HELP! I'M NOT SURE WHAT I WANT BUT MY HUSBAND AND I ARE NOT SURE IF WE CAN CONTINUE ON HOMESCHOOLING. I HAVE A DAUGHTER IN 5TH GRAD AND A SON IN 4TH GRADE. MY DAUGHT IS VERY SMART AND SHE IS ONLY 11 YEARS OLD AND SHE ALREADY SAYS TO SHE WANTS TO GO TO COLLEGE AND BECOME A DOCTOR. THE THING IS WE ARE NOT SURE IF WE CAN GIVE HER ALL SHE NEEDS IN HER EDUCATION. I KNOW SHE IS ONLY 11 BUT SHE IS REALLY HEART SET ON GOING TO COLLEGE. I KNOW SHE CAN DO IT. MY SON DOESN'T SAY ANYTHING YET. BUT I GUESS OUR CONCERN IS ABOUT ALL THE MATH THEY HAVE TO HAVE. IF THERE IS ANY ADVICE PLEASE SEND TO ME AND LET ME KNOW IF ANYONE WENT THROUGH THIS BEFORE. WE KNOW HOMESCHOOLING IS THE BEST THING TO DO. WE GO TO CHURCH AND MY CHILDREN KNOW RIGHT FROM WRONG. I GUESS I JUST NEED TO PRAY ABOUT IT AND LET THE LORD LEAD ME. THINGS FOR ANY ADVICE. I HAVE ANOTHER DAUGHTER WHO WILL BE 4 SOON. THERE IS ANOTHER SITUATION I WILL HAVE TO DEAL WITH. I SURE HAVE LOVED THE TIME WE HAVE HOMESCHOOLED IT HAS BEEN 3 YEARS. IT GETS ME ALITTLE SAD WHEN I THINK ABOUT IT. MY KIDS ARE OKAY WITH IT TO A POINT. THEY DO HAVE FRIENDS IN SCHOOL THAT THEY KNOW. THANKS, MOM OF THREE MELISSA STONER
Oh, my. I've had this same concern and I'm not even legal until next year. While I don't have any advice, I can tell you our paper ran a story about a 15 year old homeschooler, I don't know where from, but she had already begun taking college classes parttime. It's been awhile so I don't remember the whole story, but I do remember that she was a teenager. Does your community college offer classes that you can take to make yourself more competent? That's what I plan to do. A homeschooled doctor... cool idea!!
My children are very young so I haven't lived through this all yet, but I know that lots and lots of colleges are actually recruiting homeschoolers now because they know the benefits it brings to the student. Also, as Becky mentioned, there are alot of homeschoolers who take college classes while in "high school". There is a friend of mine whose teenagers are set to graduate high school by the age of 16 and start college right away next fall. There are many, many great resources for homeschooling through high school, writing transcripts, and college entrance exams. I even saw a book by a family who homeschooled all of their children through high school and now they all attend Harvard. If you look for the title I think it includes "getting your kids into Harvard", but don't quote me on that. I would encourage you with the thought that God takes care of everything that He purposes for us. Your daughter seems to be doing quite well under your family's care I see no reason to break from what you have been doing. You are much better able to guide her and help her pursue her goals than the failing public school system. And with God on her side, she has no reason to doubt her ability to seek His will and follow through!
If you and your family are enjoying homeschooling, and your children are doing fine, and you'd miss it if you stopped, then I would keep going with homeschooling. There are soooo many things available for homeschooling now, and many colleges that accept homeschoolers with no qualms. There is on-line help with math, if that's a concern. Many programs have numbers to call for help or tutoring. There are many great math programs! I'd let her keep working through her books and things, skimming over the stuff she already knows so she can keep advancing at a rate that keeps her motivated. My 7-yr.-old dd is in 3rd grade (I was 9 in 3rd grade!), and is half-way through the math for her grade. Once she's done, I'll just have her start the next level and keep going. It gives them a confidence in themselves that helps them push to reach their goals. Right now my dd wants to "work in a store", I think she wants to work with the cash register, it looks fun! :lol: I'm sure her goals will change in the next few years, but I just encourage her, and her two older brothers to work toward their goals, and my dh and I will support them as much as we can! Anyway, Melissa, it seems like you've done great so far! With so much available, I think your daughter would get LESS of what she truly needs if she was back in school!!! Keep praying about it, and so will I! Best wishes in coming to a decision!
You might want to check out the churches in your area. A local church has a homeschool support group. One of the things they offer are classes for the kids. Mom can go to Bible study while the kids are in class. We signed the kids up and they love it. They offer everything from karate to chemistry. He is taking Spanish and math with them this year. He loves it. My younger daughter is taking sign language and karate. They go one morning a week. It is about $100 a semester but it is worth it!
help may send kids to ps Thanks everyone for your response. Yes, it will be hard to send them back to ps. I will talk with my husband and let him know all jof the response I have gotten. I know my kids will miss being home to. Thanks again and reponse if there is more out there to write to me.
