Is Anyone Homeschooling as a Safety Reason? Not THE reason...A reason

[hsmamato2]

I particularly at the notion that ANYONE on this thread was involved in a "we all seemed to agree" moment with NEVERENOUGHWDW.

I was gonna say the same thing....

 

[CleveRocks]

I apologize Eric. I did not intend to come off as angry. I was not even addressing your comment so much as referencing that as homeschoolers we are very often subjected to judging from others who assume we are making the wrong choice and yet people would be very offended if we were to turn the tables. Again, I apologize. Tone is hard to read but my writing may very well have been more heated than necessary. I try very hard to be open and polite and I wouldn't want to create any hard feelings.

Hakuna matata

 

[Elaine R]

We did choose to HS for safety reasons, but not to protect our children's physical safety. We are very concerned for our children's social and emotional safety: for example, their ability to deal appropriately with others and stand strong in the face of the many temptations that life throws at them. The school system is intended to teach children acedemics, and many, many, many schools do that very well. But all parents would agree that there is much more to raising children that just their acedemic skills. I feel that my children benefit from the added emphasis that we can put on social/emotional and spritual development. If my children went away to school it would be very challenging to give enough time to all of the areas of their development. All children have different needs and many develop beautifully in a public/private school setting. We feel that for our children this is the most loving way to fulfill all of theirneeds. We see it as helping them to fly without crashing into a tree, rather than clipping their wings.

I realize for many of you I am preaching to the choir, and I hope that for those of you who do not agree with HSing you see that you can see the loving rather than selfish perspective that we are coming from.

 

[mom2-four]

First off, I want to say kuddos to all of your moms and dads who homeschool your children. That is very honorable thing to do. I've considered it, but I really don't think I'm cut out to do it. I'll be very honest, I love to time I have to myself every afternoon when the house is quiet and I don't think I could givet that up.

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

Regarding safety..
When your children do leave home, and enter the world, how are you going to know whether can handle themselves, if they haven't had any real-life instances, with dangerous experiences? (I know most of your kids do activites with other kids that are safe)

 

[sha_lyn]

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

Diplomas..... if HS'ed through a state charter school, then a diploma is issued by the school system. Others, like my DS go through an accredited private correspondence school (we do not have cyber charters in GA). Some chose to take the GED. There might be other options that I'm not aware of.

Colleges... it depends on the college. Some accept HS'ers based solely on their ACT or SAT scores. Others have additional requirements such as SAT II,a portfolio etc.

 

[MommaPooh]

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

In Alabama a diploma is not issued by the state. A diploma is issued by the schoolling body. If you as the parent are the schoolling body, you issue the diploma. For the most part, colleges are very accepting of homeschool students, and many seek out the homeschooled. Most colleges accept based on ACT or SAT scores anyway. DD is 13 and is already attending a major university. She is only taking one class a semester right now, and so far so good. She was accepted based on her ACT scores, at age 11 she scored a 25. She had to have a written recommendation and take an entrance exam, just like any other student.

Regarding safety..
When your children do leave home, and enter the world, how are you going to know whether can handle themselves, if they haven't had any real-life instances, with dangerous experiences? (I know most of your kids do activites with other kids that are safe)

Personally, both of my kids get more real life experiences now that they are homeschooled versus when they sat in a traditional school. I do not believe real life experiences come from sitting in a desk for eight hours a day five days a week. My kids are living in the real world and experiencing more(on average) than their friends who are in traditional school. Both kids are active in the community with volunteer activites, sports, church, co-op classes etc... My kids go to the library, movies, mall, gym, pool and even WDW parks without DH and I. Just because they are homeschooled does not mean they are sheltered or under our thumb 24/7.

The dangerous experiences they would have come in contact with by being in the school systems here are: fellow students with semi-automatic weapons(happened last week less then five miles from my house), police officers in the school having sexual contact with 13 year olds (happened last week as well at another school in my city), elementary aged students with knives (happened a couple of months ago here also)....I have never had any of these experiences in real life, and would hope my kids and I never do. Even if, God forbid, we ever are exposed to such violence I doubt the fact they were homeschooled instead of being in a traditional school would really matter or make a difference in how they would react. Some of my DD friends were ones who were at the school with the semi-automatic weapon. From talking to their parents, I did not get the impression they looked at this experience as an introduction to the real world. They were just thankful no one was hurt.

