North Carolina Homeschooling Made Easy

Are you a North Carolina parent or guardian venturing into the exciting world of homeschooling? Are you looking to educate your child from the comfort and safety of your home? You're not alone! Homeschooling in North Carolina is flourishing, and this article is your compass to guide you through the incredible journey of home education.

Homeschooling is no longer a fringe choice – it's a thriving educational movement in North Carolina. Parents and guardians are embracing home learning for many reasons, including safety concerns, the benefits of tailoring education to their child's unique needs, and wanting the freedom to chart their child's learning path.

This article has been written specifically for homeschoolers in North Carolina. If you're located elsewhere, check out our page on how to use Reading Eggs for your homeschooling.

North Carolina Homeschooling Requirements

Thankfully North Carolina homeschooling laws make it easy for parents/guardians in North Carolina to pursue homeschooling as a viable alternative to traditional education. The requirements to set up a home school are clearly set out on the Department of Administration website. You only need to register as an official homeschool once your child turns seven. This allows you to explore and experience homeschooling during the early years of your child’s education before going through the process of registering.

If you will be homeschooling a child between the ages of 7 and 18 years, you’ll need to:

• Choose a name for your homeschool (30 characters or less, including spaces and punctuation)

• File a Notice of Intent to Operate a Home School with the North Carolina Division of Nonpublic Education (NCDNPE).

The parents/guardians responsible for homeschooling must have achieved a high school diploma (or equivalent) and submit proof when registering.

How to Start Homeschooling in North Carolina

Once you’ve checked off the legal requirements to homeschool, it’s time to decide how and what you’ll teach your child. This can be a daunting task for new homeschoolers. We’ve compiled a list of handy homeschooling tips to guide you through the process of establishing a routine, setting goals, creating a homeschool workspace, and rewarding your child for their achievements. You’ll also find 40 ideas for homeschool activities to teach reading, writing, maths, art and science.

In addition to the initial requirements to set up a homeschool, there are ongoing requirements that your homeschool will need to meet. These include the amount of time your child is homeschooled throughout the year, maintaining attendance and immunisation records, and administering a national standardised achievement test each year. The test must cover reading, spelling, grammar and mathematics.

The Reading Eggs online reading curriculum aligns with North Carolina's educational standards and makes it easy for you to plan lessons for up to 36 weeks – a complete school year. You can download each homeschool guide for Kindergarten through to Grade 5 for FREE! There are also free Social Studies and Science Book Lists to download.

Homeschool in North Carolina with Reading Eggs

North Carolina homeschooling families have the freedom to choose the programs and resources they’ll use as part of their homeschooling toolkit. This allows NC homeschoolers to tailor learning materials to meet the educational needs of their child and make use of readily available online programs, such as Reading Eggs.

Reading Eggs is a multi-award winning online reading program developed by a team of highly experienced educators. Backed by science, Reading Eggs allows homeschoolers to provide their children with an exceptional level of education while enjoying the flexibility and independence homeschooling offers.

Reading Eggs integrates seamlessly into your child's homeschooling curriculum, offering a personalised learning experience and other helpful features.

1. Flexibility for Homeschoolers

Reading Eggs caters to a range of reading levels – spanning from early learners to elementary and middle-school students – and diverse abilities. Best of all, it’s fun and motivating for children from ages 2⁠–13.

Whether you're homeschooling a kindergartener, a seasoned sixth-grader or a child who needs additional support in reading, the program adapts to address your child's individual requirements. During your free trial, you'll enjoy full access to four comprehensive online educational programs, each designed for specific age groups:

• Reading Eggs Junior (Ages 2⁠–⁠4): A playful and engaging platform designed to introduce early learners to the wonders of reading, setting the foundation for a lifelong love of literacy.

• Reading Eggs (Ages 3⁠–⁠7): A dynamic and interactive program that fosters essential reading skills while making learning enjoyable for young students, ensuring they develop a strong reading foundation.

• Reading Eggspress (Ages 7⁠–⁠13): Designed for older children, this program refines reading proficiency, comprehension and grammar, preparing students to become confident, skilled readers.

• Fast Phonics (Ages 5⁠–⁠10): A focused and effective systematic synthetic phonics program that hones phonemic awareness and decoding skills, enabling young learners to become proficient readers with ease.

Additionally, you’ll be able to explore Mathseeds, our online mathematics program, to cover your child’s elementary maths education needs.

• Mathseeds (Ages 3⁠–⁠9): An exciting mathematics program that offers an interactive way for children to explore mathematical concepts, fostering a strong foundation in maths from an early age.

2. Progress Monitoring and Reports

Homeschooling parents can easily track their child's progress through Reading Eggs. View detailed reports and see your child's reading skills improve.

Detailed reports on your child’s progress and achievements can be found in your Family Dashboard and your email inbox.

The placement test in Reading Eggs determines your child's current reading level and their learning needs. Taking the test when first starting Reading Eggs ensures that your child begins their learning journey at the appropriate skill level and helps Reading Eggs tailor the program to their abilities. It's a key tool to set your child on the right path to academic success. The test can be retaken at any time you feel your child’s reading level needs reassessing.

Getting your child to take the Placement Test when first starting Reading Eggs ensures they begin their learning journey at the appropriate skill level.

3. Homeschool Resources and Features

In addition to the online reading lessons and activities, Reading Eggs comes with a wealth of homeschooling resources and features to complement the core programs.

• Reading Eggs Library: Within the Reading Eggs program, you can access an extensive digital library comprising a collection of over 3500 e-books, including decodable readers, tailored to various reading levels. These e-books are designed to engage and challenge young readers, helping them build their reading skills while exploring captivating stories and informative texts.

