Methodology

There is a wide variety of methods and materials. Families may adopt a particular educational philosophy such as:

• Charlotte Mason education
• Classical education (including Trivium, Quadrivium)
• Montessori method
• Theory of multiple intelligences
• Unschooling
• Waldorf education
• School-at-home
• A Thomas Jefferson Education

However, most choose a mixed, eclectic approach. For sources of curricula and books, "Homeschooling in the United States: 2003" found that 78 percent utilized "a public library"; 77 percent used "a homeschooling catalog, publisher, or individual specialist"; 68 percent used "retail bookstore or other store"; 60 percent used "an education publisher that was not affiliated with homeschooling." "Approximately half" used curriculum or books from "a homeschooling organization", 37 percent from a "church, synagogue or other religious institution" and 23 percent from "their local public school or district." 41 percent in 2003 utilized some sort of distance learning, approximately 20 percent by "television, video or radio"; 19 percent via "Internet, e-mail, or the World Wide Web"; and 15 percent taking a "correspondence course by mail designed specifically for homeschoolers."

Because laws vary according to individual government statutes, official curriculum requirements vary.