How do any of us know our kids are ready to handle themselves in the real world? We don't. We raise them to the best of our ability, teaching them to be responsible, independent and smart (educational wise, common sense, and some street smarts). At some point we all have to cut the apron strings, hope for the best, and be there for them when they need us.

This is JMHO and personal experiences. We are all different and have different experiences, so I speak for no one other than myself and my family.

 

[lori1043]

I homeschool because I believe that is what I was "called" to do. I still work PRN and I hope I am doing a good job at teaching my children. It is NOT an easy decision or choice. It took us a year to make that decision to homeschool-I had to have DH on board for support. We test the kids yearly(Stanford) through our homeschool association(it makes us feel that we can really "see" how they are doing). We know their weaknesses and try to focus on those. Next year, I feel we will add Co-op to the mix. We have about 100 kids in our weekly PE, many field trips with the group and my DD7 had a wonderful, personalized, God centered kindergarten grad last year-complete with pink cap and gown!!
Safety is a perk. Not only safety from physical harm, but safety from emotional and spiritual harm. My kids are out and with others at least 4 times a week-and if not with me, they are with other people that I trust and have common beliefs with-that makes me feel a little better. I think ALL parents just need to keep communication lines open-no matter the school situation.

I love the freedom we have with homeschooling!

 

[meandtheguys2]

First off, I want to say kuddos to all of your moms and dads who homeschool your children. That is very honorable thing to do. I've considered it, but I really don't think I'm cut out to do it. I'll be very honest, I love to time I have to myself every afternoon when the house is quiet and I don't think I could givet that up.

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

Regarding safety..
When your children do leave home, and enter the world, how are you going to know whether can handle themselves, if they haven't had any real-life instances, with dangerous experiences? (I know most of your kids do activites with other kids that are safe)

Most of the kids we are in contact with earn scholarships. And only one has been turned down due to HSing. We also had one child who missed getting into the coast guard academy because they automatically deduct a certain amt. of "points" for the lack of an "official" transcript. That was hard on him, and incredibly not right. Many of the kids, including my niece and nephew, were given higher grades by their college instructors than they had received at home. Not that my SIL is mean or anything, she just expected everything to be done until it was correct.

I don't understand what you mean by dangerous experiences. Are you talking bullies, or gunmen? I don't think anyone can really be prepared for the crazy that comes along with a gun. And there are mean people everywhere in life. Whether at Boy Scouts, Sports teams, HS groups, or even the occasional brother... So, conflict resolution is dealt with regularly. At least in my house it is.

 

[CleveRocks]

Homeschooling just isn't for me, but I'm a student of the human condition, so I like reading about what others do.

I must say I'm impressed. One thing I'll admit I'd been skeptical about was the teachers' knowledge of the subject matter -- do the teaching parents know enough to teach the academics? At least as far as English goes (since I can't detect your math and science and art skills from these posts ), almost all of the posts from teacher-parents are grammatically correct, which probably makes this one of the most literate threads on the DIS.

Thanks for allowing me a peek into this part of your world.

Signed,

A proud public school advocate (and graduate of urban public schools)

 

[5starmom]

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

Regarding safety..
When your children do leave home, and enter the world, how are you going to know whether can handle themselves, if they haven't had any real-life instances, with dangerous experiences? (I know most of your kids do activites with other kids that are safe)

I run a homeschooling website and 2 of the moms who are regular posters there have just shared that their high school grads have gotten scholarships to the colleges of their choice. Most colleges are glad to accept homeschoolers. HS kids can get their GED or equivalent and take the same entrance exams to get into college as everyone else does.

As far as safety, let's do a comparison.

Public school child: Sits in class where they are taught about safety from a teacher and/or book. Teachers/principal may or may not protect them or teach them how to protect themselves--both physically AND emotionally--from hurtful individuals.

