Gathering information to decide whether to homeschool or not...

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by TooManyHats on October 8, 2008 at 11:02am

Well, I say jump right in! $4,000 for K and she is not learning a thing would really bug me. On top of that what could they possibly teach her in K that you are not more than able to teach her? You know how to count to 100, add, and subtract. You know all about community helpers (firemen, police, postal workers, etc.). You can grow a garden together and teach her about parts of plants, seeds, the water cycle even. Obviously, she is reading so well because you encouraged her, read to her, and helped her sound out those words to start with, so you have been teaching her all along.

Mostly, if you are feeling drawn to this homeschool thing, then by all means try it. You will not harm your child giving it a try. I think you will find it is much less stress then getting the kids up and out the door by 7:30 every morning and dealing with the negative side of socialization. Hook up with a local homeschool support group and make new friends.

You can have three more kids and still homeschool. There are plenty of large families that choose homeschooling.

I say do it :)

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Permalink Reply by Sy on October 8, 2008 at 10:45pm

Amanda,
Of course you are nuts. Any honest homeschooling mom will tell you the same thing. You already have three wee ones and you are planning to have another!? And you are considering homeschooling? Of course you're nuts! I, myself have four that I homeschool. So, personally, I think you would be in great company. GRIN Homeschooling is probably the hardest, most rewarding, work that you will ever take on. Some days you will want to pull your hair out. Some days, you just wish someone would come and rescue you and maybe public school wasn't such a bad idea after all. But you will read or see something about the things other children have to endure at the hands of "teachers" and you will thank the Divine for the opportunity to homeschool. And when your children do something extraordinary and point to you and say, "Mom taught me," you will feel such a sense of overwhelming pride, you'll feel as if you could just burst.

And...
If you are seriously considering homeschooling, (and it sounds like you are) now is the time to start educating yourself for the process. First thing you have to do is to check out the laws of your state. Some states make it really easy to homeschool, others make it extremely difficult. Whatever, in order to keep the courts out of your business, you have to know and follow those rules. You can start with HSLDA. I don't always agree with their points of view, but they do provide detailed, non-biased information about the homeschooling laws of each state. [http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/default.asp.]

Once you determine that you really want to take on homeschooling in your state, the
next thing you will want to do is to review different curriculum. There are a great
many of them. A great starting point is Rainbow Resource Center at http://www.rainbowresource.com/index.php. They are resellers for nearly every curriculum available. I think they will send you a free catalog if you request it. In it, they write reviews and opinions of the various curriculum offered.

Additionally, you may want to check out these three teaching methods.
Waldorf -- http://www.live-education.com/Curriculum/Kindergarten
Montessori -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Montessori_method
Charlotte Mason -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charlotte_Mason
I use a combination of all three.
http://www.homeschoolingonashoestring.com/lapbooks.html

Also, there are many websites that offer various levels of support for homeschooling,
some free, some for very small annual fees. One that I really liked for Kindergarten through about third grade was Enchanted Learning [http://www.enchantedlearning.com/Home.html].
One other resource is a set of books by E.D. Hirsch - What your __ grader needs to know.
Each one gives an overview of the types of materials that each grade level should be learning, based on what educators say they are capable of learning, not necessarily what the schools teach.
As my kids would say,
Homeschool Rocks!
Sybil
www.twitter.com/catalystone

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Permalink Reply by Sy on October 8, 2008 at 10:57pm

Amanda, I realized the last post was getting too long so I snipped it and so am adding the close here.

As to socializing, I personally like the idea that my children are not restricted to a specific age group, but have relationships with a wide variety of children of all ages. We go to the park and to church. We attend many church and community functions and we have a YMCA membership. My children have many friends with whom they visit on the phone and via email. We participate in competitive sports through the Y. And we rarely have incidents of one coming home complaining of having been bullied. With only the tiniest of effort on your part, you will find that socializing is the least of your homeschooling troubles.

