How many Dis'ers homeschool?

[sha_lyn]

It takes more than 4 years of college to make a good teacher. My DH has a teaching degree and he believes in homeschooling!

Most teachers I know fully support HS'ing and have said basically what you did in the rest of your post. I've been told by more then one teacher that most of their training is in "crowd control", teaching to the test etc. That is wasn't until they were in a classroom that they actually learned how to teach their students.

 

[sha_lyn]

A friend of mine, who used to be an "official" teacher and now homeschools said that when you study for your teaching certificate, it's not as if you study geometry, history or whatever all over again. The core of the study is classroom management--which, in most cases, isn't necessary in the homeschool environment. Teachers have curriculums with a Teacher's Manual for each subject and teach from that, just as homeschooling parents do. A big difference is that the homeschooled student doesn't have to sit through 75% of classtime waiting for everyone to take their turn reading. That leaves extra time for some great hands-on learning activities as well as true social time with other homeschooled kids.

Mised your post until now. You must have posted while I was in the middle of my post. You said so well, what I was trying to say.

 

[sha_lyn]

One thing that I do agree with is that we need to be a little more tolerant of people who ask the tipical questions about socialiaztion, qualifacation , and many other questions for us.

The thing is that the "questions" are asked every single time the subject of home schooling comes up. Rarely, if ever, are they (IMHO) put out there as an honest question. They usually come across as if the judgment is already been made that our children are unsocialized misfits. In my opinion and experience it is almost impossible to change someones negative opinion about homeschooling.

 

[crazymomof4]

Do you not find that keeping your children out of school means they miss out on learning social skills and how to interract with other children?

This is something that they will need to have when they start to look for work/a career.

ujpest_doza Some of the replies to my question have been a bit indignant and defensive, it was just a question!

I have found this to be the most common first question posed by people who have just learned that we homeschool. I have also learned that, very often, it is not asked as an attack or challenge, but one of genuine interest. For example, my gynecologist asked about the kids and when I told him that I am HS'ing the two oldest, he posed the "socialization" question. I answered him the way I always do (see below) and then he went on to express a sincere interest in homeschooling and commended me for the choice to HS. I have had several experiences like this so I no longer get on the defensive about the socialization issue (unless of course, the person begins attacking homeschooling).

Here is how I answer the question about homeschoolers lacking socialization skills: "The socialization that they would have within the highschool is not necessarily the kind of socialization that I prefer my children to have." Then I mention the things that are undeniably part of any highschool environment to one extent or another--bad language, sexual promiscuity,violence, drugs, etc.
I then add that my HS'ed boys continue to visit friends and have friends over during the afterschool hours and on weekends just like they did when they were in public school.
When people say that kids need to be exposed to the bad things of society so that they can resist them. I use this illustration. When you have a young tree in your yard, for a time you steady it with strings to help it to stand straight and not be knocked over by winds that you know it cannot withstand at this tender age. You know that it is vulnerable during this time in it's life. You wouldn't say, "I hear there is a hurricane in Florida. Let me take my young tree down there and expose it to those winds so it can be strong, because I know someday it will have to withstand those winds." To me, homeschooling is the equivalent of those strings used to steady a young tree. As the tree grows strong, you release the strings because you know it can now stand on it's own. When my sons are 18 and off on their own (work, college, whatever) I hope the years they spent at home, with me inculcating in them OUR family values, will have strengthened them to withstand whatever society throws at them for the rest of their lives.
As an added thought I often tell people how my son (15) is able to work as a bus boy at a family owned restaurant. There, he has learned to work along with fellow employees, please a boss and handle customers. Also, he is learning money managment skills. I believe these are social skills that he will REALLY be able to draw on in his adult life. I know with a certainty that if he were in public school I would not allow him to work during the school year because the kids in our highschool get an average of 2-3 hours of homework each night. So my DS is getting the skills from work BECAUSE he is homeschooled and can complete his schoolwork during the day.

This is getting long..I'll shut up now!

 

[crazymomof4]

I'm really to the point where I don't even like the phrases home school, or home education. I much prefer phrases such as world education, individual education, customized education, etc.

Me too. I often use "distance learning" since with the program we use, my sons mail completed tests to a teacher, they are graded with comments added and mailed back. People seem impressed by the term "distance learning" like it's high-tech or something. (not that I'm all that concerned about impressing others)

 

[TNKBELL]

CRAZYMOM..... Well Said the tree analogy brought a tear to my eye! God Bless all the Homeschoolers out there!!!

