How to Finish High School in Half the Time - Homeschool.com

How to Finish High School in Half the Time
by
Homeschool.com’s Senior Editor, Rebecca Kochenderfer
Homeschooling is where my heart is and I have been homeschooling for over 14 years
now. This year however, my 14-year-old son said he wanted to see what school was like,
so we enrolled him as a freshman at our local public high school. When I asked him what
he thought of the experience he said he enjoyed it, but described it as “So much busyness,
for so little learning.” When I heard that I thought to myself, “Out of the mouths of
babes comes profound truths.”
Homeschooling IS a lot faster and more efficient than classroom learning. Most
homeschooling teens are able to do a thorough job on their studies in just four hours per
day. Teens in school, however, spend 6-7 hours a day at school and then another 1-2
hours at night on homework. So in this article I’d like to pass on to you some
homeschooling secrets I have learned over the years that I hope will make homeschooling
your high school student easier, faster and more effective.
Secret #1 :
Instead of spending 4 hours a day on your studies, spend 6 -7 h o u r s a d a y .
And don’t be afraid to focus on one subject at a time.
I recently had the honor of interviewing Christopher Paolini, the author of Eragon and
Eldest. Christopher’s books have sold millions of copies and Eragon will soon be
released as a major motion picture. Christopher attributes his success to the fact that he
was homeschooled. He used the American School correspondence curriculum and was
able to finish his studies and receive his diploma at age 15. He then used his time to
write and promote E r a g o n , which resulted in a lucrative three-book deal with Random
House when he was only 18. I asked Christopher how he was able to finish high school
so quickly and I also asked him what a typical homeschooling day was like for him. He
said that he liked to study one subject at a time for about 6-7 hours a day. By doing this
he was able to finish an Algebra or Science textbook in about 2-3 weeks. In this way he
worked his way through his high school requirements and was able to earn his diploma at
age 15 -- three years earlier than traditional high school students.
So, Secret #1, if you want to finish high school in half the time, is to spend more time on
your studies and don’t be afraid to do them in the way that works best for you.
TIP: Christopher Paolini has an excellent eNewsletter that he writes himself. You can
subscribe to it at: http://www.alagaesia.com/signup.htm
TIP: If you would like to have a recording of Homeschool.com’s interview with
Christopher Paolini, it is available at: http://www.homeschool.com/PreOrder/default.asp
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