Would you homeschool?

[PamE]

Just wondering about the ideas everyone has of homeschooling vs public school. Here are a few questions.

Would you hs (homeschool)?
What would it take for you to start?
Do you have strong reservations?
What are the aspects of hs that appeal to you?
What are your reasons for not homeschooling now?
Do you think hs is appropriate for only certain ages, or through certain grades?

Do you have certain strong reservations about ps? (public school)
Have you been able to establish a satisfactory relationship with your children's teachers?
Is there anything about ps that you would change if you could?
Do you feel like you have control over your child's education?

This really isn't meant to be a debate (just in case I come across that way), just an idea catcher. :) We homeschool all three children right now. Dd was hs'd in Kinder and then went to ps for 1st and 2nd grade. We felt that since ds was such a high needs baby/ toddler that we needed the extra time with him. For his special needs we put him in the ps early intervention program from the time he was 3 until the end of Kinder when we felt his behavior was taking a turn for the worse due to the influences of his peers. During that time we felt we had a pretty good relationship with the teachers and aids involved. We had intended to hs from day one, all the way through so there were times when it felt really weird to be sending them off to school. I remember feeling defensive a lot of the time, almost as if I was failing my kids in some way by not following through on a decision I'd made. All in all I really think that was the best decision for both of them for those years. Faced with the same factors I'd probably do the same again.

They're doing really well now in homeschool and I'm glad that we decided to pull them out again. I often second guess myself and wonder if I'm giving them exactly what they need when they need it, but I figure they wouldn't be getting that all the time in ps either. :) We love the flexability hs gives us and the ability to expand on a subject, or put one on the back burner for a while. We plan to hs through high school, or at least 10th grade when they will either do self-led learning or head to the community college to finish up any high school credits they may need.

Whew! Was that long winded, or what? :D

[RCT]

I can't even answer your list of questions because I am so not cut out to Homeschool, and Bless you who do it....I haven't the peronality or calmness in me.....

I hope you find the answers you are looking for Pam.....:)

let me just say...I am in awe of you that do homeschool and its working for....:)

[AnnW]

It sounds like somebody said something that is prompting you to feel the need to explain yourself! LOL


I probably wouldn't unless I was faced with a bad school situation. I think there are many benefits to ps. I think that they have received a bad rap too. I know that my ds' needs are being met and challenged far better than I ever could. He is too smart for me! LOL I don't have the eduacation to help dd with her learning difficulties..so even though I have kids with two completely different needs, the ps is far exceeding our expectations. I like that for FREE (or at least tax dollars! LOL) my children can take any musical instrument that they choose, they have art programs, field trips, sports programs, foreign language, shop, wood working ect. I enjoy the commaradarie of being with the other parents at our various school functions. I think it's important to keep the ps system working and successful. If everyone abandons the system because it's not working (for private school or hs) what chance does it have of getting better?

[SMB]

I have considered homeschooling. Right now ds is in catholic school. I really love his school so unless something changes all of my kids will go there. If the public school had been our only option he would probably be homeschooled. The local elementary here has about 1200 kids. I feel that is way too large. I don't see how all of the kids could participate. My neighbor's daughter has tried out for so many things and been rejected way too many times for an elementary age child.
I like the flexibility of homeschooling. Vacation when you want to, study something that catches your childs interests, more time on subjects that they struggle with, etc.
I have three children and I don't know how it would have worked to homeschool ds with two little ones running around, I think we would have worked out something.
I did worry that my kids would not learn the same social skills that public school kids learn. We would have really had to make a great effort to have the kids in activities with groups of other children to learn social skills.
If I had homeschooled I would only go through middle school. I think they need the opportunities that schools can offer at that age. Labs, equipment, teachers who really know a subject. I don't think dh and I are qualified to teach physics, chemistry, etc.
Guess I'm longwinded today.
Sheryl:)

[KathyT]

This is the first year I have ever considered homeschooling. Dd has had a very challenging and frustrating year (grade 4), and it was tough helping her through it. She is saddled with a number of behaviour-challenged kids in her class, and a very unrelenting and tough teacher. I saw for the first time how they really seem to target the average, there is just no time for anything else.

