Posted on 01/04/2003 3:56:17 AM PST by a.c.t.32
I guess you could say that I belong to the "relaxed home schooler" club, but I wouldn't buy curriculum or prepare a home school schedule for boys, especially boys, that are 5 and 6.
You can go to Barnes and Noble or Borders and buy some workbooks to help them with handwriting, phonics or math, or buy some of those fancy toys they have now that teach phonics and/or math.
But the main place I'd be hanging out is the library. Check out lots of books. Books to read to them, books for them to read, picture books to look at in the subjects of science or geography.
Then I'd put them in the car a couple days a week and we'd go on field trips and do fun stuff.
My sister and I homeschool and we've always waited till the "boys" were about 7 to start anything that is remotely structured.
All of them have done great in their studies, always scored high on tests, and haven't seemed to suffer in the least from the delayed start and I believe we've avoided alot of frustration by waiting till they were a little older to start formalized teaching.
I'm not advocating complete lack of scheduling, just not for kids as young as yours.
Later on we used Saxon Math, Abeka, Beautiful Feet, mixed and matched lots of curriculum. There's so much available that you'll have a great time picking and choosing.
But if you wait a year or two, you'll figure out your child's learning style, and then you can cater the curriculum to the child.
A) Do NOT homeschool unless you're sure you can live up to the commitment.........and it is a MAJOR commitment.
B) I don't care what your State says........I don't care what anyone on this thread or this forum may tell you........do NOT register with the State, county, city, or local school board. Just don't do it. It's your business, not theirs. Trust me on this one.
C) We have used, and very successfully, the curricula provided by Christian Liberty Academy from Arlington Heights, Illinois. Terrific, challenging, grounded in the basics. Their Web site is www.class-homeschools.org (squeeze here).
D) To expand on the "commitment thing": recommend you take it a year at a time; no grandiose "I'm going to homeschool my kids from K through 12th grade, no matter what!" statements. A year at a time. You'll see why eventually.
God bless and good luck.
First, realize that you are in a uniquely qualified position as to knowing their strengths, weaknesses and needs. You will naturally tailor anything you do to this criteria, so stay flexible. Much of what you do will be determined by their input.
Second, just do it. It is a journey to be shared and enjoyed. I know I do!
Great advice!
Ditti to what Dawn53 told you. I have two boys now 22 and 19, both in college both doing well, one on the honor roll. We homeschooled from 1990 so they were a little older when we started and I SO wish I had homeschooled from the beginning like you are planning. Less than 100 years ago some parochial schools (Christian Brothers) were not taking boys under the age of 8 as they were not considered ready to sit still at a desk. There may be a few who are but the vast majority need activity and to be read to. Find out how they learn best before you try to make them fit into a curriculum. God bless you, most of the time boys are so much fun to homeschool!
If you have moved and they are not heading back to a familiar school, the first thing I would do were I you is track down some friends and playmates - scouts, sports, Sunday school - wherever. Given that you mentioned a parochial school and are in Michigan, I am guessing at Catholic. Thre's a mess of us Catholic homeschoolers around - call the parish office where you are now and ask whether there is a homeschool group at the church (or at a nearby one). There are tons of places that are great fun on a Tuesday morning, even though they are a nightmare on Saturdays. If you grab the boys and a friend or two to go ice skating when they have the whole place to themselves, except for other homeschoolers, you'll be Supermom. The local library and the kid's librarian is typically a good place to troll for other homeschoolers - If there is a "story hour, go and you'll see a number.
The second thing I would do is go to World Book's typical course of study. That will give you a rough benchmark of what comes first and what second, usually - and will relax you even more.
Third thing is to do some more of what you are doing now - poking around on-line. There are 16 Yahoo! groups relating to Michigan homeschoolers. If I am correct in assuming you are Catholic and would like some Catholic homeschool sites, let me know - I've got a ton. You can search Yahoo! for Catholic Homeschoolers and get about 35 lists. There are more than that on Yahoo! but some aren't listed.
Homeschooling is closely related to parenting styles in my experience, so you can expect to find folks pretty convinced that they are doing it THE right way. Of course you will be too, once you decide.
Having homeschooled our daughters prayerfully from preschool through middle school, I cannot recommend it. They are now in their early twenties and just do not fit in with the world around them. Both are Christians, heterosexual, responsible, drug- and alcohol-free, and neither has ever been pregnant or arrested.
I don't know where we went wrong, but I'm guessing prayer and homeschooling may be to blame.
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