How many of you guys have done or are doing home school? My wife is quite keen, I am less keen. I see as many pros as cons, but I've never actually done it. The older kid turns 5 next month, so we actually need to decide for real pretty soon. The 3-year-old will be starting preschool in the fall due to physical therapy and speech delays, so one of the reasons I am leaning toward public school is the potential free time for the adults while the children are off having their brains turned into mush.
I don't have kids but I've spent a lot of time around home schooled kids. If the family treats most days like a school day and then also makes sure they interact with others regularly I think it can work. I've seen some hybrid programs too. That being said, once you get to college and then onto a job they won't be sheltered anymore. Will they have had enough interactions with people that are different from themselves to do well? Truthfully even the worst high schools around here have some great teachers and if they are willing to put in the effort they can do well. We recently had a hispanic girl at what is considered the worst high school get a scholarship to Johns Hopkins. She was also the first person in her family to get past 8th grade. I'm not really a fan of home schooling as I think you learn more if you're exposed to a wide variety of people and cultures.
We don't but have several friends that do. There are a lot more resources now days for home schoolers and coops that allow group type teaching sessions.
With the way public school is nowadays. You're probably better off to home school. The social interaction needs to be inserted in after school activities. Less left wing BS to deal with
You have to be careful not to end up with a weird socially awkward kid. I've seen a few go that route and others be perfectly normal. I've also seen a lot go from a year or two of home schools back to public schools. The first year back is rough for those kids.
We do a home school hybrid using a resource center and have been for a few years. The kids scores are good and you can really tell how well they're doing when a new public school kid starts because their usually behind. IMO, I don't think it's because of bad teachers, but because of other students who are bad and the number of kids in each class. To be honest I think the majority of teachers are great and really try hard, but how well can you teach 30 kids with the inevitable 3-5 disruptive students? Like the old saying goes, one bad apple spoils the bunch. Before you know it the whole class is out of control, or at least just sitting there while the teacher deals with disruptive students. I think the biggest problem with public school is the teacher to student ratio. I'm a contractor and have worked on tons of new and renovated schools. The districts spend millions of dollars to build these beautiful buildings that look more like colleges than grade or high schools rather than hiring more teachers and paying the ones they have a better wage. The buildings get more elaborate and scores continue to fall. They get the cutting edge computers and tablets for all, yet scores go down. It ain't working! As far as socialization goes, just keep the kids involved outside the home. There's plenty of places and time to expose them to different people. Church, rec league sports teams, the race track, etc. Yes, I've seen the weirdo home schoolers, but I've also see plenty of weirdo anti-social kids that go to public school. I think the socialization issue falls squarely on the shoulders of the parent whether in or out of public school.
With home school, the teacher is you. Kids are not set and forget. Their education will need to be manged, you will need to learn how to help your child learn. You should take a long look at differentiated instruction, project based learning, place based learning and standards based instruction. You need to look at how you are going to assess your child's learning and how to best use formative and summative assessments. Of course I am an educator and am using all of these fancy terms and shit to make a point. The point being that homeschooling is not the easy way out, but none of the things I mentioned is very hard to understand and apply. If you want to home school, your kid can get a great education, way better than they might get in public school. Or they could turn out to be lazy under achievers addicted to "educational games" on the computer. The difference will be you. I am the principal at a regular kind of school, but our district has almost 4000 students enrolled in our home school program. My belief is that there isn't any school or program that is right for every kid or family. Every state has a home school organization that can help with your state laws and regulations for home schooling in addition to help with curriculum choices. You should be aware that many of the people who home school have political and religious perspectives that fall outside of the normal bell shaped curve. If yours do also then you can find plenty of curriculum materials and like minded individuals to help you make some choices. If your views are more centered, then look for groups that are more focused on providing academic rigor and a quality education. The reality is that education, as an institution will be changing very rapidly in the near future as people and governmental agencies realize that the new technology and advances in educational theory show that the needs of many students can be better served in ways other than the traditional western K-12 education model that we grew up with. Remember that the current model of education has remained essentially unchanged since the 1880's. I think we may be overdue for an upgrade to the entire system. I do know a fair amount about education and home schooling, feel free to ask about anything in particular.
Not a fucking chance. Nevermind the fact that you aren't a teacher. Nevermind the fact that they will know how to work you. Nevermind the fact that you have to work their asses because they will come up with excuses, then you come up with excuses. How's about the fact that there ALREADY is no social interaction between kids now a days. But now, you are going to limit that even further by allowing very little social interaction that we all went through as a child. Oh wait... they have meeting days, and activity days. My nephew by marriage is home schooled. Talk about socially awkward, my son's best friend is now home schooled. Same thing. The schooling itself may be more beneficial, if you have a parent that is more dedicated than the child, but the social interaction is what I just feel is missing.
I'll second this. I've yet to meet a normal kid that was home schooled. I'm not in anyway bashing someone that has raised their child this way, just my observation. The public school system in Louisville is so bad that I sent both of my children through Catholic private school. Yes, I could have a brand new 911 Turbo in my garage for what I spent, but it was worth every penny. And even though it was Catholic school, very little religion was taught. It was more about respect, responsibility and hard work. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.
its ALOT of work. We decided to start my son in a montessori program at that age. He is currently in a college prep school (IB) doing 4-6hrs of homework everyday. I look at our dining room table & its "eff this crap o'clock" to me...lol. Also has done very well on the standard testing & AP essay exams. (other than time management) Its hard enough keeping him on track to get his assignments completed & up for school at 5:30am everyday. But the good news is he has a better foundation for moving on to higher education.
Not a fan of homeschooling seeing what unfolded w/ my B.I.L.....his wife was adamant on homeschooling. It might have even gone well in her first 'semester' but fast fwd several years later, two boys are teens and the other just turned 11yrs old.....it is UNKNOWN how much 'class time' they actually received weekly these past few yrs. Hearing their other cousins talk, I think their major was skateboarding. These boys future, IMHO, is fvcked because of their parents odd desire to home school that they weren't disciplined enough to follow. Good luck with your decision.
Not a parent or know much about home school but no matter what you choose find the best possible sports for them to follow. And base that on two factors: the coach and if they like it. Sports will teach social skills but importantly respect, working with others, etc. doesn't have to be a team sport. Martial arts are usually great at young ages to build character.
In terms of a homeschooler's awkwardness and how a youth can manipulate/make excuses to parents, all I can think of is the South Park episode. It pretty much nailed it from both sides.
Just educate your kids about how misinformed their teachers are. I know everyone thinks their kids are brilliant, and I'm no exception - but I plan to be "involved" in their education ...but I'm not qualified to teach them the nuts and bolts of math, chemistry, etc. Plus schools are continuously evolving right now. Locally, some schools have 1 set of textbooks that stay in the classroom, and the kids are issued chrome books instead. buying 40 copies of the books rather than 400 frees up the money for the computers (i guess). Anyway, it's not "read pages 45-58 and complete the questions" anymore.
Homeschool is work. Done well, it can be an excellent foundation. Improperly done, you can screw your kid up for life. We went the private school route. Paid dearly, but have no regrets.
