Homeschool Chat Part III

[kohlby]

Oh and we are taking a road trip in 5 weeks to DL, should I even bother trying to pack their school work and do it during the trip or should we just take the week off?
BTW, we are doing Sonlight P4/5 with LA K, Reader K, and Horizons math K.

I wouldn't even think about taking school work with me on a trip for a 5 year old! That's not even mandatory school age in most states. I will not take any work for my kindy child - but we don't do formal work for her yet. I'm waiting until next year when I have to document. My oldest is 8 and I do have to document at least 180 days. We take vacations completely off. We plan our schedule so we never have to do work on vacation. (We document over 200 days a year so we could theoretically take off whenever we wanted as well).

 

[kohlby]

How hard is home schooling? I have lots of patience as I have a daycare and of course would have to close it to home school. How much preparation am I looking at? Do you get anything from school boards like exams or anything? Where do I start? How much time to you "teach" during a day

Check your state rules, it varies wildly. Most states don't have mandatory schooling for kindy, but I think there are 2 or 3 exceptions. My state isn't mandatory until the year after the child turns 6 by Sept 1st. My middle child is in kindy so we document nothing. We don't even do a formal curriculum. It's basically the same parenting I did when she wsa 2 or 3. I took the same style with my oldest and it's amazing what kids can learn on their own with zero instruction and just basic parenting. For first grade, I started adding in some formal and kept some relaxed. I did have to document. For my state, this meant reporting to an umbrella organization and doing what they said. I have to keep a portfolio, keep a book of 180 days or more documented for 5 core subjects, and write up an assessment twice a year. But I keep all that. At the end of the year, I fill out a sheet that takes all of 5 minutes to fill out with the attendance numbers by month and checking off if my child did or did not meet the objectives I set. And that's it. There are states harder than mine. There are states easier as well.

First grade was always under 2 hours. Second grade was around 2 hours. Third grade is around 2.5 hours. If there's a project, then an extra hour can be added, but that's really fun time so it's not a big issue! Most of my friends have kids in public school. Many of their kids spend longer in homework alone than my child spends in his total schoolwork - and my child is actually covering more material. Prep time takes me about 10 minutes a week. The longest is deciding what curriculum to use. Or, if we're not using one, then we figure it out as we go based on his interests.

 

[bumbershoot]

Check your state rules, it varies wildly. Most states don't have mandatory schooling for kindy, but I think there are 2 or 3 exceptions. My state isn't mandatory until the year after the child turns 6 by Sept 1st.

Definitely check rules. I WA school isn't mandatory until 8. So we aren't even known by the district at this point. Once he's out, so to speak, we get to test or evaluate each year, but don't have to submit the results to anyone (whereas my cousin in FL has to submit the results).

I am glad I foudn this thread as I have been thinking about home schooling and i have a few questions that only people like you can help.

My triplet are in kindergarden and already have an average of 30 minutes of homework a day. Now the kicker is that the school and school board refuse to put them in the same class thereofr making harder for me in the evening. They all have different homeworks and of course projects that mommy has to do. Since they get home at 4, we are usuall ydone doing their homework by 6pm, then it's diner, baths and bed time. I was told to expect next year to see at least an hour of homework. Now I am looking at 3 hours of homework which would bring bed time to over 9pm. Am I insane to think that it's too late for 6yo to go to bed that late. The school answer was to find help for homework. They don't want to hear anything about puttin them in the same class because it would give them power over the teacher since there's 3 of them. I know where they are coming from but I find them inconsiderate. to top if off, the girls have already missed over 10 days of school since september because of high fevers, ear infections and what not. Now the school is wanting drs notes for it which BTW won't be hard to get but still. They have never been this sick since birth.

How hard is home schooling? I have lots of patience as I have a daycare and of course would have to close it to home school. How much preparation am I looking at? Do you get anything from school boards like exams or anything? Where do I start? How much time to you "teach" during a day

I think home schooling would be much better for us. For one thing the girls wouldn't be as sick and home workd loads would be easier IMO. I could make school way more interesting then school does, I think. Can someone help me?

