Question about homeschooling

S Theresa - posted on 01/16/2010

Look into a "university model school". They go to school a couple days a week and you homeschool the others.

Joanne - posted on 01/16/2010

I am a homeschooling grandmother. I had several reasons for starting. One was that we traveled a lot. Another was that I had never been happy with the education my children were getting at public school, but didn't know about homeschooling in those days. Another was that I wanted my granddaughter to have a completely different environment from the one her mother had, in order to decrease the likelihood of her turning out the same. Since then, I have learned many things that reinforce my decision. We started out with me just teaching her, from stuff I had around the house, before she was even school age. When she was 5, I purchased Bob Jones, which I was happy with, but she was already ahead of their starting place. We made up our own studies for a couple of years. We also used Time4Learning, and now are using LifePac. All of these things work well. We interact with other homeschool families a lot, and she is part of a homeschool band, where she has learned to play several instruments. She is as well-educated as her public school friends from church, in most areas of knowledge, and is better in some.

Jessica - posted on 01/06/2010

First off, there is numerous sites and books to review. For me, it was seeing other homeschool families and having the desire to do so later on...but by the time my son was going from 5th grade to 6th grade (jr. high) ---it was enough..no more public schools. Thank God!! Of the few favorites (websites) here they are:



1. Best place to start is HSLDA: http://www.youcanhomeschool.org/starther...



2. State Laws pertaining to Homeschooling: http://www.youcanhomeschool.org/starther...



3. Exodus Mandate: http://www.exodusmandate.org/



4. TOS Reviews: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Homesch...



5. My blog (to view how I do it): http://motherofaction.blogspot.com/2009/...



6. Homeschool.com (podcasts): http://www.homeschool.com/podcast/



Living overseas (military) on-line support is all I have--but its great...the only thing I lack is like joining a co-op...(I would love to join one).



Take care and many blessings,



Jessica S.



P.S. this is our first year---and we use A Beka academy...program 1. I think we will be sticking to A Beka (because I like it) and I mix it with other subjects also....art, sports, spanish, etc...

Amy - posted on 11/27/2009

My husband and I talked about homeschooling before we even had children, but when the time came for our first child to go to school, I got scared and enrolled him in public school. I was afraid that I would not be able to teach him all that he needed to know. I let doubt decide for me. Unfortunately, he learned a few things I didn't want him to know as well! God really put the burden of homeschooling on my heart and eventually I gave in! There are days when homeschooling 3 kids is a challenge, but I wouldn't trade it for anything! I only wish I had surrendered to it sooner! If God is calling you to homeschool your child--do it!! If God calls you to it-- He will bring you through it!!! He will be there to help you every step of the way!



Read Phillipians 4:13

Christina - posted on 09/30/2009

We're new to homeschooling this year. It's something I had always wanted to do but couldn't see a way. God surprised me this year and here we are! My girls are in 2nd & 4th grade now. There are so many more benefits that I never imagined. The major factor for us is the same as many listed about the decline of morals. We're in one of the top school districts in the U.S. so education was not a big concern. I saw a lot of bad stuff watching my step kids grow up and I really was not willing to watch it happen to my kids.



So, here are a couple of benefits that make it worth it all as well. 1) My kids don't fight like they used to. Every day they'd get off the school bus and get into a fighting match. I have a daycare and was mortified that these little children would learn such awful things from my own children!! 2) I get to have a leisurely pace in the mornings instead of running my kids out the door. It's soooo pleasant! 3) I get to fix my kids nutritious meals every day. I never could call the school's lunches nutritious and we packed lunches, but it's hard to find healthy varieties that travel well (and that 7 & 9 year olds will eat). 4) My kids get daily bible lessons as a part of their day. Not only do they accomplish more in less time, they get better content! The benefits have been well worth the minor bumps in the road. 5) My girls are learning more compassion since I took fewer kids in my daycare this year and opted to have 3 babies in my daycare. They are sure to be awesome moms someday!



As far as curriculum, I am still working through it all. I started out with www.Time4Learning.com for both kids. It's an online curriculum and it checks the work. I needed that assistance since I am juggling 3 babies as well. It works very well for my 2nd grader and she absolutely loves it. My older child is a book-a-holic and is not as thrilled with the computer work. So I started looking for other options for social studies since that one was flopping horribly. We're using Alpha Omega's Lifepac for our bible studies. After a lot of research (and borrowing a friend's Abeka) my daughter thought she'd like to try A.O.'s Lifepac History & Geography. So far so good! I think she may go to all book-based curriculum next year. Cost? For both children I spend $34.90/mo. for Time 4 Learning. This equates to their school bus fees per year. The Alpha Omega subjects were $55 each at Mardel. Along with other expenses, I am still a bit ahead of what I would have paid the public schools for bus fees, enrollment fees, PTA membership, etc.



