NHEN. From there you'll be able to find out the laws for your state. $10 a year for a nearby library sounds like a bargain to me. To find out about free things in your area, look around for community newspapers and websites for your area. Sometimes city park departments have low-cost programs like this--we do in Portland.

As for researching on the Internet, you have to consider the source and consider more than one source. Not everything on the Internet is accurate; there's no Internet Police going around making sure that everything everyone says is accurate and true. Except of course here. Everything said here is 100% accurate and true.

Go to Yahoogroups and look around for homeschooling groups in your area, or even national homeschooling lists of people like you. For instance, if you're a politically progressive homeschooler there's the list ProgressiveHomeschool. If you're a religious homeschooler you'll find tons of lists that cover different religions. You'll find lists for African-American homeschoolers, homeschoolers interested in classical education, and so on. Get on a group and start asking questions. Don't be cowed by the idea of teaching your children yourself. It's just you and the kids; it's not about creating school at home in a particular set way with a blackboard, a pointer, desks, a globe and a flag.

Lynn Siprelle, Editor