Homeschooling [Archive] - The Digichick Forums

justJess

09-02-2010, 09:18 PM

Good questions Holly! I think people probably choose to homeschool for lots of different reasons. My mom and dad pulled my sisters and me out of public school right before my eighth grade year. Part of the reason was that they weren't thrilled with the quality of the education we were getting (my sister was in fifth grade and the only two parts of speech she'd been taught were "noun" and "verb"), and part of the reason was that my seventh grade year was a pretty rough one for me. DH was homeschooled all the way through high school, and had no difficulty getting into college. In fact, he got a full scholarship, and then ended up getting paid to go to grad school! :smile: I should be so lucky!! I took out student loans to make it through college and always tease him that I brought him kind of a "reverse dowry" when we got married. :wink: I'm not sure why his parents decided to homeschool; they were doing it way back before it was as common as it is now.
We've decided to homeschool as well and are about three months into first grade with our oldest. Believe me, there are LOTS of days when I wonder why in the world I'm doing this! :blink: One of the main reasons that we decided to though is the ability to control what our son is exposed to and when. Not that I'm saying I think he's innocent and public school will corrupt him (I certainly didn't teach him to hit his brothers when he gets frustrated!) but there is a certain amount of moral innocence that I'd like to preserve as long as possible. We also appreciate the ability to have such a direct influence over what he's learning and see what areas he's struggling in, as well as work on character development at the same time. I always tell people that we're taking it a year at a time. Our goal would be to homeschool through jr. high though, and then make the decision on whether to send them to a public high school based on where they are scholastically and spiritually.
Oh, and at least in California, no certification is required to homeschool. You do have to let the school system know that you're choosing to homeschool and then there is a required amount of school days to complete. I think every state probably has different rules though.
I'm really interested to hear other people's thoughts on and reasons for homeschooling! :yeshuh:

gette3

09-02-2010, 09:45 PM

I can say that I have been in both situations. My oldest son really struggled in math one year, it caused him to fall behind the next year, then snowballed into a whole entire "self doubt" that public scools (and we live in a entire A+ area) just do not have time to single out. Despite our best efforts to help, it really just became larger than he could handle, and suffered emotionally for it. There was no way as a parent I could send him to high school, already behind, with self doubt, and near failing.....he would never have moved forward, at best got stuck. We pulled him out for an entire year. I registered him for homeschool, picked up the curriculum we chose would suit him best after several testing meetings...never looked back on our decision. I saw him focus, and work hard because he knew this was his chance to catch back up and "fit in" as the public school counselor said. I really hated their attitude of it always being the child's fault and for making him believe it too. At the end of that year, he was emotionally/mentally and scholastically stronger for it. We placed him back into high school, and he ended up being a decorated ROTC member by his senior year. (25 and lives away from home now)

It was not always easy, but only in a familial way. All the others have been in public and thrived...honors and all. I equate it to your child being sick. If they have a cold, broken arm....we try to fix and do whatever we need to do so. Why in the world would we stop at education. For us it was the right decision. My sister homeschooled her children...two entirely until graduation, and the other two just went into public school due to her going back to work. I clearly could not have done that, but so glad I managed that one year...so little time when I think about it now, but my how it impacted his life.

ccouch

09-02-2010, 10:07 PM

Several gals on this forum have been homeschooling longer than I have and might be able to answer some of these questions better than I, but I'll give it a go :D

We homeschool for a number of reasons.
1) We're able to personalize Camille's (and eventually Lily's) education. We can spend a longer amount of time on things that she needs extra help with and shoot right through concepts that she masters quickly. For example, she's reading at a 4th grade or so level (at age 6). Because her reading level is higher, but her analytical and writing skills are on par or slightly above the average for her age, I am able to tailor her lessons to where she is.
2) We are able to integrate our faith into our learning. I love that school and faith aren't two separate things for us. We begin our days with prayer, and to be honest, I don't think I'd make it very far otherwise!
3) Character building (like Jessica mentioned). If there are difficult issues or situations that Camille faces, I appreciate that I'm able to help her navigate those as they come. I don't feel as if we're sheltering her from the world, but rather raising up a strong, grounded child that knows who she is and is able to take on the world.
4) Family togetherness - Man, I just can't say enough about this one. I adore that my girls get to spend so much time together, and I love being with my kids.
5) Camille has lots of freedom to explore her interests, and the time to do so. We follow a Classical approach to schooling, and have a somewhat demanding schedule: Grammar, Writing, Spelling, Math, Geography (History), Science, Composer and Artist studies, Art and Handwriting, and yet we only need 3-4 hours at the very most to complete our work each day. She has time to read, draw, write, play, and so much more...

....I seriously could go on & on. There are times when this is so hard that I wonder what in the world I'm doing, but the benefits for us are so great that I just have no doubt that we're doing the right thing for us now. We're taking it year by year, and will just see where we're led. In the meantime, I'm so thankful for this journey! :)

Getting into college isn't a problem at all. In fact, a number of universities have begun to seek out homeschooling students. On average, I believe hs students do quite well on entrance exams. I do believe it's incredibly important as a mom to keep good records for your child especially during the junior and high school years.

Texas is one of the easiest places to homeschool in my opinion. The only requirements are that you teach math, reading, spelling, grammar and good citizenship (which isn't defined). Homeschools are regarded as private schools, and there is never any requirement to correspond with any local authority regarding your intent to homeschool, no records required, etc. This varies widely in the U.S. Some states are easy-peasy while others may require a teaching certification, annual testing of your children, attendance records, work samples, etc... It really just depends on the state.