When we are at home doing our education, that is what we focus on and are never worried about whether or not someone has the correct color of shirt, a belt or metal snaps, or too many pockets on their pants, as was so often the case when we were in public school.

As we live in an urban area, we have the opportunity to use museums, science centers, zoos and parks, etc. as our schoolroom. Education does not always have to be within the four walls of our home.

I hope this gives you enough information to help you make an informed decision, and does not overwhelm you. When I first started homeschooling, I did not know about all these resources. I just sort of jumped in with both feet and figured the details out later. My life would have been a whole lot easier if someone had given me a document like this when I first started five years ago.

As my kids would say:
Homeschool Rocks,
Sybil
http://twitter.com/catalystone

PS My only connection to the links here is that I use them. I provide them here for your convenience, and to reduce your research time.

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Permalink Reply by Kiddio on October 9, 2008 at 9:40am

Wow, what fantastic answers. I suppose that I do know what I want to do (and have known for years...), it just feels like such a big step to move away from what's expected and traditional to something that actually fits our parenting model and family culture so well (we're kind of, er, eccentric). I think that I just needed to hear that I could do it, that others were actually happy doing itk, and that the rosy picture I'd painted myself could actually be true!
I love the idea of being so flexible and having the opportunity to meet each of my children at their interests and abilities since they're each so different and to continue the way I've parented thus far (collaboratively with good friends,on nature walks, gardening, exploring the museum for a whole day...). I've thought more than once that it seems like kids are a lot of work and then once they start to really get fun and interesting you have to ship them off to school where they're turned into someone else. Not what I want. So thank you Danielle and TooManyHats for the encouragement. I feel so much better about it.
And Sybil, what amazing resources! I've questioned how I would manage to organize and curriculum and actually have the time to teach it, but these seem like great resources. We live in Denver and have an excellent selection of museums, a great zoo, and other wonderful resources that would (will?) compliment homeschooling really well. I'll definitely be looking at all of those links. It seems so confusing to start with, this is just really helpful.

Now to move my husband from 'interested' and 'curiosity piqued' to 'committed'! :)

Amanda

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Permalink Reply by Sy on October 9, 2008 at 3:01pm

Amanda,
These links will help get DH (dear hubby) moved to "committed" homeschool parent.

Dads, and other family members, who were not homeschooled are just afraid that their kids will not get a proper" education and their choices of careers will be limited. Which of course sets that up as a possible reality for the young people. Have him review some of these links that list famous people that were homeschooled. The first link is about homeschooled kids who have won, or at least participated in, national academic competitions. You have to win a lot of competitions to finally get to the nationals. The second one is about famous people who were homeschooled. You will note that at least two of those on the list are names of Presidents of Universities of extremely high standards.
Additional links list other famous homeschooled folks.

Homeschoolers shine at national competitions
https://www.hslda.org/docs/news/hslda/200305/200305300.asp

Homeschool advantage?
In recent years, several bees have been won by homeschooled students. Some suggest that they have an advantage because they can forgo their studies to prepare for the bee. Homeschoolers respond that, while they do have extra time to devote to spelling practice, such extra time does not come at the expense of their other studies; rather, lessons can be completed in a shorter time when one omits the travel time, change of classes, roll call, large class sizes, etc. that school students must endure.

http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/weblinks/Famous.htm
Peter Kowalke recently produced a documentary that follows 10 grown homeschoolers as they explore and candidly discuss the lasting influence homeschooling has had on their lives. The documentary was made specifically for homeschooling parents and teens. This site also contains a more recent list of people of "our" time who were homeschooled.

