New here, overwhelmed and don't know where to start

My husband and I moved to this area from a different state 18 months ago along with our 13 year old DS. When we were considering this area we researched the school (rural in SW Missouri) and it seemed great. We have since learned that it is not. They buy their students off with candy and soda if they get good enough grades. They are also given extra days off of school if their test scores are high enough. They got extra points on their grade if they showed up on Halloween with a mask. If they attend enough days in the year, they don't have to take finals at the end of the year. They don't have parent-teacher conferences, and when you try to contact them about it you are lucky to get a call back. That is just the surface issues that I have a major issue with.

The school that DS went to at our old home was one of the best in the city we lived in, and he was ahead of the rest of his class when we moved here. Now, he is falling behind. He is drastically behind in spelling, as in, can barely spell on more than a 3-4 grade level (his reading level is on cue, thankfully) b/c he came from a school that doesn't teach spelling in elementary school. His school has never mentioned it to me as a problem and I didn't find out until this summer when he showed me a story he was writing. I think the biggest issue is that most of the children that attend that school do not go on to college, so the school does the very minimum in order to get funding. We WANT and expect our son to go to college, and we don't feel that he will have that opportunity if he continues to go to that school.

Anyway, my husband is looking for a new job out of state. He had one lined up and we were supposed to be moved before their school started for the year. Well, we found out today that it fell through. I REALLY do not want DS to go back to that school, so we are seriously considering homeschooling him.

My concerns are how hard it is to do, especially since I am jumping in at the 8th grade level rather than starting from the beginning. I have NO clue what I need to teach him, or where to find it. I don't know what he has already learned, and I don't want to waste my time teaching him something he has already learned. Another big issue is price of the materials and curriculum. We can't afford a lot. I'm the type of person that needs something that says "Teach him this, say this, do this, this, and this..." but from what I've heard, most of those programs are expensive. I'm NOT good at just winging it...but maybe after time I will get used to it. *shrug*

We do still plan to move, but it will be a while. We have some things here that we need to wrap up before we can move again. Depending on how it goes, we may put him back in public school once we move if it is a good school. If things go well, and I like homeschooling him, I may continue to do it. We'll cross that bridge when we get to it. I'm worried about the here and now.

I've been trying to search and look up about homeschooling, but it is all so confusing and overwhelming. Any advice and suggestions for me would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

It's very late. I was headed to bed, but I saw this and wanted to welcome you. You'll get heaps of advice tomorrow I'm sure. For now, though... welcome, and relax! Don't believe everything you've been told. Homeschooling isn't rocket science, and it doesn't have to cost a fortune, either. You could probably lock him in his room with a good book and he'll pick up more spelling than he's learning at a school that bribes with candy anyway. Sounds like you're the one with your head on straight in this scenario.

Goodnight for now. I'll be back late tomorrow, but I'm sure you'll have several great responses by then anyway.

 

Thank you! I'm a night owl, and I have a lot to learn b/c school starts in a week so we need to decide by then what we are going to do.

Oh, and if you changed my name for me, thanks!!

 

When I first started I found it helpful to talk to an homeschool consultant from Chritian Book Distrubtors. They gave me a wealth of information and you will receive that here as well. But they also were able to tell me what I needed to purchase. Once I told them how my kids like to learn they were able to direct me to a certain curriculum and then the books that were a must and the ones I could do with out.

I think the first thing you need to do is figure out how your child likes to learn.

There is SOS on the computer
Oak Meadow is a Waldorf Style of Learning
Life Pac's are more book work
Son Light is more reading
Then there are things like Khan Academy which is on line and free (Science and Math)
Winston Grammar is a hands on learning
Spelling Power

Those of just some of the ideas off my head. There are so many ways you can go about this. You can also do Unit Studies some people really like that. Look into Winter Promise.

 

Nope... I didn't change it. It already looked right when I read the post.

Personally, I think it's great that you're starting in 8th grade, because 9th grade is when it really counts (you have to keep a transcript and make sure you cover everything needed for entrance into the college/program of his choice). That gives you a year to figure out what you're doing and become more confident in yourself as a teacher and him as a student (his learning style, etc.).

Below are some links where you can find free high school materials online. There is a lot more stuff out there that isn't free, but I just wanted to show you the quality you can find online as well (which is sometimes better than paying a fortune for a particular publisher). There are even a few open source classes here from places like MIT and Yale.

