Wednesday, May 03, 2006
What to do?
I've been looking into the public schools in the area where we are moving to. They all stink! Only about a third of the students in the schools are meeting the state standards. My kids are smart and I don't want them to be bored in class and lose interest in school. I've been thinking about home schooling. It looks like a good option but I'm lacking in confidence. I am open to any advice. Please dispense your knowledge here!
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7 comments:
I think I'm a lot like you. I know I could do a way better job with Hunter than the schools are doing, and yet I'm not sure, with four (almost six) kids that I can really do a good job. I can hardly keep up with the laundry, let alone, come up with daily lesson plans. Plus, Hunter loves the social aspect of school so much--I could never make up for that at home. So, I don't have any great advice, but I know your dilemna all too well. I'll be checking back to see what others say--I'm definitely anxious to hear. And good luck with your decision--I know it's a tough one.
Catherine -
Many people have had a wonderful experience homeschooling, but I don't have the personality to do it. Plus, I don't feel like my kids would perform for me like they do for their teachers at school, therfore I am a big believer in home supplementing. I take what the kids do at school and expand it at home. I also get work books for my kids to work on over the summer and on weekends or when they are driving me crazy. I often buy the grade ahead of where they are and we go thru and try to learn new concepts that way when it comes up in school they have an easier time grasping the new concepts. Chase is an excellent reader so at school they might have him reading out of a 2nd grade reader but at home he reads chapter books and young adult fiction. (plus all the non-fiction WWII books he brings home). Plus there are websites that reinforce concepts like Aplusmath.com. I know that Chase likes his friends at school and he enjoys gym and art class and I think they can get the best of both worlds. Plus - how long will you be in this new area? Do they have any programs for advanced students? Find out if the teachers challenge advanced students. MacGregor's teacher gave him books he could read on his own (since he was already reading) while the rest of the class was still learning phonics.
Good luck with your decision.
Brittney
The social atmosphere of school is really important, especially in the lower grades because that is when they are all learning to work with others. Social missfits ALWAYS struggle, no matter how smart they are. And a lot of the time when there isn't a school or district gifted and talented program, each individual teacher may do something different for those students. I think that what Brittney does to suppliment her kids' school work is great!
Also Brittney's comment on the difference of her kids' performance for their teachers and then for her is very important to consider. From my experience, most kids act different at school than they do at home, and do perform better for their teachers.
Hopefully AM will comment. If she doesn't, be sure you do talk to her. She and I have had conversations about home school Zac.
Oh, also I have a public UEN (Utah Education Network) page with links to different educational sites. Most of them relate to projects I've had my students work on and other 6th grade cirriculum, but a few do have links to other grade levels.
Here is the direct address to my page:
http://my.uen.org/myuen/MyUen?service=process_public&teacher_id=69083
But if that doesn't work, go to www.uen.org. Then click on "K-12 Educators", and then type my name into the "Find an Educator" box.
Hope this helps!
My experience tells me that there will always be pros and cons to every educational choice. Sometimes the pros turn into cons and the cons turn into pros. Many times I wonder if we made the best choice.
Nowdays I have to ballance my aspirations for my children with their own drive, interests and goals. When do you push and when do you back off?
There are many structured on-line curriculums for home school families. I think these really help many parents and organize and learn in a way that supports future studies.
I feel that the older a child gets, the more he or she needs the resources and specialized instruction of a formal educational institution. My children are to the point where only the most dire of situations would convince me that home schooling would be a better choice.
I do teach my children but it is an informal enrichment that is most effective when they request my help. Scott has sometimes expressed the attitude that he is so smart because of me. On the other hand, Brent is not shy about telling me when I have shared too much information.
Think about educational and develpmental goals you have for your children and yourself in the next few years. Which ones are crucial, which ones are important, which ones are a good idea. What steps are required to reach those goals and what support systems are available?
You may not always make the best decision at first, but if you are open to course correction, things will work out.