I'm curious to hear what other gals have to say :D

heathert

09-02-2010, 10:46 PM

We school at home! I say that rather than homeschooling, because we're using a virtual public school system, which frankly saves me 4,000 tons of time (because I have a master's degree in education and I'd be a curriculum MONSTER if I had to do it myself, and then I'd never have time to teach! *laugh*). My curriculum is already set, it's online so I can access it at any time (cuz you guys know how much time I spend online!)--although they do provide handbooks which are printouts of the entire online process, so you could easily do it offline except for the assessments. I love our teachers--their role is essentially to provide support to the kids (especially at the lower levels) AND parents, and verify that the child is mostly on target. The school also provides for many field trips and gatherings (especially if you live near the larger conglomerations; out here on the coast we do have to travel a couple of hours at minimum to reach the field trip destinations).

What I also love is that contrary to Brick and Mortar schools (B&M), in the virtual system you can speed ahead full steam ahead! Allen is 7, and has completed 3.5 grades already. We're taking it easy this year, trying to stretch out the other .5 grade over the full year to give his handwriting and small motor skills time to catch up before he starts 4th grade next year. I love that as long as he passes the assessments and knows what they've assigned, I'm free to pick and choose what I want to teach from the curriculum, or I can gloss over something that I think is totally unimportant (or even inappropriate). We are held by the State to complete 5 hours of school per day, but so many things count as school, such as our discussion the other day about what might cause pink urine--we'd eaten beets, but we ended up reviewing the urinary tract anatomy! We count hiking as PE, figuring out how many things we can buy with our allowance or grocery shopping as math/economics, museum trips as social studies, aquarium visits as science, etc.

Schooling at home allows us to avoid the discipline problems that would be created by an extra-enthusiastic, very physical, and smart little boy in a regular classroom. It's just fine with me if he paces up and down while he dictates a 3-page paper, or I can also use "total physical response (TPR)" to ingrain rote learning by having him jump up and down for each letter when he's spelling a word. He doesn't have to wait around for everybody to finish their math exercises--in fact, we rarely do most of our exercises, because he understands so quickly. So he's not bored and frustrated, and retains his love of learning and his enthusiasm, a goal I have for him as long as possible!

We can also avoid the discipline problems that might occur from hanging around kids who have less attentive parents and fewer rules around the house, or who watch too much tv and use inappropriate language or attitude, etc. He has plenty of friends in town with whom he has playdates, and he gets a lot of adult interaction (which teaches him how to act as an adult, not as a Lord of the Flies being, if you know that book...).

I believe that in Oregon you only have to notify the State at the beginning of the school year that you intend to home school, and the child has to pass the same state exams as everybody else (3rd, 5th, and 11th grade or something). However, since we're in public school (oh, and they furnish us with the computer & printer, and all our textbooks too), we don't have to notify anybody since we're officially enrolled.

So, those are our reasons! =)

cherylzyx

09-02-2010, 10:47 PM

My sister made the decision to home school her two boys because of a learning disability the oldest had. He was really struggling in school and even at a private school the teachers just didn't have enough time or were not able to teach him the way he needs to learn. After one year of homeschooling he was back up to grade level and has since surpassed grade level in his testing.

My sister has an elementary education degree but our state doesn't require it for homeschooling. The boys are required to take the state standardized tests like the kids in public school.

It was the best decision they could have made. My sister commented that she never intended to home school her kids but when it down to frustration and falling behind for the oldest, she did what she had to do and has never regretted it.

cherylzyx

09-02-2010, 10:49 PM

I forgot to mention but wanted to make sure to add, my sister's kids are part of an education co-op so they are still around and in class with other kids at least once each week.

donnawells

09-02-2010, 11:07 PM

My best friend home-schooled most of her kids until around 6th grade. She had six kids though and got a little burned out by #6! But, her kids were far ahead of the public school kids so much that they were put ahead of the grades that they should have been in. They will all do amazing things.

I also had a next-door neighbor who home-schooled her girls and they were terribly sheltered to the point that they didn't have proper social skills and hadn't learned about making proper decisions. I suspect they have had a hard time in the real world.

So, I think it can be good or detrimental, depending on who's doing the schooling!!!

hollyinjapan

09-03-2010, 12:27 AM

Wow. I really hit the goldmine of information here. I suspected as much. So many wonderful reasons to take this route.

I was wondering about social interaction with other kids. Being book smart and ahead of your years is one thing, but do hs children get to interact with peers? I can completely understand about wanting to put your Faith into your studies and not wanting other unruly children interfering with your own child's education. (As a "teacher" of sorts myself I can fully understand how one naughty child can ruin the entire class for the whole day.)

Heather - it almost sounds like you've got the best of both worlds. You just follow along the public school curriculum but at your own pace? Plus you get the supplies (including computer??) for free? That was yet another question I have; if you homeschool, do you get reimbursed on your taxes that otherwise pay for the public education system?

I did have one American friend here in Japan who chose to homeschool her son (I'm not sure of the reason but I think it was because she wanted him to have an American education). Once she told the school system here he was completely dropped from their entire records. Several years later, perhaps at highschool level, they chose for him to get back into the public education system and I heard they had an incredibly hard time doing that since he "didn't exist" in that social system.

I would love to have the patience and ability to homeschool my own kids. I've tried just teaching them English reading and writing before and even that mundane lesson did NOT work out. So I doubt I could homeschool entirely. But if it was a necessity for some reason, I would try.

Danyale, I can see where just one year even would make a huge difference. There are such students here (who can't pass the tests to get into HS or Univ) who go to cram schools for a year and then try again. The system here is really, really strange and complicated.