• Reading Journal: This fun and interactive tool helps children connect with the books they’ve read by tracking their progress and encouraging them to leave reviews. Children can choose what they read, decorate pages with stickers and select unique covers to showcase their achievements, reinforcing that reading is enjoyable.

• Certificates: Reading Eggs offers colourful and motivating certificates to reward your child's achievements. These certificates are a wonderful way to acknowledge and celebrate their progress and accomplishments throughout their learning journey. They serve as a source of motivation, reinforcing the joy of learning and the sense of achievement for your child.

• Printables for hands-on offline learning: Reading Eggs goes the extra mile by offering a comprehensive selection of over 500 printable resources that can be used for offline learning. These printables cover a wide range of educational topics and activities, making them a valuable addition to your homeschooling toolkit. From bonus materials that complement the online programs, to home learning booklets covering spelling, handwriting, reading, and the alphabet, both options provide hands-on learning opportunities for your child. Search the booklets by grade level, subject area, and focus skill.

Reading Eggs comes with printable bonus materials and home learning booklets that complement the online programmes.

How Much Does it Cost to Homeschool in North Carolina with Reading Eggs?

Now, let's address a pressing question in many parents' minds: What's the cost of homeschooling in North Carolina with Reading Eggs? The good news is that Reading Eggs is budget-friendly, offering homeschooling families value for money at a reasonable price.

Our flexible subscription plans are available on a month-to-month or 12-month basis and provide access for up to four children. You can choose a reading-only plan, or you can also include the mathematics (Mathseeds) option.

Plus, you can try the program before you buy it with our FREE 30-day trial. It’s 100% risk-free – you can cancel any time before your trial expires and pay absolutely nothing.

Homeschooling in North Carolina with Reading Eggs makes for a dream team for flexible, budget-friendly learning. Join thousands of happy Reading Eggs homeschoolers with your FREE 30-DAY TRIAL and watch your child embark on a fantastic homeschooling adventure. Discover all the perks, enjoy the freedom and experience the benefits Reading Eggs can have on your North Carolina homeschooling journey!

Why Other Homeschoolers Love Reading Eggs

“My son has been using Reading Eggs for more than a year now, and he loves the reward system (golden eggs). My favorite part of the program is the initial assessment test that generated his reading age based on the results. Since I'm a homeschooling mum, I love when I can track his progress. I shared the app with another homeschooling mum, and she said after a few weeks her daughter was reading. We love this app and will continue using it.”

– Mrs Gregory

“All my children (oldest right now is 11 and youngest is 4) have used Reading Eggs and Mathseeds as their first homeschooling curriculum. It captures their attention and brings the information to them at their level. I love the follow-up worksheets that are in the bonus section of the family dashboard and the breakdown explanations for each lesson number.”

– Shelly A.

“I want to thank you for developing this app. My son is in Prep and is currently having difficulty reading. He loves the app and already got through one Fast Phonics peak today and he was making amazing progress with his reading. He also has autism (high-functioning) so learning in this way really works for him. Visual, step by step, no need to communicate, etc. As a mother (and a teacher), thank you from the bottom of my heart.”

– Kristina

“I have used this program extensively and recommended it to others. This product really works. I first bought it for five children at the same time. I had a mix of little ones, special needs and kids with gaps in learning. Since additional children are offered at a discount I just had everyone use it. It is so engaging and easy to use. The program takes care of tracking and placement. I recommend this to everyone. It's great for a beginning homeschooler. Even if you don't homeschool and your special needs child doesn't read or spell well, this really works. My typical small children used this program for 2 years before moving on. My special needs children continue to benefit from the skills and format of the program.”

– Robin S., Homeschooler

“Excellent resource for learning to read. My son does not like many online learning activities and this one really reeled him in—he asks to use it every day, not just school days! Head and shoulders above other resources we have used. I love the printable worksheets that reinforces what he has learned. Each printable worksheet also explains the learning areas that were addressed in each section.”

– Sara S., Homeschooler

“I have three homeschool children: 8, 6 and 3. They all love Reading Eggs and Mathseeds. My 6‑year‑old boy was not reading, but since he started four months ago, he is reading full sentences and full level 1 books. My 3‑year‑old was given the chance to do Reading Eggs instead of the baby site last week, and since then she has advanced 6 lessons. She is really learning! My 8‑year‑old is in Reading Eggspress , a more advanced section. She wasn't very good at grammar and phonics, but now she is doing so much better.”

– Cristina S., Homeschooler

“Reading Eggs has helped my stubborn child start learning letters and number recognition. She loves playing her games on the website (so mummy doesn't have to fight her to sit down for lessons!). I love the fact that there is something for kids up to 13. I think this will continue to be a great addition to our schooling. This was a smart purchase for my family.”

– T. Fitzpatrick, Homeschooler

“We got the subscription for my 1st grader and my toddler. My 1st grader tested toward the end already finished Reading Eggs and moved on to Reading Eggspress . This is the last thing she gets to do during the day and has been a huge motivator for her to get her work done… for my toddler, Reading Eggs is a little too advanced for her, so she has really enjoyed Reading Eggs Junior. It's giving her a foundation and is helping build up her confidence with letters and sounds. Love the program!”

– Amanda S., Homeschooler

“We got Reading Eggs for my 5‑year‑old. She loved it and by the end of the week my 11‑year‑old and 7‑year‑old had started a free account and begged me to get it for them for the rest of the year! My son (7) also loves Mathseeds! It's a great program! I think my kids have so much fun they forget it's school and just think it's a computer game! What better way to learn?! It's that great!”

– Megan C., Homeschooler