OT- Why do you home school?

[kevschickee]

I noticed there are a lot of parents that do this on this board. So I just wondered why. My kids are not school age yet so this isn't an issue for me yet

 

[npmommie]

Are you thinking you might want to homeschool?

 

[kevschickee]

I don't think I am but I can't be 100% sure. The schools here are great so I don't have a problem sending them when its time. I just noticed a lot of people here doing it and thought I would look into it. No one in my family is home schooled so I don't have any experience with it.

 

[mommytoe]

I noticed there are a lot of parents that do this on this board. So I just wondered why. My kids are not school age yet so this isn't an issue for me yet

We home school for a few reasons.

First, my ds was getting in trouble all the time. He was getting board and acting up. The school refused to give him harder or extra work to keep him busy. He is also ADHD and has trouble just sitting the way the expected him to when finished with his work.

Second, my odd was falling further and further behind her class. The school refused to have her tested for learning disabilities. I had her tested out side of school and she is dyslexic and ADHD. Oh, without any testing the school also tried to tell my she is Autistic, but she isn't.

Third, dh had an argument with the Principal. The Principal claimed that by enrolling a child in public school you give up any right to make decisions about the child.

 

[adventure_woman]

Third, dh had an argument with the Principal. The Principal claimed that by enrolling a child in public school you give up any right to make decisions about the child.

OH MY GOODNESS! My DD is only 2, but I would NOT have taken kindly to that comment.

 

[kevschickee]

OH MY GOODNESS! My DD is only 2, but I would NOT have taken kindly to that comment.

me either thems are fightin words lol

 

[williamson_ja]

We homeschool for a variety of reasons as well.
1. DD has severe asthma and the school was not cooperating with her needed care. (i.e. she was sent out to recess in 20 degree weather, etc.) She ended up missing 30 days of school for asthma that year.

2. DS has autism and the school refused to give him the services he required even though we had doctors notes, etc.

3. We are a christian family and I love that I can teach my children OUR values and not the school's values

4. By having my children at home, I have time to build a wonderful relationship with all of my children

5. As my children are now getting older (oldest is 14 now), I have the opportunity through our homeschool group to get to really know all of my kids friends and their parents. I know which kids are safe for my kids to hang out with, what their parent's values and rules are, etc.

6. I have the opportunity to teach my kids things that I feel are important that are NOT taught in public school any more. I taught an entire course on the Constitution and took my class to a Constitution Bowl competition where they won first place. They were also required to memorize the entire Declaration of Independence for that class.

7. They have opportunities for youth conferences and other special trips with other kids their age with similar values that they would not otherwise have.

Anyway, everyone homeschools for different reasons. I'm sure I could make this list longer, but those are the reasons that came to mind first as I read this post. You can always email me if you have specific questions.

 

[trnorbrn]

All of the above reasons. We feel it is our responsibility to educate our children and we enjoy doing so. We belong to a wonderful homeschool co-op and there are so many more opportunities for the children than public school can offer.

My husband works 26 weeks a year and this is not compatible with public school schedules. We usually buy APs for Disneyland since we live on the West Coast. We travel as often as possible and we can do school work anywhere. We will attend a west coast homeschool conference at Disneyland in September.

In the past year we spent seven weeks in Anaheim, a week in Canada, a week in SD and a week in Orlando. The kids also attended summer camps and one of the teens spent a week in San Francisco. I have one teen who left today to spend eight weeks in Haiti and she spent four weeks in Canada last summer. Another teen is leaving for Ecuador and will spend eight weeks there. I couldn't make this happen on a public school schedule. The boys spend one long weekend a month traveling with Boy Scouts.

We economize to make this happen and my children work and do fund raisers to cover their trips. We rent homes and rarely stay in hotels. We drive or buy cheap flights in advance. We prepare most of our own meals. Our only requirement is access to wireless.

 

[williamson_ja]

I forgot to mention how we love to travel when everyone else is in school. Also, homeschool days at Disneyworld is awesome! There are great programs for your kids at the world that are really hard to get into otherwise.
Our school district has strict policies on how many absenses you are allowed to take for a vacation or something before they automatically fail your kid (5 days). So, if you put your kids in regular school around here, you don't have a lot of choice for when to take (or how long to take) your family vacations. That's obviously not the #1 reason... but add it to the above list...

