| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| farmmommy |
Posted - Jul 28 2009 : 5:42:43 PM
I have to decided to homeschool my kids...2 and 4...Emily is due to start K in the fall of 2010...and though it sounds far away...I feel like it's just around the corner....For 2 days, I have been researching home school programs online, I can honestly say that I'm lost....lol...
There are so many to choose from...how do I know which program to choose? How do I know if they are ligit??
If any of you home schooling farmgirls have any advice to get me started in the right direction, I would SOOOO appriciate it.....
Feel free to email me with any special advice or information as well as on here...thanks...Kelley
http://cockadoodledewberries.blogspot.com |
| 17 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| txbikergirl |
Posted - Aug 14 2009 : 5:32:33 PM
I am not homeschooling and don't have experience there, but wanted to share a bit.
First, I think it is a great idea and wish you well.
Second, if you aren't on www.paperbackswap.com then check it out. They have all kinds of books, even school books, and it works in that you post books you want to get rid of and as people request them you get "points" to spend on books to request from anyone else. I know of lots of people buying all their school textbooks there, so it is worth a look. the only cost is that whoever mails the book to another pays the media mail postage cost.
third, I think one of the great things about homeschooling is that you can do all those things that aren't taught anymore. you can take them to the local library once a week to pick out new books, perhaps enjoy the weekly reading hour for kids, you can visit a local farm to learn about eggs and milk, etc. all these field trips we got when we were little that no longer occur regularly.
work a "personal finance" class in there where you teach them about saving, how to write a check, balance a checkbook, etc. i started my oldest niece with a checkbook at 10 and she did great... and you can get unused savings passbooks, deposit slips, etc from a local bank that is willing to give a bit away.
i have some great nieces. and my mom and i were discussing the other day how some of them are more self sufficient than others... and it seems that the ones that were taught how to cook, how to pick out their own books at the library, how to spend allowance with their own choices... all those seem like they can do anything. it dawned on me that the parents that are teaching more than just the read/write/arithmetic are really building these great little well rounded individuals - wherease the 3 R kids are just smart and cute and fun but don't really know all the practical and common sense stuff that makes them all the more interesting and adventurous.
Best of luck!
*********************************************************
Bread the Mary Jane Way
- started Mother 6/28/09
- Hodgson Mill Organic unbleached flour
- well water w/ reverse osmosis filter
- feeding twice as much once a day to eliminate excess hooch
- first sourdough loaf 7/25/09 - GREAT!
- using KA bread flour for loafs |
| MagnoliaWhisper |
Posted - Aug 14 2009 : 3:22:06 PM
I agree about socializing exactly Rae! lol :) We do plenty with many ages of children and she is well rounded! Every one loves her! lol hahaha Oh we do have to teach her a few things here and there in social situations, but that would happen regaurdless.
We are moving to pretty much the country......but it's hard to explain. The house is in a rural area, although already becoming populated! ARG! But, only about 10 minutes from a big city. We will be living with my parents on their 70 acre wildlife preserve, till we save the money for our own home. We may be moving to a small town after that, kind of far from the big city. haha Mainly I would love to live rural but affording a home in rural areas is the hard part. Through our research on homes, it looks like we will most be able to afford a home in this small town called Ark City. They offer a lot for families and children there though, so that's a good thing. (I've visited it a number of times, when I myself was in school as they had so many programs for children that often our school field trips were there, even though it was about 2 hours from the city I lived in). So I think it may be a good compromise to rural.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
| Old Spirit |
Posted - Aug 14 2009 : 3:03:51 PM
Heather I wish you the best. When parents are serious the home school kids do excel in their classes. The social thing is baloney as far as I am concerned. We never locked our children up in the basement so their was plenty of socializing. I liked that they did not have to miss class time because of someone causing problems in the classroom, that is frustrating for the kid wanting to learn. My daughter had the goal of learning and that is what she got when we moved her to homeschool.
Wow it will be quite a move from NYC but sounds like it will be nice. Will you be in the country or town??
Rae
Farm Girl #647
...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles:...
Isaiah 40:31
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| MagnoliaWhisper |
Posted - Aug 14 2009 : 1:43:09 PM
Until a couple of months ago I was hands down going to go with Calvert, and I still like what it offers a lot, but I really don't think we can afford it. I haven't had any experience with it yet, but I have friends who love it. A lot of states are now offering public/home schooling! We live in NYC it's currently not offering it. But, we are moving to Kansas, and my daughter is only 2 so we will move before she needs school. Although we have already started unofficially schooling her. hahaha (we read every day, we play games that involve learning, etc).
