I disagree. K12 is schooling at home, NOT homeschooling. It's a valid choice, and one that we should all be able to make without any discrimination or criticism. We all want to make the best choice for our children, and I'm not fussing with anyone who choses to. But it is STILL DIFFERENT from "homeschooling", and needs to be kept seperate, just as much as public school and private school needs to be seperated.
I agree...it is schooling at home. However, I will not give up on aspects of homeschooling that I have implemented such as copywork, narration, literature books, bible, nature study, art, etc. I will not overload my kids...most of what i mentioned is not labor intensive. But yes, it is quite different...as my kids will technically be enrolled in a school and I do have to report to a teacher once a month. We had thought about schooling in conjunction with one of the private schools in my area where I would have access to a teacher and have to report attendance as technically they owuld be students of that school...BUT...I would do all my own curriculum and make all the choices. K12...will have a guildeline and curriculum that they implement on my kids and my home. So there is a major difference. If this does not work out or if it is too confining and our personal issues get resolved we will join the private school's homeschooling program in my area instead. This is a temporary choice for us and one that is necessary right now. Oh and I am homeschooling Alyssa...she is not involved in K12 nor will she be considered for that option in the near future if ever.
I also want to point out that I did not give up teaching my kids. I am simply getting help that is needed for my circumstances right now. I could have gone another route but this was the option that seems to work. I will still be a very active part of their schooling experience as any parent should be regardless of how they educate their children. I have a friend who did this and she still taught her children.
I still see this option as homeschooling.. BUT you have someone looking over your shoulder. It is no different than someone buying TT for math or Writing Strands for writing or Calvert or Oakmeadow or Sonlight or well what ever other curriculums there are out there.. whether it be for a single subject that you buy it for or a complete curriculum. With each one of those, you are told what to do and how to do it.. of course we all tweek and honestly, I'm sure there are tweekable aspects of a virtual as well.
I think K12 is a great option to have. Like anything else, nothing is perfect for everyone as everyone is different. If it's what works for your family then go for it girl! If it works for your family then don't apologize for it! We're pretty unschool, but my sons are wanting some more structure (I think), so we're gonna try to add some more come Jan-we'll see how it goes. Right now K12 or PS isn't a good fit for us, though I'm not going to say my kids will never do K12 or never go back to PS. You never know what life will bring in the future. IDEALLY (and that's a big word! LOL) I want to homeschool with a big lean toward unschooling through high school, but-I don't know what the future holds so I'm not ruling anything out!
Thanks Sonita! I never ever thought I'd use K12. I couldn't imagine how anyone did...lol. Who knows...after this semester I may still feel that way..LOL. We will see how the Lord directs. It will certainly be something new. I am not a traditional kind of person so this is quite an adjustment for my family. At least our commitment is only a semester if it does not work out.
Yes, it sounds as if it could be a very viable option for you, Ava. Please don't think I'm saying othewise; I just wanted to point out the difference between schooling at home and homeschooling to Sommer. (BTW, Sommer, even the public school system makes that distinction!) Ava, I know you'll go however you feel God is directing you. If He's leading you in this direction, then you do it! It would be rather presumptious of me or anyone else to tell you to do otherwise!
Ava it sounds to me like you are getting the best of both aspects with this k12, you get your kids with you being their ultimate teacher , even with the lessons laid out for the kids from what I saw of my friends kid its still you there making sure its done. And the fact someone else does the grading and requirement stuff just lets you off the hook when they get it wrong. lol
It's okay, Jackie...I agreed with you. Virtual Academies...are schooling at home as opposed to homeschooling. I filled out forms to enroll my kids and have to provide birth certificates and immunization records. From my understanding it is very flexible and none of the online classes are mandatory...as they will be taped for the child to view later but if possible the child can actually participate. I have to turn in a monthly report and I have to maintain an attendance. So this method is not homeschooling. If I throw in my own touches that is in addition to the curriculum. I have no say in what the curriculum is or what classes they take. However, I can work with a teacher to allow my child to test out 5th grade math or 7th grade science if I wish. They have programs for children who are gifted or even behind. But all of it is under the supervision of the school. It is considered public school. I could have gone private..but I could not see a reason to pay for the same curriculum. lol. My friend who did this said the school was very easy to work with and it was not confining. We will see how it works out...it may be great or it may bomb. I just know this is a weight lifted for the moment that really needed to be. If we LOVE it we will continue but if it is so-so we will go with the homeschooling/private school option the next year.
I talked with the counselor from ECOT yesterday. Sigh.... Carl's not on-board at all, but has told me it is OK to check things out. This lady was very nice; she's worked with hs'ers in the past and is very open to them. She actually likes them, because they come in, do their own thing for just a year or two and then graduate to boost ECOT's numbers up! But here's the rub right now. For Rachael to take classes next fall at Columbus State, ECOT needs to enroll her in March or April of THIS YEAR. That means that Rachael MUST BE AN ECOT STUDENT AT THAT TIME, even if it's only one class. So we'll need to send ECOT her transcripts, with a grade for those classes she's currently taking, and then find a class for her to take with them, a class that is already half over! She suggested history, but we're doing American History, Literature, and Bible all together with Notgrass. I'm thinking maybe the French, but don't know enough of what that teacher is doing to know if she'll be up to level with the other students. And that idea did NOT go over well with Carl! She CAN take classes at Columbus State on her own, but those would be about $80/credit hour which WE would have to pay, compared to the State paying if she were in ECOT.
Wow, That's a strange time to change over is it a quarter change time or something? Why is it the schools here have to have police presence, and the public schools connections thing uses a school building they actually closed for some gasline problem then opened again... they have them attend once a week or two for the teacher to answer any questions and give a few personal instructions. So I am not looking too hard into that format myself. I think crossing two boundaries would be nicer, if I could get it set up so ds could attend once a week in order to play sports and get some of the larger band advantages and such that would be worth the gas of driving him there that day.. how often does Rachel have to go to the classes? Also will it matter what class, if she is just taking it as an extra anyway let her have one that scores high!
I was going to look into ECOT today after you mentioned it, Jackie. Just to be in the know. I hope it all works out well for Rachel. It sounds like a great opportunity...but starting out so close to the end of a class sounds hectic.
T'mom, the reason is that the college requires PSEO to register in March or April for the next year. And she can't do that (to where we get free tuition) unless she's enrolled in the charter school for at least one class. PSEO = Post Secondary Educational Opportunities (or something like that!)
