He will be a sophomore next school year. I have so many questions but to start with I would like to know how many of you would start in 10th grade?? My son will be quitting the football team and coming home for the first time ever. Right now he is in: Geometry Spanish Biology ( Honors) Gym Tech theater English 9 Project lead the way (intro to engineering) He also received his Algebra 1 credit as an 8th grader. My ex is not exactly keen on the idea (mainly from lack of knowledge about how it all works) but I have suggested that we start with a class this summer before we make the final decision and see how he does with responsiblity and taking all his direction from me. My ex agreed with this idea so I told my son the ball is now in his court. So what would you do?
That would be a little scary to think about! I don't have any advice because my kids are all still so little and high school is a long way off for us, but I'll bet you'll get some great advice from everyone else. I wanted to say good luck, though! And I'm sure you'll do great if you do decide to have him home for his last few years
My ds is the same age as yours. He was in public school for a couple years of middle school and requested to come back home. I would definitely place a lot of value in his desire to come home, especially since you know that academics are not at issue for him. There must be valid reasons socially or otherwise to consider. All that to say, regardless of how he performs academically over the summer, hs'ing may still be the best option. If he has been a good student at ps, my guess is that the responsibility will come. There is much more to public high school than learning in books.
Yeah, I'd also question his motives. Does he want to be at home so he can slack off, does he think he'll get a better education at home, is he trying to get away from some type of social or moral problem he's facing, or what? Could be a great choice!
Thanks for the comments so far!! I just wanted to add that he is probably not having antisocial issues. He has always be very well liked by his peers at school and my house is always filled with boys from school. He now has a girlfriend that also goes to his public school. He claims that he played football this year (his freshman) for his dad. He has already quit going to weight lifting for the foot ball team. He said he wants to get faster help when he needs it and to move on when he doesn't. I asked about seeing his girlfriend and he said he would invite her to other things so he could see her. I am so for bringing him home that I do not want that to cloud my judgement about what is best for him.
Yes, sounds like he's being sensible! So what subjects do you anticipate him having next year? I really would suggest Teaching Textbooks for higher math, and Apologia for the science.
Hi Mattsmama, I can certainly understand your joy about the opportunity to hs your son. Along with the trial run over the summer, it would probably be a good idea to find out exactly what the school policy is, should he desire to return to ps. In Texas we have much homeschool freedom, but when my ds wanted to attend ps in his Junior year, we were told that his SAT scores would not be accepted, but that he would have to retake all courses ($30 a course) that were non accredited on top of his required 11th grade credits. It does sound as if your ds has thought this through, so it's unlikely that he would want to return to ps after homeschooling.
Rachael is going to Cyber School now, and I'm a bit bugged about what they don't give her credit for. Like Driver's Ed. I gave her .5 credit for it, and they told me straight out that they don't give credit for that.
We honestly didn't expect it either. I know of a few home-schoolers that did this very thing without a problem, although in a different district. We did find out that it was simply the school district of the incorporated city we live in that has this policy (although there may be others out there); I suppose that Texas allows each district to set their own rules. In the end, we allowed DS to make the decision and after weighing the options he chose to continue homeschooling. I will pass along something interesting that the ps guidance counselor said to DS. She looked over his transcipt, course descriptions, and book lists, and then looked at him and said, "I can understand that you may want to experience public school before you graduate, but after looking at everything you've studied, I have to ask you why?" My husband and I almost fell of our chairs!
This thread makes me want to cry! I wish, wish, wish my own parents had considered it when I was in high school. I think it would have completely changed so many things in my life that I struggle with. (((hugs)))
I am almost in the same position. My 16-yr-old dd will be homeschooling next year for the first time as a HS Junior. She decided to come home because she knows what she wants to do, and knows she can be a lot better prepared if she learns at home the next few years. She doesn't know it yet, but I'm a little afraid I'm going to mess it all up for college entrance... She also had no problem with academics, did Algebra 1 in 8th grade, is in advanced English classes, and qualified for AP classes next year. For reference, this is what we are planning: Teaching Textbooks Pre-Calculus Apologia Marine Biology American Literature and US History (these two classes will be a created curriculum, I will be combining three different sources to get what I want) Mandarin Chinese 1 (Rosetta Stone) French 2 Composition 1 - taken at community college PE - swim team and then two 'just for fun' classes that she has requested thrown in. The fun classes will only be a semester each. We'll find out pretty quickly if we overscheduled; hopefully not. Good luck to you!
hkchik, you might want to check out Nogtgrass American history. It's literature, history, and Bible all three. Not that there's anything wrong with doing your own thing, but this MIGHT be what you want without the trouble!
Thanks for the thought, Jackie. I have looked at it. I have a reader, who has already read a number of those books, so I would just be modifying that one as well. Question, though - how many books would you estimate a reader could do in a school year. The books range from a 6th grade reading level to classic lit...
Not sure. I've got the same question with my middle child, only it's world rather than U.S. Notgrass would be too much for her, so I'm using Streams of Civilization, and I need to come up with a good literature list for her. I know that Notgrass has 13 books. I would guess ten to thirteen. It would depend on if you were doing any kind of literature guide with them. So I'd be interested in what you decide to use....
After I typed and submitted this I thought I would add that I'm not done defining this yet. I'm still confirming the text that I want to use as a base, and if I change that it might / will change other books. Also, any book below marked with an asterisk might be dropped if time requires it. ________________________________________________________________________________ Ha, yeah... right now my list numbers 27, plus our base "text" for history (A History of the US by Hakim). Basically, selected works from Sonlight Core 100 and Core 400, with a few of my own additions. There is a lot I want her to learn, as there are large gaps in her knowledge after attending public school her whole life. I will not be doing guides with all of them. Here is my current list, subject to continued revision: Before Columbus - Americas of 1491 Scarlet Letter Common Sense Founding Brothers Sacajawea ** Rip Van Winkle Sequoyah and the Cherokee Alphabet Where the Broken Heart Still Beats Selections From Poe Walden & Civil Disobedience Red Badge of Courage Dragon's Gate ** The Crucible The Jungle ** The Yanks Are Coming Out of the Dust To Kill a Mockingbird ** Grapes of Wrath World War II by Maybury Catcher in the Rye The Things They Carried Freedom Walkers Outsiders The Day They Came to Arrest the Book Ender's Game Emancipating Slaves, Enslaving Free Men selected sections from presidential autobiographies We are a literature / history family, and that is what her personal emphasis is on, so I will sacrifice some science for the cause if I must. Some of those will be extemly easy reads for her. We'll see how many I axe as the year goes on...
OK, here's some I might add to your list: Uncle Tom's Cabin, Stowe This one should go without saying! The Chosen, Potok I REALLY like this book! I had to read it in High School. I enjoyed it so much I read the sequel, The Promise, and used BOTH of them for my paper! A Seperate Peace, Knowles (another excellent book I read in high school) In His Steps, Sheldon
Thanks for the suggestions. She's done Uncle Tom's Cabin. I'm adding In His Steps for sure (under the bible study heading, though).
