*** Homeschool List ***

[disneymom3]

dsinut--I strongly agree. When someone who is trying to sell me something lists "longitudinal studies" and "research" but does not name those studies or research, regardless if it has to do with reading or hair growth or weightloss, I am going to be suspect of their sources and motives.

 

[famofsix]

With reading specifically, DD learned to read on her own by the time she was probably 4 1/2. DS at 6 1/2 is still struggling with blending letters sounds together to make words. I could have that child sitting at a table for hours a day and all that would happen is he would begin to hate reading.

To me, that is the beauty of homeschooling. Old or young, early or late. It doesn't matter. What matters is that each child's needs are being met and they are able to learn in a supportive environment that helps them grow how and when they are ready.

I love the above quote! It's so true. I have two in public school and one school age child at home (where his needs are met) and a baby. Thanks for the supportive words!

 

[Denine]

All I know is I could shove the alphabet down DD's throat and she won't learn it because she is not interested. She knows a few letters and the alphabet song. There is no way I can teach her to read right now. She will be 4 in 1 month.

I was reading before I went to Kindergarten, but I don't know if DD will be reading by the age of five.

You can't force a child to learn anything if she isn't interested.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

Does anyone have and use the PEAH card?

 

[disneymom3]

I love the above quote! It's so true. I have two in public school and one school age child at home (where his needs are met) and a baby. Thanks for the supportive words!

You are very welcome. There are so many reasons I love homeschooling and that is one of the big ones.

Tara--what is the PEACH card?

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I feel like I have to defend myself! My son knew his letters and letter sounds by two and a half. Right before he turned four I asked him if he wanted to learn to read and he said yes. I asked teacher friends what to do, they had no idea. So I went to homeschooling moms and they directed me to Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons and Explode the Code. My son was blending works within the week and was reading level one books by a month and a half. He is not site reading, he is using phonics. We got to about lesson 80 when we stopped. I have a baby and he was bored. He is reading level 3 books six months later(now). I have never made him do anything. I would ask him if he wanted to do reading lessons and he usually did. If he didn't, we didn't do it. He loves to read and I am amazed at what he can read. Will my 3 year old learn to read at 4? I doubt it. They are very different but he has already shown an interest and he knows all his letters and their sounds.

I did not push my son and I do not think I have done him harm. In fact, I have opened his world up to so much since he can read everything now. (which is fun now that he can tell that we have changed things in some books like in one that says broccoli is bad and should ever be eaten!)

That is wonderful! I wasn't picking on you either and I did say "some" early readers are indeed site reading--my friend was one of them.

I know my daughter is mostly site reading--b/c she will word guess on words that she should be able to easily sound out (and then guess wrong)....but we tested her at K level...she tested above for reading but her phonetics score was much lower (but not below grade level). She clearly isn't familiar with sounding out everything just yet and for us--she may be board...but she will have to stick with the 100 easy lessons for a bit longer until she shows she's sounding out words and not remember (or misremembering) words.

My youngest wants to read--I think she made it to lesson 3 and then afterwards still wanted to do it but didn't get it. Though she was quite proud of herself though. Even if MMMMM is not TTTT.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

You are very welcome. There are so many reasons I love homeschooling and that is one of the big ones.

Tara--what is the PEACH card?

Here is the link to the website
PEAH

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

All I know is I could shove the alphabet down DD's throat and she won't learn it because she is not interested. She knows a few letters and the alphabet song. There is no way I can teach her to read right now. She will be 4 in 1 month.

I was reading before I went to Kindergarten, but I don't know if DD will be reading by the age of five.

You can't force a child to learn anything if she isn't interested.

Denine,
I noticed your signature says you're cruising in October. Are you doing WDW too? We're going Oct. 17-25 staying at SSR.

 

[nuzmom]

Speaking of cruising...

We're going on the eastern next week - Sept 2 to 9. By chance, are there any homeschoolers going, too?

 

[Poohbear77]

Just in case anyone is interested in sharing there opinion.
---------------------------------------
Dear Homeschoolers,

Looks like Dr. Phil is doing a show on homeschooling. Here is the link if
you think that you should be on the show:
http://www.drphil.com/plugger/respond/?plugID=10527

 

[Denine]

Denine,
I noticed your signature says you're cruising in October. Are you doing WDW too? We're going Oct. 17-25 staying at SSR.

Yes we are going to WDW after the cruise. We will be there from 10/21 to 10/27. We are doing MNSSHP, but I don't remember the date.
We will be at OKW. We are staying at SSR for 2 nights prior to the cruise.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

Oh fun, if you're doing MNSSHP on the 24th, click the link in my signature. We are planning on meeting at Casey's to say hi sometime during the night.

 

[2 princes 1 princess]

I haven't been on the Dis in awhile because we were on a LONG trip to Florida and we were in WDW.
I just returned and I noticed there is a Spanish board now on the Dis. Has this always been there?
Why can't we have a homeschool board? I've e-mailed the moderators and posted new threads in regards to the homeschooling board so what else needs to happen?
Thanks for any info!

