We are considering home schooling our 8th grade son. We found out the reason he has very little homework is because they don’t have enough books for each child. That coupled with the fact that teachers are oblivious to bullying going on right in their own classroom leads us to believe he’s better off at home.
Where do we start? Are there any homeschool websites that would be helpful? What books do we need? How do we know he’s at the level he should be?
I had a boss who home-schooled both his kids, but he was planning to “institutionalize” his son for high school, as the social aspects of school become more important at that time. There are websites and local groups (so he says) that will help you. Other home-schooling parents get together and do field trips and the like. And some kids will go to school for certain things (his kid was into football) and stay home for others. He was very pleased with the whole thing. Good luck!
Homeschooler here.
Google is your friend :). There’s a lot of stuff out there on how to get started and all the cool things to buy.
Probably joining a couple of mailinglists and asking questions there would be a good starting point. My email’s in my profile and if you email me, I can point you in the direction of at least one list where there are people who are homeschooling high school kids.
We’re very socially isolated where we are because the vast majority of people around here who choose to homeschool are fundamentalist in your face christians. But given a choice between a kid who was bullied and who was learning nothing (mine was going freaking backwards!) and an isolated life at home, my son’s preference is for home. But he’s not and never has been very gregarious.
I’d like to add some personal experience to the pot. I was friends with a few homeschooled kids in high school. They enjoyed it and I’d say educationally, they’re even with other kids (some were smarter, some less so). However, they all lacked social skills in my opinion. They DID go to events together - in fact, where I’m from there’s an official group for homeschooled kids. However, they didn’t really know how to deal with contraversial situations.
Yes, they’re far less likely to be bullied, but what happens when they get into the real world and learn that some people are just mean (or they were caught on a bad day). My homeschooled friends each went to conservative christian colleges where their life was much like it had been at home: sheltered.
After college was much different. Only one has graduated thus far, and he’s still living at home (25 years old) without a job nor a drivers license. My advice to you (again, only my opinion) is to leave your kids in normal schools. Perhaps, if your family/job are flexible and your kids are a high priority for you, you could move to a really good school district if you’re not in one already. I’m not saying you’re bad parents in any way if you don’t, I just know I’ll always appreciate that my parents made that sacrifice for me.
Perhaps you could teach them things you feel they should know in their off time. Even though both my parents worked and my brother and I each played sports year round and were involved in numerous activities from math/computer team to yearbook, I learned a lot from my parents in the time we spent together.
I in no way expect you to take my advice. I just wanted to give you something to think about. Good luck in whatever you choose!
Mandielise, it’s probably a very, very good idea for you to assume that every parent who considers homeschooling has already thought through the issues you raise.
Another framework to consider with kids who have been homeschooled and have problems at school is that the school is the problem, not the homeschooled kid. If you’ve always been treated with respect and haven’t been bullied or been through the mill that is some schools, that doesn’t mean you’ve got the problem.
I’m very, very glad to read that you don’t consider us ‘bad parents’ because there are no grounds to do so. I also can easily supply you with long lists of kids who were homeschooled and who are at college or who are otherwise successful in life. I daresay you are aware that not all outschooled kids necessarily go to college or are successful. It’s just that those of us who homeschool tend to be held to a higher standard than those parents who choose to outschool.
I am in my second year of homeschooling my 15-yr-old and 11-yr-old daughters. My teen was miserable at school, picked on daily, etc. My adolescent I feel may be truly gifted, and we didn’t think public school was ever going to bring out the best in her. Also, both kids were on Adderall for ADD. With homeschooling, we deal with the ADD through other means, and neither are now taking anything. Joining the YMCA can help a lot, as well as extracurricular activities like dance, karate, 4-H, etc. We don’t belong to a local group, because our closest group requires that we be Christians to join!! We are not Christian, we are Baha’i. We share many of the same values, etc. but that’s not good enough for them.
Finding curriculum can be a challenge, because we haven’t found any for our high-schooler that doesn’t teach creationist science. The best we can do is keep one step ahead of her science workbook and make any necessary adjustments.