 

[Momvic5]

I homeschool my 3 children because I love teaching them. Homeschooling allows me to do what I love(teaching) with the 3 children I love the most. I went to school to be a math teacher, and before I started my career, I had my children. My career was put on hold. When it came time for my oldest to start school, I wanted to homeschool him, but I didn't have the confidence to do it. As the years passed and my middle child started school, I still had interests in homeschooling, but I just didn't follow through with my thoughts. Then when my youngest hit school age, I just decided I was going to do it. I had no excuses for myself anymore, and I knew I should just try it. I started homeschooling three years ago, and we all absolutely love it. My children have been in both private and public schools, and they did very well in them. I just decided to homeschool because I had a strong desire to do so, and I continue to homeschool because my are children are excelling greatly and enjoying it too. As long as we are all happy, and everyone is learning, we will homeschool.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

I don't homeschool anymore, but I did last year because of the school the kids were going to. It was a different reason for each child.

1. DD (always a straight A, well behaved child) started FAILING and neither she or the teacher could tell me why. She wasn't even doing classwork, although neither could tell me what she was doing instead . Then she even got into a fight with another girl.

2. DS then 9 was way ahead of his class and his teacher recommended he be moved up a grade, but the principal said "no, we don't do that" because DS would make their WASL scores look good (she actually said that).

3. DS then 7, his teacher kept telling me that my son needed to see a pediatrician because he wouldn't stay on task and couldn't keep up with the class. And she also said he was too slow doing the "math a minute" tests. Not just once, there were constant notes and meetings with me. But he had all A's and B's . After homeschooling him I realized that he's a visual learner and wasn't completely grasping addition enough to have facts memorized, he needed something to visualize in his head. After teaching him with an abacus, tiles, and tally sticks there were no more problems. And I had him tested for ADHD, they said he does have it, but it's mild and she and I agreed after much discussion that he did not need medication. He is in a new school now and has been very successful.

4. DS then 5 just stayed home because everyone else did and I wasn't happy at that point with that school.


One other reason was more personal. My DH deployed to Iraq at the end of that school year. The school was on an Army base and went, IMO, overboard with patriotism. So much so that there were often children leaving assemblies in tears because it reminded them that their parents were in harms way. It was kind of preaching to the choir if you ask me, the last people that you need to tell to be proud of their parents are the children of soldiers. It was very stressful to my kids and they started acting out at home and at school. When they were at home they were able to choose when to celebrate our patriotism and how much they could take (such as 4th of July celebrations). And it was upsetting to them when a classmate's parent was killed a counseler would inform the class and have some kind of discussion with them. I know there was no escaping that, but at least at home I could control how they were told and make sure all of their questions were answered so they wouldn't worry so much about Daddy.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

I also want to add that I really enjoyed having my kids home with me. I grew very close to them. I also loved being able to go on field trips with them while everyone else was at school so places weren't busy. And the group we belonged to presented so many more learning opportunities for them that they would never get in school. We saw so much more of the area and I really believe that kids learn more from experiencing than they could ever learn from a book.

This year my son learned about the Grand Canyon and Mount Rushmore in school. It was so real to him because he's been there so he understood what they were talking about when they would say how big they were or what they were like. It's one thing to say they grow grapes in northern California, it's another to roll down your car window and smell the grapes in the vineyards.

And from a budget standpoint, even buying my own curriculum and supplies, homeschooling was much cheaper. All the supplies, dances, field trips, school pictures, and other misc. costs at school really added up this year.

ETA: I do want to say that I stopped homeschooling because I started doubting myself. I thought I wasn't teaching my kids enough and was worried about their future as my older two head into middle school. It turned out I was wrong because they have A averages and are excelling, but they are enjoying school.

 

[PurpleTurtle]

I do, and have done so for the last 5 years, for multiple reasons:

DH and I can make the decisions about what is right for our kids to learn and be exposed to. We are able to operate our HS in a way that we truly believe is educating them as whole persons.