Any way, in Kansas, Pennsylvania, and a few other states, it's called K12. In Kansas it's going to cost me 95 dollars a year, it comes with the full curriculum, the ATS program (meaning I will be assigned a teacher that can help me as I need it, keep records and all that state required stuff!), a loaner pc, and a loaner printer, along with what seems like a ton of other stuff. And all for less then 100 dollars a year. This also includes several group field trips that I can choose or not to participate in with other local home schoolers.
A friend of mine is in Wisconsin, she was like me and really looking into Calvert, but like me also can not really afford it. When she looked up this program for her state it's FREE! She doesn't even have to pay the 95 a year! (she may of gotten a scholarship, I don't know, all I know is she said it would be free for her!) Her's also comes with even more stuff then the one in Kansas does!
So in my opinion it is worth looking into.
However, so I could have more personal control then the public school system, if money wasn't a issue, I would probably still do Calvert.
Also as far as socialization......well I have many theories on that. 1 is many didn't "socialize" at school like they do today till around 60 or so years ago. When my grandmother went to school she went to a one room school with kids of all ages, very few her own age. It only had around 15 to 20 students for the whole school! They learned to socialize with all ages, not just their own. And 2..our plan is to do other social activities with my daughter, first we go to church and are active there, but also I thought things like Dance classes, or sports, and for sure probably 4-H we will be doing. For right now, she is already enrolled in a program at our public library which is free. They meet once a week in a class like setting, play games, play music, dance and sing, and have story reading. It's a hour a week. And she is learning social skills in a different setting there. She also goes to the playground often again, many different kids that she learns to play with and socialize with there as well.
Our main thing is we want her to have a good education. The foul children aren't as big of a issue to us. As she will eventually have to learn to make wise choices in friends, and hopefully our own values that we exhibit will help her choose wisely. However, I do understand what you are saying, that's why we want out of NYC. Not that there's not bad people every where. But, I just can't stand taking her to the park, and parents cursing at their toddlers, calling them all kinds of foul names, using the F bomb yelling at them, saying things like they aren't going to F-ing take this, or F-ing take that from a little B***** etc! To a 3 or 4 year old! It breaks my heart along with literally makes me want to hurl, as it's so disgusting to talk to any one like that in my opinion, let alone a small child. If only these grown parents knew how repulsive they are! UHG! I often my self feel lonely at the playground here, because I don't want to speak to such parents, as I can not imagine talking to any one like they do, let alone a small child. I don't want to end up shot or in jail.......lol so I know I just have to not talk to them, otherwise I would be going off on them, and they would either hurt me or I would hurt them. lol I have spoke to my husband many times about this. I just don't understand it. When I was growing up, if some one on accident cursed in front of me as a child they would right away apologized, and so how sorry they were for using that word and make a effort not to use it again. Today it's just common, and seems to be fine with every one to use them to the children and not just around them! When I was little it wasn't even acceptable to use the words around the children let alone to them!
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
| Old Spirit |
Posted - Aug 07 2009 : 08:02:38 AM
Oh yeah there is something called virtual academy as well you may want to. Not sure if it is just MN or not but I know quite a few people use that as they do all the grading and etc. I preferred how I did it as we have a specific game plan for those 2 years and knowing what my daughter needed and was missing was our guidance.
Good luck.
Rae
Farm Girl #647
...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles:...
Isaiah 40:31
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| JustAnAllAmericanGirl |
Posted - Aug 07 2009 : 06:48:44 AM
I home school my seven year old son, and I have to say it really depends on you, your child and how your family functions throughout the day. We use a prepackaged curriculum from Calvert School. I really like it. I taught college and I know that the majority of your time is spent putting together the curriculum, not in the actual teaching. Since my husband runs a company from home and I am a free lance writer in addition to being a farmgirl, this worked for our family. Many people prefer not to use packaged curriculum. There is no right or wrong, it really depends on you and your child. The biggest piece of advice I can give you is don't stress about it too much. I know that is easier said than done, but your child will benefit greatly no matter how you end up doing it. Just make it fun and exciting for the both of you. Good luck - I know you'll do fine. Jamie 
www.JustAnAllAmericanGirl.blogspot.com |
| Old Spirit |
Posted - Aug 05 2009 : 04:08:15 AM
The great thing is you can be creative. That is what I did with my home ec, no books, just practical, what I thought was, living stuff that could be used later.
Charlotte Mason does have great ideas!! I would have based my whole curriculum on story based learning has I started earlier but only did the final 2 years. My daughter already had the love of reading because I was always with book in hand.
Rae
Farm Girl #647
...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles:...
Isaiah 40:31
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| herbquilter |
Posted - Aug 03 2009 : 4:11:41 PM
We've homeschooled for over 20 years 7 children. All of our kids love & have loved read alouds! This is always our favorite. A clue for mom;
1- Be the example of self education and find some things you want to learn about, always have a book you are reading and a personal learning path. The power of example is greater than we think!
