There have been 22 school shootings since the beginning of 2024.

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In our local communities, we have seen school violence threats in Seminole, Volusia, Broward, Duval, Madison, Leon, Taylor, Levy, Columbia, and Sarasota counties. Numerous students have been arrested for making these threats and police presence on schools have increased. Schools are under repeated lockdown and the threats aren’t just idle. Several guns have been found on campus including at various schools in our communities. We see parents post about how anxious and fearful they are to send their children to school. We understand! The threat of school violence is just one of the many reasons so many of us have chosen to homeschool our children.

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We are reaching out to our local communities to invite families to homeschool their children with us. This letter includes information on how to get started.

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To register as a homeschooler you have two options.

1. You can send in a notice of intent to your county. A template for the notice of intent and a list of county districts can be found on this website: Homeschooling in Florida | Sunshine State Homes (sunshinestatehomeschoolers.com) Find your county on the list and send the letter to them to register as a homeschooler.

2.  You can register with a private school that helps homeschool families. This is the original way to homeschool in Florida and families tend to get more personalized attention. You can find a list of non-faith based schools (also called umbrella schools) here Umbrella Schools | Sunshine State Homes (sunshinestatehomeschoolers.com)

*Regardless of which option you choose, make sure you contact your child’s current school and follow their steps to withdraw your student.

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Sometimes parents are reluctant to homeschool because they feel they are not qualified to teach their children, they think that the cost to homeschool is too high, they want to make sure their children have social experiences and think that if they homeschool they will miss out on those, or they work away from home. These are all valid concerns. However, homeschoolers build their own community and support each other to resolve all of these.

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• You can lead your child’s education. There are numerous curriculum options out there to pick from and a plethora of options are online curriculum, similar to the curriculum that your children are using in public schools now. Some of the more popular ones include Time4Learning, Miacademy and Miaprep, Power Homeschool, Outschool. There are many others. We don’t really recommend FLVS or county virtual schools as they are essentially public school at home and to an extent recreate the same environment you are leaving. All of these online curriculum options require parents to make sure their students do their work but the curriculum itself does the teaching, making it easier for parents to homeschool their children. There are also tutors available to help and one of our favorites is Coach Kelly Live. 

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• While these curriculum and tutors are low cost, the cost can add up quickly and with inflation so high, parents may be hesitant. This is why homeschoolers have compiled a list of completely free homeschool curriculum and resources. FREE! All you need is a computer, internet access, and maybe a printer. You can find a list of free curriculum here. Homeschool for FREE | Sunshine State Homes (sunshinestatehomeschoolers.com) If your student has any diagnosis or an IEP, you can apply for the Unique Abilities scholarship, which can be used for education and therapeutic related expenses. Because we want to help families become independent in their child’s education, we do not support the use of funds granted through the PEP scholarship as recipients are governed and regulated by the very system they are trying to leave.

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• Because homeschoolers support each other, homeschooled children have tons of opportunities for socialization and making friends. There are tons of support groups you can find online. These support groups organize regular in person meet ups, field trips, educational experiences and events, clubs, parties, dances, etc. Sunshine State Homeschoolers does this (most in person events are in Volusia, Seminole, and Orange counties) and you can find the group on Facebook (Sunshine State Homeschoolers | Facebook) but there are many others as well. Most homeschooled children have tons of friends and most of their friends are also homeschooled. Our homeschool families also organize “cooperatives.” This is where families meet regularly to cover subject areas or “classes.” Cooperatives aren’t drop-off programs as all parents help. However, families work together to help those who work away from home with their children. To connect with families that do this, you will need to join support groups and find your people. With the surge of homeschooling, there are also drop-off programs. However, many of these are businesses and can be quite costly. If you want a drop-off program try to find one that is organized and operated by other homeschool parents. This will help ensure that the setting your children are attending is not a mini-public school, which is the same environment you are leaving.

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We want all parents to know that we understand how you feel and understand your apprehension regarding public schools right now. We invite you to homeschool with us and to join our communities. We are here to support you!

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Sunshine State Homeschoolers