Homeschool Chat

[cajunrose]

Ok, it’s official. I made the decision today to home school. I do have questions, concerns, and general ‘stuff’ that I need help with that I hope you seasoned people can help with.

My DD is going to be 5 (at Disney) on May 31st. I consider her very bright but I could have mommy goggles on. I think she could already be reading if she hadn’t been group taught for pre k 3 and 4 (public school). She already can ALMOST tell time on a non-digital clock. She has a lot of concepts down, just not the logistics of it all (time, measurement, reading, etc.) She knows all of her letters/numbers by sight but is just now starting to learn the beginning sounds and only on the ‘major’ letters (s, t, m, n, b, c, etc).

I have a degree in Early Childhood Education and Elementary Education but don’t teach b/c I didn’t like the politics in teaching (THE TEST, etc).

I wanted to give you a bit of background knowledge before I got to the questions and stuff.

I am a curriculum oriented person. I need structure as does my daughter…at least at first. I have chosen Sonlight and am going to order this: http://www.sonlight.com/newcomer-p-4-5.html

I am on the fence for math. So far, either Saxon or Math U See. I like Saxon because it looks all inclusive (weight, adding, patterns, general math facts). I like the manipulatives also but I’m a hands on, gadget person. I like Math U See because it looks like it REALLY works for truly understanding what the content is. I’m just concerned about what it covers…I’m not really clear on it. What am I going to have to fill in the gaps for?

Does Sonlight include phonics/beginning reading content? Is that what Explode the Code would be for (recommended to me by a close friend on the net)?
If I get Sonlight (the one I linked), whatever Math I choose, and ETC, what else do I need to be concerned with? Does that cover all subjects?
Is there a program out there that does the ‘morning routine’ stuff? Is that something I need to do on my own? I’m talking about calendar, weather, etc. We did “Everyday Counts” in the public school and I really loved it for teaching money, calendar, patterns, etc. I would love a program similar to that I think.

What about your space? Can I see pictures of your ‘learning area’? Storage, wall décor, desk, etc. I will have to use my all inclusive dining room, office (2 computers, sometimes 4), foyer, crap room..lol It is the first room that one see’s when they first walk into my house. I got an older style desk yesterday at a garage sale. I’m excited about that and so is Raelee. She wants to use her “table that is hooked to a chair” LOL

Tell me more about lapbooks please! I am an avid scrapbooker and this appeals to me. Do you just choose a subject, research it and make the book? It seems like it could be VERY time consuming if you did one on each subject. How would I go about doing these at Raelee’s age? Where do I get started with it?

WHEN do I start homeschooling? Raelee is finishing up her last month of school at the public school. We are taking a trip to Disney (last week of May, first week of June) then we have family in the week after that. I am extremely excited to start. Is starting in the summer a bad thing? Should I wait till Sept? I can’t imagine waiting…but if it’s for the best..I would do it.

When do I order my materials? Should I get them now or wait and get them closer to when we will start?

Ok I think that about does it for now. I’m sure I’ll have more (much more) later to ask you all!

Thanks SO much for your help!!!

Stephenie

 

[NHWX]

Cajunrose - I can't speak to a lot of your questions because I started homeschooling when our two were older.

As far as where we homeschool, it's kind of all over the place. The kids might work on a computer in our home office but with my husband working at home also, sometimes they'll move out into the kitchen or living room. A lot of work happens there. I often sit by side with my 12 year old when I teach a grammer lesson, for instance. My 14 year old frequently likes the entire kitchen table when he's working on a math problem - laptop, calculator, math book or books, and scrap paper. Of course, then it's easy to sit next to him when he's gotten to a point that he doesn't understand.

As far as start dates, you might want to check with your district or state DOE as far as the regulations go. You might have to file by a certain date or declare a start date. If there aren't any regulations, I'd say that you could start whenever. If you have to complete so many hours or days, then it's easier if you build in some slack time. In retrospect, I think homeschooling starting with first grade would have been so much fun. Too bad I didn't know that then! Oh, and I could have saved buckets of money instead of sending them to private school.