This next link is to an article about a homeschool mom's view of "socialization". (Very tongue-in-cheek) In my opinion, socialization is a public school word for making kids fit into their system. And a scare tactic used against parents whose kids don't fit the "norm". Socially adept is a wholly different ball game, and I think that is what parents are really concerned about. The author of this article talks about how her children are socially active / adept and my experience shows this to be pretty right on.
http://homeschooling.about.com/od/socializationa/socialchallenge.htm

http://www.homeschoolacademy.com/famoushomeschoolers.htm
http://www.eadshome.com/Famoushomeschooled.htm
http://www.christianhomeschoolers.com/hs_famous_homeschoolers.html
http://www.home4schoolgear.com/famoushomeschooler.html
http://homeschooling.suite101.com/article.cfm/homeschooled_alumni_i...
Homeschool Rocks
Sybil




Kiddio said:

Wow, what fantastic answers. I suppose that I do know what I want to do (and have known for years...), it just feels like such a big step to move away from what's expected and traditional to something that actually fits our parenting model and family culture so well (we're kind of, er, eccentric). I think that I just needed to hear that I could do it, that others were a

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Permalink Reply by Traci on October 10, 2008 at 6:40am

Lots of good links have been provided. I'll just add to make sure you learn her learning style (and those of your other children). Knowing this can help you adjust how you teach and what curriculum choices to make that would work best for them.

Here's a couple links on learning styles:

http://www.chaminade.org/INSPIRE/learnstl.htm

http://www.learning-styles-online.com/overview/

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Permalink Reply by Jerri Ann on October 11, 2008 at 4:56pm

I write a blog entitled Mom is Teaching that formally was strictly about homeschooling, now we try to take on education from every direction. Parents, teachers, authority figures, etc. Feel free to come on over and jump right in...

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Permalink Reply by Kris on October 12, 2008 at 5:53pm

Not sure you can find what you are looking for in a book. You will know in your heart the right decision on whether to home school or not. One question you can ask yourself is, will these people I am entrusting my child to for 8 hours a day do a better job than myself and my husband?

As for your daughter. She seems smart and ahead. One of the advantages of homeschooling is that the child can go at their own pace, They can stay on a subject that they aren't excelling in and they can move on ahead in those that they are excelling in. My son was always advanced in math. He taught himself to add, subtract, multiply and divide (he didn't know it was multiplying and dividing, but he was doing it) by the time he was in kindergarten. (we sent him to public school til the end of first grade) In first grade math, he was so bored and the teacher actually told me that she let him just sit in class doing nothing because she knew he already knew it. I asked if I could give him math work to do in class instaed of just sitting there, and she said that wasn't allowed. I asked if she could give him harder work to do. Again, that wasn't allowed. Now, this boy who was so advanced in math, and still is, HATES it. It's like pulling teeth to get him to do it, and before first grade he ate it up. The gifted kids in school loose out just as much as the kids who are behind.

I too am thrilled that my kids don't swear, don't have to deal with the unrulely kids on the school bus, don't get bullied, don't get their lunch money stolen any more. The list can go on for pages with this one.

Again, just make sure you know in your heart that you are doing the right thing with your kids. God gave YOU those kids to raise.

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Permalink Reply by Kelly Wissink on October 23, 2008 at 9:37am

Amanda,

You have shared your heart, your frustrations and your fear. Good for you!

The links and thoughts shared are amazing and I am not sure I can add any more to help you
but I did want to share my experience and to offer you encouragement in knowing that whatever you choose is the right decision. You will not make a mistake because you have your child's best interest at heart.

What may be right for one, may not be for the other. Keeping your eyes, ears and mind open as
you watch your precious ones grow on their journey is all that you can do. Being flexible to do what THEY
need rather than what is right for YOU is not normal. So keep it up!

We pulled our children from a public school when my daughters were in 4th and 2nd grade, not because of the
school or what they were taking home with them, but because it was right for them. My son has never known
"school" and that is a great thing. :)

This is coming from a public school teacher of 15 years, now a WAHM/homeschooling mom, and her husband who has
been teaching 5th grade for 25 years. Homeschooling is a beautiful way to grow with your child and
to experience all of the "firsts" with them. Follow your heart, you won't go wrong!

Best wishes, Amanda!

Kelly

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