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

[devotedchristian]

For instance, the Amish School shootings and just violence in school period?

In my state, a student was abducted at school at gunpoint and their is now an Amber Alert on the child.

I just don't think schools are safe anymore...especially High Schools.

Donning the flaming suit...

 

[Dzierzy Mierz]

It's not the only reason, or even the main reason that we chose to homeschool. However, it is on our list of reasons.

 

[Brier Rose]

You won't get any flames from me!

I won't say that's THE reason we homeschool, but it sure is one of the benefits!

 

[jaycns]

It does factor in...however, it's not the main reason we made the choice for our family.

 

[abookworm]

I don't think that anyone can deny that schools have violence in some manner and safety is an issue everyday. Even "the best" schools (however that is defined) have problems because some kids have problems that result in harassment, violence, teasing, etc.
And even "good" kids fall prey to peer pressure and torture and tease which leads to other kids being the victim.
So someone is always going to feel fear or hurt or danger in varying levels.
Sad but true.

And one of the many reasons we hs.

 

[NemoMOm]

It is one of the many reasons we are considering hs DS. He is 2 so we have some time. Another to consider is dange rfrom other kids not just adults. I just started a family childcare a few mos ago and while in training one of the long time providers said she had a 6 yr that was doing "stuff" to the younger ones. This was taking place during her bathroom breaks and meal prep. when her back was turned. she called CPS and was informed that he had 3 other cases open from doing this at school. They can not warn parents or even providers for the child's protection. How scary!

 

[disney-super-mom]

I will admit I'm in the deciding stages of whether to homeschool or not, and "safety" is one of the reasons on my list.

I am afraid of what could happen to my son, Ryan (7) while he's at school. Especially because he's autistic and therefore he takes everything VERY LITERALLY! So a kid could come up to him and say, "Here, take this pill. It'll make you feel good." And Ryan would just say, "Oh, this medicine will make me feel good? Okay, I'll take it." I could talk to him about dangerous drugs and never taking anything unless mommy or daddy gives it to him until I'm blue in the face, he just doesn't process that much info very well.

I face the same challenge with stranger danger. Ryan's school asks people to sign in at the office and get a visitor's pass to hang around their neck, but I've seen many people just walk on in, never signing in or saying a word to anyone, and no one at the school does anything about it. Because Ryan receives special services, he spends a great deal of time walking in the halls by himself between classrooms (his regular classroom, resource room, speech room, and occupational therapy). I just picture some strange guy in the school, spotting Ryan by himself in the hall, and saying to him, "Hi there, your mom told me to pick you up and take you home." and Ryan would just go with him without even questioning it. They could walk right out the front door and I can predict that not one person working in the front office would say one word to them.

Anyway, yes......safety would be a big reason for homeschooling.

 

[momto2girls]

I seriously have about 772 reasons that I homeschool. Safety is definitely on my list, but it isn't one of the "big" reasons. However, it is a nice benefit.

 

[Tink561]

I agree that it is a benefit but not really one of our reasons.

 

[MommaPooh]

For us it was one of the main reasons. In the city we live in every middle and high school has metal detectors and multiple on-duty police officers on campus at all times. Even with this, last week alone one girl was arrested for bringing a semi automatic handgun to school. (BTW - her defense was "I had the amo in my other pocket, not in the gun") Also the police are not much comfort, one was arrested last week for having inappropriate sexual contact with several male and female students. The middle schools have kids as old as 17 and 18 in class with 11 and 12 year olds threatening to blow stuff up.

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

If one teaches at home because of their own fear it is truly unfair to the child. Your can't go off to college with them or work in the future years. The world can be a very difficult place but you can't shelter them forever. They could be abducted from your backyard.

If you are home schooling for educational reasons that is very different.

 

[MomTo2inNE]

Holy Moly! Do you actually think that those of us who homeschool include NO "life preparation" instruction to our children? We homeschool our kids so as to hide from them the evils of the world? Heck no! I'm sick and tired of people thinking that my children are ingorant to the world around them.

I would have to argue that teaching your child at home is a SAFE place to teach your child about the dangers that exist anywhere. Do you think just throwing them to the wolves would be better? My children know about the dangers around them, and HELLO! We still leave the house, and *gasp* go to the store. Do you think they've never seen a gun? Never seen someone bully someone else? They just encounter it with a parent around and they are able to process through the experience with wisdom.

