I found this site a few days ago and really like the things I see. Now I need help. I have three beautiful babies and I want to homeschool them. I have a DD12, DS8 and DD4. The problem is that my DD12 is completely and totaly against homeschooling. I'm not terribly opposed to the education she is receiving but I know it could be better. My problem is social issues and I want her removed from the situation. The sooner the better as far as I'm concerned. Do I force her to do the homeschooling thing or is that just setting us up for failure? How successful can I be with total resistance from her? My other problem is that I'm scared to take the plunge. I'm really terrified of messing my kids up socially and education wise. I don't know that I can do this. How hard is it to get started and be successful? How long do you give yourself before you admit defeat? I really want to do this but just not there in the confidence area yet. Thanks for any advice and words of wisdom
First of all welcome to the board sezell... Unless you are in your house 24/7/365 days a year, your children will get the socialization skills that the public school system promotes :roll: The difference being is that by homeschooling, you are better able to control who your child socializes with and maybe eliminate some of the negative influences. Many a mother who has come here has had the same scarey thoughts about homeschooling, questionning their ability to homeschool their children... you will see that many have done so successfully. If you can teach a child to walk, to talk, to sit, to stand, to tie their shoes, to ride a bike, etc. you can teach them their educational basics and more. I was there two years ago... I knew I was being directed to homeschool but was scared to death to make the move... when I did it was so totally right for me to do. We did put our son back into ps the following fall and then he was out again the next spring... LONG story. If you do choose to homeschool, let your children set the pace (but do set limits). I made the mistake of trying to do what the public school was doing and it was not a good move to make. When I adjusted the teaching to the learning styles and needs of our son, we moved ahead with success instead of the brick walls he would present. He's not a "text book" learner and once I figured that out (it took about a week of yanking my hair out) we did awesome together. There were a couple times when I was ready to throw in the the towel because I felt like a complete failure... but that's what this board is here for... for support, ecouragement and words from the wise. When he did return to school that fall, he was actually WELL AHEAD of his classmates because the material I taught him (according to grade three standards) was actually only being taught in grade four. Your 12 year old may have the hardest time adjusting because of the age/puberty stage, but it will get better. As hard as it may be, I might suggest waiting until fall to homeschool them (this again spoken from experience). This gives you the time to tell your children about it and for them to get used to the idea and time to look at different options for curriculums (and there are tonnes out there - many resources right on the web). If there are other homeschool families in your area, meet them and have your children meet them too... this may help your children with any questions they have - from a child's perspective (instead of the parent who doesn't know anyhting Your 12 year old might even like the idea of being able to teach a younger sibling (we used this... by teaching someone else something it's helping the teacher to learn it themselves - there's some prep work involved). Best of luck to you... I don't know if this is of any help to you but I hope it does help...
Thank you so much for the encouragement! I hadn't planned on starting homeschooling until the fall - there is little time left in this school year anyway. I truly believe my 8yo son will thrive by homeschooling. He is one of those kids that moves at his own pace. It took me a long time to realize that he is as bright as he is because all I've heard from the school is complaints about him not completing work on time and not paying attention in class etc. etc. etc. He is in 3rd grade and reading on a 6th grade level with 90% comprehension. However, he has bad grades in reading because he doesn't do things as fast as they expect him to. I think letting him work at his own (slower) pace will be a blessing for him. He has good comprehension when reading material but I do know he likes hands on things - experiments and the such. Do you know of a curriculum that would work well with someone like that? Comprehends fairly quickly but is slow in doing the work. My 12yo daughter is the opposite. She works very fast and is very bright. She has dumbed herself down because she can get by with doing very little work and still make A's. I believe she is capable of so much more than is expected of her. She is the artsy type-loves to make things,coloring,dance,music etc. My biggest fear with her is the opposition i am going to face with her. Any suggestions of curriculum with her? I can't tell you enough how pleased I am to have found you ladies! Thanks again for any and all advice you can give.
KONOS might be a good fit for both of your children. http://www.konos.com/ It's fun; has a lot of hands-on projects; it's a unit study format, so you can take as long as you like doing it (their website says that it is meant to take 9-14 weeks, but most people spread it out to 18 weeks). If your daughter will be going into ninth grade the elementary/middle school curriculum might be a little light for her, but it might be good to have a "fun" year to get her used to the idea of homeschooling. (You can add a high school level math book. Ninth grade usually does general science, so she will be ok there with what KONOS teaches.) KONOS also has a high school curriculum. There is actually another discussion going on in here about KONOS: http://www.homeschoolspot.com/showthread.php?t=2319 I hope that helps! ~ Marylyn
Thanks, Marilyn. It helps to at least have a starting point. There is so much out there that I'm a little overwhelmed.