However, dd2 is having a fabulous year, she has a truly gifted teacher and has grown so much this year in terms of confidence and ability and thought process.

School to me has always been about much more than just academics, it is about socializing with your peers and learning that it takes all types and facing adversity and making the best of a situation and being introduced to different worlds. I think my kids get that at the school they are at for the most part. However, where the school falls short we supplement at home as much as possible, and I can just imagine how difficult it is to homeschool full time.

I think families need to do what is right for them and what is right for each individual child.

[Lynda-WA]

I also seriously considered homeschooling. DS had an entire year where he was taught less then 5 new things. Everyday he did a wordfind that had been photocopied out of a grocery store magazine. Not even one that dealt with a topic they were discussing. A field trip involved walking around the neighborhood. The only thing they saw was houses and the school! I asked DS because I was surprised they were having a walking fieldtrip when the school is located in a completely residential area! The entire class was taught at the level of the lowest child. Those at the upper end were left to their own devises, mainly doing word finds. In fact the first time the teacher ever had DS read to her one on one was around Christmas! She worked with the lower readers on a daily basis. I was soooo frustrated.

The year prior to that he was muddling his way through Harry Potter at home but the class was all reading books with 1 -3 words per page so he had to do that in class. I didn't complain over that because at least a couple of the other things were new to him. Some of his spelling word were 5th grade words and he was in 1st. I figured reading, even if it was WAAAAY below level wouldn't hurt. So its not as if I'm hard to please. but second grade had me livid!!! I talked to the teacher about what I could do at home and she told me she didn't want the children doing ANYTHING at home. According to her *they can't help but learn in school*. She never sent home any paperwork. Nothing to do and nothing that was done in school. Everything they did at school came home in paper bags the last week of school. At least half of those papers were photocopied wordfinds. If DS had gotten another teacher like that in 3rd I was going to pull him. I had already talked to some homeschool parents about the requirements. Luckily his next teacher was good. Not great but good.

DS recently got a new 4th grade teacher since his last one is off on maternity leave until next year. His teacher now seems great. He challenges the kids that are ready. For example the last page of the homework packet is optional. Last weeks problem was the sum of two numbers is 469. the difference between those two numbers is 133. What are the two numbers? (This is a test for you! Can you do 4th grade work!)

Would you hs (homeschool)? Yes

What would it take for you to start? If I felt PS was completely failing (and I DON'T have very high standards for PS) or I felt PS was detrimential.

Do you have strong reservations? Some - I am a procastinator and need time away from my kids!

What are the aspects of hs that appeal to you? Control over what they are taught. I've already disagreed with some of the *politics* and *morality* issues taught to my kids. I've sat them down and told them why I disagree.

What are your reasons for not homeschooling now? So the kids can socialize and I can get away from them!

Do you think hs is appropriate for only certain ages, or through certain grades? I think it's easier for the parents of elementrary age children. At that age you really don't need special knowledge to teach them unless there is a learning disability

Do you have certain strong reservations about ps? (public school)
Yes - I think they are spending too much time teaching things the parents should be teaching.

Have you been able to establish a satisfactory relationship with your children's teachers? Most - for DS I absolutely loved his K teacher. I had very good relations with his other K teacher and all three 1st grade teachers. His 2nd grade teacher nearly had me pulling him out of PS. I had very good relationships with his 3rd and first 4th grade teacher. I have seldom spoken with his second 4th grade teacher but love what I'm seeing. For DD, I like her K teacher. She's not amazing like DS's was but she's doing a good job. Except for the one teacher - it isn't the teachers that upset me about the PS system. It's the administrative level. The beaurocracy.

Is there anything about ps that you would change if you could? I'd revamp most of the system. From the top on down.

I'd get rid of the morality and political opinion teaching. Political opinions in political science class only. No more diversity training. No more wearing signs in political protest over how gays aren't given acknowledgement. No more studying the Dali Lama unless its a religion class. The classroom teacher should be consentrating on academics.

