Homeschool Chat

[jaycns]

"Who Owns the Sun" by Stacy Chbosky is another great one. I cry every time.

Thanks Ellester and Disney Angel, those books are now on my "to find" list. Would you happen to know what grade level those books are most suited? TIA and thanks again for the great suggestions!

 

[Lilogirl]

Here's the link for the Epcot & MK studies:

http://vacationeducationbooks.net/Products.aspx


.

Thank You!!!

 

[ilovejack02]

ALRIGHT... Ive finally made the decision to homeschool!
Whew, could I have waited any longer?
We went to open house tonight and that did it for me.
Got home and threw all the paper work they had for me to fill out etc and told my DH my plans.
DH didnt quite know what to do with himself. He did say, just let me know what I have to do to help you make this happen, so at least he didnt freak out on me.

My first question is ......
WHERE DO I START?

 

[sha_lyn]

here are the laws in LA
http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/laws/blLA.htm

I would suggest finding a local HS group to help you weed through the law
and the viable options in your area

 

[NHWX]

ALRIGHT... Ive finally made the decision to homeschool!
Whew, could I have waited any longer?
We went to open house tonight and that did it for me.
Got home and threw all the paper work they had for me to fill out etc and told my DH my plans.
DH didnt quite know what to do with himself. He did say, just let me know what I have to do to help you make this happen, so at least he didnt freak out on me.

My first question is ......
WHERE DO I START?

That's a fun way to start! http://www.wdwinfo.com/images/smilies/yay.gif


I'd recommend you look at the HSLDA website for information on what your state requires. http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

Since school's starting already, you'll probably have to file some sort of notice with the your school district, the state, somewhere. You'll have to think about your child or children - how do they learn? Do they need some time to decompress or de-school as they say? What sort of educational goals do they need to meet?

Over the years, we've put together curriculum, bought a packaged set of curriculum and used our state's virtual charter school. Different types learning suit different kids at different times.

There are many great suggestions on the previous pages. Take a look through them!

NHWX

 

[lori1043]

ALRIGHT... Ive finally made the decision to homeschool!
Whew, could I have waited any longer?
We went to open house tonight and that did it for me.
Got home and threw all the paper work they had for me to fill out etc and told my DH my plans.
DH didnt quite know what to do with himself. He did say, just let me know what I have to do to help you make this happen, so at least he didnt freak out on me.

My first question is ......
WHERE DO I START?

Heloooooooo Jenny!!!! Call ME and i can HELP you out!!

I will PM you my cell.

You Louisiana friend, Lori

 

[lori1043]

Anyone from Ohio?

I am going there to "check things out" with DH b/c of the probably possibilties that could move us there by end of year.

It looks pretty tough to HS there. Well much more than here in Louisiana. I have taken advantage of our HS freedoms down south.

Thanks, any info would be appreciated.

Jenny, all you have to do in Louisiana is go to send in a letter to the state superintendant of education... and off you go after curriculum is chosen. Send it in soon, but you are okay on time. Look up CHEF of La for info.
http://www.chefofla.org/page2.html

copy of letter from our HEA, but same letter for everyone, send with an SASE so they can send you a copy for your records:

http://www.tammanyhea.org/FAQ.html

Lori

 

[nuzmom]

For those who wonder, "how do I start hsing", here's my 2 cents.

1) You MUST know the hsing laws of YOUR state. They vary and can vary WIDELY!!!! Home school legal defense fund is a good place to start (as other posters have mentioned). There are also other websites that hsers have put together for each state. Try doing searches for "your state homeschoolers". However, remember, it is YOUR responsibility to know and comply with the law!!!

2) Some times the law will dictate some of the subject you must teach. Aside from that, your local school can tell you what THEY teach in what grade. You do NOT have to follow that, but it may be helpful when you're just starting out. Also, if you see what curriculum is available for each grade, that will help you know what you COULD teach.

3) You WILL be overwhelmed with curriculum choices. If you are even a smig short of being overwhelmed, be happy, VERY happy. Rainbow Resources has a HUGE catalog for home schoolers. I highly recommend it.

4) If you can attend a curriculum fair, do so. It's nice to be able to look through so much curriculum at one time. But, remember, you will get overwhelmed.

5) Create a list of subjects you're considering. You can add and subtract, but at least this will give you an idea of what to look for. Between home schooling catalogs and curriculum fairs, start LISTING what you think you might like to try. Just keep narrowing down the list. Sometimes it's helpful to look for reviews on-line or ask questions on boards like this.