Sorry it's taken me so long to post a comment, taffy.
I know your quandary quite well, because I struggled with the decision for a really long time myself. There are definately pros and cons to whatever you decide. And though you can weigh them out in theory, some pros and cons may not be apparent until you follow through with your decision. There is an element of faith, so be sure to pray to know the Lord's will in this. That is my number one piece of advice.
As far as my experience goes, I would never say that homeschooling is easy. But it is not really as hard as I thought it would be. I do have to be disciplined and provide some structure, but in many ways, I think of home schooling as an extension of mothering. I'm sure you have worked with your preschoolers at home, teaching colors, letters, numbers, etc. If that has worked well for you and your children, then you might consider the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Teaching kindergarten at home is not really much different than teaching preschool at home. And after that it's just a gradual progression. You can take it at the pace of each child. (And that is one pro you don't often find in a public school.)
Socialization is always a topic when homeschooling comes up. Although I had no specific plans to homeschool at the time, I did my Senior research paper at BYU on this particular topic. The research shows no significant social detriment in homeschoolers when compared to their traditionally schooled peers. But statistics notwithstanding, I still worry about my children's social skills. We try hard to provide positive social experiences, with sports, choir, and other cooperative activities.
Of course there are a lot of books and curriculums out there which can help. One book that really helped me sort out this dilemma is called A Field Guide to Home Schooling, by Christine Field. This book answered a lot of questions, and helped me believe I could do it.
Homeschooling is not for everyone, but if you decide you want to give it a try, I think you would be good at it, taffy. You are a loving and consciencious mother, and that is the best kind of teacher there is.
Best of luck with your decision.
Thankyou all for your comments. I'm still not totally decided, (still leaning toward homeschool) but all you comments are very helpful.
Anita says: Okay, I'm late in commenting, too. I was just going to wait 'till reunion but something happened at the Young Women activity this week that I have to tell about. We were making a fruit pizza and one of my sons came into the room. One of the young women looked over at him and out of the blue said "I would just HATE being homeschooled, because then I wouldn't know how to make any friends. I would just die without friends."
I was very good. I just laughed and asked her, "Oh, come now, aren't there any years of your schooling that you wish hadn't happened?" She claimed that she valued them all as building blocks, whether good or bad. This young lady has also never moved out of state, has never been overweight or clumsy, nor is she uncomfortably smart. (She also fights with her parents because she wants to be more socially active than church guidelines would condone.) I think her outgoing personality is not a result of her public-school life but is caused by myriad interrelated factors.
It's the old nature-nurture controversy. Does the atmosphere create the personality or would it be that way regardless? I can point to examples of "social misfits," to use Caroline's term, who attend public school and have all their lives, but I can also point to several very socially apt persons who only attended public university.
Lara's comment is quite valuable, about being open to course correction. I would suggest taking schooling, public or not, one year at a time, one child at a time. Perhaps some teachers will be able to challenge your children academically, and some won't. Your children will have to deal with social situations that they can grow from, but there are some out there that could hurt them.
A parent in Wisconsin said her son had third grade at home, so he could leave the class of a teacher who ignored his learning needs. Another lady my age went to public school, but avoided the especially vicious Jr. High social scene. (She said she's never regretted it.)
In our own homeschool we've gone through times when one or more of my students haven't worked for their Mom-teacher, and we've re-adjusted accordingly. One of our sons doesn't know that he was one tantrum away from being expelled from our homeschool. Hey, when it doesn't work, you find what will.
Be sure you don't hold the student-achievement record of the public school against it, though. It's hard to know a school will "stink" because of numbers and statistics. Hey, the public high school I attended had a 25% student dropout rate, but there were plenty of enrichment opportunities for the willing learners anyway. Just make sure there isn't a 25% TEACHER dropout rate, eh? ;}
Best wishes, and whichever way you decide it doesn't have to be set in stone until the day of their university graduation!
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