Obviously, I feel strongly about homeschooling and the stereotypes against it. I homeschool because I feel God has asked me to teach my children. I homeschool because I have little faith in public education. And I homeschool to SHELTER (yes, I said it!) my kids from having to go through life (the good and the bad) on their own.

Sorry this is my first post on here. I just couldn't NOT post on this thread!

BTW, going to WDW with dh, dd (will be 7), ds (will be 5), aunt/uncle/3 cousins, and grandma/grandpa in April 2008!

Jill

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Holy Moly! Do you actually think that those of us who homeschool include NO "life preparation" instruction to our children? We homeschool our kids so as to hide from them the evils of the world? Heck no! I'm sick and tired of people thinking that my children are ingorant to the world around them.

I would have to argue that teaching your child at home is a SAFE place to teach your child about the dangers that exist anywhere. Do you think just throwing them to the wolves would be better? My children know about the dangers around them, and HELLO! We still leave the house, and *gasp* go to the store. Do you think they've never seen a gun? Never seen someone bully someone else? They just encounter it with a parent around and they are able to process through the experience with wisdom.

Obviously, I feel strongly about homeschooling and the stereotypes against it. I homeschool because I feel God has asked me to teach my children. I homeschool because I have little faith in public education. And I homeschool to SHELTER (yes, I said it!) my kids from having to go through life (the good and the bad) on their own.

Sorry this is my first post on here. I just couldn't NOT post on this thread!

BTW, going to WDW with dh, dd (will be 7), ds (will be 5), aunt/uncle/3 cousins, and grandma/grandpa in April 2008!

Jill

Who do your kids socialize with? Are they on any sports teams? Clubs? Do you teach them how to survive without you? Do they have playdates without you? Why would a parent want to shelter their children from the good? Selfishness?

 

[Brier Rose]

Who do your kids socialize with? Are they on any sports teams? Clubs? Do you teach them how to survive without you? Do they have playdates without you? Why would a parent want to shelter their children from the good? Selfishness?

Where did that come from??

She never gave any indication whatsoever that she shelters her kids from all of the "good" social experiences in life!

Most homeschooled kids absolutely participate on sports teams, belong to clubs, etc.!

Maybe we should say nurture instead of shelter..would that stike less of nerve?

Stereotype much?

 

[MomTo2inNE]

Who do your kids socialize with? Are they on any sports teams? Clubs? Do you teach them how to survive without you? Do they have playdates without you? Why would a parent want to shelter their children from the good? Selfishness?

My kids socialize with many groups of all ages of people. My son has three playdates per week (with four other children ages 3 to 8) outside of my home. He is in soccer. He is in Sunday school.

My daughter has one play date per week, does swimming and tae kwon do as well as Sunday school. We live close to grandparents and cousins that we see regularly. And they both have friends from previous activities with whom they still keep in touch.

We also are *lucky enough* to have to go to the cancer clinic frequently where the kids get to meet and talk to lots of other people of all ages while we wait the 10 or so hours for my daughter to see all the doctors, get all the chemos, and go through the spinal tap.

As for surviving without us, ABSOLUTELY! There are many opportunities EVERY, SINGLE DAY to go over things like, "If someone offered you three gazillion Barbies in exchange for showing him/her the way to the grocery store, what do you do?" My kids know CPR, the Heimlich, and how to use a freaking phone. My kids know the proper way to introduce themselves, the proper way to show friendly affection, etc. They are JUST FINE without me. Anytime we use a babysitter, we get glowing recommendations. I even had two sitters fight over who got to watch my kids as "it's just so easy!"

Show me how I'm sheltering my kids from the "good." (Is that like sitting in their school desks for 8 hours as a 5 year old, being bored while the teacher tries to teach everyone else that "a" says "aaa"?)

Show me how I'm being selfish in my choices. In my mind, I can't fathom how homeschooling could be construed as "selfish."

Jill

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Where did that come from??

She never gave any indication whatsoever that she shelters her kids from all of the "good" social experiences in life!

Most homeschooled kids absolutely participate on sports teams, belong to clubs, etc.!

Maybe we should say nurture instead of shelter..would that stike less of nerve?