One thing we really like is that they can work on their own level in each class. For instance, our oldest girl, in public school, always lagged in math, kept up in science and history, and got bored in language arts. Now, she does 8th grade math, 9th grade science and history and 11th grade language arts. We are going to put her in some community college classes next year.
My email is in my profile. If you’d like to email me, feel free. Happy to talk to you more about this.
ivylass, another homeschooler here. I would also encourage you to explore the net for resources. If there’s a homeschool organization in your area, you’ll be much further ahead by contacting them. They may be able to cut to the chase and answer your questions before you can get them out. Some things to look for:
Curriculum recommendations, pros and cons
Social opportunities
Local resources for homeschoolers
Legal requirements for your state
Expectations for school accommodation
Each state has different homeschooling requirements, some more restrictive than others. Be sure you can meet all state requirements before you start - the local groups can help with that. Ask about opportunities for social interaction, most likely with other homeschoolers. Don’t be afraid to check in with your local school district for information on the services they provide. Typically homeschoolers can take elective courses, such as music, art, P.E., etc, with their age group, and homeschoolers can participate in after school activities such as sports and social events. If your kids have already spent a portion of their school years in public education, this may be the best way of maintaining social contact with friends and peers. Don’t be surprised, however, if you have to be a little persistent with school officials. The local homeschoolers will know what your state provides. Also, local communities that provide educational/athletic programs may offer special courses for homeschooled kids. At least, they do here in Washington. In short, do your research. The more you do beforehand, the better the experience. And don’t worry, you’ll definitely learn as you go!
Primaflora: I’m glad you didn’t take offense to what I said. I AM still a college student without kids who has much to learn about the world. I just wanted to explain my experience. I’ve never known a parent to homeschool their children for any reason that wasn’t out of love, so I would never question your intentions.
Norinew: I mentioned before that I knew numerous homeschooled kids? I just counted 11 off the top of my head (two were brothers), and each was fundamentalist Christian. It’s probably groups like that that make it hard for you to find non-dogmatic textbooks for your kids. Good luck.
My cousin homeschools her 4 kids. The public schools wanted to send each of her kids to a different school. She decided that she did not have four childen so that they had to face the world alone. I don’t think she was thrilled with the long bus rides it would mean for them as well. I did not live as far from town as she does and I had over a 90 minute bus ride each way. She hires tutors when appropriate. Her kids seem well adjusted, bright, but don’t give you the brainiac impression that is the popular image of homeschooled kids. I imagine P.E. wasn’t much of a problem out on the farm.
I am considering home schooling. I am not eager to send my child to dangerous place that does not teach well.
I currently homeschool our 10 year old son, and our 16 year old daughter will begin homeschool in a few weeks.
I got absolutely no support from the school system, they seem to want to label the kids and never think outside the box. The 10 year old was doing okay in public school, but he absolutely shines in homeschool. He has developed a maturity that I had not expected.
As to socialization, there is no problem there at all. We have hooked up with other HS groups for field trips, he has friends from the public schools, neighborhood kids and friends from scouts and karate. I do not expect a socialization problem with the 16 year old either.
As to information on HS, check Google. Do not feel pushed into joining any group. There are many Christian based groups, which was not my cup of tea, but keep looking. There are non-secular groups out there. I joined many e-mail support groups mainly to get feedback on curriculum and to join in on field trips where a minimum of people was needed in order to participate.
Try
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/8259/how.html for a good
article on how to begin, and
Thank you for this thread.
My son finds school “hard and boring”, and I think if I were to home school him, it could be much better, what with field trips, breaks, etc.
Thanks for the link.
During my five years as a prof at an evangelical Christian college, I had a number of students who’d been homeschooled up to college. On balance, they were just as socially well-adjusted as the others, and as academically well-prepared.
I don’t see how homeschooling kids to avoid abuse from bullies is a problem. Dealing with jerks may be a necessary life skill; dealing with people who want to physically beat you up isn’t, if you’re headed for a white-collar, middle-class life. In college, people rarely use their fists to settle a conflict.