Deena, I read in another thread, beats me which one, that your oldest is going to a Christian school next year. I'm no way asking this like a smart aleck, but what made your family decide to do that? although Jeannie just turned four, I'm already worrying about those further away years! My concern is about adjustment. If for some reason I can't continue to homeschool, she's the one who will pay for it by having to get adjusted to a school and all its 'lovely' ups and downs. Yep, girls, I'm duking it out with myself again! :roll:
Becky, It was only with a LOT of research and prayer, and our son WANTING to go that we decided it was a possibility. It's like it's tailor-made to fit his needs and likes. He is so very musical, even has perfect pitch, plays the piano beautifully--by ear or by note, is getting more into singing parts now, and wants to delve into French and sciences even more. That school has everything that he wants and needs: a very strong music program with lessons and performances, a work program where he would be able to learn audio and computer techniques, they have a carrot farm even, and orchards that the kids can work in and learn about agriculture and running a business, plus they do a lot of Christian outreach, and at least one mission trip per year. We haven't made a final decision yet. We're going to check it out more thoroughly next weekend. As I said, we (especially me!) have prayed about this a LOT since we first heard about it last year. He's always been one that is more independent, and I don't want him to be discouraged, that's why we decided to go ahead and check it out in the first place. Yet I'd be the first to put my foot down and say NO if I felt it wasn't good!!! But I haven't found anything bad about it yet! I know noone and nothing is perfect on this earth, but I have heard nothing but praise from anyone who has had anything to do with the school! It's almost unreal the way it is going! I'm very strict. There are other Christian school, and public schools around, and I was not happy with ANY of them for one reason or another! I planned to homeschool him through highschool........until this school came along. One other thing is that there is a group of boys, a couple of which he has grown up with his whole life, that hang around together. Their family values, we have found, are quite different from ours, and there have been a couple of instances where he has followed their lead in something, and it's not been good! I am putting that as nicely as possible--basically I was apalled at what was happening, and the parents didn'tdo anything about it. "Well, boys will be boys" was their only response, and that really bothered me, because it's about things that need to be dealt with at the onset, to keep them from getting worse! These boys are around in lots of what we do, since they go to the same church and go to many of the same activities! I don't want to isolate him from life in general, but I think he has a better chance to think for himself and get an idea of who HE is if he's not around them all the time. Someone here asked me, "Well why don't you keep him away from them?" Well, as I mentioned before, it's very hard to do since they attend the same things we do. We cut off the sleepovers and things like that, but that's as far as it can go since the other parents aren't cooperating in the effort. We pray that he will be strong, and be able to stand up for what's right, but he's got a weak spot in that area, and I think, seeing as how it seems so strongly that God is leading us to this school, that my son will be able to grow and blossom without that constant pressure from those boys. If he goes to that school, he wouldn't be in the same activities. So that's the scoop. It just seems that God is leading in that direction, and my son really wants to go. It's a tough decision though! Guess you didn't ask for a book! Sorry!
I'm glad you knew I wasn't being a smart aleck! Well, you know as well as I do that if there is absolutely no questions in your mind about something, it must be the answer you're waiting for. The school sounds perfect. Doesn't it tick you off when other parents have less standards, and you have to be the bad guy? I've run into that even with Jeannie!!! ( see my thread- 'what would you do?')
