I'm crying as I type this...*homeschooling woes*

Fellow mamas here, I need some heartfelt advice. I'm in a dilema and I don't know which way to turn.

First off, I had been looking into homeschooling my oldest son, who is 5 years old. I have already been "homeschooling" him for preschool, and have actually been schooling him since the day he was born. But now, as he's due to go off to kindergarten, I find myself so terribly confused as to where to go from here.

I want to do what's right. I want him to be happy, well-adjusted, and successful in life. All I want is the absolute best for him, as well as his brother and sister. I love them so much and I want to do what is best for them. That's not to say at all that parents who send their children to school are not doing the best for their children, I'm talking about what I feel is best for mine.

The school system where we live is little to be desired. I suppose the elementary school isn't all that bad, but it's still not the greatest. So I started looking into homeschooling, looked into support groups in my neck of the woods, tried contacting other homeschooling families in my area (never received response however) My husband was, and is, fully supportive of us homeschooling our children, and in fact says that a co-worker of his sends his children to one of the supposedly best public schools in the area, but has nothing to say but bad things about it. His co-worker is pro-homeschooling as well.

However, when I heard that a top-notch public school in my area was offering open enrollment, I jumped on it. I went and filled out the papers, gave them absolutely everything they needed the very first day they even began taking the papers. My mother-in-law, who is a sign laungage interpretor for the same school system assured me that I would have a 99% chance of getting my son in.

Well, I just received in the mail a notice of denial. He has not been accepted. I couldn't help it, I started sobbing, and I still am. I don't know what to do. I don't know if I should send him to the local public school here and see what happens, or if I should just say to heck with it and homeschool exclusively. We don't have the funds to send all of our children to a private school and even then, those aren't always much better anyhow from what I've been told.

So here I am. I told myself before I received the denial letter that if he wasn't accepted, that it was meant to be. But what does this mean now? I don't know what path to choose. Almost our entire family is anti-homeschool, so I have very little support. They make me feel as though we are not adequate enough to school him, and that we would be depriving him from normal interaction with other children. BUT I KNOW HOW CRUEL SO MANY CHILDREN ARE ANYMORE! Do I want to subject my children to that? Do I want everything that my husband and I have worked so hard to teach him to go down the tubes?

I know that I cannot protect him from the world forever. I am just trying to figure out what is the best route for my children.

*takes a deep breath* So I guess what I'm asking for is some comments from homeschooling parents, individuals that were home-schooled, and individuals who tried both and which they preferred.

I just don't know what to do.

 

We are planning to homeschool our son who is only 2. Both my husband and I had a hard time in school because we were so bored. Classes have to be taught to the middle of the road students. That means some are left out because they don't understand and some are left out due to boredom. We both would have been better off homeschooled. There are some schools that have tAG (Talented and Gifted) classes but not many.

You've got to do what you feel is best for your children. There are many online support groups. The biggest problem we have encountered is that so many of them are christian. We are not. But you will find the resources you need. Just make sure you check on your state laws and then go for it.

Good Luck,
Kathi

 

*

 

This is a hard decision to make. I am sorry your little boy didn't get into the school you wanted. It is really hard to decide what is best. I have been thinking about homeschooling Sage (age 5) she is reading at a 3-4 grade level, and I can't imagine she'll be anything but bored. She was accepted to the Gifted School in our area, but with two in college by the time Sage is in 1st grade and a $12,000 a yeat tuition at the Gifted School, even with the 50% scholorship they said they would give her, we still can't afford it.

I am still thinking of looking into Montesorri, but Sage really likes acedemics a lot, and I have heard Mont isn't all that strong in science and math.

I hope you feel better soon. One of the things about either choosing Home Schooling or regular, is if either doesn't work out, you can always go to the other. No decision is final.

Choose what your heart is telling you and see how it goes.

 

*hugs from a homeschooling mom*

Maybe this is a blessing in disguise; like you said, maybe the rejection letter was just an announcement that it wasn't meant to be.

I homeschool my children, because i know them better than any professional ever could, even if they were the only kids in the class. I know how they learn, and what interests them. I know how best to schedule activities, and the warning signs that they've had enough--all things that kids (especially young ones) need, but are often overlooked or purposefully ignored.

It's not easy to homeschool, especially when you have no support. Our family doesn't seem to be against our decision to homeschool, but they are uncomfortable with the subject--my guess is they feel like we're looking down on them for sending their own kids to school. Most homeschooling groups i've found are Christian-oriented, but there are some that are open to any faith, and even some pagan ones, if that's your path (if i can find the groups and sites i use, i'll post some).

 

Thankyou soooo much everyone for your kind words and support. It means so much!

{{{Hugs to all of you}}}

 

that's a little presumptious of you isn't it? She's upset, 3 threads doesn't give you grounding to go telling her what her children need from her.

anyway, my mum had the same conflict, she is a teacher and wanted to home school me because the local schools were really really not nice. I went to school though and I came out ok, I certainly got a broad view on different cultures and I think it prepared me for the real world where alot of people are nasty and you do have to learn to take care of yourself. However, alot of that could have been learnt elsewhere, or maybe not considering I don't know what interaction home schooling allows in terms of other activities which involve children in social settings. I would definately have benefited from a better education though.
There are so many pros and cons, I'm sure you will decided what is best for your child.