2- Take care of yourself physically, emotionally and spiritually. You are more than a mom, you are a whole person. Take some time alone to work on your projects, smell the roses, draw or photo a flower...I think you get the idea.
My best advice would be to review the previous posts on homeschooling. If I were to start over again I would use Ambleside.com and do more Charoltte Mason style.
Also see; Homeschool Your Child for Free: More Than 1,400 Smart, Effective, and Practical Resources for Educating Your Family at Home
http://www.amazon.com/Homeschool-Your-Child-Free-Effective/dp/0307451631/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1249340999&sr=8-3
Written by my friend LauraMaery Gold
Blessings,
Kristine ~ Mother of Many, MRET & Wellness Coach
http://herbalmommasda.blogspot.com/
Farmgirl Sister #97
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| farmmommy |
Posted - Aug 03 2009 : 1:19:44 PM
Thank ya'll so much for the good advice!! now we (DH and I) are having a bit of an opinion difference issue...lol....He's only about 75% onboard with the homeschooling thing...the other 25% of him is worried about the kids social environment...which is exactly why as of just 2 short years ago, I was against homeschooling....but then I really had to start thinking about the bigger issues....like the way all of these kids are talking to their parents as well as other adults these days!!!! I don't want my children speaking like that to adults or ANYONE for that matter at the age of 8!!! And..I can hardly believe it, but a VERY good friend of mine just let their 7 year old son have a cell phone!!! And he's ALWAYS texting on it!!! We took the kids to the carnival the other night, and I was so disgusted at the behavior of the other kids, that at one point it was causing me to actually stare at a group with my mouth wide open!! These kids ranged from what looked like 3 to 8, and there were 4 of them...and they were so foul mouthed and rude that I wanted to spank every one of them at some point!!! The parents were right there with them, and what was kinda sad was that the parents acted like they just plain didn't care....they were totally oblivious to the fact that the 3 year old looking girl was LITERALLY pushing my daughter off the top of the slide, and telling her older sibling to hurry up and slide down it behind Emily, so that she could knock her off the end of it!!! They were yelling things like "shut up" "kiss my stinky butt" "you are so stupid" "I'm gonna kill you" and this was the one that made me say lets go to my kids...when one of the older boys pushed the oldest looking girl off of a swing, and she turned around and SCREAMED " You stupid A#$hole, you're so stupid, you make me wanna puke all over the place!!"
ARE YOU SERIOUS???? And like I said...the parents could have cared less...my husband and I were in shock, that such a young age group of children were acting that way in public!!! Now, I know that this inccident really isn't related to homeschooling...I mean, for all we know, those kids may have been homeschooled...but, just they way these young children are acting these days, and I know that If I'm to put my kids in public school, that a certain amount of what other children are doing is going to wear off on my kids. And I know that it is the parents responsibilty to"nip things in the bud" and not "allow" their children to say or do something just because another child gets to do it. I mean..how do we know how much a teacher is going to put up with in thier classroom???...take for instence..I have an aquaintence lets say, that works in the public school system....and this aqauintance works with Jr high aged kids...and these Jr high aged kids send dirty, foul and inapproporiate jokes to my aquaintances cell phone and school email address.....And this aquaintance is so "used" to it, that they actually don't even care anymore, like it's not a bad thing, yet a funny thing because the "jokes" that are being sent, this aquaintance actaully finds funny.....see what I mean? Anyhow...I'm ranting and rambling now.......LOL!!! Just that I have so MANY issues with the way I see children acting these days, that I just really more than anything, want to protect my children from that stuff...AND at the same time, give them a good quality education...!!!!
http://cockadoodledewberries.blogspot.com |
| Old Spirit |
Posted - Aug 02 2009 : 09:08:47 AM
Hi I home schooled only 2 years, my youngest her last 2 years of school. I connected with a wonderful woman who had home schooled all her children and she shared everything I needed to know, records, etc. I got my material from A Beka. I really liked it a lot. For us we found it was at a higher level and a good challenge for my daughter. I set up a weekly schedule of what I expected us to get done. It was good to have goals like that and weekly was plenty as things can change.
For my home ec I had her learn to knit and embroider. My Mom taught her those things which was really cool. I wish I had done it all along for all my kids but...the nice thing too is I was able to find weakness from public school and nailed those which helped a lot on the ACT test and during her college career.
Rae
Farm Girl #647
...those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles:...
Isaiah 40:31
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| MissDana |
Posted - Jul 31 2009 : 1:43:14 PM
Kelly, congratulations on wanting the best for your children!
I have been homeschooling 14 years. I have one high schooler at home, a college senior and a successful business man son.
Each one of them have been different in their learning choices and each one did a great job of being happy and therefore were open to learning.