My kids get to spend tons of time playing, running around outside, riding their bikes, helping me garden, etc. rather than being inside for the majority of the day.

We all enjoy being together and it seems natural for us to spend our time with each other.

Our life is generally pretty laid back since we don't have to be up and out at the crack of dawn.

We can vacation in off seasons and enjoy more peaceful times together rather than when most others are required to vacation due to school schedules.

My kids range from age 5 up to 10, so they are still fairly young. I find it to be a very peaceful and relaxing lifestyle.

 

[tarazandra]

We made the decision to homeschool while I was pregnant with DD10. At the time I really just thought the one on one ratio would be so much more effective than 1:30. However, over time our reasons have evolved.

I really love that we can work within our children's interest. In schools the solar system is typically taught in 4th grade (I think). We learned about it when she was 7 because that's when she was interested in the solar system. I can't imagine telling a kid they have to wait to learn about something. If she had been in school and followed her interests in her free time at age 7, then two years later in the 4th grade, she would have been bored by going over all the same stuff again.

I also appreciate being able to teach to her level. Not all kids advance at the same speed. If my DDs need more time in one subject, I can do that. If they need to move faster, I can do that too. I can also tailor my teaching method to their learning styles.

We certainly enjoy the freedom that comes with homeschooling, which means basically not working within anyone else's timetable. We can learn and vacation at will. No clock tells us it's time to eat lunch and stop studying something fascinating in History. No calendar tells us we have to study on Wednesday and vacation in July. The flexibility that comes with homeschooling is probably my second favorite part.

My favorite part is the closeness of our family. We put family first and a school can't interfere with that because we are not subject to a school's rules, wills, and policies.

I also want to say that I am not Christian and I had a perfectly lovely time in school so my feelings do not stem from anything other than it really fits our way of life. I feel that homeschooling isn't so much an education choice as it is a lifestyle choice.

 

[Nina1]

Third, dh had an argument with the Principal. The Principal claimed that by enrolling a child in public school you give up any right to make decisions about the child.

She actually said that to your husband??? Unbelievable. Well, actually, now-a-days, not so unbelievable. This is exactly why our son will go to Catholic School (we are Catholic). I'm not confident in my abilities to home school. If I was, and the Catholic School in our area was not an option, I would home school before I put him in a public school. We don't buy into the "it takes a village to raise a child," crap. We will raise our child, thank you very much, and instill in him our values. The day I give up my right to make decisions about my child is the day I die. Off the soapbox. I'm just floored that the principal actually said that out loud to your husband. How dare she.

 

[trnorbrn]

Even though we homeschool I never feel like I am going it alone. We have wonderful friends that we meet up with several times a week through our church and co-op. We are part of a regional association that plans fields trips several times a month and then part of a larger west coast association that plans really big things like the annual conference at DLR.

We are as busy as we want to be with activities and we can also slow down as needed. No worries about sick days here or days when kids feel burnt out and need to spend the day playing.

Since my youngest has Down Syndrome we also have therapists and a developmental teacher coming to our home every week. In recent months we have also had a CNA coming over twice a week to help with everything. On Mondays our sign language teacher comes over and brings her children along to play. It is not unusual for us to spend entire days on doctor appointments each week. We do have one doctor who comes to our house once a month.

We are very involved in our community and spend time doing community service several times a month. My children take piano and guitar lessons. On Sunday afternoons we go to the nursing home and play for the residents there. Tuesday mornings we do childcare for a mothers of preschoolers group. We spend time volunteering for Awana and Scouts too.

My kids are actually too busy to attend public school. They help Dad and I around the house with everything that needs to be done. One of my boys loves to cook hot lunch for us most days and often will cook dinner too.

I am an unschooler at heart but my kids do follow a Calvert curriculum that is very demanding and they play sports. To make time for weekday activities it is not unusual to find some of us doing school work at six am or on Saturdays.

 

[laceemouse]

We pulled our kids out of public school 5 years ago to homeschool. You will find many reasons that people homeschool, it used to be mainly for religious reasons but that is usually not the main reason any more.

We were always in GREAT school districts. What that means is high test scores, and generally what that mean is a lot of stress on the kids and a lot of time TEACHING to the test.