• http://www.glencoe.com/sites/alabama/support_teacher/state_resources/state_res_al.html (click "all subjects")
• http://ocw.mit.edu/index.htm (several subjects)
• http://oyc.yale.edu/ (several subjects)
• http://thinkzone.wlonk.com/ (several subjects)
• http://www.discoveryeducation.com/teachers/ (science)
• http://www.brightstorm.com/math/ (math)
• http://www.purplemath.com/ (math)
• http://www.marcandangel.com/2010/11/15/12-dozen-places-to-self-educate-yourself-online/ (several subjects)
• http://www.hoagiesgifted.org/online_hs.htm (several subjects ... both gifted and not)
• http://www.khanacademy.org/ (math & science)
• http://www.myaudioschool.com/ (hover over high school for social studies and literature)
• http://www.watchknowlearn.org/ (search by subject... for all grades)
• http://www.freedrumlessons.com/drum-lessons/ (free drum lessons)
• http://www.centervilleroad.com/abc-curriculum.html (3 year chronological Bible study for high school or adult)
• http://wordlywise3000.com/ (vocabulary for 2-12 grades)
• http://latinum.weebly.com/index.html (Latin curriculum)
• http://www.textkit.com/latin_grammar.php (Latin curriculum)
• http://www.headventureland.com/ (Latin games & videos)
• http://topdocumentaryfilms.com/ (documentary films)
• http://msnucleus.org/membership/guide/storybooks.html (animated science movies)
• http://www.vernonjohns.org/snuffy1186/movies.html#III-2 (history - list of movies in chronological order, can be checked out at the library or found on NetFlix or something)
• http://www.zaner-bloser.com/media/zb/zaner-bloser/spellingconnections/practice-pages.html (8th grade spelling)

 

Do you plan on teaching him indefinately, or do you plan on enrolling him once you get settled in your new place? If you are thinking of putting him back in a brick-and-mortar school at some point, you might consider cyber-school for now. This is an on-line public school. There's advantages and disadvantages to it like everything else, but it is an option.

 

My kiddos are younger so I do not have a lot of middle school advice but wanted to say welcome and just what the others have said relax take a deep breath. Also you will be shocked how much your son can accomplish in a short time school does not really take 8 hours a day. That was super hard for me in the beginning. Also I agree that if he likes to read you have already won half the battle. I hope some middle and high school advice soon.

 

I have an 8th grader this year

How hard is it, well other than the teen flack I get, it's pretty easy. Of course he is boy and a teen and doesnt' want to do anything except for play video games or watch tv, but I'm ok with being called mean to get done with what he needs to do.

Here is our curriculum line up, it will give you some things to look at for ideas at least:

Math: Teaching Textbooks Algebra 1

Language Arts: Lightning Literature 7 (I felt he needed to start here instead of 8th)
Analytical Grammar (I'm going to use the DVD to teach him)
Teaching the Essay (from AG)
Teaching the Research Report (also from AG)

History: Joy Hakim's A History of US, using the Hewitt Syllabus slowed to half pace (to take 2 years instead of 1, the syllabus is just really to give us project ideas and also a test after each book)

Geography: Map Trek US maps to go with the History of US readings

Science: Prentice Hall Science Explorer Physical Science (I have the Discovery DVDs and the labs DVDs to go with it)

He is into robotics so I think I will be buying the 4H robotics course, I would love the Mindstorms one but it's way out of our budget

He will be doing Spanish, not sure yet if we will use Rosetta Stone (which we have) or Discovery Education Streaming's Spanish.

Art and Music will be artist and composer studies where he fills out a notebooking page for one each week or two. I get my list from SimplyCharlotteMason.com

We also will be using the CNN Student News (you can watch it free) for current events.

I made a rule that he can not watch tv or play video games from 7am till noon. I give him what he needs to accomplish for the week, it's his job to put that into days. If he finishes real work he can watch things that are educational... netflix has TONS of educational programs.

 

I agree !!! If you are only thinking of a temporary fix, online charter school is a great option. A lot of homeschool moms don't do it because they don't want the state/government involved in their homeschooling of the kids. But since you don't have a problem with public school in general (just the horrible new one) then this should be great for you. Check out these links to online school near you:

http://www.connectionsacademy.com/wisconsin-school/home.aspx

http://www.k12.com/wiva

 

Hello!

 

One place to begin is your state's education website. Most states have grade level standards that home schoolers can use as a general guideline. At the very least it will tell you what subjects to do for the upcoming year. So first, just decide what subjects you will do.

Probably:
General Math or Pre Algebra
Reading or Literature
Science (Life Science, Earth Science, General Science are names you might see)
History or Social Studies (American History, World History, Geography are choices for a 13 year old)
Spelling (IF he needs it)
Grammar
Writing (IF he has a good foundation in spelling and grammar)

Those are the basics and do NOT have to be done every single day. Math is the only subject that must be done every single day right now.

