OT- homeschooling support

[Guest guest]

I'm exploring the homeschooling option at this time for my 13 yr. old vegan son.

I've had it with public school. My son has been bullied for various things.

Really not for his being vegan.

We went to a teen homeschooling panel and are very hopeful to make this a smooth

transition. If anyone has switched to homescholing from a public school, I'd be

interested in hearing from you

We are not Christian; so I'd like to hear from parents who are using a secular

ciriculum.

If there are any of you who live in MD, this would be especially helpful.

Please feel free to email me off this list.

Thanks so much for your help in advance.

Laura M.

Silver Spring, MD

[Guest guest]

Hi-

I considered homeschooling, too, for our daughter who is in Kindergarten this

year. For me, it boiled down to social stuff. I wanted her to a) have to pay

attention to and follow directions given by an adult besides those in her

immediate family, and b) learn to get along in large® groups of kids and learn

THOSE types of skills. Then again, I found a school in our neightborhood

(although NOT the school she would've gone to given the attendance boundaries)

that I really like, so that made it easier. If I had been unable to do so (if,

for instance, Lillian would've had to go to our 'neighborhood' school), I

would've homeschooled her in a quick minute.

One suggestion I do have is that your school district might have a homeschool

charter school. We have one such school in our district- it's really sort of an

education center for homeschoolers. Computer classes, foreign language classes,

advanced math for the odler kids, and even a Kinder class that your children

could go to a day or two a week, just to get the 'kinder' experience. It seemed

like a great way for homeschoolers who might be concerned about the social

aspects of homeschooling to get that stuff in. I say all of the above as a

teacher of public school who was in the classroom for 10 years before becoming a

stay-at-home mom. I am pretty passionate about the principle of public school,

but also think everyone has to make their own decisions based on what's best for

their kid(s). Two of my friends (we run a preschool co-op for our younger kids),

also former public school teachers, homeschool their older sons.

My two cents as a public school teacher who received MANY formerly homeschooled

kids in her room: please be honest with yourself as to your limitations,

especially when it comes to teaching your child subjects you may not be

particularly skilled at. Of course, this doesn't matter so much for the early

elementary years, but being able to teach (well) a subject involves a lot more

than just being able to read some guide about 'what to teach' in any given year.

(this is why the abovementioned 'extra' classes available would be so great-you

could supplement the subjects you may not be that great at!) I think that

homeschooling well takes a real commitment to learn effective teaching

strategies, questioning techniques, etc. But,as with any parenting task, it can

certainly be done if you're willing to put the time and research in. You

also have an advantage over a classroom teacher: you only have to deal with one

or a few kids instead of 20 or 30, and you

already know those kids (and how they learn best).

jenni

 

 

 

 

________________________________

Jacqueline Bodnar <jb

 

Saturday, March 14, 2009 2:04:32 PM

RE: OT- homeschooling support

 

 

Thank you for bringing this up. I'm at the point of considering whether

to homeschool my daughter or send her to school. She will be five in

September, so I look forward to hearing the feedback.

 

Jacqueline

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

As a radical unschooling parent, the best advice I can offer is for

you to find a secular

homeschooling group for support. It can be hard homeschooling, with

some family and

friends questioning you, etc. It can be REALLY hard homeschooling

when most of the homeschoolers

you meet are xian and use xian curriculum. I don't know what the

homeschooling laws are in MD, so

I'm not much help there either.

My oldest child needed to 'de-school' for a while after we pulled her

out of public school. She was only 7

at the time. She was also being bullied mercilessly, and the school

was just not doing anything about it.

After letting her 'de-school' we discovered that she learns VERY well

on her own. You might want to read

the Teenage Liberation Handbook, since your son is older. I'd also

recommend Dumbing us Down, and

The Underground History of American Education (which can be read

online for free at this link:

http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/chapters/index.htm )

I hear lots of good things about Oak Meadow curriculum, I've heard

that they have an accredited diploma program.

You can use their curriculum and pay a little extra to have teachers

grade your child's assigments, issue

credits for high school, etc.

Good luck!

Jenn

 

On Fri, Mar 13, 2009 at 10:18 PM, peaceweaver99 <VAP79 wrote:

 

> We are not Christian; so I'd like to hear from parents who are using a

> secular ciriculum.

> If there are any of you who live in MD, this would be especially helpful.

> Please feel free to email me off this list.

> Thanks so much for your help in advance.

> Laura M.

