Homeschooling

Archive for January, 2009

Question: Anyone here homeschool? Why? How? How many?

We recently moved to a new community. Didn't like our old elementary school, but I've developed a new appreciation for the job they did; the new school seems (so far) to be failing academically, though I will give them credit for discipline. Let's just say that I took my kindergartner from failing kindergarten to reading simple words in about three weeks; she was learning nothing at school. My 2nd grader left kindergarten able to read proficiently; now her spelling and reading comprehension (while still within the norm for her grade) certainly are not progressing as I feel they should considering the start she had. I also have a preschooler. I am looking for any and all advice from people who have been there. What curricula do you use? How many students do you have? How do you incorporate sports/music/art, etc? Do you work/go to school as well? If so, HOW??

Answer: I am just starting, teaching my oldest(4 yrs) preschool and introducing it to two 2 yr olds, one of which is mine. Next year I will be starting kindergarten wtih my oldest, unofficially. I'm waiting until he's six to officially enroll him. But, I'm on a few Home Schooling groups, and my sister home schooled her kids, so I know a lot about it, hopefully can help you. You don't have to use a set curriculum, and most don't. A lot of people will buy a curriculum and pick out what they want to use, what is working for their kids, and then supplement that either online or from a library. Up to about six grade, you can get a lot of 'curricula' online, for free. After six grade it's a little harder to find, but it can still be done. Incorporating music, art, or sports can either done at home, or by joining clubs,etc. For music, you can hire a teacher to come and teach lessons (I had a teacher teach me to play saxophone between jr. high and high school), or check with your city to see if they have an all city band. Sports, again, can either be done in the back yard or through city leagues, but keep in mind not all kids are interested in sports. Yes, you'd still have to do p.e. but that doesn't have to be sports in terms of baseball, basketball. Joining a bowling league is something most kids like, or gymnastics, and that can count as p.e. Art, is simple enough. You could do online studies of artists and their work, then get out the crafts. Again, the internet is full of craft ideas! My sister was working full time, until she got layed off, and was Homeschooling her daughter who is a 6th grader. She showed her what had to be done in the mornings, took her to a babysitter's, and then graded her work when she got home and did quizzes on the weekends. For a child that is younger and may need more one on one, it can be done when you get home from work. See, when you're Home Schooling you're not talking about six hours of work, because it's one on one, and far less distractions than at school. A typical day of Home Schooling doesn't really require more than 2-3 hours a day, the rest is free time for activities like sports, music, etc., as you have time to get them there or have someone else take them. Hope this helps, let me know if I can help any more.

Forgot to answer the 'why'. I will be Home Schooling my kids because I feel it provides a better education. Nobody knows my kids better than I do. I can tell in their face when they're understanding something and when they're not, when they're just goofing off and when they're not. I can work with that, to whereas a teacher is limited on the ability to really work with a child, even if you can find one that truly wants to. I can take the time to really study something with my kids when they show an interest, instead of spending only one week on a certain topic in school and then having to move on. I can teach my child HOW to be social, how to behave, what qualities to look for in a friend; all things that a child is forced to learn on their own in school, without having the maturity to really know how to make these decisions. I feel that the current school systems are failing our kids, and I refuse to let my kids become statistics. I also want my kids to be allowed to work at their pace, to not be made to feel like an idiot of they don't get something, but be held accountable when they are just goofing off. I want them to feel free to move through something that they get instead of being forced to wait for others to catch up, which ends up making them lose interest as it did with my husband. So many reasons, I could keep going!

Can You Homeschool And Work At Home?