 

[paigevz]

I'm a teacher, and I and every colleague I have spoken to about this subject, do support homeschoolers in general. My "schooled" fourth grader is in a fantastic school with gifted teachers in a low socio-economic area.......often, these areas have the worst teachers, and often they have the best, dedicated, willing to do whatever they must-type teachers. However, not ALL the teachers I've worked with are that type. I am able to watch very carefully and am also in the position to "request" teachers for my son, which is generally not allowed. I am able to keep my finger on the pulse of the school, see who is doing what, which kids are in which classes (and yes, they do "lump" kids together at times, resulting in some very undesirable social situations), and many other nuances that help me watch over my son. The general public is unable to do that. I do believe that if I were not a teacher, I would either be very unhappy with my son's education, or happily homeschooling. I have had great friends who home-schooled, and one whose whole family was in the teaching profession. Most teachers do get along great with homeschoolers, because, of course, they are teachers too.........teachers have a great knack for spotting each other (hence the reason I am reading this thread!).

Of course, there will be generalizations about homeschoolers that must be dealt with over and over........just as the generalizations about public schools that I deal with over and over, many mentioned in this thread..........my classroom in very unlike what many here have described, as are many of my friends' classrooms..............I agree with both sides of the "question" issue........yes, there are some genuine questions which should be answered, and yes, you can get pretty sick of answering, especially when the questions seem to be criticisms (and this can be true, or just the point of view of the one being questioned). Either way, this isn't a debate board, and this thread wasn't meant to be a debate, so I think those who do not home school (like me) need to just stay out of the way (which is what I've been doing since the thread opened, but just had to help out my fellow teachers when it turned to this, as of course I knew eventually it would).

Oh, and by the way, as long as I am posting, I would like to point out that my previous home-schooling friends' kids (they moved, we lost touch) were much better friends to my schooled son than any of the friends he's made in school..........just as his neighborhood friends, most of different ages/grades than him, are currently better friends than his classmates. They certainly seemed very well socialized, and did everything (swimming lessons, trips, soccer, music lessons) that other schooled kids did (well, more than most, actually).

 

[crazymomof4]

The other side of the coin is of course that teachers are a professional people who have been to university and then teacher training college before being unleashed in our schools. Teaching your own kids seems a bit like representing yourself in court rather than using a lawyer ie amatuers doing the job of professionals. For instance, specialist subjects such as sciences or history/geography, how do you answer their questions on these subjects if you yourself do not have an expert knowledge of the subject?
What about languages, how do you teach French/Spanish or German if you are not a fluent speaker of the language?

Again, please don't shoot me down in flames, just expressing a few thoughts on a subject that is a bit of an alien concept to me. I could not imagine trying to teach my own kids a full and diverse curriculum. Surely you need a certain expertise to be able to teach properly?

No flames here because before I started homeschooling I questioned my own qualifications. Afterall, I thought, I am trained as a Registered Nurse, not a teacher. But I forged ahead with our decision to homeschool after the 6th grade and what I found was this: What I lack in professional training, I make up for because I know my child better than anyone else in the world. In college, prospective teachers learn about the different "learning styles" all children have. In the classroom, they try to pinpoint the learning styles of each of the 20-25 children attempt to accommodate each one. This must be a daunting, almost unachievable task! I have been home with my kids since birth. I don't need to guess what their learning style is, I KNOW how they learn best and I have the time to make the most of their individual learning style. I can't tell you how many times I have been able to successfully teach a concept by drawing on my intimate knowledge of how my son's mind works! I'll never forget the first time this happened. I was trying to teach how to do an algebraic equation. I was explaining it over and over as it was in the textbook, but I could see that he was just not getting it. Then I explained it using an illustration from a movie that we had watched together the previous night and CLICK!, instantly he got it!

Another advantage homeschooling parents have over formally trained teachers in PS is the ablility to customize our teaching to the needs of the individual student. Here are just a few examples: As I go over my son's written work I not only correct spelling errors, but I write them down. Later, I have them study the list of words they have misspelled and I test them on just those words. They aren't tested on the words they know how to spell, only the one's they are having trouble with. The same with math. I don't just mark the incorrect answers and hand the paper back to them. I give them extra lessons in areas they don't fully understand, but we don't re-hash what they already have "down-pat". This kind of individualized teaching is a great advantage over the "mass education" found in public schools.

So, I hope you can appreciate that, while it may seem that homeschooling would fall short in some areas compared to public education, the truth is that there are many positive aspects of homeschooling that more than compensate.

Two years ago my son ran into a former teacher of his. He told her that he was now being homeschooled. She replied, "Well, then, you have the best teacher in the whole world!" This woman has been teaching for over 30 years and is married to the superintendent of our school district! I felt empowered by this wonderful compliment. She is currently teaching my DS in 2nd grade (public school) and is VERY supportive of our homeschooling.