Hi! I took my 11 yo daughter out of PS in November because of social issues. At first she was totally against it. We talked about it at length. The pros and cons. She came around eventually and we've been at it ever since. My best advice is to read as much as you can about homeschooling and decide what fits for your family. For us there is a fine line between structure and chaos. I try to be as flexible as I can while still getting the work done. I let her lead when possible. What she reads and writes is mostly up to her. When she reads and writes is up to her, as long as she gets it done by the time I have deemed it due. When it comes to Math and Grammar and other book work I tend to keep more scheduled. I write a lesson plan for her so she knows what has to be done each day. We look at it in the morning and plan for things that require my attention at times when the baby is napping. Other than that she does it in whatever order she wants to. As to curriculum. I like Rainbow Resource for pretty good descriptions of material. And if you google Homeschool Curriculum Reviews you'll find a site that parents have reviewed curriculum. Most of all RELAX. You can do it.
I haven't read the other comments here, but If you would let us know what state you are in, we can probably find a homeschool convention that you and your husband could go to. The seminars are great and have convinced many a husband. You might want to leave your checkbook at home, though, as a new homeschooler you will want to buy everything and be overwhelmed. Just write down the curriculum that you like and come home and find it on the internet and do some research. The conventions are going on now and some have passed. Also, your daughter is probably thinking she will be weird and won't have any friends. There is still time to attend a few homeschool support group activities. Usually you can attend a few without joining. She will see that there are many kids and maybe find a friend before summer. I use My Father's World curriculum www.MFWbooks.com if you want a relaxed, Christian curriculum.
Thanks Liz. We live in Arkansas and I haven't even looked for a convention yet but like the idea. I'm actually very blessed in that my husband supports this move 100%. He needs no convincing! And you're right - my daughter thinks all homeschooled kids don't have friends and are weird. I'm hoping in time we can expose her to enough other hs kids that she will know this is not the case. I went to the library today and got some hs books. My daughter found them and said "You are not serious. I will NOT be homeschooled" WOW this is going to be a challenge. I'm praying that once we get into this in the fall she will see all the pros and not focus on all the cons. But in the meantime I'm going to try to find a support group here in town and look into the convention thing like you suggested. Thanks a lot Shawn
Your convention is not until May 26 & 27th in Searcy. http://www.arkansashomeschool.org/eaconvbroc.html Tips on attending a convention: http://homeschooling.about.com/cs/gettingstarted/a/conventions.htm Arkansas homeschool support group info: http://homeschoolcentral.com/support/arkansas_homeschool.htm An Arkansas homeschooling news blog: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/Arkansas/ A blog by an Arkansas homeschooler you might relate to: www.homeschoolblogger.com/ArkansasHomeschoolingMomma Another blog by a SW AR family: http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/armoorefam/
Liz and 9th grade???? Liz, What do you plan to do when he reaches 9th grade? I look at the books you use and it said thru 8th grade.:lol: Lorna
I believe the Hazell's will have added 9th-12th to their curriculum by the time I get to that stage. However, I will email you with what I did.
Depending on where in AR you are, the Memphis homeschool conference my not be too far from you Here is the link for it: http://www.memphishomeschool.org/0700.htm
When we pulled Andrew out a couple years ago I purchased McGraw-Hill curriculum because it was the only stuff I could get and fast... I also had stuff sent to me by a friend which helped us... we used A LOT of internet resources as well.
Oh, if you are relatively close to Memphis, there are lots of free activities on Tuesdays. Let me know if you are interested in details of what's out there.
We are actually in NW Ark. so that probably wouldn't work. But we are visiting your area this summer on our vacation! We can't wait!
SeZell, Here is a NW Ark forum. I can't tell how active it is and I'm not suggesting you leave us. I belong to several forums. My son goes to college in Siloam Springs, we go their a lot. I don't know why I have tried to help you so much, it is not like me I'll email you again.
I'll tell you anyway then, maybe you can plan in some of the free things. Pink Palace Museum is free on Tuesdays, 1-4.(except the planetarium & IMAX. I highly recommend the IMAX) The Brooks Museum of Art is free on Wed. 10-4. The Civil Rights Museum (motel where Martin Luther King was killed) is free on Mon. 10-4. Litcherman Nature Center is free Tues. 1-4. Memphis Botanic Gardens are free Tues. 12-4:30 Mud Island River Park is free any time (excludes the monorail and MS River Museum).
My dh grew up in Memphis, I also lived there for many years. I notice you didn't include the very educational Graceland!!! Just kidding!
I only included the free stuff, but Graceland would be an experience! I don't live in Memphis, but about an hour away. It's still convenient enough to plan field trips there, especially if they are free!
Hi, I tried to post these NW AR hs group sites yesterday but they never came through. Sorry if it ends up being a double post! These groups have members from Prairie Grove to Fayetteville/Springdale to the Bentonville/Rogers area. There are other groups in Huntsville, Siloam Springs, and Ft.Smith if you are closer to those areas. We belong to the first group listed below - nice diverse group with lots of activiites. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/TLA_Northwest_Arkansas_Homeschool/ http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NWAHSE/ http://nwachea.topcities.com/