> Silver Spring, MD

>

[Guest guest]

My friend has been homeschooling her daughter since she was 6 or 7

(and she will be 13 this summer). She was at a private school before

(Montessori) and had several issues on things with them, and it was

best for them. They are secular, and do not have a religious component

to their works (though she does LOVE the Sonlight curriculum - and you

can pick/choose from them, so you do not have to get the religious

parts if you do not want to - they have wonderful materials,

manipulatives-things to work on with your hands for stuff like math,

but I think your son may be 'too old' for those - my son is only

5.5yrs old, so I love their materials and they are similar to what he

uses in his Montessori). My friend also just started a homeschool

co-op (a one day enrichment workshop) that's a one day, all day kind

of program where they do things that are more fun in groups and you

probably wouldn't set up at home (Like more involved science

experiments, a writer's workshop, gym, art and a few other things I

think, there is also a room for younger children/babies so it makes it

easier for parents who have more than one aged child. I know parents

are supposed to stay there, but there's a parent lounge where they can

take a break, I don't know about involvement, but the kids have

different options of what they want to sign up for each term).

 

You should also find out the regulations in your state, since they are

all different on what they require (here in IL they don't really ask

that you do anything - other than if you had been in a public school

to let them know your intentions to homeschool). We also have a k-12

online program that follows the public schools, but you can use them

to homeschool and that works for some people. I think this was one

that was ok in terms of what might be needed, especially if you

transfer from w/in the school system (some private schools are a bit

different in what they are also required to report to the state) This

might be a good place to start:

http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

 

Good luck, it is a big step - oh, one more thing, check to see if

there are support groups in your area - my friend also belongs to at

least 2 homeschool groups, and they go to the Homeschooling Conference

here (I don't know if it's just IL, but I think they also go to a

National one). One of the ones she belongs to is Christian based, but

she only takes away the stuff she/they want. She also is part of one

of the unschoolers groups as they tend to be more secular. She had no

want to do unschooling, but in terms of how her daughter learns, she

had to re-think it, and her style that they have come into now is more

a blend of several different kinds. They also belong to an

all-homeschooled girl scout troop, and they're a great bunch of girls.

 

I guess I know more about all of this than I thought I did. LOL. Good luck!

Missie

 

 

On Fri, Mar 13, 2009 at 10:18 PM, peaceweaver99 <VAP79 wrote:

> I'm exploring the homeschooling option at this time for my 13 yr. old vegan

> son.

> I've had it with public school. My son has been bullied for various things.

> Really not for his being vegan.

> We went to a teen homeschooling panel and are very hopeful to make this a

> smooth transition. If anyone has switched to homescholing from a public

> school, I'd be interested in hearing from you

> We are not Christian; so I'd like to hear from parents who are using a

> secular ciriculum.

> If there are any of you who live in MD, this would be especially helpful.

> Please feel free to email me off this list.

> Thanks so much for your help in advance.

> Laura M.

> Silver Spring, MD

>

>

 

 

 

--

 