I would change the certification to become a teacher. There are many people out there that could be great teachers. For example - a college economics professor may not be qualified to teach h.s. economics. Neither would Allen Greenspan. I think much of the teacher shortage is created by the certification process. There are so many people out there that could and want to be teachers but un-necessary red tape is stopping them. Teachers would need the skills for what they teach but not a *teaching degree*. So, I'd let people great with crafts and kids teach art. Musicans could teach music. The teachers could be spending that time preping. Many of those elective teachers (music, art, PE) could be part time. Many musicians already teach classes in the evenings and on weekends. I'm sure they'd love to work part time during the school year. Maybe allow companies more freedom to write off time their workers spend volunteering at school. I bet you could get computer companies willing to teach computer classes for a write-off. Or to teach teachers how to use a computer. Or a judo instuctor could teach a daytime class for a write-off. Instead of having teachers do playground duty I'd make it an entry level job. Parents with kids would love a minimum wage job that matched school hours.

I would make school a FULL day with more breaks. A full hour for lunch and more recesses. All 8 hours spent at school grounds. And a longer school year. I'm not saying all 8 hours on academics at all. The classroom teacher concentrating only on academics. The tax money now spent on other programs would be shifted to the schools to finance the longer hours. The government is spending so much money on programs such as child care. If the students were at school it wouldn't be necessary. Daycare credit on taxes could be eliminated if schools were both daycare and school. I could go for a larger school budget if it was for more time at school spent more effectively. Teachers could use the longer recesses and such for prep time. Admin should do admin stuff - not the teachers. Students would be responsible for more if the classroom maintenance like sweeping the floors. Janitors do the rest, not the teachers.

I wouldn't try to integrate so many of the students. At least for the academic classes. Every year my SIL (a 2nd grade teacher) has had a child in her class with handicaps that require her to devote at least 1 hour a day to that child alone. During that hour the rest of the class is suffering. For example, this year one of the children has outburts (I forget what the medical condition is). She has to stop what she's doing to deal with him and then get back on track. During that time the rest of the class is sitting there. Sometimes she's lucky and it happens while the class is doing self paced work. Usually not. He belongs in a special class with teachers trained for the situation and a high adult to child ratio. The schools can do integration during non academic classes like art, music and PE. That way children would still become friends with and accostumed to those not like themselves. And the handicapped children could still feel they are part of the school. I am only talking about handicaps that interfere with education like behavioral or learning. Children that speak another language should be mainstreamed as should children with physical handicaps.

Some of the things could be taught using more cost effective supplies. The younger kids could use more recycled goods for art. Hit up the fabric stores for left overs, the paper plants for unusable paper products. At the district level they should form a free store for the schools filled with donated items. Businesses could turn in items they can't use for a write off. Things like computers, file cabinets, or any office product they no longer need. Private citizens could do the same. I'm sure many parents would love to hand over educational items. Especially if they got a write off. I see so many educational items at Goodwill. If the district had a drop off point they could receive these things instead. Especially if the school itself would take the items and pass them on to the district of they didn't want them. Some things like books could be given out as prizes and incentives. Our school carnival had a book walk like a cake walk using good used books. I see schools buying painted lima beans to use as munipulatives. Why not use donated legos? They're cheaper then the lousy beans that fell apart the first year and more durable!

I would have school vouchers. Competition is good. Imagine if you were told you could only go to one doctor? And the doctor knew you couldn't switch? Or one grocery store and they knew they were the only one you could use? Every place that I have heard of school vouchers taking effect has improved the public school system. They've got viable competition and most people would prefer PS as long as they are good. I think a review of this thread will show that. But if the schools were as I outlined, I bet more parents would want their kids there.


Do you feel like you have control over your child's education? I feel like I have no control over their PS education. My control is in my ability to pull them either for homeschooling or private school.

[AnnW]

Lynda, in our district, Greenspan could teach. Because I went to a private university, I can teach at any private school here. (scary thought isn't it!!!! LOL)

I am curious about all the politizing and diversity training..how much is really going on out there? I know there are stories in the news, but does anyone here have FIRST HAND (not my cousin told me) experience with it? It's not going on at either of my kids' school. They talk about essentials of being a good citizen like integrity, honesty, doing your personal best...I think that is great!