I'm still reading the comments you've all left and can't wait for more.

heathert

09-03-2010, 01:48 AM

Holly, I don't think taxes have a little label on them or get divided individually--I think it all just goes into one state pot, and then gets divided according to students and other needs, like roads or whatever. Everybody pays a tax, and some of that goes towards education, but it's on a global level. In any case, even if you don't have any kids, you still pay taxes... =)

But yes, our computers are free as long as we need it (but you can't download games or anything onto it, of course!).

SylviaB

09-03-2010, 05:20 AM

Holly, thanks for asking this!

In Germany homeschooling is absolutely NO option.. you have the obligation to send the children to school after they got 7 years old the latest.... but ok... you can choose a private school, if you have enough money ;)

So as a German, the 'school at home' concept is a total 'mystery' for me, too. And I loved reading all the comments! Very interesting!

I have another question: Do the homeschooled children have to do official tests after every year or can the parents -as their teachers- just 'do what they want to'? Is there a final examn at the end of the 'school time' or something like that?

judet

09-03-2010, 07:38 AM

That really surprises me, Sylvia! Here (in the UK) you have to send them to school or 'provide education otherwise' from the age of 5. I know quite a few people who are just beginning to homeschool or intending to but don't know a huge amount about it otherwise. Some of them intend to more-or-less follow a school-like curriculum, but most of them are looking at a much more child-led approach. The teacher in me freaks out a little at the planning aspect of that, but I think its because I don't really know enough about it.

I actually really like the idea of home education but I'm not sure that I'm self-disciplined enough to do it. I spend far too much time faffing about and procrastinating as it is! Thanks for the interesting thread, Holly!

heathert

09-03-2010, 08:03 AM

Sylvia, as I mentioned, in Oregon you have to pass state exams in grade 3, 5, and I think 11; I think Cheryl mentioned that there's also standardized exams in Oklahoma. Some states (Washington for one, I think) have a sort of "teacher mentor" that comes out to your house about 1x year to verify that some educating is going on. But there isn't any final exam at the end of each year such as they might have in Europe. In the US it is possible to take an exam called the GED, or General Educational Development (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GED) test around high school age--if you pass this, you have a sort of high school diploma equivalent, but in reality it is not perceived as a marker of much of anything by college entrance officials.

The SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAT) can be taken for a fee before college (is usually taken, in fact), and your score on that determines which colleges will be willing to look at your candidacy.

gette3

09-03-2010, 08:30 AM

Testing for us was the easiest part. My sons' curriculum followed him through by testing each section, saving it and tracking it within the programs we used. We had a "homeschool counselor", who was actually a public school teacher with a hihger degree, that would answer any questions we had and additionally track his progress. He participated in a homeschool science club, p.e. group and a reading/writing meeting (which always turned into a sleepover, LOL) so he was never socially challenged, in fact remains friends with several of those students even now after graduating public school and moving away from home! My sister belongs to a homeschool group, that even camp/field trip/ and take large testing together by borrowing the church dining room, AcK! At the end of the school year, we gathered up his individual work, projects he had made, research...whatever he had done on paper and on disc, and had a meeting to evaluate. At that time the counselor either passed or failed the student, of course we passed and documented a whopping 70% increase in overall scores! WHAT?!?!?! He had essentially grown two years in one, and the public school classes were actually behind him in a couple of areas!

I was mostly surprise by how easy it was to join different groups for extracurricular, and if the group did not work for your child?....there were others to join, unlike public school where they have no choice who they sit next too or are influenced by. I just love that I was able to do it, no teaching degree, no desire to "teach"....just a love for my son that told me if I didn't make the deicision to just do it and hope for the best, I would regret it the rest of my life......so glad I made this one.

hollyinjapan

09-03-2010, 09:43 AM

judet

09-03-2010, 11:03 AM

Holly - around here there are groups for home educators where families meet up regularly and even go on camps together so the children get to mix with others. And there are always other extra-curricular groups (scouts, whatever) that they could go to. It's up to the parent pretty much.

There seems to be less regulation here (at the moment, anyway) and the families choose what exams they want to do as the children grow up. I don't really see the need for testing unless you're checking to see where your child is compared other children of his age as it really isn't the best form of assessment and in a small group environment like home ed the educator should have a pretty good idea of the child's achievements.

Charla

09-03-2010, 11:04 AM

:coffeelove: time for a cup of coffee...I'm writing a book here!

Holly, the social aspects of homeschooling are one of the biggest people wonder/worry about. It's the first question people ask (unlike a generation ago, when MIL was asked "is it legal???")
My kids don't get out as often as a lot of kids do, since we don't have a second car and we live too far from anything we could walk to. And I'm a homebody ;) But. My kids spend every Wednesday with their grandparents at their Christian Library, and you should SEE Jasmine interact with anyone and anyone who comes in.
When we go to the park, she goes and makes friends with whoever is there at the same time. She's gotten 8-year olds to follow her in "follow the leader." She goes and talks to the parents of one-year-olds. She is incredibly social and friendly. Bekah is very shy right now, but I know she's 3 1/2 and it's her age as well as her temperament.
I've watched DH and his sister (both homeschooled from kindergarten through graduate school). Josh is very introverted, but he is still very able to talk to whoever he absolutely has to ;) Charity needs to talk to people. She spends her day on the phone and email as a receptionist. And I was public schooled all the way through. I'm plenty able to chat with people, but I think I'm less comfortable initiating conversations with anyone (including people my age) than SIL is. :giggle:
What public school really teaches you is how to talk to 20 other kids the exact same age as you...how many times does that happen once you graduate from high school (or maybe college, though I went to school with plenty of "returning students" with kids my age)?? My kids are as comfortable talking to adults as they are talking to kids close to their age.