 

Michael my dear, I've posted only two threads on this subject, on the same exact day, within a very short period of time of one another. I was upset, I had initially first posted on this forum, but then figured that I might get more input from various people on another board since not everyone visits the parenting board. I thought that maybe I could get some thoughts from a wider variety of individuals, perhaps ones that had been homeschooled as well. I was feeling upset, and all I was looking for was a little advice, support, understanding.

And no, I am not crying all of the time for goodness sakes. At the time I posted, all three of my children were taking naps and not there to see my tears.

 

Thankyou very much for your compassion the_sweet...

{{{Hugs to you}}}

 

hippychickmommy, i go through the same dilemma all the time! my school age kids are in grades 3 and 5 and they do go to school for now, but i've always wanted to homeschool them and i'm always argueing the pros and cons . . . with myself! it's so frustrating!!!

their school isn't terrible, but i really did want them to have something different then i did. ya know? my girl is very very interested in the arts which is almost non exsistent in their school. sports exist though. she's forced to play sports in gym 4 days out of 5 though she despises sports. my son is special needs. his class also has several "behaviour" children and they tend to victimize my son. our school has a zero tolerance for bullies but the teachers can't be everywhere all the time and Niki has a hard time telling when something happens to him because he has trouble finding the words to express himself (he's on the autistic spectrum)

we are considering homeschooling next year though i'm always afraid i might mess up somehow. i just wanted you to know that i know how you feel. maybe we both need to homeschool our kids, what do you say?

hugs to you!

kathy

 

You sound just like me in your fears. Too bad we didn't live close by, we could form our own little homeschooling group.

 

I am a homeschooled kid and yes it can be hard. Your not always shure that your where you should be in school and things of that mater. I am doing farly good. I am learning algebra and studying some SAT test skills. I go from about 8:30 to 12:30 all year with weekends. As long as you know that you can teach your kid and are ready to you can. Then on the other hand it can be hard to make friends and things as a home schooler. I say if you realy want to home school him get him in other activitys as well. Make shure that he can do things for himself. If you have any questions go ahead and ask me I am happy to help.

 

What is best? Homeschooling is best. Really simple, pure. When the child gets older, let them decide if they want to go to public school or not. They will know, believe me. And if they want to get out again, take them out.

AND, if you have the time for homeschooling, I mean, whats the conflict????? Your child will thank you for it.

Blessings to you upon your path
Francine

 

well I think it's important to remember there are pros to sending your children to school too. Also it's hard for a child to make a decision to go to a public school when all they will have known is homeschooling. I guess it's all up to what you want your child to get out of schooling and what the schools in your area are like.

 

could you list some pros of sending a child to school? I'm not trying to be difficult, lol, i really am interested in why a lot of parents think public school is best.

 

Have you checked in with any of the local homeschool groups in your community? Maybe they can offer support, guidance, and of course social interaction.
H

 

First of all, sorry that your son didn't get in the school of your choice. I know it probably won't make you feel better, but everything happens for a reason. There is some reason why he didn't get in. The reason may become clear to you at a later date......you never know.

Second, I'm homeschooling (probably going the unschooling route) my daughter after she finishes kindergarten in public school this year.
I really wanted to do this anyway, but then I checked out a few books about HS from the library and I want to start NOW! I've learned so much from reading these books. They discuss different methods of "teaching", different ideas to track progess (if necessary in your state) other than testing, etc. They are very motivating and I now wonder why I ever wanted to send her to public school in the first place!

I don't know where you live, but there is probably at least one support group near. They may be able to help you also. If not, there are many groups available for support online. I'm glad you have the support of your husband, but it can still be very hard to not have support from other family members. My family is very supportive, but they still ask A LOT of questions, almost quizzing me to make sure I know what I'm doing. The books that I've read really helped me explain to them how and why I'm doing this for my daughter.

I hope you find the answers you are looking for and if you need anything, please feel free to pm me.

 

Hey just wanted to chime in!


I am a homeschooling momma! My dd is 5.5 and although she isn't legally ready for school, she is reading at a 4th grade level and has been doing addition and subtraction for awhile now. That is why we choose to homeschool.

I guess I shouldn't say "we" because my hubby HATES homschooling. He hates almost everything, but this is one thing that bugs him. SO....this fall she is enrolled in an online charter school. It was our "half-way point"!

The school is free because it is a public school. They also supply you with a computer and internet reimbursement as well as the curriculum and supplies! It was an answer to prayer for me. We can't afford private school, and I wanted to homeschool, but yet sometimes I just slack off so the provided curriculum was just what I was looking for. And you can't beat free! (-;

I am not sure if they are still enrolling, but as far as kindergarten goes, don't fret! Don't go out and buy expensive curriculms. The cheap Walmart workbooks do just as well. There are many resources online for homeschooling as well as support groups that you can join....probably yahoo groups also if you are feeling discouraged. (or just pop me an email!)

Check out your options, and like a PP said...somethings happen for a reason! God opened a window after the school shut the door. You can do it momma! I know you can! Only you know what is best for your DC and only you can provide him the support and education that he needs!

HTH!

 

hmmm... i definitely want to home school king joey - i wasn't able to do that for my older sons even though i wanted to, i've always had to work. anyways, i've taught school before and my mom is still a teacher, and in our experience the homeschooled kids do very well academically and i've never seen one that couldn't interact well with other kids. anyways, i'm interested in getting started on joey's education, never too young to start and i found a good site for you (and me!), http://www.hslda.org/ - Home School Legal Defense Association. Lots of good links, articles & studies about the effectiveness, all the legal stuff broke down by state, a legislative 'watch' to see what's going on in your area. looks like a good place to start anyways...