Home schooling occurs when parents take charge of their children's education — organizing subjects, teaching lessons or arranging for tutors, evaluating progress, and supervising social contacts. Home school parents believe that one-on-one attention and individualized study produce the best education possible; most also think that peer groups are NOT the best "socializing agent" for their children. Home schooling is legal in all fifty states, and home schooled children consistently score very highly on standardized tests and other measures of academic performance. Home schooling is no longer a fringe movement; recent surveys suggest that over a million American children are currently taught at home, and the number grows every year. Although many home school families are two-parent households with one breadwinner and one stay-at-home parent, many other families arrange home schooling around dual careers, single-parent schedules, and other less traditional arrangements.

The Web is full of fascinating information about home education. Follow these links to learn more.

Gail Withrow's homeschooling website provides an excellent overview of different approaches to home education, with thoughtful critiques of each.

Home School World provides an online shopping mall (links to dozens of suppliers), a list of conferences and state organizations, an ongoing legal update, book reviews, and links.

The National African-American Homeschoolers Alliance provides support, information, and resources.

Jon's Homeschool Resource Page answers questions, indexes personal home school pages on the Web, provides links to state and local home school groups, and offers plenty of nonsectarian home schooling info.

The Home School Internet Resource Center provides software, a used curriculum exchange, e-pals, a home school news magazine, curriculum reviews, and reference links.

What about college? Karl Bunday provides FAQs about college and home schooling, along with a list of colleges and universities that have accepted home educated students.

State home school conferences are often good places to start — they provide workshops for beginners and an introduction to the materials available.

The Home School Legal Defense Association provides a summary of state laws and regulations that apply to home schooling.

The Old Schoolhouse page has plenty of reviews, essays, and resource listings.

A growing list of support groups by state.