RTFirefly, a very good point you make about bullies. Also, once adulthood is reached, we usually have the resources to remove ourselves from the situation (not possible on the school playground), not to mention that if you’re a grown up, you can report such things to the police, and they will take you seriously. My tten was repeatedly threatened at school, and was told that nothing could be done until she was physically attacked!!
Thanks. You’ve given me a good start.
Those who homeschool, what is your schedule? Where do you find your books? Is there a homeschool message board you like to post at for questions and support?
My kids do schoolwork from 9AM til noon: math, science, history, geography, break for lunch noon to 1PM, then do literature and electives (art, music, PE) til 3PM BTW, literature encompasses spelling and writing as well as just reading.
Most larger cities have at least on store that sells homeschooling curriculum.
We usually start at 9 am - math, science, language arts and history, ending our day at 2pm. We don’t break for lunch until we are through for the day.
We alternate days - Monday would be math and science, Tuesday - Language Arts (reading, compostition, grammar, writing practice, spelling and keyboarding) and History (currently U.S. history). Extracurriculars on on Mondays, Wednesday and Sunday evenings.
We get more in depth this way (YMMV), and can also research subjects pertaining to that days studies. On Science days, this schedule allows us to play with the microscope to our hearts content. On History days (today we looked at pictures of the USS Monitor) this allows us to play “what if”. And, of course, we go on field trips about once a month.
The great thing about HS is that you can design your day in whatever way works best for you and your child. Some HS start at 7:30, some at noon.
Remember that Google is your friend - you can find lots of HS resources, also check Ebay for used textbooks or computer curriculum.
Yahoo has quite a few HS message boards.
We’re pretty unschooly here. One of the reasons I homeschool is to decelerate my kid. If we did 4 - 5 hours a day, he would get through 2 - 3 grade levels a year.
Doing an hour and half a day, we do spelling, a couple of pages of maths sheets, he reads a book set by me, he reads science and maths books and writes in his diary. He also does a couple of science worksheets a day.
The rest of the time he reads what he wants, does some cooking, science experiments, swims and talks and talks and talks.
I also found this site of immense help:
www.homeschoolteenscollege.net/default.htm
because I was looking for info on what to do about that “diploma”
I just began homeschooling with my 9th grader. He is actually enrolled in a private school in Illinios, the American School. He gets his courses, books, etc. through the mail. This works for him and me because he is motivated enough to do the work himself. That’s an important plus for us.
So far, he is a much nicer person to be around. He has less stress and nasty attitude. Other reasons I had: the high school here is brand new and not so very rigorous. He was frustrated with the pace of learning (or lack thereof). Homeschool was actually his idea.
What he does all day: He spends maybe and hour and a half on his work. Then he skateboards, reads science articles, works on models, reads the paper, does chores and … talks and talks and talks lol
Here is a link for the American School:www.americanschoolofcorr.com 
I home school my 11-year-old and 8-year old daughters and we love it. I would never put them back in institutionalized school. The best advice I can offer you is NOT to buy any curriculum. Take some time to de-school your son–let him take a mental vacation and get “school” out of his system. Things will go much more smoothly when you do start up. Take time to explore different philosophies, different teaching methods, and even curriculums. The worst thing you can do is buy “school in a box” and then find out your sone hates the program you’ve just spent hundreds of dollars buying.
There are so many rescources on the internet, in the library, etc that I just don’t see the need for a packaged curriculum. You might find you like one brand of math, another of English, etc.
Read some books about homeschooling and about different methods. I would recommend starting out with The Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Lewellyn, and anything by John Holt. If you are interested in Classical Education this is a great site. You can eliminate any of the religious aspects if you so desire. If you are interested in Charlotte Mason’s methods, Ambleside Online is a first rate curriculum, and they have a link to the House of Education for older students. My daughters are quite fond of the Singapore math and science books. My oldest is using Videotext Algebra since math isn’t my strongest area.
I notice you are in Florida. Get very familar with your state’s home schooling laws. Here are some Florida homeschooling resources. The National Home Educators Network is another great place to start.