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I've never really been interested in home schooling and I'm not convinced it's best for children socially. However my son has a medical issue that may lead me to home schooling him as an option and I would utilize some extracurricular activities for socialization to compensate for that so hopefully it will work out. I really don't like the idea of being solely responsible for his education with out independant support. I want to find a home based curriculum that is supported by a teacher for instruction support and grading. Does anyone have any good tips about which curriculums out there would be good for this? He will be in 6th grade next year, so it would have to be appropriate for middle schoolers. Thanks in advance.
hey Irish, I homeschooled one of mine due to a medical issue he had ,then began homeschooling my daughter when she was in 5th grade. I wasn't worried about their socialization. They don't have much time to socialize in school anyway and they still got to see their neighborhood friends after school hours. Both went on to college; though my daughter was more "into" school than my son. My daughter graduated magna cume laude then went back to grad school and is now a doctor; having maintained a 4.0 throughout grad school.
During their homeschooling years I hired a tutor at times for subjects such as math and advanced math. Otherwise I found a private school that supplied me with curriculum and placed the kids under the umbrella of their school. We did that for a number of years but as they got older we allowed them to select the subjects they wished to study and we purchased text and teachers manuals from a bookstore.
My homeschooling them was/is the best decision I have made as a parent to date. I highly encourage others to do so if at all possible. A lot of cities have homeschooling organizations(ours did) PM me if you need further help.
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Originally Posted by irishmom
I've never really been interested in home schooling and I'm not convinced it's best for children socially. However my son has a medical issue that may lead me to home schooling him as an option and I would utilize some extracurricular activities for socialization to compensate for that so hopefully it will work out. I really don't like the idea of being solely responsible for his education with out independant support. I want to find a home based curriculum that is supported by a teacher for instruction support and grading. Does anyone have any good tips about which curriculums out there would be good for this? He will be in 6th grade next year, so it would have to be appropriate for middle schoolers. Thanks in advance.
Good luck if you do. I recently began homeschooling my ten year old who is severely autistic. I felt that the school district was not respecting our rights as her family and rather than add more stress to our already stressed out lives we just decided to home school.
I do not have the addy but you can search for the Home School Legal Defense Association. They are a virtual wealth of information about the homeschooling laws in all states. To join it is $115 for the year. They also have info about curriculums ect.
Do not worry so much about the socialization issue.Many communities have home schooling groups that you can be active in so your child will have probobly more opportunities to socialize than he has in school now. I just do not think that schools really give the kids very much socialization. the only real socializing I ever got to do in school was the fifteen minutes or so I actually got to sit down for lunch.Same for my own kids.
I've never really been interested in home schooling and I'm not convinced it's best for children socially. However my son has a medical issue that may lead me to home schooling him as an option and I would utilize some extracurricular activities for socialization to compensate for that so hopefully it will work out. I really don't like the idea of being solely responsible for his education with out independant support. I want to find a home based curriculum that is supported by a teacher for instruction support and grading. Does anyone have any good tips about which curriculums out there would be good for this? He will be in 6th grade next year, so it would have to be appropriate for middle schoolers. Thanks in advance.
If medical reasons are keeping your son from attending school, your school district might send teachers to your house to provide his instruction. In our state, Pennsylvania, the school district is required by law to provide instruction to homebound students. You should look into the education laws for your state and see if you have the same rights.
There are several options that are available to you. First, make sure that you are very informed about what your state laws allow and/ or require. Then, you can better choose the best curriculum for your family.
Options you can investigate (based on your wish for outside teaching reinforcement): umbrella schools (Google it for more info), charter or virtual schools (sometimes run by local school districts) and accredited distance schools. I have heard good things about Texas Tech University Independent School District and Alpha Omega Academy, but we have never used them. Some of these programs tend to be very expensive, but for some families, they are the best options.
Things you should look into: local support groups, homeschool bookfairs and conferences (often put on by local and state groups), and online homeschool forums and support groups.
As a professional teacher, I, too, held negative preconceived notions before starting homeschooling. We did lots of research and attended local and state conferences. I was pleasantly surprised at how wrong the sterotypes that I had once believed were. I can assure you that if homeschooling is done properly, socialization is not a problem. I hope homeschooling is as wonderful for your family as it has been for our family! Best wishes!
If medical reasons are keeping your son from attending school, your school district might send teachers to your house to provide his instruction. In our state, Pennsylvania, the school district is required by law to provide instruction to homebound students. You should look into the education laws for your state and see if you have the same rights.
It's not that type of situation, he is at increased risk of infection and being exposed to all the kids he is on antibiotics all year, so we are hoping the situation will improve by reducing his exposure. We have done everything else we can at this point so this is our last hope.
These responses are very encouraging. I know there are many new options out there and am hoping it turns out to be a good experience for him and me...with his personality and mine combined (we are way too alike!) it could go either way...LOL
Thanks for the help. I will post once I settle on a curriculum. I will also ask more questions when I get them. Thanks so much!
Irishmom....I know you from the Religion forum and know that you're catholic. There are alot of catholic homeschool curriculai out there (is that the pluarl of curriculum....not sure...I wasn't homeschooled and it's growing all the time. Seton Home School Study is one that I've heard is fairly good.
I thought about homeschooling at one time, but suspect there would be some friction (a nice way of saying "bloodshed"... amongst the personalities in our home.
Btw, how many kids do you have? Just wondering since you've mentioned a K and a high-schooler...I suspected there might be some rugrats in between.
I have a 5, 8, and 11 yo.
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