Our story: as I just mentioned, DH was homeschooled all the way through, and he hoped that his wife would choose the same for their kids. I wasn't convinced at first...he didn't push, but I knew he wasn't a big fan of public schools. I'd done well in school; graduated 19 in my class of 325, been "teacher's pet" most of the way through, loving marching band and enjoying the opportunity to take AP courses. But on our honeymoon, I dreamed that I was homeschooling our kids and loving it. So I knew from about 3 days into married life that it was what I wanted. And as the kids were born and we started seeing them grow, I realized just how many things I'd had to put up with in school. People being mean when I didn't fit in. Being bored when other kids took longer to understand something. Having my parents get involved in sex ed and pulling me when they didn't think it was appropriate. Dirty jokes. Bad language. Smoking (not me, but seeing kids doing it). Teachers who put us down instead of encouraging us. Teachers "teaching to the test." (I had a lot of those).
I want more for my kids than that!! I may not be the world's best teacher, but with the awesome curriculum I'm finding, the support of DH, and the patience a mom has for the kids she adores, they'll do great!

And a side story. My brother Phillip struggled all the way through school, starting in third grade. The teacher kept writing to mom, worried that he was getting behind and wondering what they could do about it. From that point through graduation, he almost failed numerous times, Mom and Dad were called into one parent-teacher conference after another...he graduated, but just barely.
DH was homeschooled all the way through. Similar to what Heather mentioned about jumping for every letter, MIL let Josh walk around the room and do math in his head, instead of writing the answers down on paper. (so now he can figure out the tip/tax/total when we're shopping, while I still need a calculator). Josh and Phillip both have very similar learning styles, but Josh was encouraged and Phillip was always told there must be something wrong with him. And now that I'm starting to suspect that Hudson learns the same way Josh does, it makes me sure all over again that we're not sending them to school.
And Jasmine is a kinesthetic learner. She would struggle in any subject lacking in "manipulatives." I use hand motions to teach her Bible verses, and she picks them up quickly. That's much more difficult to do with a class of 24!

My state (NY) does have yearly testing, starting in 4th or 5th grade, I think. We have to fill out IHIP forms saying who the teacher is and what curriculum we are going to use (starting in 1st grade; kindergarten isn't mandatory). I'd love to live in a more lenient state but it's really not a big deal. I know they'll do perfectly fine and will be able to do anything they want to do!

MariKoegelenberg

09-03-2010, 01:02 PM

Homeschooling is also a very foreign concept to me...but I love all the stories here.

What Charla said about kids being mean etc. I know for me at this moment it is one of my biggest worries with Chrismari...because of the Turner Syndrome she has such a hard time with Social Cues and she kind of shuts out the world so that does make her a bit of a target, plus the fact that she is going to be short, not develop normally etc. etc. which will just lead to more ridicule from her peers, protecting her from these hardships are uppermost in my mind but she has special educational needs - she sees an occupational therapist each week and she also has an individualized learning plan, how will it affect her if I would choose to Homeschool? Would she still receive these benefits or not?

Charla

09-03-2010, 01:46 PM

Hmm, Mari, I'm not sure. I'd definitely look into it, though, for all of those reasons. She'll be a lot more comfortable in her own skin if she's around the kind of supportive, loving environment you can give her! I'd imagine it varies by the state, and my guess is, California is good about making sure kids who need therapists would still get them. On the other hand, CA was also one that tried to make certification mandatory (that got knocked down really fast).

One place you could look is on the fan page for HSLDA (Home School Legal Defence Association) and ask the question there. There are many, many people who would know the ins and outs of the laws for your state and could point you in the right direction :)

heathert

09-03-2010, 01:51 PM

Mari, that's one of the wonderful things about the school we use (Connections Academy). Because they're a public school, they get to work with the kids on their Individual Educational Plans (IEP's), and they do a marvelous job of following through, AND inventing specialized ways to deal with the curriculum for the parents who are teaching. I know that many of the folks in our school in Oregon have turned to ORCA because the public schools don't have enough funding for more than a couple of hours of counseling a year!

ccouch

09-03-2010, 02:54 PM

I have another question: Do the homeschooled children have to do official tests after every year or can the parents -as their teachers- just 'do what they want to'? Is there a final examn at the end of the 'school time' or something like that?

I think this may have already been answered, but I'll chime in. It really varies state to state. Some states do require annual tests for homeschoolers, others may require that students take only the standardized tests that their public school peers take (usually not every year - there are usually benchmark years that students are tested), and there are a number of states that do not require any testing for homeschoolers.

We, very thankfully, live in a state where there is no testing required of us. :D

ccouch

09-03-2010, 03:10 PM

So many more excellent points. Thanks for the additional testing information Heather. I've heard that it largely depends on the state about the requirements and restrictions. I love how you can count your daily hikes along the beach as certain class times. That is SO natural and cool. But what better way to learn than to really see it in use. That would be cool to take field trips and vacations to historical places and have them count as classroom hours too. I can see why hs kids would have a lot more fun in some ways.

I've heard about these homeschooling co-ops. Is that where mothers get together and group teach? would they have to have an official school or teaching license for that? or is that something one joins for group excursions and curriculum planning etc?

This is one of the many things I love - our lives and my childrens' education mesh seamlessly. We "school" wherever and really take that saying "the world is my classroom" to heart. There are times when we'll encounter something at the park or in our yard, and immediately go home and look it up; draw pictures of it; etc... It's really a beautiful thing :D

We belong to two homeschool co-ops.
- Number one is a teaching co-op. We meet once a week on Friday and offer classes for all ages. There are moms who teach, others have different duties throughout the day. There is no official school or teaching license required mostly because it isn't a school, you know? These classes are seen as enrichment. Many of the high-school students will count certain classes toward graduation, however.
- Number two is an activities co-op. We have a number of activities we do with this co-op: P.E. classes (gymnastics at a local gym, basketball, soccer, usually one sport a month), field trips (although we do field trips with the first group as well), library days (we meet in a large banquet room at our local library and have speakers, tutorials, and so forth), museum days, on and on.....