 

[Lora]

I haven't been on the Dis in awhile because we were on a LONG trip to Florida and we were in WDW.
I just returned and I noticed there is a Spanish board now on the Dis. Has this always been there?
Why can't we have a homeschool board? I've e-mailed the moderators and posted new threads in regards to the homeschooling board so what else needs to happen?
Thanks for any info!

Good question. I can't remember when the Spanish forum started. It's not been too long since I noticed it. You could probably check the first page of posts - unless it's moving too fast.

Our trip is in 30 days!! I haven't done much of my tour plan yet. I'm going to have to get to work on that. I have a few other things going on that are eating up my time...school, planning a birthday party, deciding which Christmas musical to direct at church...

If anyone is up for a mini-meet (lunch, snack, parade or Fantasmic or something) from Oct. 9-19, let me know. We'll be at the BWV.

 

[vhoffman]

Quite a long thread and I haven't read through it all, so bear with me if some of these issues have been addressed.

I tried homeschooling just my son last year. He was having so many difficulities in school and nothing seemed to really work out. Well, hs worked for awhile, but then it fell apart and I placed him back in public school this year. The problem was what to do with all the time? The basic lessons I could cover in 2-3 hours tops, then what? I found I needed my time, too, for things like housework, errands, etc. I tried including ds with these tasks, but it just wasn't working out. I found he did best with a structured environment.

I really am not satisfied with the public school system here. It seems they spend so much time on "fooling around" busy projects like coloring, drawing, making posters, etc. Still, they are learning something. I just wonder what? I really am disappointed at the quality of work that comes home. I really feel the educational system at their school leaves a lot to be desired. They spend so much time playing and don't encourage quality of work. I'd really like some suggestions as to how homeschoolers fill in the "free" or non lesson time, etc. Thanks, I deeply admire anyone who's successful at homeschooling, I just wish I could do the same.

 

[famofsix]

Quite a long thread and I haven't read through it all, so bear with me if some of these issues have been addressed.

Thanks, please, no flames! I deeply admire anyone who's successful at homeschooling, I just wish I could do the same.

Hi, I stumbled upon your post this morning, and have couple questions...
How old are your kiddos and do you have an area in your home that can be coverted to a school area?
Having an area in our home (believe me our house is not big so it is not a large area) that is devoted to homeschool helps my DS know that I take the schoolwork seriously. We don't stay in the room all day but we start there and sometimes move up to the kitchen table. Also it could be the curriculum you are using is not a good match for your kids. If they like to interact and talk a lot you may do better with a more hands on type curriculum. We have a schedule but it is flexible. I post the schedule and tell DS what we need to accomplish today (at the minimum). Knowing what to expect from the day helps him to get an idea when the work will be done and what he needs to do. If I see that DS needs a break, we take one. The beauty of Homeschooling for us is that it is individualized. Maybe if you had a thematic approach and got the kids excited about a theme then you could work in the "paperwork part" of the curriculum into the theme. Involve them in the process of picking a theme and catch their interest. This may help motivate them and learn (even if they don't know you are purposely putting school into the theme). Don't give up...sometimes it takes awhile to get it working. I realize they are in school now at the PS. If you can't get them to focus on the homework for that it is a bit different than doing homeschool. For now you may want to give them a time limit for homework and send it in unfinished if they can't get it done without fooling around. Stay positive : )

 

[famofsix]

To the mods..I would love a homeschool thread where we could divide this stuff into subjects...please consider one. I don't have time to weed through this whole thread. Homeschooling is multifaceted and we'd love a place to post. Thanks

 

[sha_lyn]

I doubt the mods read this thread. You'll need to PM them.

 

[vhoffman]

Thanks for the suggestions, Famosix!

Yes, I realize that homeschooling can't really be compared to doing homework after school. We're trying to meld two different worlds essentially.

I still feel the public school system is not the way to go, at least for us. There's so much emphasis on "fun" the kids don't seem to be able to actually focus on doing the work. Its all about points, prizes, games, etc. The wrong message is being sent. The message ps is sending is that school work and learning are a means to an end, such as some cheap trinket or extra play time, not the value of learning for its own sake. They seem to be pleasing the school, they've both passed the standardized tests, so I guess that's their standards. I've had people tell me that I'm worrying too much about their education, if they pass the statewide tests, they're at par with their peers, so don't worry about it.

I feel like I'm doing all the teaching, anyways, or I should say re-teaching. If they spend their days playing games, earning reward points for prizes, games, etc., they won't be able to switch gears when they come home and get real about learning. Well, maybe I'll aim towards homeschooling next semester and let them finish out this school year. Its not terrible there, just not what I'd hope for. Aiming for next semester gives me some time to get set up, my ducks in a row, so to speak. I understand there's homeschooling groups in my area, perhaps I should start attending some of their meetings now to get set up. Meanwhile, I'll continue to lurk on this board (I really don't have anything to contribute!) and ask an ocassional question or so. Bear with me--I'm learning from you guys.

 

[THESCHULTZFIVE]

vhoffman I didn't read your whole post so this may not make any sense. Going back to the idea of homeschooling, from the part I read of your post, it seems like they might do better if they were seperated. I know that would mean alot of running back and forth for you, but maybe just for awhile. Until they're used to you being "the teacher". I've only been homeschooling my girls for 2 days now so I'm no expert. Just thought I would post what I'm thinking.