I would pull them out now. What a PAIN that school is being! And with your followup post, again, I'd do it now. The principal sounds ridiculous, wanting her to come back so soon with mono...this isn't her senior year in high school, she's little!


"to try to homeschool and to fail miserably and the only people who will pay for my mistake is my babies"

But the school seems to be trying to fail them now, as they are making it nearly impossible for them to do wonderfully! My son has a late bedtime at 9, but we are night owls, and he's certainly not spending his whole day working, which is what your schools demanding from your kids.

I would think that the stresses you are experiencing now with school would be WELL beyond the relative stress of having them homeschooling now. Heck, you could do it from bed if needed.

Bless your heart. The bolded is the dumbest thing I've ever heard, we have triplets at our school and they've always had the same teacher. I've never known them to "overrun" the teacher.

I agree.




Second grade today. We are two lessons ahead in math, we had some reading and writing (low level reader, and two sentences), he put gesso on his mask to prep it for paint, now he's watching a bug' life to finish up our little study of ants. Oh, and he asked to do more math.

 

[MinnieVanMom]

Hi, a bunch of us from the Disboutique started a group on FB. Homeschooling for newbies.

Just PM me and let me know if you would want to be added to our group of new HS.

 

[ajcolorado]

I'd really love to hear from anyone who has participated in the Disney Homeschool Days. I'd like to know if you thought the experience was worthwhile, if your kids enjoyed it, if your thought that the education content was of good quality. Anything and everything about this event, really. You can PM me.

Thank you,
Annette

 

[MinnieVanMom]

I read that the author of the Kingdom keepers is going to be the guest for the home school days in January. We have trip planned in March and can't change it. I would love for our children to see him.

 

[Mrs.Goofy]

What's their definition of their 3 or 4 year old reading? Most 3 year olds can't read. Of the ones who do, the majority can't read a lot - just simple sight words or sounding out. But really, it doesn't matter when others do it. What matters is that your child learns at a time that is ready for YOUR child. It does sound like your child is the norm - but I wouldn't worry about that. My oldest was not ready to do any basic reading until first grade, at 6. He struggled to read "Mat sat" at the start of first grade. By the end of the first grade, he was reading Harry Potter books, which are a 5th grade level. I compare it to learning to walk. The earlier walkers aren't better athletes. As long as your child is ready during the normal range, which I'd say is 3-8, then I wouldn't worry. (My older brother was reading at 2, but he is not the norm at all!) The later readers do easily catch up. Plus, you want a child to love to learn to read so pushing can easily backfire. My second child started reading at 4. She's now 5 and still a long ways off from handling Harry Potter or even chapter books.

If a child is a late reader in traditional school, it can cause problems because they have trouble keeping up. But with homeschooling, you can take your time and wait until a child is ready.

Thanks for the reply. I have no idea what their definition of reading is. She is really starting to do well with blending her words and not just saying the sounds, its really starting to click. Like I said before, I was a late reader so I worry a lot. I fell through the cracks in PS and no one noticed that I could not read till around 4th grade At that point I was in hide mode because I was embarrassed. I always hated school, by the time I was in high school I was bored and disliked the social aspect, so I skipped most days but still passed with As and Bs.

My kids love doing school time, so I'm afraid they will miss it on the trip but I'm very much leaning torwards taking the week or 2 off. I don't have to report anything, but I still keep track of my hours. I think I'll pack some work sheets, my girls love those. And practice counting, I'm sure we will see plenty of cars to count on our 16 hour drive.

 

[sl_underwood]

Thanks ladies! I guess my biggest fear is to try to homeschool and to fail miserably and the only people who will pay for my mistake is my babies. I have been reading tons in the past few weeks about it and am getting closer and closer to making my decision. I might not start this year as I am due in May with our 4th and have been having complication but next year is really achievable.