Mom of Three, Here's a website that has a report on colleges and universities that accept homeschoolers. As you can see, it is long! HS graduates are welcomed all over the place. Universities realize they are motivated, well-educated, goal-oriented kids who will work hard to accomplish their educational goals. http://www.hslda.org/docs/nche/000002/00000241.asp I have a nephew who is homeschooled and plans to be a doctor. He is already making plans to go to a local college for pre-med and then on to university for his medical degree. Friends of ours have homeschooled their kids successfully through high school. Some of their kids took college courses their junior and senior years. I think it's a wonderful idea, as it gives the child a chance to experience what college courses are like while still living at home. I'm not trying to say HS is the only right way to go, just want to let you know HS will not disqualify your daughter from becoming anything she wants to be! Blessings,
When you pray about this whole situation of homeschooling and what God wants you to do with the children right now, please consider this other situation that you are also having to deal with. It may be that you choose another route for the childrens education now (like private or public school) and then homeschool again later. We homeschooled exclusively for 4 yrs, now the kids are in public school and are homeschooled (their schools in this county are weird, they have year round schooling but they go to school for 2 months then take off 2 weeks, then go back and forth like that). But I also see with my 3 yr old daughter who is a diabetic, that we may homeschool again due to the fact that, I'm not to keen on her going to public school with her delicate needs. Your needs and the needs of the family may change, and with a change you may need to keep an open mind about things, but always remember it can be done again in the future. And trust God that if school outside the home is what is going to happen, that the children will be alright. It was VERY hard for me at first, when I had to put my kids in public school, however they were very excited and they love school, which kind of makes me feel like I failed as a homeschool Mom, but thats my issue not theirs. I spent hours on my knees in prayer getting ready for them to join the world of public school, and the kids there and the whole environment, and my husband and I were both so scared for them. But then it turned out to be great, but of course they dont ride the bus. I drive them to school and pick them up. And I'm present at all field trips (with my youngest child which is against the teachers wishes but oh well). I can't think of anything bad about my kids being in public school, then again they are homeschooled too so much, due to the year round schedule having so much time at home. But, consider the schools in your district, research them and call them, ask about drug problems, sex problems, teen pregnancy rates, drop out rates, test scores, racial diversity, clubs, organizations for kids to be in that they offer, extracurricular activites, sports, distance from school, gas needed to go there, cost of school lunches, and then look at your budget and change what needs to be changed. One great thing here, lol.. my husband quit smoking after 20 yrs, because all of a sudden, the kids needed that cigarette money for school lunches! Lord works in weird ways. Whatever the "other situation" is, I'm sure that God will provide everything you need (physical, financial, emotional, and spiritual) for things to work out for your family. Love, Carolyn
Melissa........ First, I would like say that homeschooling is lots of HARD work! Yes it can be scary!! :shock: I have a son who is challenge to teach because of his high academic level. He is 9yo. He is doing 4th grade writing, 5th grade math and high school level reading. Then my other two kids that are well just *normal* :lol: Here are a few tips that might help with the nuts/bolts of things: a. Keep in mind that when a child reaches about the 6th grade, learning SHOULD become more independent of you. Your role changes from *teacher* to *supervisor*. This is a good thing because you are teaching them to take charge of their own education,(basically *life*). To be responsible now for decisions, suffering or reaping the consequences. Good and bad. Hopefully, more good! b. Since she wants to become a doctor, then SHE will have to work toward that goal with your guidance. Its a partnership, with a Junior partner, not a sole proprietorship. c. Its not until about the high school level, that opportunities could be considered for college. Opprtunities like public high school, private high school, dual college credit with homeschooling. I think at that time, its appropriate to consider ALL options available to see what is the perfect fit for your child. Homeschooling is about *tailoring* it to our child's NEED. If the community has something that you and your husband approve of, I would be the first one to say take advantage. However, I do feel that homeschool has the most flexibillity. We can take high school and college credit courses at the same time. However, my niece goes to a wonderful public school in the Texas panhandle, that had AP placement, dual credit and she graduated early. We don't have anything like that here RIGHT NOW! They had numerous scholarships and she won the who's who. So she received a lot! d. In the earlier grades, its EASIER to rapidly progress forward in academics than in a public school enviroment. Have you considered the pressure the school puts on an academically advanced child with respect to their helping others? :wink: For example, a lot of children are EXPECTED to tutor other children during the course of the day. Don't get me wrong, coming from a Christian view, this would be the kind thing to do. But not at the expense of my own child's education. I would want that time to be for my child's learning. At times great pressure can be exerted on them to extend themsevles to helping fellow students, hence reducing their actual learning time. e. Math is the subject I'm the pits at! However, ds is wonderful. So I use two programs. I use one that allows him to go on if he masters something. Then I have use one provided by Calvert that provides EXTREMELY well teacher's manual and VALUABLE supoort system that I can call. I can call counselors, he can call them and they explain the problem. Calvert's math goes through the 7th grade. That is enough time for your child to get past the basics and ready for high school. I can't praise the way they educate me enough. I need their manual because of their way of teaching, not to mention the teachers I can call FREE anytime. f. At the high school level, this is the time to put her in a support group. Become involved in a co-op. WE have a co-op (3 of them here) that work on the high school level. WE have a math/science public school teacher that is a homeschooler that teaches math because so many of the parents can't. g. Local Christian schools (here they do) allow homeschoolers to take one or two classes at the high school level. There are so many things that the local homeschool group offers. We can't possibly be good in everything :lol: So take advantage of some of those other moms and dads who are willing to teach and who are very good at it. I have been homeschooling for 5 years, and I think at some point in there we all reevaluate our reasons for homeschooling. It certainly has to be *rekindled* somewhere along that time. Hopefully, this gives you some food for thought! Blessings Tina
In many states, I know Georgia is one of them, a public school's resources are available to all students, whether homeschooled or not. I had difficulty getting materials due to lack of funds so called the highschool and they were more than glad to lend me the books I needed, including teacher's manuals. In any case, it couldn't hurt to ask. Lisa
