General

Home Ed-Friendly Professionals

  • Free
  • Australian

Home Ed Friendly Professionals is an ongoing project to list professionals who will support (or at least not oppose) home education as a choice.

Sesame Street Autism Resources for Parents

  • Free
  • American
  • Autism Resource
  • Younger ages

While this site is aimed at parents of autistic kids, it looks to perhaps be of more use to parents of children with neurotypical children and helping those children learn about autistic kids.  It may help NT kids understand and accept autistic children’s differences, and how to include them in play.  Some of the videos may also be helpful for parents of NT kids, in understanding what it is like to parent autistic children, in the most basic sense.

Youth Projects

  • Paid
  • Australian
  • Teenagers and young adults

Intensive support to people aged 15 – 21 years to build the skills, confidence and readiness to engage with sustainable employment or transition into education using a combination of one-on-one and group activities to build confidence, social connectedness and vocational skills, leading to engagement into employment or education.

 

Preparing for higher education: A Victorian guide for students with a disability (PDF)

A guide funded by the Australian Government under the National Disability Coordination Officer Program.

Our Resource Directory has a section on Diverse Needs, as does our Pinterest board https://www.pinterest.com.au/HomeEducationNetworkAustralia/education/diverse-needs/


Autism

Aspect Positive Behaviour Support

  • Free and Paid
  • Australia
  • Autism Services

The (PBS) Program is a state wide program funded through the Department of Human Services for parent/carers of children and young adults between 6-25 years of age, diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and living at home. It contains free information, as well as paid resources and services.  Contact Amber Day on the details below;
Phone: Amber Day on (03) 9377 6600
Email: aday [at] autismspectrum [dot] org [dot] au

Gateways Support Services

  • Paid and Free
  • Australia (Geelong)
  • Autism Services

Gateway Support Services is a Geelong based disability service, funded through the NDIS program.  They provide various services, especially for autism.  Like any website it includes free information, but like any medical service will have costs involved.  Linked to this service is the very informative website Autism Help.

Katy Mackenzie; Strengthening Parent Support Worker and Autism Case Manager
Address: 10 – 12 Albert Street, Geelong West VIC 3218
Phone: (03) 5221 2984
Fax: (03) 5223 1789

Sensory Processing Resources 

  • Free
  • American
  • SPD resources

This site is a bit overwhelming (so many links!) but could be useful for home edders with autistic kids. Often we are left to be the occupational therapist for our children and this site contains some useful information.

Aspect Capable

  • Paid
  • Australia
  • Autism Services

A mentoring employment service for autistic young people.


Dyslexia

The Easyread System

  • Paid
  • UK
  • Dyslexia Resource

This is a fully supported online phonics course for children with dyslexia, auditory processing issues and highly visual learning styles who struggle to read and write. Easyread uses Guided Phonetic Reading to help kids overcome guessing, skipping words, reading stress and more. It works through fun 15-minute daily lessons and has an unconditional refund guarantee.
10% discount for HEN members.

SPELD Victoria

  • Paid and Free
  • Australian
  • Dyslexia Resource

A not-for-profit organisation supporting people with dyslexia and specific learning difficulties. They do have affordable workshops $5 – $50 and also offer access to assessment and tutoring but both are costly.  The website itself offers some free to access information about dyslexia.

Dyslexia Solutions

  • Paid
  • Australian
  • Dyslexia Resource

Supporting children and adults with dyslexia through individualised programs [CP1] and industry-based workshops and assessments. Have worked with home educated children

Touch-type, Read & Spell

  • Paid
  • American
  • Dyslexia Resource

A typing program that teaches spelling and reading. Suitable for individuals, families, homeschoolers, and users with dyslexia

 

Gifted and 2E

Gifted/2E Home Education Information Booklet

Starting home education can be quite daunting—doubly so if you are deciding to home educate children with diverse learning needs, whether they are gifted, disabled, or both (called twice exceptional or 2e). Neurodiverse kids tend not to fit in neat school boxes, and can be a challenge to parent and to home educate.

(This is a quick guide written to help parents of gifted children who are looking at home education. Please note this is just the authors opinion, which she hopes is valuable, but it in no way implies that the organisations she’s involved with endorse any of the listed products, websites, or any of her personal opinions.)

Gifted Resources

  • Free
  • Australian
  • Gifted and 2E resources

Resources and advice for families with gifted children.  This website hasn’t been regularly updated since 2016, but it is still full of valuable information and resources.

Born to Soar

  • Paid
  • Australian
  • Gifted Programs

Born to Soar offer enriching and accelerating learning through ‘One Day Schools’ and Virtual Classrooms for all gifted and talented students. We challenge highly able gifted children to be thinkers and to develop intellectual characters. Our Centres for Gifted Education provide face to face courses for 3YO and 4YO (Enterites), Prep to Year 2 (Enterceler), Year 3 to Year 6 (Entersoar) and Pre Secondary Year 5 and Year 6 (Entersoar) at various host schools. Our courses are designed to develop advanced skills and a deeper understanding of a  topic’s concepts.

Email: info@borntosoar.com.au

GHF Learners

Also have a Facebook Page and Facebook Group

Paid and Free
American
Gifted and 2E resources

A useful forum with resource ideas, articles, links etc. While you can access many of the articles, ideas and links for free, there are costs to gain access to various other services and resources. They have a newsletter called GHF Dialogue and GHF Journey that each release weekly advice from fellow home educators and experts. And in person live chats in their private groups with guests. Recently, most of their courses and tutors have migrated to outschool.

Gateways

  • Paid
  • Australian
  • Secular
  • Gifted Programs

A range of programs for gifted and talented children throughout the Melbourne metropolitan area. The programs are hosted by schools and at places like the Australian Synchrotron, ACMI, the National Gallery, Werribee Zoo ETC. At a given program, children from a number of schools attend. A number of homeschoolers have also found the program useful. A typical program might run over a single day, two days, 4 half days or 8 half days during school times. There is also a Saturday club.

Cobblestone Academy

  • Paid
  • American
  • Secular
  • 2e Programs

For 2e kids and uses a minecraft engine to teach maths, English and science. They have group lessons online.

Mr Gelston’s One Room Schoolhouse

  • Paid
  • American
  • Secular
  • 2e Programs

K-12 mathematics for 2e kids. Highly recommended by HEN users.

Center for Talented Youth Online

  • Paid
  • American
  • Secular
  • Gifted Programs

Academic Warriors 

  • Paid
  • American
  • Secular
  • Gifted Programs

New American service for gifted kids. Pricey. The big drawback is that the classes are in real time so timing is a potential issue.