6) Try to find homeschoolers in your area. If you find a homeschooling website for your state, there are sometimes hsing groups that are listed. Even if you don't join a group, many times the families are willing to help get you started and share their experiences with you.

7) I HIGHLY suggest you WRITE DOWN the reasons WHY you are homeschooling and WHAT you want to "get out of it". On your bad days (and you'll have them), you don't think straight and it is so helpful to be able to go back and remind yourself of your priorities. Every family I know that has done this highly recommends this to all homeschooling families.

I guess I should have put this as number one, but I recommend the book by Lisa Whelch, "So You're Thinking About Homeschooling". It details how 15 families homeschool. I like it because most new hsers don't realize the wide variety of homeschooling styles and this gives real life examples of each. It's a good place to start to see if you're more of an unschooler or cyberschooler or somewhere in between.

Sorry this post got a bit long, but maybe it will help someone.

 

[ilovejack02]

Thank you Nuzmom!!!

I am just so overwhelmed! I told Jack of our decision last night and he started crying. Now I feel like a big mean Momma!

Im going to call Lori today and hopefully she can help straighten me head out LOL.

Im not going to call the school quite yet to drop him. His first day is tomorrow though so not sure how to handle that. So much to think about.

My hubby is worried that I just dont want to let him go but is supportive of what ever I decide.
DS was in a half day kinder last yr and I happily sent him on his way everyday, did even have a care in the world the first day last yr. He loved his school, they adored him. It was small and intimate and caring. If they had a full day program and had higher grades I would be singing as i dropped his little butt off everyday LMAO, But they dont and the reason they dont is because public schools are supposed to be just FAB out her.
Well im not feeling the fabulousness , I think I could just do so much more with him in a homeschool environment.
Ok enough rambling, Im going to get to work on what the heck Im going to do with my child.
Im sure you all will be hearing lots more from me.

 

[npmommie]

Can any of you share what you use for a math program? We have been using Singapore since the start and my soon to be 3rd grader seems to be getting frustrated with it. I think its a good program although I see some things about it that I don't like ...........so I am thinking of trying something different for this coming year.
thanks!

 

[nuzmom]

Can any of you share what you use for a math program? We have been using Singapore since the start and my soon to be 3rd grader seems to be getting frustrated with it. I think its a good program although I see some things about it that I don't like ...........so I am thinking of trying something different for this coming year.
thanks!

We use Math U See through 3rd grade and then switch to Saxon. Saxon can be very long and "intense", I would recommend Math U See - it tends to be "fun".

 

[TLHB70]

Ilovejack02, I just sent you a PM. I was born and raised in Livingston Parish. Because of DH's job, we moved from Walker in 2002. I taught in Livingston Parish schools for 6 years. Our entire family (grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.) still lives in Livingston Parish. As a matter of fact, my brother is a high school principal. I have friends in the Live Oak area that homeschool. I PMd you about possibly contacting them for help.

 

[ilovejack02]

Ilovejack02, I just sent you a PM. I was born and raised in Livingston Parish. Because of DH's job, we moved from Walker in 2002. I taught in Livingston Parish schools for 6 years. Our entire family (grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.) still lives in Livingston Parish. As a matter of fact, my brother is a high school principal. I have friends in the Live Oak area that homeschool. I PMd you about possibly contacting them for help.

AWESOME, thanks so much!
I pm'd you.

 

[lori1043]

I loveJack:
I hope I CAN help you out and am here to support you!!!

IMHO, I think homeschooling can be a great choice for honing in on what is important to you and your child. You can find curriculum and unit studies that fascinate him(and he is at SUCH a great age for the unit study fascination thing!, like butterflies and frogs and ladybug life cycle stuff-it is endless). As he gets older you can even make sure he gets in subjects that interest him for his future career choice. Or weed it out. They didn't do that at my high school. HS'ing is the opposite of that cookie cutter curriculum that schools use for every kid. And I am NOT against putting kids in the school system, I just didn't like them so much!

You are In my thoughts and prayers for a good choice for your family.
If you need curriculum ideas, you can find it here or I will PM you my personal email-or heck, call me again! It WILL be overwhelming. You WILL have days you ask yourself WH? WHY?! WHY! you did this to yourself.
Over all, it is a wonderful thing and worth all the things you have to possibly give up or postpone for it. The positives SO outweigh the negatives.

Lori

 

[Nik's Mom]

Hi,
I'm pretty desperate right now and need help. Here is some background. We just moved to Kansas back in May. We have 2 autistic children. Back in California, they were both doing well in school. The first week that we moved here, a fire alarm went off in our hotel. It was just a false alarm, but they would not let anyone out of the building. It must have been about 10 minutes that the alarm sounded. OUr youngest ds was terrified and began to shake. He was hysterical.