Many people don't belong to groups like these - and I don't believe that hinders "socialization." There are seriously so many opportunities for being with peers that I have to be selective so that I'm not doing too much. And, it depends on what you want for your child. I want Camille to be able to relate to her immediate peer group, sure. But, even more than that, I want her to be confident, grounded, sure of herself and have the ability to relate to and converse with persons of any age.

I really do appreciate these questions and the open discussion we're having. After answering yesterday and putting my thoughts & reasons down "on paper" (so to speak), I felt so strongly about what we're doing and was just flooded with a deep appreciation for my ability to teach my children at home. So, thank you, Holly. I knew why we were doing what we were doing, but verbalizing it made me all the more certain!

nicoleseitler

09-03-2010, 05:03 PM

We homeschool for a number of reasons.

1) We're able to personalize our kids' education. :good:

2) We are able to integrate our faith into our learning. :heart:

3) Character building. :yeshuh:

4) Family togetherness. :irock:

5) Freedom to explore interests. :yes:

I'm right there with ya! I would have said the same things. Thanks for saving me from writing a novel, because otherwise, I would have! :giggle:

Holly, the social aspects of homeschooling are one of the biggest people wonder/worry about. It's the first question people ask [...] My kids don't get out as often as a lot of kids do, since we don't have a second car and we live too far from anything we could walk to. And I'm a homebody ;) But. My kids spend every Wednesday with their grandparents at their Christian Library, and you should SEE Jasmine interact with anyone and anyone who comes in.

You can vouch for my kids, too! Katie's just like Jasmine, wouldn't you say? I mean, if we weren't watching them, I could imagine that they would have clasped hands and starting skipping all around the Lodge exploring things and waving at everyone they met. :lol:

Everyone has a different personality and homeschooling doesn't change the way someone already is... turning them into a recluse, you know? I get a little peeved when people (in real life--not here) insinuate that when they talk to me about homeschooling. My MIL homeschooled four children. Two are rather shy, the other two totally outgoing. Even at that, the shy ones are extremely personable and enjoy being with others. They are just quiet people. But my mom likes to hint that our homeschooling has made Katie and Joshua "starved" for contact with other people... :eyeroll: No... they are just awesome little people who actually can have a conversation with an adult. :giggle: I've noticed in the last few months people (like store clerks) will tell me that I have wonderful children and I think "Um. What did they do? I missed it!" Now I'm starting to wonder if it's just the fact that my kids are sweet and talkative and start conversations with people that makes them stand out... :smile:

AquaRuby

09-03-2010, 06:09 PM

This question was posed on one of my other CT boards, so I am copying and pasting my reasons:

Personally our family it was for several reasons. We weren't living in a huge community, but as a parent I still have a say in how my child will be raised, this includes how they will be taught. Most parents won't speak up about it and the school just walks all over the kids and the parents. It may be a free education, but you don't get to treat my kid like dirt just because our family believes a certain way. Which leads me to the second reason, a lot of it had to do with our religious beliefs. There were certain things that we didn't want our children to participate in while at school and this set our family out as being freaks. I was actually asked by the principal if we were Jehovah's Witnesses because we don't celebrate Halloween and I wouldn't let my kids dress up. I politely told her, "No I am a Southern Baptist." Her response was priceless, "Oh I'm a Baptist too." Another reason was my oldest daughter had a lot of issues with math, we hired tutors, worked one on one with her and she would do fine. Send her to school and she literally made 20s and 30s on her papers, but her homework papers were 100. She was also being picked on because my oldest daughter is half black and white and we lived in a predominantly white town. My youngest son was another reason we opted to homeschool. He went to school for kindergarten and his teacher told me to have him tested for ADD cause he wouldn't sit still. My oldest son was bored because he is extremely bright. All those things just compounded in one year and I had it. I told my husband we're going to homeschool. I found a local homeschool group and we've been homeschooling ever since. This will be our 7th year to homeschool.

Once we started homeschooling I learned how my children learn. My oldest daughter needed to write out her problems for math, to "see" the problems work out. She hated it because her brother could do it all in his head. My oldest son was finally given the chance to do work that was "hard" for him and he loved the challenge. My youngest son is a kinetic learner, he totally has to touch everything. He has to take things apart and put them back together to know how it works, not just see it in a book. My youngest daughter, age 7, has never been to a public school and probably never will, she is now a 2nd grader reading at an almost 4th grade level.

I love that there are so many ladies on here who homeschool and it's neat to see the various reasons too. There is definitely no cookie-cutter method to how to homeschool. :)

hollyinjapan

09-03-2010, 07:17 PM

Charla! I was hoping you would pop into this thread. Thank you SO much for all your information. HS is looking more and more advantageous to me now. At least I am understanding a LOT more about why people choose to do it.

Heather, your system really sounds like the best of both worlds. So much support from the public school system and still you are in control.

Christy, I like your comment about there being no cookie cutter method. That is so true.

All of this wonderful input makes me wish that I felt more like trying it. I really see the incredible positive aspects of it. But is it strange that I just don't think I could do it?! Plus I am 99.9% certain that DH would never approve of hs for our kids. Its basically the equivalent of becoming a social outcast here (not homeschooling per se. Basically its children with severe social problems who refuse to go to school. Japan is a really really conformative society). I really doubt my own patience to do this.

Also, I think I would be able to *teach* math up to 4th or 5th grade, but I've certainly forgotten / purged all my advanced math. How in the world can you teach what you yourself don't know? But I would assume that the curriculum also teaches the teacher?