Since your son has been in school, I recommend for the first year of homeschooling, traditional textbooks and workbooks. The format will be familiar for him and the lessons will be easier for you to divide up, plan, teach, and grade.

Use the first year of home schooling to read as many books as you can about homeschooling. Books, not websites. There are way too many websites with way too many differing opinions. You will only be more confused. If you can check out a few books from the library and buy a few books from CBD and read them ONE book at a time, slowly, over several months..... you will then be able to understand how home schooling really works. (Psst... it works differently for every family, hense the wide range of opinions online.)

Some traditional texts among home schoolers:
Abeka
BJU
Christian Liberty
Christian Light
Alpha Omega: LifePacs are workbooks; Switched on Schoolhouse is computer based; Monarch is internet based.

Some secular publishers:
Glencoe
Pearson
McGraw Hill
McDougal Littel

Actually there are only 2 or 3 secular text publishers... they just publish under different names. And I think the main stream secular texts will give you a good basic education!

Welcome to the Spot!
Pam

 

As to MO state requirements:

You have to log 1,000 of instruction time per school year (July - June). No less than 600 have to be in the core subjects (meaning up to 400 can be electives). At least 400 have to be done at the "regular" homeschool location (usually home). Meaning you can't just enroll in a different co-op for each day of the week and never school-at-home.

Here's the catch - ONLY a judge can request copies of your hours' log. So, you have to keep these records (and samples of your son's work), but know that it's super unlikely that anyone will ever see them. lol

MO moms are masters of creativity; have him cooking? Well, that's same time on math, science, and home ec. Did he play at the park? Oh look, P.E. hours. You get the idea. It's really easy to log the 1,000. I can send you the blank Excel file I used that did all the math for me.

Once you decide on what you're doing next year, you'll have to be thinking about high school transcripts. But until then, you only need a clock and a record sheet. lol.

 

Welcome to the aboard...

 

I agree if you're just doing homeschooling for a quick fix until you get moved and don't desire to control content or worldview of the curriculum virtual public school is probably going to solve all your problems. These vary by state, some are totally free and will even provide your child a computer to take his online classes on. I'm not sure about your state.

If that route doesn't work for you you might try an online curriculum you pay for monthly like TimeForLearning ($20/mo)

Or depending on your goals, you might try a (mostly) free approach using living books (aka real books vs textbooks) free from your library or free online. There are site that lay out plans for you as to which books to read for each grade plus will lay out weekly schedules for you. Like Old Fashioned Education (I linked to the 8th grade booklist, on that page is a link to the 8th grade schedule), Ambleside Online (which we use) and others.

Or you can buy whole packages that include everything like this one for $220 has pretty much all the basics you need to do 8th grade, all laid out for you.

 

Thank you ladies! I REALLY appreciate all of the detailed advice! So much to think about. LOL After spending most of the night researching, I feel much more confident in my abilities to do this, and I think we are going to go for it. As for enrolling him in an online school, we can't really do that. We live VERY rural and have satellite internet with very limited access, with only unlimited between 1am and 6am. Just a few videos will eat up our "high speed" access, and will drop us down to dial up speed. B/c of that we don't have Netflix. :cry: I think, at least for this first year, I will stick with an "all in one" workbook type program to keep me from getting overwhelmed and forgetting anything.

Hey Amie! I've been looking into the homeschooling laws in the states we are considering moving to, and WOW...MO is really relaxed. I'm kind of relieved. lol Were you a member of CHAOS? I'm thinking of joining them, at least for the socialization for Greyson. We don't have any friends here, so school and church are his only ways of socializing. Kwim?

One other question I have...with the bible based curriculums, outside of the actual bible subject, how bible related is the rest of it? The curriculum I'm looking at right now is Lifepac, but I plan to buy the subjects individually without the bible one. He'll learn what he needs to learn about that through us and our church.

 

I use CLE (which was based of off Lifepac's, or so I've been told). We have only done the first couple of grades, so I don't know how it would be for 8th grade, but there is a little bit of Bible stuff in the rest of the subjects, but not an overpowering amount. Maybe one of the others would know more specifically. Welcome!

 

I was not in CHOAS. We did a lot of activities with Springfield-based groups. If memory serves, you're closer to Branson? They have a big HSing community there, too. Check the SHEM website. I meant to tell you, also, that there is a curriculum lending library located on BBC's campus. You can check out the books for a whole school year! The contact for the library is in our AP group on FB. I'll give you her name if you're interested.