I would suggest waiting on buying expensive "boxed" curriculum or enrolling in a homeschooling school (like Oak Meadow, Calvert, or Laural Springs). I used Oak Meadow with one child, Calvert for a year or two with another kid and correspondence school with another.
Find a homeschool group of mom's near by that you click with and enjoy this new world!
Dana
Proud Farmgirl Sister # 267
www.schultztroupe.wordpress.com
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| kmbrown |
Posted - Jul 30 2009 : 6:20:38 PM
Hey I'm with you totally. I'm just like Kayla actually. I am a homeschool graduate getting ready to start with my babies. I intend on doing the Noah Academy which is a classical education. I am very against the "unschooling" technique which seems to be getting popular. My momma is my "counselor" for now, so I would recommend finding somebody who has homeschooled and become really good friends with them!!! |
| Singing Tree Farm |
Posted - Jul 30 2009 : 4:33:35 PM
This will be my fourth year homeschooling two children, now 13 and 12. It is deffinitly not to early to begin deciding how you want to school. I had no idea, but when my children began struggling at school I was thrown in. There are many things that I would do differently now, but I still believe it is worth it. It is really going to depend on you and your children, what is important to you and their learning style. I did and still do a lot of research online. There are sites that compare different curriculums, just read between the lines for what you are looking for. Now I do not use one curriculum but different ones together. There are certain people that I really appreciate what they have to teach, such as Diane Hopkins who has seven children she homeschooled. I would say the big thing is teaching and learning style and go from there. Research all kinds of things on the web for ideas you want to use. If your interested I would tell you what I have learned and what has worked for us more specifically. Just keep pressing on and it will make more and more sense. Best wishes. Oh, yeah, I get some of my books on ebay and half.com. |
| mom2my2boyz |
Posted - Jul 29 2009 : 8:52:09 PM
We are homeschooling for our second year (2 boys- ages 6 and 4) and are using Sonlight curriculum -it's what we used last year and we LOVED it!!! I can't say enough good things about it - we are a family that loves reading and this has been the perfect fit for us. I'd definitely recommend checking them out online. This stuff is worth every last penny! Congratulations on your decision to homeschool! And no matter what curriculum you choose (or don't choose) - just remember to enjoy the journey and have fun along the way. 
"So I threw my hands in the air. I was done with Wal-Mart and Wonderbread. I wanted something real."
-Excerpted from Jenna Woginrich's book, "Made from Scratch" a must-read! |
| Tanna |
Posted - Jul 29 2009 : 07:22:52 AM
Kelley,
I am homeschooling both of my boys ages 10 and 6. They have always been homeschooled. My advice is simple. Don't worry about a curriculum at all yet. I did and it was a waste of money.
Read lots of books and play games. Don't underestimate how much children learn from real life, books, and games. The more time you spend doing this the better you will know your children's learning styles.
If you feel like you need something to give you ideas you may enjoy Five In A Row: http://www.fiveinarow.com/
I just wouldn't buy into a packaged curriculum or even what we normally think of 'school work' at the younger ages.
And like Melody said, Don't let yourself get overwhelmed. :)
Tanna
Farmgirl #644 |
| bevibrant |
Posted - Jul 29 2009 : 05:05:20 AM
I know how you feel! Even though I'm a homeschool graduate, when it came time to figuring out what to do for my kids, I felt lost. Melody gives great advice.
This year I'm going to try these packges from Timberdoodle. http://www.timberdoodle.com/Complete_Homeschool_Curriculum_Packages_s/363.htm
I really trust what they've done over the years.
Kayla Howard
Farmgirl Sister #588
www.bevibrant.us |
| Cabinprincess |
Posted - Jul 28 2009 : 6:30:28 PM
Hi there Kelly,
Don't let yourself get overwhelmed, it's easy to do. Home schooled both my boys. Go on line or to the local library and find the books titled for each grade level. So they will be "Everything a Kindergartner Needs to Know" the First Grade and on up. They are the best guides of what your child is expected to know but you can add to it also. Once you get that down you can explore based on how your child learns. Mardels in Mesquite has a whole line of home schooling products and there are all kind of Teachers stores. If you call your local school and ask where the closes one is to you, you will be blown away at the selection they have there. Every work book for every subject you would need. I got one based on Little House in the Big Woods and we read the book and made butter and all kinds of fun stuff. Also every year they have a huge home school product fair in Dallas. There will also be a home school group in your area, usually the Chambers know how to contact them which helps for organized outings for the kido's. I will be much easier than you ever expected and you can always call me. I know there is a home school magazine also I just don't remember the name but you could find it on line.
Smiles, Melody June
God's gift to you are your talents, your gift to Him is how you use them. |
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