We had problems with the fact that there were 25+ kids in the class every year. Every teacher has to teach to the norm. Kids who need to move faster are bored and kids who need to move slower are left in the dust. Out of our 4 kids we had some in both catagories.

We also had a problem with other families and their parenting decisions. My kids were exposed to a lot of inappropriate crap from other kids basically from kindergarten. We were not living in a bad area or anything, just most parents these days let their kids watch R rated movies and junk like MTV from a very young age and the kids talk about it at school.

Homeschooling is so different from what most people think. There are programs out there which are so well written any parent can do it. Many on on DVD or computer programs and stuff like that. Also, in our area, and many others, there are so many options for outside classes for fun and also stuff like chemistry and physics so when we need help it is easy to find.

Don't be fooled by a "great" school district. Check it out for yourself!

 

[LKHomemail]

i believe that parents have the right and responsibility to do what they think is best. i will say that it makes me cringe to read things like , the kids get more time outside , we can schedule vacations whenever we want , it provides us with a more laid back lifestyle. imo, those are all the wrong reasons. the decision to homeschool is what is in the kids best interest. the kid is going to be competing for jobs in a tough global market. those foreign kids aren't slacking right now. they are working long hours to prepare for their future. our kids need to be working just as hard to be prepared to have jobs and a comfortable lifestyle. the middle class is really shrinking / going away. if our kids don't work hard now / they will end up in the bottom class. i think many kids are being shortchanged in this system.

 

[livndisney]

i believe that parents have the right and responsibility to do what they think is best. i will say that it makes me cringe to read things like , the kids get more time outside , we can schedule vacations whenever we want , it provides us with a more laid back lifestyle. imo, those are all the wrong reasons. the decision to homeschool is what is in the kids best interest. the kid is going to be competing for jobs in a tough global market. those foreign kids aren't slacking right now. they are working long hours to prepare for their future. our kids need to be working just as hard to be prepared to have jobs and a comfortable lifestyle. the middle class is really shrinking / going away. if our kids don't work hard now / they will end up in the bottom class. i think many kids are being shortchanged in this system.

I did not read any post that said Homeschool children did not work hard. Nor did I see any post where it said Homeschool child were not working long hours.

While I agree that many children are being short changed in this system, I don't think it is because they are Homeschooled. It is much "easier" to send a child to school than it is to Homeschool a child (or children). Homeschool families don't teach to "a test" as many schools do. Many schools are not meeting the needs of our children. And the children are failing despite working hard. Areas like grammar are falling by the wayside. Sports, music and art are being cut due to cutbacks.

OP, I am glad you are considering options. Educating our children is a very personal thing and it is nice to see people considering their options.

 

[mrsbornkuntry]

i believe that parents have the right and responsibility to do what they think is best. i will say that it makes me cringe to read things like , the kids get more time outside , we can schedule vacations whenever we want , it provides us with a more laid back lifestyle. imo, those are all the wrong reasons. the decision to homeschool is what is in the kids best interest. the kid is going to be competing for jobs in a tough global market. those foreign kids aren't slacking right now. they are working long hours to prepare for their future. our kids need to be working just as hard to be prepared to have jobs and a comfortable lifestyle. the middle class is really shrinking / going away. if our kids don't work hard now / they will end up in the bottom class. i think many kids are being shortchanged in this system.

While it sounds like these reasons are allowing kids to be lazy and laid back, it really just shows how much free time kids waste at school. Honestly, kids do not spend all 7 hours at school learning. They spend much time walking between classes, waiting for other children to be finished with their work, bathroom breaks (needed for that child or not), recess at a defined time within a defined area, etc. When they're at home they can finish their work at their own pace and don't have to wait for anyone else to finish or sit through a lesson that they may already know. It frees up alot of time for children to play and BE children.

This is a generalization based on my experience, but the homeschooled children that I've met have had more time to pursue and learn about their own interests and to get out and be exposed to more of the "outside world" because they aren't wasting so much time.

Last week in school all 4 of my kids watched movies. That's it. Because they passed their end of grade tests, but they HAD to go to school because it's the law . The kids that didn't pass retook tests. Watching movies is hardly giving them a leg up on the rest of the world .