[Amy]

I could not, would not ever homeschool my kids. LOL They are in need of constant social interaction and I just don't provide enough of that at home. To address public schools-hmm... Our public school in Southern Colorado is pretty bad, so my dd goes to a private school which is EXCELLENT. Ds goes to a public pre-school because he is on an IEP form that allows him free speech/language therapy. I actually like this school and his teachers really care for him, but if we were to saty here, he would go to the private school for Kindergarten. Where we planned to move in NY was soley based on public school districts. We chose an area that is in the top percentage of highly rated schools in America. Like Ann said, there are many benefits and extracuricular activities that are FREE. It just works for me and the kids.

[Diane]

If my children were that young again (elementary) I definitely would consider doing it but seeing I've only got one dd left in school and she'll be graduating... it's a little too late for that. :biglaugh: There were quite a few times when I was fed up with the way things were going in the school system... but all in all I can't say that I'd do it because the school sucked... My main gripe were some of the kids my dd's had to go to school with. Not meaning to sound snobby but after they all started going to school we'd go through this period of time where they'd come home with... well, not so good words/behavior. It was quite of an adjustment and learning process for both them and myself. When I seen how they've all turned out and how wonderfully they've done I'm probably happy I didn't... but it's certainly to think about if you're unhappy with your school system. :) Good luck!

Diane... :wave:

[Lynda-WA]

Originally posted by AnnW
Lynda, in our district, Greenspan could teach. Because I went to a private university, I can teach at any private school here. (scary thought isn't it!!!! LOL)


Ann, I know that in most private schools you don't need to have a teaching degree, just the degree in what you are teaching. IMO a degree in the subject you are teaching and a short training course geared towards the age you are teaching, clssroom management, and time management would be perfect. From there you should have to prove yourself IN the classroom not on paper.

You say scary thought about you teaching, I can't comment on that! Think about it though - private schools generally DON'T require the teaching degree that public schools do yet they DO on average out score public schools on standardized tests. From what I've heard other countries also want you to have training in WHAT you are teaching as the primary factor.

As for your district - that must be a recent change. I'm only talking about public schools, K-12 now. I was unable to find any state that didn't require certification to become a K-12 public school teacher. I didn't look at sites listing the requirements for every state but did look at a number of them. I called my sister to quiz her. She was going to a private college in MN to be a teacher but decided public schools were to messed up so she decided against becoming a teacher. For example - to become a librarian at a public school she would have needed her teachers certification in addition to her librarian science degree. Just why does a public school library require training a public children's librarian doesn't? Anyways, she knew of no state that didn't require a teaching degree/ certification. She did say that she didn't check into the southern half of the US since she had no intention of moving there. She said that it varys with the state but generally you either complete an educational program in that state. For example in WI you can complete an educational program withing WI or MN (reciprical agreement). If you completed and educational program in any other state you would need to take the WI teachers certification examination. The requirements vary depending on what kind of program you went through, what state it was in and what state you want to teach in. For AK you need to have additional credits pertaining to Alaska and multiculteralism. The website I consulted about teaching certification requirements in TX also said that if you have a degree in a different field you still need to go through a teacher's accredation program. The site said it was current as of 96 so public school requirements may very well have changed. There were exceptions listed like welding - technical classes. Didn't Bush redo education in TX?

Another reason my sister decided to change her major was the recommendation from the head of the education department that was needed. The woman told my sister point blank that she isn't liberal enough to be a teacher and she wouldn't give her a recommendation! That was after my sister argued with her in class over a book they were assigned to read. The book was about welfare recipients. The teacher said that a woman who went off welfare was a failure becuase she couldn't provide her children the name brand items they wanted. The woman's daughter (in the story) was considered a success story by the teacher because she went back on welfare and was able to buy the popular tennis shoes. My sister vocally disagreed. A number of other profs. offered to interceed since they all thought my sister was wonderful (she babysat for the head of the other branch of the education department) This was at Carlton College outside of the Twin cities. Even though she could still have gotten a teaching job she decided that was a sign to her of how the system was run. She is now a LAN administrator for a social services contractor. She was still able to help children like she wanted. The teaching profession lost a person that is not only very smart (4.0 average, fluent in 2 foreign languages, etc, etc) but is also great with kids. She is involved in a couple of groups for kids and in charge of at least one (the group puts on plays)

In fact my sister said that even though she completed the classes necessary to become a teacher and has a masters in librarian science, she couldn't become a school librarian. It's been over 5 years (barely) since she completed her degree. She would be concidered overqualified to work at the local public children's library. The social services contractor concidered her overqualified but hired her. The local elementrary school couldn't hire her even for their library (because it's been over 5 years since she completed her education degree).

