what if you were never accountable to anyone in your hsing?

I am stealing a thread from another forum from a while back. What would you do in your homeschooling was totally free from pressures of measuring up to anyone/anything? If there were no state laws? If you didn't care what others thought from the public/private schools or even fellow homeschoolers? What if you could get the specified training needed for your kids careers without all the pre-requisites? What if colleges recognized that not everyone needs to have a "well-rounded" education?

By the way, why should certain classes be mandatory for all?:roll: I don't care if my doctor ever studied music or art or even English beyond the skills needed for communicating. It seems like there is this idea out there that to be an "educated" person you must know a certain amount of stuff even if it NEVER comes up in your life again. I think we all should learn what we need to accomplish our jobs.

 

Hmm... I dunno. It wouldn't look much different than it already does. TX doesn't really have any requirements. I'm not all that concerned about what other people think. If everyone was able to do what they wanted, when they wanted, though... he'd be doing more things that are academic based than age based. I HATE that I can't get him into interesting things simply because he's (almost) 4. He wants so badly to be around other kids, but kids his age don't like him. Scratch that. They don't understand him. Kids who are his academic age are socially too advanced for him.

 

I pretty much do what we want too. I guess if I could change a few things without worrying about it would be to read more history books and watch history videos without the worry of them retaining the information. I guess more pleasure reading. I guess I would have to think about anything else that I would change.

 

as far as I have been conerned I am not really accountable to anyone so, I would also do what I am doing now.. maybe with a teensy bit of changes like no diagraming sentences and some parts in Algebra would be extracted from the curriculuim because they would nto need it in thier plans for life.... but for the most part I would do what I do now, I have mostly been on my own homeschooling for 13 years wiht the side classes the past two or so years in co op, I still do things my own way not totally the same as anyother homeschooler family

 

we wonder the same thing.
My dd sat across from me the other morning over her pancakes and said, mommy I don't want to learn all that dumb geography stuff. I'm not going to go to any of those places anyway. I'm never gonna go very far from here.

She's 8. I am still laughing at how she rolled her eyes when she said it. I agree, fully. I highly doubt that she needs to know so many specific things about Hong Kong, London, Sydney and the Ottoman Turks lol.

But I look at it this way, she is learning skills. Skills that sharpen memory, recalling information, how to study, how to test, how to write, ect. I think some of it, is just the discipline of doing it, not the material itself per say.

But yes, I have been married now 14 years, and have 3 kids. I do promise that all this time I have never had to know that London was built by the Romans!

 

I have started and erased this post several times. I am not sure how it would be different. In a perfect world- I would have an income that would allow us to travel and we would travel around the country and the world learning and exploring and experiencing life and culture. Talking and growing and investigating the things that spark our imagination.

 

I would do a whole lot more unschooling. I'd love to live in the country, do a little math and language in the AM with Phillip, and let him run outside the rest of he day. I wouldn't worry about Faythe doing science or math formally.

 

I'll be honest on this one (preparing for the rocks coming my way)...If there were no accountability I would probably be a horrible homeschool mommy. I am a bad procrastinator (trying to work on that). And I have a feeling that if I didn't have to show anyone that they're passing (we take a yearly test now), that I'd probably become way to slack and we'd end up just being home all day like summer vacation. So I am happy with our state laws right now. All the have to do is show testing results and that's great, no other hassles (like attendance days, etc). It works for me.

 

If I didn't have to answer to anyone including my ex(the older kids daddy) & I had the money. I'd so be the ultimate unschooler. We would buy a RV & travel learning hands on as we go. Hey if your going to dream might as well dream big! LOL

 

I will keep doing what I am doing. As I feel school is important.

 

I wouldn't change anything. I think it is important for my kids to have a well-rounded education. I may think that they will never benefit by knowing where Djoubti is or what a dangling participle is, but in reality, I don't know what their future will hold. I do not want their options to be limited by my lack of imagination.

 

If we didn't have to worry about money - we'd be in an RV travelling. I'm not as picky about grammar - I expect the kids to speak and write correctly.... and I would do that no matter what.

