To ensure that your homeschooling adheres to state laws, consult with information provided by the Kentucky Department of Education about the requirements placed on adults who opt for homeschooling. Among the resources provided by the Department of Education, you may access the list of state-mandated subjects, which any homeschool must cover; these include reading, writing, spelling, grammar, history, mathematics and civics. You may also procure relevant information from your local school district, such as the number of school days in your area. Per the Kentucky Department of Education's guidelines, your homeschooling year must last at least as long as the local school system.
The Kentucky Home Education Association (or KHEA) is a nonsectarian support group for homeschoolers in the state. The association offers local support groups in various parts of the state, issues regular newsletters and holds an annual support group leaders' seminar. One of KHEA's aims is to give support and a positive voice to the homeschooling movement in response to its political or social critics. The group works in concert with school officials, lawmakers and public librarians, as well as homeschooling parents, to improve the situation of homeschooling in the state.
Based in Lexington, the Bluegrass Homeschool Learning Cooperative is a secular cooperative that offers classes, trips and clubs for homeschooling families. To join the cooperative, you don't need to pay any dues; families pay for individual classes, clubs and occasional field trips only as often as they wish to participate. To support the system and keep costs down, all participants volunteer in some respect, giving the group its cooperative format.
If you homeschool from a Christian perspective, you might look to Christian Home Educators of Kentucky (CHEK), a statewide religious homeschooling organization. The group has over 3,000 families as members. Among the group's resources, it holds an annual leadership conference in January or February. The group's website features an open forum for discussion on topics related to Christian homeschooling as well as a blog with regular contributing writers. Over 50 local support groups are affiliated with CHEK, hailing from six different regions of the state: Appalachian, Bluegrass, Derby City, Northern Kentucky Rivers, Southern Caves & Lakes and Western.