NHWX

 

[sha_lyn]

Is there a program out there that does the ‘morning routine’ stuff? Is that something I need to do on my own? I’m talking about calendar, weather, etc. We did “Everyday Counts” in the public school and I really loved it for teaching money, calendar, patterns, etc. I would love a program similar to that I think.

The Saxons grade math workbook covered days/dates/logged weather etc.
DD just did not get explode the code, and I often had to look up the answer to get what they were going for. I found the pictures too abstract to understand what the picture was. Usually I could follow the word pattern and figure out what word it was. The best example it a picture of what looks like a mountain peak surrounded by snow and 2 small pine trees off to the side. I believe it was "ish"words that DD had to write.
I kept looking at the picture and talking to her, just what could this picture be of. I looked up the answer and it was fish. If you turned the page just right(not quite upside down) you could see that the snow was water, the 2 peaks were actually the top and bottom 1/2s of the head (the valley between was the mouth) and the trees off to the side was a tail.

I thought it was just me, but I had several people look at the pictures and most were puzzled on how the picture portrayed the answer given.

 

[bear74]

I am so overwhelmed by the different curriculum choices. I can't decide
We will be doing Kindergarten

 

[meandtheguys2]

Hey all, just checking in! Thanks for the new thread, Julie!

 

[skoi]

We're still trying to decide which curriculum for our high schooler. Dh will be deployed and it'll be the four kids and I so I'm looking for something that can mostly be done by her alone. We currently use Sonlight, but dd isn't interested in any of the high school classes, and hasn't been pleased with core 8. She also really dislikes the science texts she's used for the last two years.

Ds 9 still needs a lot of guidance with his work. He's really struggling with spelling (but only in the context of writing, can spell well when he does tests) and mechanics. We're sticking with Sonlight for him until high school.

We'll be in Disney 9/24-9/27, then we're meeting the grandparents for a cruise. It'll be our first trip ever without dh.

Julie

 

[Temair]

I used Math U see a while back and really liked it. My husband likes the fact that using math u see pricipals you can do advanced math using the manipulatives. Math u see does cover measurments, and time. If you look on thier website you can see thier scope of what is covered. Also you can post on thier forums specific questions about the curiculum. I've heard that some people don't like how its laid out as Division is not introduced till grade 4(after mastering multiplication), and some states test on division in grade 3.

I would have probably kept with the Math U see, but I went for a vitrual school and they provide K12. If I go back to officially homeschooling I will probably use math u see again.

 

[Disney Mommy 3]

cajun rose- sounds like you would like the Saxon, for the manipulatives they have a great kit, they also do the morning calendar.What a great decision-I have looked into Sonlight as well for my just turned 5 year old. As for ordering, do it now because after june rolls around, they get pretty busy.

Bear74-there are so many good curriculums out there. If you are wanting a kit, check out ABeka, Sonlight, Bob Jones, or Five in a Row. All these are great for starting. Blessings on your new journey!!

For all you new hsers out here, I suggest you get Cathy Duffys Top 100 Picks for Homeschool Curr. I use it every year! She takes the overwhelming amount of choices out there and narrows it down. It is great for me because I tend to forget what all I have read about and it gives you the websites and brief descriptions of each. A must have for anyone who isn't 100% sure about what's out there.

 

[mommyof2princesses]

cajunrose:
If you go with Saxon, skip Saxon K. It was too easy. go right to Saxon 1. That is what many homeschooling magazines suggest too. Saxon 1 is very easy still, but it seems more geared to the kindergarten age.

We went with Sing, spell, read write for our dd. She started last August and is half way through. I like the songs, the order of the plans and dd loves the games. It has some writing but in the beginning we skipped some of it. By lesson 16 it says your child has learned all the sounds needed to read. DD can read just about anything. She is only 4 1/2 and she is small for her age, so when we are out and she reads something, they think she is a tiny genius!