A side note, I do add other things to my base curriculum. The girls have a writing assignment, spelling, math flash cards for my 2nd grader (extra practice), reading aloud, educational TV shows (Love the History channel and National Geographic, especially), cooking, art, etc.



I could go on and on. Obviously I'm excited about this new chapter in our life! Best wishes on your choice!

Rowana - posted on 09/21/2009

There are So many reasons to homeschool that I can't mention all of them. The previous replies did that very well. I would recommend that you research the Charlotte Mason method of school. It is a fantastic and refreshing way to "do school." Look it up on-line. Ambleside Online is a great resource to read about it. We are using it and loving it.

Kristen - posted on 08/06/2009

My husband and I both had horrible experiences with public school, and the things that are being allowed in the public curriculum these days is just appalling. Oversized classroom numbers, not enough one on one time, poor systems...it all made a very easy decision for my husband and I.

In our church, there are a number of families that homeschool, including one family that homeschooled all eight of their children (their youngests are still currently being homeschooled). I've talked to a number of friends that have been both in public school and homeschool, and they ALL said they preferred learning at home. One 15 year old girl (who is mature beyond her years) said she liked learning at home because she got to avoid all that useless teenage drama that so many young girls face.

I'm already a stay at home mom to our two children, so it was just a natural choice for us as a family. We like the flexibility that it provides. We have family half way across the country that we visit twice a year, so it's nice being able to go visit and not worry about the kids missing any school. School goes where we go! :o)

The thing I like the most is that I choose the curriculum. I'm not sure where you're located, but here in British Columbia, Canada, we have a couple different options when it comes to homeschooling. We choose to register our child. Which means, we choose a school to register her through, and then we get a certain amount of government money each school year to buy materials. We choose every single part of her curriculum. Or, we could choose to enroll her. This route would provide more government funds, but we would still have to stick to a certain curriculum outline, and report back to a teacher each week.

I knew that homeschooling was the right thing for us because I feel that a parent knows whats best for their child. Including their education. There is SO MUCH useless material in the public school system it's ridiculous. Does a 2nd grader REALLY need to know how far Jupiter is from Earth? Really?

Juli - posted on 12/05/2008

We chose to homeschool because we thought we could teach our children better than the public school and we did not want our children to continue to be increasingly motivated by the contstant peer pressure ande morals of those around them there.



You have plenty of time to do research:)

Keep in mind that cheaper isn't always better, and that spending lots of money doesn't guarantee good results.



I did not choose curriculums for my children to use independently, without a teacher(me). I know some home schoolers do. I chose curriculum that offered the richest learning experience across the learning styles, and that used a logical progression throughout the year.

We used a number of different curriculums for different subjects, these are my favorites:



Saxon Math- includes auditory, visual and kinisthetic learning styles, has tests every 5th day, and daily work(limited to 30 problems) includes problems from throughout the book so that they never 'forget' how to do something, even at the end of the year.

We did this from grade 2 - Algebra 2. Easy to teach! I used to be math-phobic, but Saxon home school program was simple, and my kids developed awesome math skills including mental math skills.

Higher Math comes with real (Christian!)Math professor on CD-Rom.

saxonhomeschool.harcourtachieve.com/en-U...





Shurley English- includes auditory, visual and kinisthetic learning styles ("see it, hear it, say it, and do it"). Learn parts of speech using jingles & songs("A sentence, sentence sentence is complete, complete, complete when 5 simple rules it meets, meets, meets..."), my third grader was classifying sentences and parts of speech and loving it. Vocabulary and writing programs are integrated, not separate. Did this from grade 3 - grade 8. Easy to teach!!!

www.shurley.com/hs/index.jsp

Sarah - posted on 11/23/2008

I am really not impressed with the majority of Christian Schools. Bad academics, poor character training, and almost as much sex and drugs as Public schools. So I started to research homeschooling. Then I read Well Trained Mind, and became convinced that I wanted a Classical Education for my children.



And so the research started two years ago, and I've been pretty occupied with seeking out materials, ideologies, philosophies, and plain old good advice from different places, not to mention, reviewing tons of curriculum.



I know that homeschooling is the right thing for me and my children, because I can spend quality time training them in what I believe is the most important, teaching them about God and His Word. Secondarily, I can offer them a better education the almost all Christian schools I've ever been involved in.



I really like the concept that I can mix and match curriculum, to create the best program for my kids. And there is so much out there, as far as activities for homeschoolers, that the sky is the limit, literally, for exposure to whatever you want.



Just my 0.02 :)



sarah