There is a bit of Bible woven throughout all the subjects. For instance, in the middle of a section on government, you might have to memorize the 10 Commandments. Or another verse about family might be in a unit on family's role in society. That sort of thing. This is VERY important to keep in mind when choosing a science curriculum. Most (if not all) Christian-based science books will be Young Earth. At the very least, they are strictly Creationary. So... be careful when choosing to make sure your comfortable with that.

 

Kara, I LOVE CLE. I homeschooled my son from 5th grade til done with Lifepacs. I don't hate them, they'll get the job done. BUT nowadays, I prefer CLE for reading, LA, and math. CLE's newer Sunrise Editions are SO much easier to use - very "open and go" compared to Lifepacs which take more planning. LP's quizzes are right there in the unit, but CLE's quizzes can be removed from the book before you give it to the student, which makes it more like a "real quiz" IMO.

CLE reading relates Bible very well. Each story (in a hardback textbook) has a Bible verse associated with it, with a related theme (like honesty, obedience, thoughtfulness, etc.). The actual lessons are in the workbook (lightunit). Part of the lesson explains any difficult KJV words, and relates the theme of the story and the verse to the student's own life age-appropriately. The stories are all either true or realistic fiction, or straight from the Bible (one Bible story per unit of reading). Poetry is included too. There is no diagnostic/placement test for reading. From 4th grade on up, reading is built for only half a year. It would not hurt at all if you decided to do both 7th and 8th grade reading in one year!

The LA contains the grammar/composition, handwriting, and spelling in each clearly marked out daily lesson. There are two quizzes and a self-check (which I count as a third quiz) plus the unit test. There is a diagnostic/placement test for LA. If your son's never done diagramming before, you can just skip those items on the test and call it a "pass" if he can do 80% of what's left of the test after you X out the diagramming. OR you can have him see if he can correctly label each and every word in the sentence given and call it a pass if he can do it. The LA is built to allow about 20 extra days per year (about two per unit) for creative writing IF you choose to assign some (I don't). The LA has less actual Bible content than the reading, but example sentences they give may be about Bible people or events, or they may relate to going to church, or they may relate to science or social studies topics instead.

The math is a tight incremental spiral - kind of the idea with Saxon math, but I find the examples and explanations clearer than Saxon. There are two quizzes and a unit test per unit. There is a diagnostic/placement test for math too. Lesson 16 and 17 aren't really "lessons" just activities and unit test day, so you can finish the unit on the 16th day. Every unit in math has a theme, and all the word problems and little "factoids" relate to that theme, such as living in a foreign country or doing a certain type of work, so you get a little extra "flavor" not just math. Not terribly Bible-specific, but word problems may mention things like walking x-distance to church, or learning x-number of Bible verses - I don't know about 7th or 8th really because we've only used up through 6th so far.

The diagnostic/placement tests are at the website www.clp.org free for the printing out. The TM for the tests are there too, but you don't really have to print them out, you can use them directly off the screen.

CLE's science and history at 8th grade on up are very like the Lifepacs, BUT they're less expensive by more than a dollar per unit. They do not come in full color, but at this level, I can't say that the color adds that much since the focus should be on the content. OR you can choose whatever science and history you want.

If you plan to keep homeschooling through high school, CLE has an inexpensive Homeschool Plus plan through which your son can get an accredited diploma. You simply fill out some forms with his grades like every 9 weeks. They can help you with advice, too, and you only have to use 3 CLE courses per year so you can choose whatever else you want.

If you have any other questions about CLE vs Lifepacs, feel free to ask.

 

Yes, I'm closer to Branson than Springfield, but I'm willing to go to either. What does SHEM stand for? Do you have a link? I would love for you to give her my name. Does the lending library have full curriculums like Lifepacs?

See, we are Christians, but we have a different, less literal view of the bible. Most of the bible based curriculum is Evangelical, and we are more non-denominational. KWIM? We want to leave the majority of that teaching to our church and ourselves, but a verse here or there isn't that bad. I guess if I want to, we can skip stuff.

I thought someone in this thread gave a list of links to secular publishers, but I can't find it now. I'm having a hard time finding an affordable curriculum of that type. That's what I like about Lifepac, b/c I can get Math, History, Science, and LA for $220 through Homeschool Buyers Co-op. I don't feel confident in myself enough to pick and choose things here and there. Kwim?

 

At CLE, you can get Reading, LA, Math, and History for $151.90 (without TMs, just answer keys), and have $68 left over to find a science you like. www.clp.org