We will be using Sonlight for older dd who will be 9th grade next year. We are mixing and matching though. I am using it for ss and some reading, but we are doing Saxon math and Marine Biology. The great thing about Sonlight is you can really set it up for your own needs.

Good luck!

 

[therealleigh]

Hi, I am a new homeschooling mom. Took my dds' out of public school the first of March. I am still looking into all the different curriculums out there. Looking for 5th and 7th grade. We have just been deschooling for now. After our trip to Disney in May, I hope to have decided on a curriculum.

 

[bear74]

cajun rose- sounds like you would like the Saxon, for the manipulatives they have a great kit, they also do the morning calendar.What a great decision-I have looked into Sonlight as well for my just turned 5 year old. As for ordering, do it now because after june rolls around, they get pretty busy.

Bear74-there are so many good curriculums out there. If you are wanting a kit, check out ABeka, Sonlight, Bob Jones, or Five in a Row. All these are great for starting. Blessings on your new journey!!

For all you new hsers out here, I suggest you get Cathy Duffys Top 100 Picks for Homeschool Curr. I use it every year! She takes the overwhelming amount of choices out there and narrows it down. It is great for me because I tend to forget what all I have read about and it gives you the websites and brief descriptions of each. A must have for anyone who isn't 100% sure about what's out there.

Thanks,

We are going to be at WDW Sept. 14-Sept. 22

 

[wvdislover]

We're still trying to decide which curriculum for our high schooler. Dh will be deployed and it'll be the four kids and I so I'm looking for something that can mostly be done by her alone. We currently use Sonlight, but dd isn't interested in any of the high school classes, and hasn't been pleased with core 8. She also really dislikes the science texts she's used for the last two years.

Ds 9 still needs a lot of guidance with his work. He's really struggling with spelling (but only in the context of writing, can spell well when he does tests) and mechanics. We're sticking with Sonlight for him until high school.

We'll be in Disney 9/24-9/27, then we're meeting the grandparents for a cruise. It'll be our first trip ever without dh.

Julie

Sounds like we're taking the same vacations! We're doing a land/sea at Beach Club, then cruising for 4 nights on the Wonder. Where are you staying?

 

[wvdislover]

Hi, I am a new homeschooling mom. Took my dds' out of public school the first of March. I am still looking into all the different curriculums out there. Looking for 5th and 7th grade. We have just been deschooling for now. After our trip to Disney in May, I hope to have decided on a curriculum.

I love this term you used--deschooling. We've been doing exactly the same thing with our DD10. We pulled her out of school a week before Easter, and going strong (with a few bumps here and there--still working the kinks out )

 

[Momvic5]

I hope it is ok to ask this question here. I have been considering Homeschooling my DD for 2 years now. We have tried several different schools and I feel they have all fallen way short of my expectations. (One even lost my DD ) I don't want to make an "emotional" choice-I want to make the best choice for my child.

SO my question is this: Why did YOU choose to Homeschool?

I choose to homeschool because I believe it is what God wants me to do right now. I made the decision three years ago, and I couldn't really explain my reasoning other than I just felt like it is what I needed to do. Two years ago right after we started our first year, my mom was diagnoised with breast cancer. I now know why I needed to do it. The kids and I have been able to go and stay with her for weeks at a time. We just pack our school books and do what we need to do.

We are in the same spot. I am thinking of changing to Teaching Textbooks. You can go online and look at examples of their DVD lessons. Another great math curriculum is Chalk Dust but it is VERY expensive. They too have a website with examples of their DVD lessons. We are going to a home schoolers convention in May. So I may change my mind but I feel pretty strongly that we will be going with Teaching Textbooks. Hope this helps.

Several others have mentioned Teaching Textbooks. I am going to check it out. I have never even heard of it.

What subjects do you use A Beka and Bob Jones for? I am using all A Beka right now and as you mentioned.... I am thinking about putting my orders in for new books/curriculum by June. I don't know if I should stay with all A Beka or not. This is our first year, and I don't know anything about other curriculums.