I forgot to add this: When the kids are learning something that I do not recall off of the top of my head I may have to read their textbook and refresh myself to be able to teach them. So far, I have not come across a concept that I could not grasp well enough to teach (afterall, I learned these same things myself in highschool). If the boys elect to take courses that I may not be able to help them with (Trig, foreign lang.), we have college students in our area who tutor for very reasonable rates. They get teaching credits for doing this.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Yeah, I don't want this to become a debate either. I always feel the need to help someone understand homeschooling better if they ask, but wonder how I can sufficiently answer them.

Oh, and thanks for setting me straight regarding homeschooling in England. I must have misunderstood my friend.
Edited to add: I know for a fact that it is illegal in Germany. I don't know beans about their educational system, though. Don't they rate higher than the US, if my memory serves me right??

I'm curious, what do other states require as far as reporting. Here in NY, at the beginning of the year, you send the superintedent all the information on the curriculum you will be teaching your child. Then, quarterly, you send a report on each child containing how many days and hours of instruction they had that quarter, and what exactly you have studied in Math, for instance, and all the others. At the end of the year, we take one of the national standardized tests(we use Iowa) and send them a copy, showing them the progress that they've made.

You who are in other states, what is your requirement??

 

[drumflower]

We have it easy in Indiana! All we have to do is keep attendance and make sure that that they "do" school at least 180 days a year. The attendance needs to be available if the superintendent ever wants to see it but so far I haven't heard of anyone getting asked for it. That is it!

 

[crazymomof4]

You who are in other states, what is your requirement??

Here in NJ there are practically no requirements. I send a letter of intent to the superintendent. He requires a brief overview of of the year's curricullum. He sends a letter back telling me it's OK. That's it. I think the superintendents have the legal right to look at work done by the student but I've never heard of anyone who had this happen to them.

The down side to this legal freedom is that some take advantage of this to the detriment of their children's education. I'm sure they are in the extreme minority but, never the less, they make a bad name for all homeschoolers. I only mention this because someone I know went off to work each day and left her "homeschooled" teens home with crossword puzzles and the TV all day. For years now I've been trying to live down the bad impression that this left with aquintances we have in common.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Here in NJ there are practically no requirements. I send a letter of intent to the superintendent. He requires a brief overview of of the year's curricullum. He sends a letter back telling me it's OK. That's it. I think the superintendents have the legal right to look at work done by the student but I've never heard of anyone who had this happen to them.

The down side to this legal freedom is that some take advantage of this to the detriment of their children's education. I'm sure they are in the extreme minority but, never the less, they make a bad name for all homeschoolers. I only mention this because someone I know went off to work each day and left her "homeschooled" teens home with crossword puzzles and the TV all day. For years now I've been trying to live down the bad impression that this left with aquintances we have in common.

Oh, I know, this makes me sick when I hear of it. That is why I keep telling myself that even though I hate filing reports, it keeps the "lazy" ones accountable.

Man, nothing in Indiana either. Wow........ok, ok, it's good for me, it's good for me..........

 

[2cutekids]

After we made the decision to homeschool our kids, our pediatrician asked us where our kids would be going to kindergarten. I nervously informed him of our decision, he smiled and said "That's great!.....My wife homeschools our kids, too!" What a relief to have a supporter in our corner. I have also been reading tons of articles about colleges actively pursuing homeschooled students because in general (not all) they have better study habits, better classroom etiquite, they tend to be better organized(mine will not inherit that from me ) and usually have a head start on the material being covered since they have had the luxury of time during their high school years to dive into the subject. (Whew...what a run on sentence! )

I have a relative who sent her sweet and pleasant child to PS and BOY, did she learn some things. She learned that it's okay for some kids to cheat, that bad attitudes are rewarded with friends, that trying to do the right things will only lose friends. She learned that people aren't what they seem and that just because someone says they are your friend, doesn't mean they really are. She learned that NOT doing drugs and having sex will find yourself alone. Oh Yes, she learned some things....her socialization at PS helped destroy her self image, lower her standards and took away her faith in people. Not the kind of socialization I want for my kids. My kids are only 6, but I can't tell you how many mom's have told me they want their kids to grow up with mine. Not because they are so PERFECT, but just because they treat everyone respectfully, kindly, and they still have that innocence of just wanting to have "good clean fun". I'm told kids can relax around mine because they don't have to show off or "one up" each other. (Now if I could just get them to treat each other that way )

Homeschooling is not a perfect world, but it's our world and as long as I see such positive results and my family loves it then we'll continue. And besides......what other group of people with kids can go to Disney World any time of the year!!!!!