I'm understanding more, but here are a few more questions:

How do you choose your curriculum?
Where do you buy curriculum and supplies?
Do you plan to HS all the way through high school grad?
Is there any national level regulation regarding hs? (although from reading here it sounds like it is purely up to the state)

Charla

09-03-2010, 07:45 PM

:wub: Thanks for hoping I'd show up!!

Yeah, living in a culture valuing conformity really would make it tough to go against the flow on something like this.
You're not the only one. I hear that all the time (already! Jasmine just started kindergarten! How hard is it to teach someone to count??? :giggle:) that they could never do it. I think it's just like anything else...if you decide it's truly important to you, you'll figure out how to make it work. It's true in finances as well as time management.

No, at this point there are no national standards for homeschooling. It's state to state. I'm sure the current administration would love to see them put in place, though, with all the "race to the top" stuff going on in the states.

The curriculum you choose helps you teach what you need to explain to them. With any teaching, it's really a matter of staying one lesson ahead of them. Just re-teach yourself the next thing they'll learn and you'll do fine. In the advanced grades there are many online courses and DVD courses, even when DH was in school. He did a lot of those in the upper grades. Personally, at this point anyways, I'm hoping to do it all the way through for the main courses and music. (I'll get help for them for art class unless they want to do scrapping or photography :rotfl:) I can't wait to re-learn trig and calc ;) and to learn a new language with them.
I'll let others answer the rest...time for my family :wub:

LeeAndra

09-03-2010, 09:04 PM

In my former life when my (ex)stepdaughters were being HSed by their mom, I did a lot of research in this area, so I'm going to chime in even though I have never and am not currently HSing. Well, unless you count telling my 1 yo 'No!' when she tries to stick her hand in the fan counts... :lol:

You should Google HS curriculum, Jacinda. You could spend days looking through it all! I think it's rather fun. There are textbooks and workbooks like in public and private school; virtual schooling like someone else mentioned; unit studies where you take one subject and study all the various aspects that would fall under math, reading, etc. i.e. frontier America where you'd read a book set in that timeframe (reading), construct your own covered wagon (science and math), cook a typical frontier meal (home arts), research what was happening in America at that time and why people were moving West (history); Charlotte Mason method which uses 'living' books, as opposed to textbooks, and lots of study of Nature; classical based on how the Greeks and Romans were taught, and unschooling which is completely student-led unplanned teaching. Most HSing families I know use multiple methods to teach their children.

They have HS conventions where they sell and trade used curricula, but you can also buy it brand spankin' new online at a variety of sites.

HTH!

hollyinjapan

09-04-2010, 07:19 AM

Thank you LeeAndra. That sounds like an interesting way to teach. Just take one theme and cover it in all subjects from every aspect. What an incredible hands-on learning method!

Charla

09-05-2010, 07:13 PM

Holly, that's what we're doing! And a lot of the Unit Study systems also cover multiple grades, but at their individual levels. It's SO cool. I can't wait to just saturate ourselves in one topic and maybe even decorate the house with whatever the theme is :dance:

AquaRuby

09-05-2010, 07:41 PM

We've been doing the Charlotte Mason approach since we started homeschooling seven years ago. I love the 'living' books because it really helps my kids relate to the history of the subject at hand (ie: Pilgrims, we read a story from a little girls viewpoint about crossing on the Mayflower with her family to avoid religious persecution), when they can imagine being the child in the story they totally remember the history of the Pilgrims more than just reading in a history book about the Pilgrims and taking a test on it. Being able to make the foods or do an art project using the materials from that time period really makes an impact. :)

ccouch

09-05-2010, 07:59 PM

Yep - - I'm another Unit Study-er! For the early years, I loved Five in a Row, but always added to it for Camille. This year we're doing Galloping the Globe and I'm adding in some of my own resources to give Camille an awesome year of "world travel!" Charla, what we're doing is very similar to MFW's (My Father's World) year of Exploring Countries and Cultures.

I'm adding in Science separately because I felt that it was a little weak in that subject. It's just enough science for this age according to my mom friends that use this curriculum, but I've got a gal that it nuts about science and chooses NF science books for pleasure reading. I had to up the bar! We are following a classical timeline of 1st grade - Life Science, 2nd grade - Earth Science, 3rd grade - Chemistry, 4th grade - Physics...and then repeat.

And, yes!! I'm a huge fan of living books. I'll take those over stodgy old textbooks any day! I agree, Christy, that it adds so much to enhance our learning and Camille can identify with the characters in the stories so much better than reading a paragraph or page on the same topic.

Do you spend any time on AO (Ambleside Online)? I like their timelines for composer and artist studies, as well as their recommended reading lists. Really great site if you aren't familiar w/ it.

AquaRuby

09-05-2010, 08:04 PM

Christine, I've never heard of that site. Can you post the link?

ccouch

09-05-2010, 09:28 PM

oooooh, you're going to LOVE it!! It's a Charlotte Mason "curriculum" available online for free with lots of great support!
http://www.amblesideonline.org/

Have fun!

nicoleseitler

09-06-2010, 03:54 PM

Hey, girls! Let me ask--I need an academic planner. I was just telling Christine yesterday that I found out that the State of FL wants me to log hours and I want a nice book where I can right out notes to myself and jot down hours. Do you have any recommendations? It's turning out to be harder than I thought to find something and I'd prefer to find something cool. If I need to, I'll use a regular old day planner thing... but if you know of anything, let me know. :smile:

Also, I probably need to look up how many hours people recommend for the 2nd grade... I have no clue! And I don't want to get in trouble. :giggle:

ccouch

09-06-2010, 04:11 PM

The gals at TWTM (The Well-Trained Mind) have recommended these:

I think either of these allow you to print your schedule, so that might be handy.
http://www.homeschoolskedtrack.com/HomeSchool/displayLogin.do (Free)
http://www.homeschooltracker.com/ (Homeschool Tracker Plus was recommended)

http://wellplannedday.com/plannerswpd1011.html

Some ideas about planning: http://www.donnayoung.org/forms/planners/index.htm

I use a fun little school planner that I bought in the back to school section. I type up all my unit study lesson plans in Word and then as I'm scheduling out my week, I will pencil in the details on my planner. I think HSkedtrack looks cool though, especially since it's free :giggle:

Although I'm not required to have any of that stuff now, it might be good for me to keep records in case we moved to a state that required records, you know?

