No one will argue that it is a daunting prospect. At the point my husband finally agreed to this, we were mostly out of options. Private schools in the area were too expensive, charter schools in our hometown were limited to the type that oversee homeschoolers, and our faith in the local school district was severely shaken. On top of all of that is the very real possibility that our son will outgrow our knowledge very quickly.
When I started thinking about it, the idea was planted in my head by my boss. She had a friend who homeschooled at night and on weekends and still worked. Her friend said they accomplished more in a few hours at home than the school did all day, and they had fun doing it.
Aware that the school district had sucked all the fun out of learning for Paul (and that's saying something given the fact that he loves to learn) we were afraid we'd do more "deschooling" than anything else. But when we proposed the idea to Paul, he was instead excited. He could have what he longed for out of school and he wouldn't have to be afraid of his teachers in the process!
Homeschooling while working will take a lot of pre-planning. That much has been clear from the start. Also, wherever possible, don't reinvent the wheel. If you can find a charter to oversee the things you do and you're nervous about missing necessary curriculum, then by all means use the charter school. Don't change your family activities, find ways to learn within them. And let the gifted child be part of it. Learning to organize is an important lesson too, and for Paul, that has been an attractive challenge. Sometimes we negotiate. I want him to have social studies and he's not sure he's interested, but if that means he can have extra art classes, he'll make a deal with me. If you negotiate, make sure you hold up your end, after all there is value in that too -- you're teaching your kids that living up to promises is important.
Find education in everyday things. If you're homeschooling a gifted child, this is actually easy because they typically ask unbelievably insightful questions about things you take for granted: Mommy, why did they choose red to mean stop? Mommy, can birds swim? Mommy, how did they figure out how to make macaroni? Sometimes these questions throw me for a loop, but there is always Google, which I have come to think of as my close, personal friend.
Let your family and friends teach too. If you have a friend who is a whiz at math, enlist their help. Would grandma like to be in on the act? People like to feel that they have skills worthy of sharing, so let them shine too. All things have educational value -- cooking, housekeeping, gardening -- all of these require skill that is necessary for life and healthy for your child.
Last, I think it is important to find a network to help you. I signed up on some yahoo groups. Work & HS was my first, but I've since signed up on more. Those groups are full of brilliant, insightful, experienced people who are all happy to help. Don't forget to sign in here. In any way I can help you, I will. I don't want another child to suffer the way Paul has if I can help it.