[AnnW]

Lynda, I meant scary as in ya'll now how patient I am with kids, not that I wasn't qualified! LOL

Bush did overhaul the system. You may teach in our schools if you have a degree, and then within two years of hiring, you must complete a 20 hour(?) teacher accredidation program or else you have to leave. I think this works out nicely, it gives people an opportunity to see if they would like being a teacher, and also a chance for the district to attract other professionals.

[Mickey]

Originally posted by PamE
Just wondering about the ideas everyone has of homeschooling vs public school. Here are a few questions.

Would you hs (homeschool)?
What would it take for you to start?
Do you have strong reservations?
What are the aspects of hs that appeal to you?
What are your reasons for not homeschooling now?
Do you think hs is appropriate for only certain ages, or through certain grades?

Do you have certain strong reservations about ps? (public school)
Have you been able to establish a satisfactory relationship with your children's teachers?
Is there anything about ps that you would change if you could?
Do you feel like you have control over your child's education?

This really isn't meant to be a debate (just in case I come across that way), just an idea catcher. :) We homeschool all three children right now. Dd was hs'd in Kinder and then went to ps for 1st and 2nd grade. We felt that since ds was such a high needs baby/ toddler that we needed the extra time with him. For his special needs we put him in the ps early intervention program from the time he was 3 until the end of Kinder when we felt his behavior was taking a turn for the worse due to the influences of his peers. During that time we felt we had a pretty good relationship with the teachers and aids involved. We had intended to hs from day one, all the way through so there were times when it felt really weird to be sending them off to school. I remember feeling defensive a lot of the time, almost as if I was failing my kids in some way by not following through on a decision I'd made. All in all I really think that was the best decision for both of them for those years. Faced with the same factors I'd probably do the same again.

They're doing really well now in homeschool and I'm glad that we decided to pull them out again. I often second guess myself and wonder if I'm giving them exactly what they need when they need it, but I figure they wouldn't be getting that all the time in ps either. :) We love the flexability hs gives us and the ability to expand on a subject, or put one on the back burner for a while. We plan to hs through high school, or at least 10th grade when they will either do self-led learning or head to the community college to finish up any high school credits they may need.

Whew! Was that long winded, or what? :D
I somehow missed this post. Great questions, Pam!

I think that people tend to DO what they feel comfortable doing. I don't know anyone who has their kids in private or public school who wish they could home school and I don't know any homeschoolers who wish their kids were in private or public school.

And if you had asked me if I would ever home school two years ago, I would have said, "No way!" I had a very incorrect preconceived notion about it regarding "socialization". And, quite honestly, I didn't think for a moment that I would be qualified to do it. However, after three teachers suggested it to me (all from different states and all independently, btw), I did some research on it and met with other people who actually do it. It wasn't long before we decided that we had to at least TRY it for Kindergarten. And I'm so glad we did! Every day we become more and more convinced that this is the best thing for us.

Ds' Home School Kindergarten Graduation ceremony is tonight, btw! We're all so excited! :)

[JeannieOR]

I think if I had I public school experiance like Lynda's I would seriously concider HS. I'd probably join a HS co-op though. Parents get together and each parent takes on differant duties and that way the kids have "classmates". Fortunately, I've been pleased with our PS. For instance, my son's 1st grade class has literacy block were all the student go to differant instructers based on their reading level. The school librarian teacher the children who are reading below grade level. The teacher leads kids (including some 2nd graders) who are at 1st grade level. The second grade teacher and a part-time instructor teach kids who are at differant levels.

[TXmom]

I was never a proponent of homeschooling until I had children in public school. Now I'm glad the option is available - some children just are not suited for a public school classroom setting. I would never do it simply because I'm not qualified and I'm much less patient with my children than other people are. I do think public school must have parent involvement, and we researched the schools before moving to this area. One school I rejected because (in addition to other factors), they couldn't even find room parents for all the classrooms. I'm used to at least 5 or 6 per class and I've seen it as high as 11 (those Kindergarten parents are SO excited to help!).