I use Bob Jones for English, and I love it. I really like the way it is set up. It has 16 chapters with 8 chapters being grammar, and the other 8 chapters being a type of writing assignment. The child will spend about two weeks on grammar lessons, and then they will begin a writing assignment. For example, my DS12 is finishing a historical fiction paper while my DD8 is finishing a biography. Next they will both begin diagramming sentences. While my son is diagramming more complex sentences, my daughter is just learning the process.

What about your space? Can I see pictures of your ‘learning area’? Storage, wall décor, desk, etc. I will have to use my all inclusive dining room, office (2 computers, sometimes 4), foyer, crap room..lol It is the first room that one see’s when they first walk into my house. I got an older style desk yesterday at a garage sale. I’m excited about that and so is Raelee. She wants to use her “table that is hooked to a chair” LOL


WHEN do I start homeschooling?

When do I order my materials? Should I get them now or wait and get them closer to when we will start?


Stephenie

When I started homeschooling I felt like my children needed an area where they knew school was going to take place. I moved my two DSs together into one room and made the other room our "school room." I like having a "school room." It helps me stay organized, and the kids work better. Every once and awhile, my oldest DS will go to the kitchen table to work if he is being distracted by the rest of us, but for the most part, we work in our "school room." This may change as they get older and become more independent. Right now, I bounce back and forth between the three so the school room keeps us together.

I would start ordering your material now. It will give you the opportunity to handle your material and prepare.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts!

 

[Laura.bora]

I hope it is ok to ask this question here. I have been considering Homeschooling my DD for 2 years now. We have tried several different schools and I feel they have all fallen way short of my expectations. (One even lost my DD ) I don't want to make an "emotional" choice-I want to make the best choice for my child.

SO my question is this: Why did YOU choose to Homeschool?

Ok, 1st off, THEY LOST YOUR DAUGHTER??!!!???

Second, I decided to homeschool when I was in high school before I had any kids. My cousin homeschooled her kids, and they were the most polite well mannered kids I had ever met. That intrigued me, but I wasn't sold yet. And then one day I took them to the zoo, and we're looking at the bald eagle exhibit and one of the girls is going on and on about how the bald eagle mates for life, the size of the nest, the wing span etc. I'm looking for the thing she's reading off of, can't find it and ask her - "Where are you reading this from?" Turns out she wasn't, they had just finished a study of zoology. And then we were having a cousin/neighborhood kids arts and craft party, and we had the kids making bead pictures. My MIL is going around asking the kids what they are making, we get the normal kid responses - a rainbow, a puppy. Then we get to 3 year old Nora and what is she making? An abstract. What 3 year old knows about abstract art????? So that was why I decided to homeschool. And I'm ever so glad I did!

 

[bebelle]

What about your space? Can I see pictures of your ‘learning area’? Storage, wall décor, desk, etc. I will have to use my all inclusive dining room, office (2 computers, sometimes 4), foyer, crap room..lol It is the first room that one see’s when they first walk into my house. I got an older style desk yesterday at a garage sale. I’m excited about that and so is Raelee. She wants to use her “table that is hooked to a chair” LOL

We started out with a school room but we always seemed to migrate to the dining room. We have an open floor plan so it makes it easier for me to get some other things done while schooling, Now I have "surrendered" to using the dining room. I have a basket with my teaching books and a basket with his school books. I have a basket with misc--hole punch, white out, pens, pencils, stapler, tape, ruler, calculator, paperclips, ect...I also have a plastic hanging file box with master copies of portfolio pages, tests/quizes and other paperwork. It is easy to pick up the baskets and store them in the hall closet. I also have a laptop and printer that I store in the bottom of my china cabinet.

 

[bebelle]

WHEN do I start homeschooling? Raelee is finishing up her last month of school at the public school. We are taking a trip to Disney (last week of May, first week of June) then we have family in the week after that. I am extremely excited to start. Is starting in the summer a bad thing? Should I wait till Sept? I can’t imagine waiting…but if it’s for the best..I would do it.

When do I order my materials? Should I get them now or wait and get them closer to when we will start?