Stereotype much?

Actually, no. Just think you need a reality check. To each his own.

 

[Brier Rose]

We also are *lucky enough* to have to go to the cancer clinic frequently where the kids get to meet and talk to lots of other people of all ages while we wait the 10 or so hours for my daughter to see all the doctors, get all the chemos, and go through the spinal tap.

Jill

We went through this when my DD was 4 months old. She had chemo and radiation for a year, but now thankfully despite the odds she's a very healthy 15 year old.

It's a very VERY hard thing to go through isn't it.

I pray your DD will be ok.

 

[MomTo2inNE]

Brier Rose,

Thanks so much for the hug and prayers. Yes, it is a lot to go through, but we've got the Big Guy on our side to carry our burdens.

DD was diagnosed right after turning 4 (Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia), and with everything going right so far, she'll be taking her last pill and getting her last chemo in October this year (she'll be 6 1/2 then).

BTW, it's great to *meet* you. Sorry I sound like such a hs nutcase. I know that hs'ing isn't for everyone, but I don't take too kindly to the opposition. My brother is a high-school principal. Those are fun conversations. And my parents and in-laws tell people we only hs because dd is "too sick to go to school." Her health (which is fine - she's been in remission for 18 months!) has NOTHING to do with our decision, and we've sat each set of parent down for that little talk. But they still use the "sick" explanation. I guess they're just embarrassed of us.

There I go, preaching to the choir! Sorry.

Anywho, thanks again for the prayers and hugs (and coming to my aid in this thread). So glad to hear your own DD is doing so well!

Jill

 

[Brier Rose]

Jill-

You do NOT sound like a nutcase!

Glad to hear your DD is doing so well..that's FANTASTIC!!

My DD had malignant rhabdoid tumor. Nasty..nasty..stuff, but thank God that's all behind us now!



BTW..it's nice to "meet" you too!

 

[ohiominnie]

Dd went to kdg and was very bored. She'd come home every day and explain to me how boring it was because the teachers would have to catch up all of the kids who weren't processing as fast as she was.

We decided in March of her kdg year that we'd start homeschooling her beginning with 1st grade. After all, our logic was, what harm can come from letting her finish out her kdg year????

Then one day in early April she came home from school and she said, "Yesterday and yesterday (that was her way of saying "two days ago"), Jeremy said he was going to bring a gun to school and kill me."

WHAT? I had her explain the whole incident. She told me that Jeremy came up to her and said he didn't like her, and that he was going to bring a gun to school and kill her. I asked her what she did when he said that. She told me she went to the teacher. The teacher made Jeremy promise he wouldn't do that and he said he wouldn't.

Now, I volunteered with dd's class at least once a week. And I saw Jeremy. He was a tough little kid. His father had been tragically killed in a bar brawl the previous summer. Jeremy had been going to "anger management" sessions with a child psychiatrist. Jeremy came to school with bruises and black eyes and red marks on his arms. Six weeks before this incident, I would have never have suspected that school violence like this could trickle down to the kindergarten level, but then the first grader in Michigan killed the kindergartener and it all became a possibility.

Ok, here's a big problem I had. I found out from MY CHILD TWO DAYS after the incident happened. I had never heard from the teacher or the school. Well, I obviously believed my kid because she hadn't been exposed to the news or the paper or any mainstream media where she would have gotten ideas about kdg-ers killing kdg-ers.

So I made an appointment the next morning to speak with the teacher. I didn't tell her what dd had told me, only that I'd like for her to tell me what happened between dd and Jeremy earlier that week.

She described, word for word, what dd had told her. And then....get this....she said, "but I don't think Jeremy would actually DO it, he's such a sweet little boy."

My jaw dropped and I said, "is that the sound byte you want played on the 6:00 news after my child is injured or killed?" I mean, after all, doesn't EVERYONE always say "I never thought they'd do it......"

So we pulled dd out RIGHT THEN. There was no way I was going to subject her to a possible gunshot. I'd never forgive myself. It wasn't a kneejerk reaction to homeschool BECAUSE OF that, but it definitely accelerated our timing.

So, yes, ONE of the reasons we homeschool is for safety. Not just big tragic incidents like Columbine or Paducah, but for the less major ones like fighting and bullying.