Hope that helps :D

heathert

09-07-2010, 05:01 AM

Also, I probably need to look up how many hours people recommend for the 2nd grade... I have no clue! And I don't want to get in trouble. :giggle:

It probably varies by state, but in K Oregon requires 3.5 hours/day, 5/day in 1st grade. Not sure what 2nd grade will bring!:shock:

SunshineTK

09-07-2010, 08:28 AM

What a ton of great info here, everyone!!! We briefly toyed with the idea of homeschooling when we lived in Florida (very poor public school systems, even though we lived in one of the best in FL it was still not the standard we wanted), but honestly I think neither DH nor I have the personality to carry it through.

I do have one question for those of you that do, though. Part of what we like about public school is that it forces kids to learn to deal with difficult people. They might not like a given teacher - but they have to learn to deal with that situation. Kids can be mean, sure. But so can adults. You're not always going to like your boss. You're going to have conflict that needs to be dealt with in the workplace or even in a higher education setting. How do you make sure your kids are equipped to deal with that?

nicoleseitler

09-07-2010, 02:08 PM

Thank you so much, Christine! I will look at those up right now. I'm excited!

It probably varies by state, but in K Oregon requires 3.5 hours/day, 5/day in 1st grade. Not sure what 2nd grade will bring!:shock:

5 hours? Oh, good grief! I think that Mommy and Katie would not survive that. LOL! We did 4 today and that was a long day. LOL! Okay, maybe I should be really thankful that the State of FL doesn't have a set requirement. ;) Reading up on this, it seems pretty common to do 1-3 hours for the lower levels, which is great because we do at least 2 everyday, sometimes 3. :thumbsup:

Part of what we like about public school is that it forces kids to learn to deal with difficult people. They might not like a given teacher - but they have to learn to deal with that situation. Kids can be mean, sure. But so can adults. You're not always going to like your boss. You're going to have conflict that needs to be dealt with in the workplace or even in a higher education setting. How do you make sure your kids are equipped to deal with that?

I was just watching a show on A&E last night about a guy with OCD that blamed his control issues on the bullies he had to deal with starting in Kindergarten... :lol: So, I don't know that I'm thinking that going to school = learning to cope right now. LOL!

I don't know... I guess I think it has a lot more to do with what we as parents tell and teach them about life. And that's going to happen regardless of the method of schooling they receive. :smile:

nicoleseitler

09-07-2010, 06:04 PM

Good night, Christine! I just spent the last two hours playing with things from the Donna Young site. She has some great forms there and most are available as .pdfs and .docs! So, I grabbed a few and started editing them. Good times! Actually, now I feel really stressed out--you know that "I've been working on paperwork" feeling? :lol: I used to feel like this all the time in the late afternoon when I was a paralegal. Ugh! :P

But I am excited about printing these goodies out! :D This is just what I needed--nice and customizable. Thank you!

nicoleseitler

09-07-2010, 06:04 PM

Ooo... now I should make a hybrid cover, huh? :grin:

ccouch

09-07-2010, 06:26 PM

Definitely!! I made hybrid covers for all of my binders this year. (( Guess I should've taken pics, huh?? :blush:))

I'm becoming a rip the binding off & hole-punch the pages kind of gal :D

So glad you could find something that would work for you! Happy bookkeeping!

heathert

09-07-2010, 06:32 PM

Tracy, I guess there are different ways of perceiving that situation. Personally, I don't feel like being hostage to any particular setup necessarily teaches long-term coping skills. It could just as easily teach avoidance, or lack of control, or bullying, as Nicole points out. Instead, by keeping your child at home in a non-threatening situation, they develop a much stronger sense of self, and later on, when confronted with an unpleasant situation, have a much deeper resource bucket to dip into (because really, how you respond to threat is all about how secure you feel).

Regular "modern" schools in the United States were developed on the factory model, for the express purpose of integrating immigrant children to swell the work force. I don't see them, therefore, as microcosms of society at large, but instead as highly artificial environments that in fact have very little to do with reality. Now a Montessori school, on the other hand, is a much more valid simulation of real life, as are some other charter schools.

Seeing your parents deal with stress, personally and as a couple, in my opinion, teaches a child much more about how to react in a stressful situation. If the parents holler at each other all the time, ignore the other's boundaries, engage in passive-aggressive fighting back... all those will really be how the child learns to deal with others. If you (not *you*, but in general, one ;)) clean up your own "house" first, I think your child will have a much better chance figuring out how to cope with bullies in an office situation...

All this said, I don't think homeschooling is for everybody either. You can produce just as artificial an environment as a brick and mortar school--the key is probably as always, moderation; learning how to assess situations and figure them out; open-mindedness guided by positive values and some modicum of common sense; etc.

nicoleseitler

09-07-2010, 10:44 PM

Regular "modern" schools in the United States were developed on the factory model, for the express purpose of integrating immigrant children to swell the work force. I don't see them, therefore, as microcosms of society at large, but instead as highly artificial environments that in fact have very little to do with reality.