One of our girls has the mono and so far has missed over 15 days of school and I was told by the dr to not expect her back to school full time before x-mas. I had a phone conversation today with the principle and it's not acceptable to her. She is willing to give a month tops. Well a month is not enough according to my dr as it normally takes about a month before someone stops sleeping their day away and start to stay alert for more then an hour at a time. I just can't send her to school to simply have her miserable and not rested... it will simply make the process longer. They drive me nuts. Now god forbid one of the others get it... I'll get another interesting phone call yet again.

I think the majority of homeschooling parents fear this. It is a huge responsibility. When our kids are in traditional school, its easy to blame the teacher, lack of funding, whatever, but at home with us, it all falls on us. That can be overwhelming. It is also going completely against the societal norm and that can cause a great deal of unwanted opinions and negativity. That being said, homeschooling really works for some families. It has for mine. My oldest child (who is now an adult) homeschooled successfully, completed high school through homeschooling, and her senior year was nothing but college courses. She is doing great as an adult too. Very confident, self assured, everything I would want her to be. My middle child homeschooled her entire education until this year. She wanted to go to high school and is doing great at a local private school. She has completely broke the mold as to what her teachers/ other students thought homeschoolers were like. She is a social butterfly, can make a new friend in minutes, open, honest, outspoken. Both girls know exactly what they believe, they do not look at life in the terms of who their best friend is or what is popular. They like what they like and have no fear in sharing who they are. They also know how to find information, to think for themselves, and they didnt just memorize facts that they trruly did not understand. I think that shows success in homeschooling. That is exactly what I wanted for them. My son still homeschools. He has autism and that has opened a whole new can of worms for us. People think that because he has autism I am not teaching him. He might not be learning what his same aged peers are but he is learning at HIS level. I think homeschooling is great for kids and their parents. Even in high school, an entire days worth of school can be completed during a typical school day, leaving the student with lots of time to explore their own interests. My kids have done a variety of activities that they would never have been able to do if they had been in school.

 

[sl_underwood]

The only negative thing he has said is "I just don't want them to be weird." Clearly, he doesn't realize they already ARE weird. They have our genetics, it is inevitable.....they're gonna be a little "odd", but not in a bad way."

I hate that people stereotype homeschoolers this way but as others have said weird is not necessarily bad. In the public school, our kids are taught to be clones of whoever is most popular. To me, that is weird. Why not teach your child to be unique. What is wrong with being who you are and not caring what others think? That is what my girls got from homeschooling. They like what they like and who cares if it isnt the same as someone else. My 14 year old loves 70s and 80s rock music. Her friends havent even got a clue what it is she listens to. She cant stand Justin Beiber and whoever else is popular these days and thats ok. Its not weird, just different from the crowd. She also has no fear talking to adults. She can hold her own in just about any conversation. Just the other day, she debated politics with her boyfriends grandfather. It was interesting to him as he had never seen a teenager so sure of her beliefs before. most are too busy worrying about whats cool and what isnt. I think its awesome that she is happy to be herself and while she loves her friends, she only will befriend those who dont expect her to be anyone but her. That is exactly the kind of person I want her to be. Might be weird but so much better than the alternative!

 

[DawnM]

I have never understood the "weird homeschooler" comments.

Don't they understand that we don't have the corner market on weird kids?????? As a former public high school teacher I can say that!

I don't care if my kids are "weird." Bill Gates is weird. Lots of successful people are or were weird.

Why do we want to create cookie cutter humans?

General rant for the day.

Dawn

 

[kohlby]

Any one else have trouble staying focused on getting school work done when a Disney trip is coming up? I'm spending way too much time on the computer reading about all things Disney and just getting the minimum school work done. My oldest is 8 and we do over 200 days a year, so I'm not really concerned. (Middle child is kindy so non-mandatory age). But I feel a little guilty. They don't know about the trip or I could spend time planning it with them and work it into the lessons.

 

[DawnM]

We leave Friday.

I have two Middle Schoolers. I have them pretty much only doing independent work this week.

There is SO MUCH to do. I have to clean the house because the dog sitters will be in here while we are gone.