We start the beginning of August with just math (his least favorite subject). Then we start full-time the Tuesday after Labor Day. For the remainder of the year he has full days Monday through Thurday and a lighter day (no math) on Friday. The fact that he only has math four days a week is a great motivator for him. I have a friend whose son does not like english. She uses the same early start with english and it has made a huge deal in her son's attitude.

I don't order anything until I attend the May homeschool conference in our state. This is the first year that we will be taking our son. He wll be starting 9th grade and is excited to have more input in his curriculum.

 

[livndisney]

Thank you to the few that answered my question. Can anyone suggest other boards where I might learn more about home schooling my DD?

Thank you,

 

[sha_lyn]

MDC is the one board I keep going back to
http://www.mothering.com/discussions/index.php
seems they are having server problems again even with the big move/upgrade over the weekend, so I can't give a direct like to the sub-forum.
It is Learning At Home and Beyond.
Be certain to check out the pinned threads at the top of the page

As for why did we start homeschooling. It was a long process. We had problems and weren't really happy with PS once we move at the beginning 3rd (this was for DS DD was a newborn at the time). 3-6 it was one crazy thing after another (including major problems with the bus driver that the school constantly ignored). By the end of 5 I was looking into other options. The first week of 6 DS came home crying over the bully of a bus driver again. By the middle of 6th I realized how far behind the PS was. I started researching and found that that previous 6th grades from the school had a horrible time in middle school. The average was over 70% requiring remedial or special ed in middle and/or high school. Here I thought DS was doing great because he was in the highest math class and 2nd highest reading class in 6th. Turns out there were more than a grade behind in both subjects. That was the final straw. We really wanted to send the kids to private school (DD would be attending preK during DS 7th grade yr) but 1)we couldn't afford it 2)DS was too far behind and really should have repeated 6th even though he had a B+ average.
The original decision was the work intensely with DS for 2 years then put him back in PS. We enrolled DD in a small 3 day a week 1/2 preschool.
The decision to HS DD actually came about after talking to her preK teacher. DD was the youngest and smallest in her class. The teacher said that DD was not physically or emotionally ready for full day K, but would be bored repeating preK. She really was the one to encourage me to home-school DD also. the end of that first yr we still weren't fully on board with Homeschooling as a way of life. We had a hard time finding a HS group that we fit with (all were extremely religious at the time). DS was dong really well that first year, but we still had to goal of putting him in high school for 9th.
However by the end of the 2nd yr we found our HS community and the kids were thriving. DS finished up high school a few months ago and is working full time while trying to decide what he wants to do for the rest of his life. I wish he would go ahead and enroll in college and take the core classes while making up his mind, but he want some time off from school. I hope that by fall he will at least enroll in a few classes. He almost joined the coast guard with a friend but changed his mind.
Right now I can't imagine putting DD in public school although Montessori might be an option if a non-religious one ever opens near us that is affordable and goes beyond 3rd grade.

 

[Goddessrobin]

Another homeschool Mom checking in! I have been homeschooling since my oldest son was in 3rd grade. He is now finishing up 9th! My younger son is in 1st. He has never been "in the system", as we call it.

I had been considering homeschooling from the very beginning, because I had always wanted to be homeschooled as a child. I went ahead and put my older son in kindergarten in our local public school and everything was fine at first.

I made the decision to homeschool the day I brought my younger son home from the hospital. So, yeah, I guess you could say that it was an emotional decision! But, it was the best decision that I have ever made for my family. My husband was not homeschooled, but his Step Mother homeschooled his younger brothers. If he had not had some experience, I don't think that I would have had the courage to take that leap. He encouraged me and I am so thankful for that. We are a very close and strong family. Our Boys are thoughtful and respectful of others and those are traits that are rare in the children coming out of public school in my area. We are able to instill our values in our children. That alone makes up for any crazy days we may have here and there.

Sorry about the long ramble. I am really happy about this thread. I looked at the other one, but the number of posts was overwhelming. I seem to be getting in on this one fairly early. Yay, me!