Yeah... I often think about this when certainly family members start trying to talk me out of homeschooling, like I'm doing something wrong. Just because something is "the norm" now doesn't mean it is "the best" or that it has good roots!

I'm happy to support a great school! But certain public schools are really "school at it's worst" and that's one of the biggest reasons we homeschool. :)

SunshineTK

09-08-2010, 08:14 AM

I was just watching a show on A&E last night about a guy with OCD that blamed his control issues on the bullies he had to deal with starting in Kindergarten... :lol: So, I don't know that I'm thinking that going to school = learning to cope right now. LOL!

I don't know... I guess I think it has a lot more to do with what we as parents tell and teach them about life. And that's going to happen regardless of the method of schooling they receive. :smile:

I blame the chemical imbalance in his brain more than the bullies (speaking as someone who does have OCD)....but I get the point. I guess what I'm trying to get at is how do you find the teachable moments about dealing with very difficult situations if you're (intentionally or unintentionally) limiting those situations?

Thanks also, Heather for the comments. Totally understand where you're coming from....I think maybe it's just a parenting style thing to some degree. I'm more the "let them feel the pain then help them work through it with my love and support" type than "prevent the pain as long as possible" type.

Didn't mean to take us on a tangent, but it is something I'm very curious about.

jomi

09-08-2010, 10:12 AM

I really read this with a lot of interest, mostly because homeschooling is very uncommon and un-known for here in The Netherlands. Our gouvernment has a attitude of discouragement when it comes to homeschooling. I just googled a bit and they think only 200-300 kids are being homescholed in Holland. There is no program orso plus children need to do to school from the age of 5 and that's a obligation you can't easily get out of. There's a whole system behind it if children drop out of school and if we don't bring our kids to school or take a day off without approval from the school director you will be fined with a € 50 fine a day ( about $64).

I have to say what I read here and the well thought arguments on why you decided to home school is something I have deep respect for!! :heart:

hollyinjapan

09-08-2010, 07:35 PM

Oh my, that Well Planned Day is just Gorgeous. I don'T homeschool but I want one!

There is just SO much awesome information here!

hollyinjapan

09-08-2010, 07:49 PM

Tracy, I can completely understand your ideas too. I definitely do not have the personality to homeschool my kids. I would love it if someone else did :lol:, but I couldn't do it. I am in awe of so many of our Chicks that do it, and the wonderful wealth of information there is out there.

Both of my children have been in classrooms with sub-level teachers. My daughter has a bit of a stand-offish personality and has been somewhat bullied by two of her teachers. I wanted to raise h.e. double toothpicks, but DH said that in this Japanese system it would only hurt her more and get her bullied more. He mentioned that it was a "good" experience for her because now she knows that just because someone is a teacher doesn't make them nice to kids or infallible, or even respectable. That she has to choose for herself who she will respect and who her friends will be.

My son's first elem school teacher was a woman who focused SO much on the tiny little behavioral issues of each child, but barely taught the curriculum in the classroom. She would call me repeatedly for the tiniest thing. All I could do was laugh. I know it upset her somewhat and I tried to work with her, but seriously. Some of her issues were just minute.

Anyway, they've both had to deal with less-than-desirable classmates as well. In some ways, I think it shows them how NOT to act. IYKWIM.

I wish there were more options here, but most of the reason for not sending children to a private school would be distance and extreme cost.

I'm loving all this great information in this thread. I wonder if we should just start a new forum where our chicks can share homeschooling information? :wink:

nicoleseitler

09-08-2010, 08:33 PM

I wonder if we should just start a new forum where our chicks can share homeschooling information? :wink:

Haha! No... let's not go off topic... :offtopic: Back to your regularly scheduled scrapping! :D

hollyinjapan

09-09-2010, 07:31 AM

Thank you Nicole, I was getting carried away. :grin:

Charla

09-09-2010, 03:20 PM

:giggle: Holly. We're always suggesting new forums...and then "how on earth can we consolidate all these forums???" a month later! :rotfl:

hollyinjapan

09-09-2010, 08:10 PM

:lol:So true!

JeanH

09-09-2010, 08:42 PM

This is a wonderful and interesting discussion! When I was growing up, there was no such thing as “home-schooling.” Children went to school, public or private, or parents were in trouble. I got to thinking about my brother and me and how different we are. Both of us were excellent students, enrolled in AP courses (yes, ladies, they had AP in Denver in the late 50s), had fabulous GPAs and received great scholarships to college. And, most important, we both have been good members of society in our adulthood. I can see that my brother probably would have been a great home-schooled kid. Although neither of us was ever had discipline problems in school, my brother was so advanced that he really would have loved the individualized instruction. He was not a particularly social child and was mostly bored at school. However, I'm not sure if my mother, as intelligent as she was, would have been able to keep up (and certainly not one day at a time) with his math and science skills. I, on the other hand, would have lasted about ten minutes with mother as my teacher. We had completely opposite personalities and my “style” drove her crazy (and did, until the day she died). I absolutely loved everything about school (all 13 years), and couldn't wait to get there every day. I loved the intellectual stimulation and the learning, but, more importantly for me, I loved the society of school! I loved all of it and cannot imagine not having that arena. Of course there were the bad times. I was teased and sometimes ridiculed; for being smart, for wearing glasses, for being short, for having curly hair! And I learned how to take it all and thrive! I loved being on Student Council, an editor on the high school annual, whipping the boys in debate and international relations. I loved being a straight A student and giving the graduation speech. Interestingly, my brother, who is without a doubt, the smarter of us, told me how much he disliked school, especially high school. We went to the same school, just three years apart, but I think now how wonderful it would have been for him to have a real alternative. So, I applaud each of you for the decisions you have made. And I am grateful that you have these kinds of choices.