Then we have something outside the home going on every day but today, so trying to get my cleaning done as best I can today.

I have a long list of things to get done!

Dawn

Any one else have trouble staying focused on getting school work done when a Disney trip is coming up? I'm spending way too much time on the computer reading about all things Disney and just getting the minimum school work done. My oldest is 8 and we do over 200 days a year, so I'm not really concerned. (Middle child is kindy so non-mandatory age). But I feel a little guilty. They don't know about the trip or I could spend time planning it with them and work it into the lessons.

 

[sleeperclan]

Just discovered this homeschooling thread--what a great idea! Unfortunately, I'm at the tail-end of our homeschooling days We graduated DS last year and DD will graduate in May of 2012. I encourage those thinking of diving into homeschooling to do so...as parents, we do more teaching of our children than we realize. Yes, it is overwhelming when you think you are responsible for teaching your little ones lifelong skills. I know in the early years it hit me one day that math and reading were skills that my children would need for the rest of their lives and if I messed up, they would be illiterate and mathematically deficient! But, we pressed on and DD is in the process of writing a book; DS started his own web design business when he was 16y/o and they are both able to add/subtract without the use of a calculator Aside from the academics, you get to spend such wonderful times with your children and you will come to know them so much better than anyone ever could! What a blessing that has been for me!! I envy those that are just starting their homeschooling journey--I will miss it more than I can say!!

 

[ariekannairb]

A homeschool thread!!!! I am so excited!

I am Anna and am homeschooling my 2 dd's and have a ds who will be joining the mix in a few years. I also blog over at www.moldingmindshomeschool.com. Ummm bummer that is all I can think of to share. Guess I am not that interesting

 

[sl_underwood]

Any one else have trouble staying focused on getting school work done when a Disney trip is coming up? I'm spending way too much time on the computer reading about all things Disney and just getting the minimum school work done. My oldest is 8 and we do over 200 days a year, so I'm not really concerned. (Middle child is kindy so non-mandatory age). But I feel a little guilty. They don't know about the trip or I could spend time planning it with them and work it into the lessons.

I know exactly how you feel. While planning our last trip, I spent so much time on here, I did feel guilty. We do stuff that could be considered educational every day of the week so I probably shouldnt have but I did.

 

[momimouse27]

We leave in 8 days and the closer we get to it, the less I can concentrate on schoolwork. The stinky part is that this is the time that Liberty picked to assign my daughter all these special projects...reports and essays that require alot of time. I am having a LOT of trouble keeping my mind on it.

 

[dis-happy]

We leave Friday.

Bon voyage! Hope you have a great trip and no rain!!!

 

[bumbershoot]

Any one else have trouble staying focused on getting school work done when a Disney trip is coming up? I'm spending way too much time on the computer reading about all things Disney and just getting the minimum school work done. My oldest is 8 and we do over 200 days a year, so I'm not really concerned. (Middle child is kindy so non-mandatory age). But I feel a little guilty. They don't know about the trip or I could spend time planning it with them and work it into the lessons.

Our trip started sept 12, and that feeling and stress were exactly why I delayed starting the curriculum until we were thoroughly back home.

 

[Soarin' Mama]

Hi!

I introduced myself here about a year ago, but when we realized we couldn't make the May 2011 trip we were planning, I got bummed and stopped coming around. But we've just put our deposit down for a May 2012 trip, so I'm back

And since booking our trip, I can't stand schooling! All DS and I want to do is build spreadsheets to plan our trip! I'm hoping that once the newness of the idea wears off (we just decided to go and booked a week ago) I'll find my groove and get back into the swing of things.

Maybe I should tell you a bit about myself. I have one son, who has been homeschooled since forever. He's nine and in fourth grade. Well, as much as any homeschooled kid is in any grade...but if he were in school, he'd be fine in fourth.

We've been to WDW once before, in May 2007. DS was just five when went, so this will be a totally different trip for him and for us!

I guess that's it for now...I have to go search flights to MCO

 

[big_thunder_girl]