I'm thrilled that you've found my blog and decided to explore it! Let me start by introducing myself:

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I'm a - Ukrainian born (in 1980s)
American grown (since 5 yrs old)
Russian
raised in Florida 
​now living in Missouri.

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I started my education in public school, attending from Kindergarten through 5th grade. However, when I reached 6th grade, my parents opted for homeschooling. At the time, our town didn’t have a dedicated middle school, so 6th-8th graders shared a building with the high school, which my parents weren’t comfortable with. Interestingly, a new middle school was completed the following year.

My homeschooling experience was truly MY OWN—I was given the curriculum, studied the material, and completed the assignments independently. The next year, we moved, and I returned to public school for 7th grade. Shortly after, we moved back to our previous town, where I finished middle school in the newly built school.

After getting married, my husband and I discussed the possibility of homeschooling our children. However, since they were bilingual, we initially decided that public school would be beneficial in helping them learn English more quickly in their everyday environment.

Our son was born a year later, and by the time he reached Kindergarten, we were living in Tennessee. As he moved into first grade, we began reconsidering homeschooling earlier than expected. By then, he was seven years old, his English skills had improved significantly, and he was on track to test out of ELL by the end of the year. Attending an English-speaking church also helped reinforce his language development. Meanwhile, our four-year-old daughter had picked up English naturally by listening to him and didn’t have the same need for public school to build her language skills.
Due to various factors, both in our local school and in schools more broadly, we decided to withdraw him before the academic year ended. Since winter break was approaching, we chose to wait until the last day of the first semester. At that point, we officially filed our intent to homeschool with the school system’s student services and completed the necessary withdrawal forms at his school. 
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From that point on, the real work began. However, now that we’re living in Missouri, the homeschooling process has become much simpler.

* Tennessee requires an intent to homeschool
* Missouri doesn't require any intent form

* Go to HSLDA to find out your state's requirements