BellaOnline Forums Family Moms Homeschooling

Do any of you ladies homeschool? My children are 14,10 and 5. I am really interested in starting to do this. Especially for my 14 year old he went to Junior high this year and had a really bad time. He wants to be home schooled. But I am not so sure I can do this right. I know they would get better care at home especially one on one interaction but I am just afraid I won't get the job done. <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />

I've homeschooled for about 11 years now. I was scared to death when I started, because I have ADD and I was sure I'd forget to have school-I've been known to forget to fix dinner, pick up kids and so on. Funny thing though, I never once forgot to have school. I tried to be really organized, at least for me. I planned way ahead so I wouldn't wake up in the morning and say, "Now what?" I used a school district run program the first semester until I realized I could do better myself, and would do it too. There are two main things to remember if you're starting with teens: Can you stand to be with them all day, and can you make them work? If you can handle those things, you'll probably be fine. We have a great homeschooling topic on Bella. The new host, Meg is so smart and sensible, as well as being a great person. Check out her article on record keeping.

Hi Debbie <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
I've been having a really hard time accessing these boards, so don't think I am ignoring you! <img src="/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

You can always email me at [email]homeschooling@bellaonline.com<br[/email] />
Anyhow - it was my husband who brought up the topic of homschooling, I was 7 mos pregnant with our first child. Inside I thought he was nuts, but I agreed because we had a long way to go!

Thankfully, he wouldn't let me put my oldest in school when she turned 5. It turned out to be a good thing for many reasons, like how she wouldn't have been placed in an English speaking classroom, yet she only speaks English. That aside, I swear the biggest benefit is that I don't have to wake up at 6 and be dressed and out the door with two kids by 7am, just to make the 2 mile walk (no bus service within 5 miles of a school down here) along a 6 lane highway with few sidewalks, just to take her to a school where I wasn't allowed to stay and observe. Uh-uh, wasn't going to happen. I was told it was my fault for living in a city, well EXCUSE me!

Anyhow, it is scary. I invite you to read Debra Bell's The Ultimate Guide to Homeschooling. It's the first homeschooling book I read, and it's what I recommend to everyone. In the event you aren't Christian (the author is), it's ok because it's not preachy or anything.

Another good place to start is by looking at the "What your ... Grader Needs to KNow" series by E.D. Hirsch. Compare that to what your kids know (though of course all kids are on different timelines), their goals for the future (such as college admission or an internship) and their interests. Then, look at the public school curriculum (available online or from the school itself), and compare. Also take into account your kid's feelings, and maybe read some books about bringing a kid home from school and what we homeschoolers refer to as "deschooling" (read: destressing!)

Worry about the curriculum and all later! Honestly, if you love your kids, if you can read, if you can spare the time, if you know how to learn, if you talk to your kids in a civil manner, and if you can trust your kids to learn (a big one!) - then homeschooling is for you. You are already their first, and best, teacher.

It's such a personal decision, and there is no right place to start. You just need to go with your gut instinct. Start by reading, maybe look up some local groups for info, visit homeschooling websites and boards. See, you've already taken the first few steps!!

Good luck, and email me if you ever want to chat off-board!

Meg <img src="/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

Hooray! You got in here Meg! It is scary at the start, isn't it-and then after a while it seems so natural you can't imagine any other way to live. Another book I liked was the Homeschooling Handbook, but I've forgotten the author. It seemed surprisingly balanced to me.

Here are a few online sites that have catalogues in print that I found helpful in developing my curriculum.

[url=BellaOnline ALERT: For anti-spam reasons, we restrict the number of URLs allowed in a given post. You have exceeded our maximum number of URLs.

Why Kitty, one of those pages-the last one I think, on Suite101 is mine. Thank you!

Yeppers, I too am a Suite101 person! Your site is, as always, super!!!

Prime Time Kitty