We don't have a lot of rules - just testing 1x per year and let the county know you are still homeschooling.

I think I'M the one who is strict. I'm not super strict - but I have expectations for my kids and I expect them to meet them or try to their best ability to get there.

Maybe it's because I am such a nerd

 

I think I'm at a point where I'm happy with our "almost completely unschooling" lives. We do some work but what it amounts to is an hour at most and then an hour of reading together before bed. I'd love to throw away the portfolio that we have to turn in each year as that seems to be my biggest stress right now LOL

 

I would definately allow ourselves to go to the realms of completely unschooling!

If we lived in a state that wasn't so strict, we would be doing it that way already!

 

Oh, oh!!! Mommy2thegang, can I join you? We can travel all over and unschool together!!!

Kris, yes, school is important. I'd still do school, but I'd do it in a totally different way!

 

Well we have been doing that for 8+ years now. Each state we have lived in has only one rule...register with the state.

So we do some unschooling BUT Math and English are everyday. We take off when we want, school year round, I buy all the books ( so we have many points of view), travel some, go on a lot of field trips, they take Co-Op classes 2x a week and I only get a little worried ( like this week I had a meltdown, which is very rare for me).

The only thing I would change is....I won't have unschooled for as long ( almost 6 years NO STRUCTURE ) as I did. My girls are kind of playing catch up on some subjects , but are ahead on others. They have actually asked for more "school at home" so that is what we have done the last 2+ years. Very structured in the AM and after lunch is more "free- schooling".

 

I think I wouldn't change a whole lot. We don't have much accountability now, just attendance.
So..you know technically they are "in attendance" every day. he he. but for THEM I count the days, because otherwise they want to play video games non-stop.
I have more issues with accountability with dh than with the state. So that wouldn't change.
I believe in a well rounded education too. No, you probably won't really need to know that the Romans built London...or that Hannibal (the other one) took elephants over the alps...but I want my kids to be able to carry on an intelligent conversation.
and stuff comes up. We were surprised at how greek gods and thier attributes are perfused across our culture. Understanding the Odessey and being able to make references to that sort of thing and biblical history.
Social and historical references are so important....when I lived in Japan, most of the Japanese my age (20 years ago, early 20's) did not understand why Korea was so hostile to Japan. They really had no idea because of the revisionist history just kind of left out much of pre WW2.

 

Honestly, the only thing I would want to change about our homeschooling, is the budget. I'd love for money to be no object. That way we could travel. I could take the kids to see the Pyramids, Stonehenge, The Great Wall of China, some ruins or maybe a castle still standing from the Middle Ages, etc. I'd love to be able to have a fully equipped lab in the house for Science. I'd get the piano fixed & hire a private piano teacher for the kids.
I feel it's important for my kids to have a well-rounded education. They don't need to know everything about every subject, but they should know something about as many subjects as possible. Their future careers may not lie in art or music, but what if a hobby does? They might not be interested in Geography right now, but what if they choose a career that involves travel? I feel it's important for me to expose my kids to as much as I can. That includes art, music, foreign languages, Science, History, Geography, World Religions, Math, Grammar, Writing, Spelling/Vocab, Reading, cooking, wood working, car maintenance, and more. You never know what they will choose as a career or what hobbies will help fulfill them. I wouldn't want to limit their options just because we don't have to be accountable to someone.

BTW, I live in an easy state. We don't have to report to anyone. We don't have to test or have our work looked over by a teacher. We just have to teach certain subjects & provide an education that's comparable (or better) to that of the public schools. We're considered a private school & have complete control over materials, subjects, and graduation requirements. My graduation requirements far surpass the public school requirements. I expect more from my kids than the mediocrity of our local public schools. I don't have my kids learn everything I have them learn because we're accountable to someone. I do it to give them the best start in life I possibly can.

 

Oh Brandie! I completely agree! I would love for money to be no consideration! That would be so nice!

 

Yep, let's go !! LOL