Homeschooled child: Goes out into the WORLD regularly (yep, during school hours!) with family and friends, learns how to get over fears about approaching adults at the store or asking for assistance, etc. Spends a good part of their day with children and adults of many ages and gets practice using their insight, gut instincts; parents can go over situations that arise *immediately* to discuss how to make proper, safe choices. Homeschooled children come across bullies and people of varying personalities at classes or just out and about in the real world. Mom and dad are there to enforce a strong self-image and confidence *in spite of* difficulities with other people. These are teaching moments!

What was your question again? LOL I'm just teasing. Of course public school children get this kind of attention at home as well, but it's in the hours away from school and homework. I prefer to have the world as our classroom whenever we want or need it.

 

[sha_lyn]

I must say I'm impressed. One thing I'll admit I'd been skeptical about was the teachers' knowledge of the subject matter -- do the teaching parents know enough to teach the academics? At least as far as English goes (since I can't detect your math and science and art skills from these posts ), almost all of the posts from teacher-parents are grammatically correct, which probably makes this one of the most literate threads on the DIS.

There are several ways to teach subjects.
Some textbooks have home school teachers editions/guides that are very scripted in what to say, how to teach the material.
There are also educational DVD courses.
Hiring a tutor is always an option
What one parent might not have a working knowledge of, the other might (DH has better higher math skills than I do. He is also helping DD with her electronics unit for science)
DS's correspondence school has phone tutors
Parents can network and create a co-op
local museums, colleges etc often offer classes for home schoolers

For some subjects such as history, I am learning right along with my DD.

 

[disneymom3]

First off, I want to say kuddos to all of your moms and dads who homeschool your children. That is very honorable thing to do. I've considered it, but I really don't think I'm cut out to do it. I'll be very honest, I love to time I have to myself every afternoon when the house is quiet and I don't think I could givet that up.

I do have some questions about it. Once your children complete high school, do they get a diploma? Not just a homeschool one, but one from the state? Do they get scholarship opportunities? Are universities accepting them?

Regarding safety..
When your children do leave home, and enter the world, how are you going to know whether can handle themselves, if they haven't had any real-life instances, with dangerous experiences? (I know most of your kids do activites with other kids that are safe)

Thanks Michelle, that is nice of you to say. I think I can speak for many others of the homeschoolers here when I say that while yes, it is a hard job to do, none of us feel like we are doing anything more honorable for our families than any other moms. We are just making the choice that is right for our families.

As for handling themselves, I don't recall any instances during my school years of things that prepared me for the real world, that my kids would not have at home. In highschool they will have a job and probably volunteer somewhere, they do things outside of school that are within their interests, they have social get togethers etc. Maybe you could explain what you are asking so it could be answered better.

 

[graygables]

I must say I'm impressed. One thing I'll admit I'd been skeptical about was the teachers' knowledge of the subject matter -- do the teaching parents know enough to teach the academics? At least as far as English goes (since I can't detect your math and science and art skills from these posts ), almost all of the posts from teacher-parents are grammatically correct, which probably makes this one of the most literate threads on the DIS.

Unlike my SIL, not all HSing parents are rocks. I have a degree in English education with a minor in History, so I am well-qualified to teach most of what I come across. Although math and science are not my strong suits, I can follow along with the script and my own learning experiences to get the information across. We happen to use a virtual school, so there are teachers there that I may use as resources if I ever come across a concept that is difficult for me. Many homeschoolers also hire tutors or operate co-ops where the science whizzes handle those classes while the historians teach all the kids history. A well-designed curriculum can really go a long way in overcoming those difficulties. When my 16yo got to chemistry, it had been too many years for me (I'd taken it in the 7th grade), so I had to defer a lot of that to my Dad (started college as a chem major). Same with physics. There was a reason I became an ENGLISH teacher, after all. The most important thing for me is to recognize my limitations and find other resources to fill the gaps, but, isn't that what we do in real life at our jobs anyway?

Sadly, there are those who have no business breeding, much less "learnin'" their young. I had someone ask a plethora of truly stupid questions, one of which was which is the white and which is the yolk in an egg. Ya can't figger that 'un out on yer own??? Scary, but that's what most people see as "homeschoolers". BTW, my brother says they believe in gun control in their 'school'. They teach the kids how to control the guns. (I'm *related* to these people??? and no, child services won't do anything)