Fast forward a few days later when he started his new school. We had already explained what happened with the fire alarm and that ds was still frightened. I spent the first week of school with him just to keep him calm. On the 2nd week of school, there was a fire drill and they did not remove him before the drill!!!! After that, he refused to go back into the building.

So here we are 3 months later, and I cannot get him out of the car to go to school. He begins to shake and scream in terror. He was diagnosed yesterday with Post-traumatic-stress syndrome! The psychiatrist said that it will be a long road before he will feel safe to go back to school. In the mean time, the new school year starts next week. I'm going to talk to the principal about home schooling for now.

The problem is, I know nothing about home-schooling. Ds is only 6 and like I said, he is autistic. Where do I begin? Do any of you have special needs children? My son should be getting speech and occupational therapy, but how if we can't get him in the building! Can anyone give some guidance about home schooling for special needs children? I'm freaking out, as you can probably tell.

 

[02AggieGirl]

I'm a confused. I have started to look into home school for my DD4. If I don't go with an accredited home school and just do my own thing, how will she graduate and get into college? Maybe I just don't understand how it works. I hope this isn't just a really stupid question, but any advise would help. Thanks!!

 

[reginaastralis]

Hopefully you ladies will be able to help out ... and I apologize, because I haven't read through this whole thread.

I am thinking about "homeschooling" my 3.5 year old. use the word homeschooling very loosely, because I am not looking for a completely structured setting. I want to be able to teach her writing, letter sounds, and all of her numbers to start with. Has anyone ever started this young? And, can you give me any tips on how to start?

Thanks!

 

[sha_lyn]

I'm a confused. I have started to look into home school for my DD4. If I don't go with an accredited home school and just do my own thing, how will she graduate and get into college? Maybe I just don't understand how it works. I hope this isn't just a really stupid question, but any advise would help. Thanks!!

Many colleges with go by SAT or ACT scores for home-schoolers. Other require a transcript in addition to test scores. Most colleges are very accommodating to home-schoolers.

Can any of you share what you use for a math program? We have been using Singapore since the start and my soon to be 3rd grader seems to be getting frustrated with it. I think its a good program although I see some things about it that I don't like ...........so I am thinking of trying something different for this coming year.
thanks!

What seems to be the problem? Singapore is the only Math program that has worked for DD.

Hi,
I'm pretty desperate right now and need help. Here is some background. We just moved to Kansas back in May. We have 2 autistic children. Back in California, they were both doing well in school. The first week that we moved here, a fire alarm went off in our hotel. It was just a false alarm, but they would not let anyone out of the building. It must have been about 10 minutes that the alarm sounded. OUr youngest ds was terrified and began to shake. He was hysterical.

Fast forward a few days later when he started his new school. We had already explained what happened with the fire alarm and that ds was still frightened. I spent the first week of school with him just to keep him calm. On the 2nd week of school, there was a fire drill and they did not remove him before the drill!!!! After that, he refused to go back into the building.

So here we are 3 months later, and I cannot get him out of the car to go to school. He begins to shake and scream in terror. He was diagnosed yesterday with Post-traumatic-stress syndrome! The psychiatrist said that it will be a long road before he will feel safe to go back to school. In the mean time, the new school year starts next week. I'm going to talk to the principal about home schooling for now.

The problem is, I know nothing about home-schooling. Ds is only 6 and like I said, he is autistic. Where do I begin? Do any of you have special needs children? My son should be getting speech and occupational therapy, but how if we can't get him in the building! Can anyone give some guidance about home schooling for special needs children? I'm freaking out, as you can probably tell.

Check yahoo groups for special needs home-school groups and groups in your area.

 

[npmommie]

What seems to be the problem? Singapore is the only Math program that has worked for DD.

I think it is the way it is taught, which i do like, they learn the skill and immediately go to problem solving with it. logical thinking........but i think this frustrates my child......i think more repetition is needed before jumping to the problem solving, but she does great grasping the concept and the skill.
so i am thinking i could either add to the program with even more drills and repetition and just come back to the problem solving.
or we could try something else this year and maybe come back to singapore and try it again next year.


i have been hearing good things about math u see...........several people have recommended this to me.
i am going to look into it.

 

[sha_lyn]

If you want to try and stick with singapore math, have you tried the home instructors guide that sonlight publishes? Also you can buy the extra practice workbooks