How do moms feel about Home Schooling?

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Permalink Reply by Dee Yates (Herbsandmore) on May 26, 2009 at 4:48am

My brother homeschooled his three children, they finished school early and are very educated, he made sure that he had them involved in some kind of school activities, like baseball, swimming. He made sure that they still interacted with other children their age. This is very important. My sister homeschooled her only child and he did not get involved with any activities and make friends. He is very smart, but stays in the house playing video games all the time and dosen't do well with talking to people.

Dee(Herbsandmore)
http://www.mynsp.com/remedies

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Permalink Reply by Hope with Passion Parties on May 26, 2009 at 9:05pm

I envy those of you who home school. I have always wanted to, but as it gets closer I have lost confidence in myself. I am planning on moving to another state that has better schools soon.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Ling on May 27, 2009 at 6:35am

Lots of great responses to this post. I just wanted to make a few comments. I have homeschooled my children since the beginning. I have five - four boys and a girl. My oldest has just finished taking his GED test (waiting on results) and we're working on getting him into college. My second oldest will hopefully be doing joint enrollment this year and earning college credits while finishing up his school. Then I have one in 9th grade, 8th grade, and a 2-3 grader.

As I mentor and counsel new homeschool moms, I try to make one major point with them: Be prepared for homeschooling to change YOU! And if you're not willing to make major changes and sacrifices in your own life, schedule, and time - then homeschooling may not work for you. It takes a change of MOM's heart to make homeschooling successful.

In fact, here's a great article on that very subject:

http://www.homeschool-articles.com/changing-moms-heart/

Hope this helps.

Kelly Ling

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Permalink Reply by Charity L. Maness on May 27, 2009 at 7:04am

I homeschooled three of my four children through the high school years where they graduated by the time they were sixteen and were in college. I did however allow them the socialization of elementary school. A child needs to learn that other families are different, compromise, compassion, and dealing with distraction, these can not be easliy learned in the home where they already know the gameplan. Touched on this a little in my book "From Positive Test to Empty Nest."

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Permalink Reply by Danie Bell on May 27, 2009 at 10:47am

Awesome, I would like to see those sites. I use Starfull.com really cool downloads. She loves them.
Thanks so much for everyone's thoughts. It makes wonder if I can really do this.
She loves school and her friends. So its going to be tough decision in August.
Thanks,
Danie

Suzanne Fragiacomo said:

Hi Danie
I have 5 kids, the first two ages 22 and 25 went to public school for the most part but the girl 22 was homeschooled for the last two years of high school. The 25yo boy was home schooled for 9th grade because he was ill.
Now 2 more......age 16 boy was home schooled from grade 6 to grade 9 he is back in school (his wishes) and he is doing fantastic! ALL A's
The 6 year old.........arrrgh!!!! we went him to pre K he was in trouble each day, would refuse the work.....just terrible. SO we decided to home school. This is the end of the second year and I want to rip my hair out!!!!! It is a battle every day. I want to put him in public school, dh says no.
He (tony) wants to go to public school but I know it is because of the battle we have each day. I guess to make a long story even longer, I'm saying do what you feel is best for you and your daughter!
You can learn to teach them everything they need to know........heck at 43 I have tought my son to read, something that terrorified me! I tought my 16 yo how to do algebra........and never had it in school. He is going into honors classes next year........go figure! LOL what matters is what is best for your child. AND, if you decide to home school I have a lot of great sites for k-12 that are free and some that you can get free stuff or pay......I'll pass them along if you'd like.
Good luck!
Sue aka glassymom

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Permalink Reply by Christin on May 27, 2009 at 7:47pm

This is definitely a personal decision and since everyone has their own opinions on why one is better than the other it may be more difficult for you to make a decision that is best for your family.

I home school my daughter, who is 6, and reads at a 4th grade level. We very much enjoy homeschooling and see the major benefits of it for our own family. I believe that mother's (and fathers) are more then equipped to carry this role in the life of their children.

I also believe, if you do decide to home school, there is so much support out there and help if you need it. You will never have a question go unanswered. There are many wonderful websites and blogging moms who home school. The best way to learn about home schooling is to educate yourself.

This is my favorite home school website: http://heartofthematteronline.com/
They also have a forum: http://heartofthematteronline.com/forum/
You can ask questions and get answers! :)

Hope this helps!

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Permalink Reply by Michele on May 29, 2009 at 4:12pm

Throwing my two cents in... While I always wanted to homeschool due to some religious concerns of mine, I never did because in our case I felt I was not up to the task. I'm terribly impatient, and I was afraid that would adversely effect my kids. I have two sons with special needs. We're in the process now of seeing if homeschooling might be the right choice for the oldest, as he's floundering socially/emotionally in school (there are a lot of issues) and it's affecting his education. For my youngest, for now, he's definitely more suited for district school and is thriving. However, he'll be having surgeries in the not too distant future, and depending on recovery factors, we may end up homeschooling him as well. I'm willing to commit if I think it's what's best for my kids.

However, politically speaking - I believe it's my right to decide. I'm the parent. If I've managed to keep this human alive, and well, I can figure out how to best educate them. Simplistic I know, but in my head if I can be trusted to keep them from danger, and teaching them how navigate the world, "they" shouldn't deem Geometry outside of my jurisdiction.

Qualified to keep alive... But no square roots!!

In the state of California (my state) it would be illegal to homeschool them. I would have to go through a charter school (with partial homeschooling) because I'm not a certified teacher. I disagree with the ruling, however, I do still have some options, and in fact, our district may even help me homeschool my oldest.

Bottom line - I think it comes down to a variety of factors of what you think is best for YOUR child. Factoring in your district, your capabilities/temperament, your state's laws, your child's educational and emotional needs, and your family's social/religious/ethics vs. your district/state.

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Permalink Reply by Jennifer Leigh Rice on May 30, 2009 at 7:35pm

Hi Danie,
It's a great question to ask. My answer: It's daunting but do-able.

My 12 year old was enrolled last year (6th grade) in CAVA. The curriculum was fantastic and he could advance as quickly as he liked. In the public school system of which we were a part for 7 years counting pre-school, he was always bored.

Being a very bright student, we found the public system very limited. However, I still believe the teacher can make a very big difference and if your child has an excellent teacher it rounds the experience out. It's a big decision. Lots to consider.

Certainly the social aspects are one of the biggest hurdles for homeschoolers to tackle. We keep things balanced by supplementing with extracurricular activities every day such as tennis class, chess club, etc.

Good luck with your choices and trust yourself!

Jennifer Leigh Rice

www.handmaidenfilms.com

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Permalink Reply by Danie Bell on June 1, 2009 at 9:50am

Thanks ladies for all the responses.
Lena is such a people person, we are going to try school for now and see what happens.
I have definitely changed my mind about home schooling. I might try it later.
Thanks again,
Danie

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