http://mszzzi.zoomshare.com

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mszzzi/

 

~~~~~(m-.-)m

[Guest guest]

I have a 12 year old and a 5 year old (both girls). The 5 year old I made

the decision this past year to leave her in the home daycare she had been at

since she was 8 weeks old and homeschool her Kindergarten. Her babysitter

is a certified special ed elementary teacher. My oldest I am sending the

school district a letter on Monday to say I will be homeschooling from this

point onwards. We are not using a Christian curriculum either. Half my

family are Jewish and half are Christian and my oldest has decided to follow

the Jewish half. My plan is to let her 'decompress' for a few weeks - like

having summer vacation early - and then start in with her learning. Right

now I am planning more on unschooling her as she has many interests she

wants to explore however, I plan on introducing a writing curriculum in the

summer (probably WriteShop). There is so much available online for other

subjects especially social studies and history that we won't be purchasing

other curricula at this point.

 

 

 

There are a lot of people in this area of South Jersey homeschooling so

there are a lot of other local people for me to ask (I guess that says

something about the quality of schools in this area! The whole school

district we are in here is in year 5 of state demands for improvement which

means next year they have to fire half the teachers, the administration and

bow to the state reorganization details).

 

 

 

I'd happily converse with you offline about what I am finding out (and what

you are finding out) about homeschooling a young teen.

 

 

 

Sarah

 

 

 

 

[Guest guest]

I agree with Jenn about the support group. You and your child will benefit

greatly from this. You can find local in real life groups for social interaction

and cooperatives. You can also find local or state online groups that will help

with your state's requirements and the opportunities available to your child in

the area. There are also many websites and groups without geographic bounderies

that can be helpful.

 

Unless your state regs require it, don't rush into purchasing a curriculum. You

need to figure out your child's learning style and how you two best work

together. You can spend a lot of money on curriculum only to find out that it

doesn't work for you. There is so much available for free online. You can do a

great job of pulling material from the net and the library without ever spending

money (except on paper and supplies). Give yourself plenty of time to talk with

others and do your research before buying a boxed curriculum. Also, there are

many places to buy used curriculum. This will allow you to " try out " a set

before spending tons of money.

 

Good luck,

Robin

 

, Jenn <jenny.wren76 wrote:

>

> As a radical unschooling parent, the best advice I can offer is for

> you to find a secular

> homeschooling group for support. It can be hard homeschooling, with

> some family and

> friends questioning you, etc. It can be REALLY hard homeschooling

> when most of the homeschoolers

> you meet are xian and use xian curriculum. I don't know what the

> homeschooling laws are in MD, so

> I'm not much help there either.

> My oldest child needed to 'de-school' for a while after we pulled her

> out of public school. She was only 7

> at the time. She was also being bullied mercilessly, and the school

> was just not doing anything about it.

> After letting her 'de-school' we discovered that she learns VERY well

> on her own. You might want to read

> the Teenage Liberation Handbook, since your son is older. I'd also

> recommend Dumbing us Down, and

> The Underground History of American Education (which can be read

> online for free at this link:

> http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/chapters/index.htm )

> I hear lots of good things about Oak Meadow curriculum, I've heard

> that they have an accredited diploma program.

> You can use their curriculum and pay a little extra to have teachers

> grade your child's assigments, issue

> credits for high school, etc.

> Good luck!

> Jenn

>

> On Fri, Mar 13, 2009 at 10:18 PM, peaceweaver99 <VAP79 wrote:

>

> > We are not Christian; so I'd like to hear from parents who are using a

> > secular ciriculum.

> > If there are any of you who live in MD, this would be especially helpful.

> > Please feel free to email me off this list.

> > Thanks so much for your help in advance.

> > Laura M.

> > Silver Spring, MD

> >

>

[Guest guest]

I do homeschool my two sons, 9 and 13. Since you live in MD, there are a lot of

homeschool groups from there...just search homeschool groups through either

or google. I live in MA, so I couldn't be of much help as to MDs

process...each state, sometimes town has their own requirements. But, don't let

the whole process scare you, it isn't as difficult as it may seem (legally).

One awesome book, it's for teens, but parents (obviously) can read it is: The

Teenage Liberation Handbook by Grace Llewellyn. I have seen MD groups that get

together and take trips (long distance), but that is not always the case. As

far as socialization, our boys have more of a social life than their " schooled "

friends, mainly because they have time to be a friend. And, they listen well to

others because we taught them to respect others, child or adult, and can " sit

still " for whatever length of time is necessary and always have because we

explain the need to and we have always brought some things for them to do, when

they were younger.

Everyone has their own reasons for homeschooling, we have several, you will find

more out as you go along, if that's what you end up choosing. It's awesome to

be able to see your own children develop and grow at their own pace and watch

the sparkle in their eyes when they've done something that they wanted to!!

Good luck to you and I hope this was a bit helpful!

Colleen

 

 

, " peaceweaver99 " <VAP79 wrote:

>

> I'm exploring the homeschooling option at this time for my 13 yr. old vegan

son.

> I've had it with public school. My son has been bullied for various things.

Really not for his being vegan.

> We went to a teen homeschooling panel and are very hopeful to make this a

smooth transition. If anyone has switched to homescholing from a public school,

I'd be interested in hearing from you

> We are not Christian; so I'd like to hear from parents who are using a secular

ciriculum.

> If there are any of you who live in MD, this would be especially helpful.

> Please feel free to email me off this list.

> Thanks so much for your help in advance.

> Laura M.

> Silver Spring, MD

>

[Guest guest]

I am homeschooling my 7 y/o daughter and its been a great and

challenging experience. I think there is way too much concern about

not having enough opportunities to be with other children. We see

homeschool friends usually twice a week and all her friends from

different schools for paly dates and parties. The homeschool groups

are often multi-age which I find a plus. She participates in town

soccer and does gymnastics twice weekly. In the past we did weekly

art and swimming lessons. She has a much busier social life than I do!

 

As a homeschooling mom, I am often with her to help her negotiate

difficult social situations. She is more confident and appropriately

assertive than I think she would be if she were left to fend for

herself, as she tends to be shy and at times overwhelmed by bossier

kids. It certainly has helped to have discussions about our diet that

are positive without being in opposition to others' choices.

 

Its a big responsibility, but by reading everything you can get your

hands on about homeschooling, learning the homeschool laws in your

state, and connecting with other homeschool families (we know

families with both secular and religious based schooling approaches),

you'll have access to curriculum input and support. Finding local

families was the first best support for us.

 

There are options for tutoring and classes in areas I have little

knowledge of - we take her to Chinese language school now and will be

starting an Audobon class for homeschoolers soon.

 

So if you make connections and are open to having a plan that you

taylor to your child's needs as you go, I think it is an amazing

experience.

 

Good luck!

 

Bea