 

[2cutekids]

In Arkansas, we have to fill out a letter of intent with curriculum, hours/days, etc., also. Kids have to take standardized tests in 3rd, 5th and I think 8th and 10th grades, too. Not much else, but that may be changing in the next legislature.

 

[sha_lyn]

In GA we must
File a letter of intent every yr (basically a statement that our children will receive at least 180 days of instruction, and each day must be at least 4 1/2 hrs.)
Send in a monthly attendance report
Record their yearly progress (this is not turned in but be kept in case they ask for it)
Administer a standardized test every 3 yrs beginning in 3rd grade.

 

[drumflower]

When my DD9 attended 1st grade, she came home with all kinds of sexual questions that kids that age shouldn't be talking about. I am not talking about where baby's came from. I don't try to shield my kids from talking about sex, but learning what she was asking should wait until she is much older. Yes, I would like her to be a little nieve for a little longer if I can help it!

 

[CynJ]

I think its going to take a long time for public perception of homeschooling to change. Many people I talk to about believe that its only "religious fanatics" that homeschool (note: I have NOTHING against those with strong religious beliefs- I am just commenting on feedback I get from others when you mention hs'ing)

I personally was a child in school who learned extremely fast - and was often very frustrated because we had to go over the same material again and again and again. Homeschooling provides a means to completely cater a learning program to each child indivdiually whether the child is a fast, average, or slow learner. It will also more readily allow a child's talents to flourish.

As far as interacting with other children and the socialization factor - they aren't going to live in a bubble. They will still go out and play in their neighborhood, church activities (if religious), sports, dance, family gatherings, etc..... but they will not have the same stress that PS children have.

I am fortunate enough to live in a state that is culturally and historically resource rich - Connecticut. Learning opportunities to enrich formal HS curriculm are all around us.

In my personal case because I am planning on the foster care to adoption route with my future child I think that HS'ing will be so beneficial to the child. These children need more individual attention. Many of them are 2-4 grade levels behind in school through no fault of their own, many have learning/social disabilities which will most likely force them into special ed classes which will further ostrasize them to their peers and add stress. I think homeschooling will provide the child with not only to opportunity to learn at his own pace in a stress free environment, but also gives him the personal attention that will help with bonding issues, feelings of security and safety, et cetera.

Do I think I am a qualified educator? Absolutely. Besides being an educated, well-read, multi-interest person I have also worked with people with mental and physical disabilities for over 15 years in a teaching capacity. I believe firmly in "incidental teaching" which basically means you are teaching all the time - whether it is answering someone's question, or showing someone the proper way to do something, or formally going through the steps to reach an endpoint. I am also very good at writing/setting goals and their appropriate objectives. Having milestones (objectives) gives both teacher and student a great feeling of accomplishment when you can cross something off the list.

We are starting the foster process in March -it will take a while - but meantime my list of HS links is growing as is my "cool places to go see" list. So when the child is here we will be ready

 

[crazymomof4]

Good morning everyone!

To add a little twist to the thread I'm going to ask, "What is your favorite and least favorite thing about homeschooling?"

My favorite thing (aside from the obvious- having my kids around me) is finding different ways to enhance their textbook learning- videos, games and puzzles, interactive websites, newspaper/magazine articles, etc. I believe these things really spice up their education.

My least favorite thing is marking papers! I am always behind and then I feel GUILTY!

 

[sha_lyn]

My favorite thing would have to be the moments when I see the "light come on" so to speak. When I'm explaining something to them and they are really getting it, or when They just really have a passion for something we are learning. For us right now it would be teaching my 7yr DD about ancient Egypt. She is so fascinated with it, that we just keep going deeper and deeper.

My least favorite, I have 2

The lack of "down time" for myself. I've finally gotten over the fact that I don't have to time to clean the house like I use to .... I was a fanatic. I use to vacuum every other day, and mopped and scrubbed the bathrooms and kitchen 2x a week. Now I'm lucky to vacuum 1x a week (except spot vacuuming dog hairs) and cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen 2x a month.

the other would be basically what has happened on this thread.... the attitude from those who know nothing about homeschooling and make judgments based on false assumptions.

 

[2cutekids]

My favorite part of homeschooling is the tight bond our family has. and the fun we have during our "school" time.

My least favorite part is the "socialization" question & not being able to cover EVERYTHING my kids want to learn about (I mean in one set time) i.e., bugs, flowers, birds, space, racecars, dinosaurs, weather, etc. It's hard to spread all these things out when you know your kids are ready to learn about them NOW!