Homeschooling Monkey has been on my mind back and forth all summer long. Why? Well in case you are new to my blog, you might not know that my daughter has a severe Panic Attack Disorder, mild OCD, and ADHD <--textbook ADHD to the highest power. One day she is going to soooo hate me for putting this all out there. Anyway, she has been struggling at school and many of you know that I was in tears about how she was dealing with school and more so, how they were dealing with her.
After a summer of researching, praying, and bitching, I decided that the right thing for my daughter would be to home school her for her 3rd grade year. Am I excited about this? Not really, but I am willing to do anything for Monkey to succeed. I knew people were going to look at me strange when I told them Monkey would not be returning to school but rather embarking on a new style of learning that involved all sorts of different teaching methods.
If you are thinking about homeschooling, and I mean seriously considering, you should be prepared to research a bunch, on state laws, and curriculum options for your child. I live in Texas so the laws regarding homeschooling are easy to understand. Be prepared to be frustrated at how much you do not know regarding homeschooling, but have confidence in knowing that there are sooooo many resources and local groups that can assist you and your child.
Since we are new homeschoolers I bought a book about everything homeschooling, ordered curriculum catalogs, and joined online resource groups. The places where I found the most information was at cafemom and mamapedia.
CLICK HERE for the Mamapedia resources.
http://www.cafemom.com/ is the very first mom online community that I joined. I love cafemom and the wealth of information that you can get from ordinary moms just like you. First you would have to become a member of cafemom, then you would join THIS GROUP called Happy Homeschoolers for what seems like an endless amount of homeschooling information.
It will be your choice in the type of homeschooling you decide. I decided to do an eclectic curriculum which would involve different subjects from different sources. Monkey will be taking Language arts and History on http://www.timeforlearning.com/. These two subjects are all online. She will be taking the Horizons Math for 3rd grade and R.E.A.L. Science for 3rd grade, which are both workbook and experiment based.
The main thing is to keep great records of what your child does on a daily basis. The online programs do that for you. They monitor progress and attendence, but you are on your own when it comes to the workbook style subjects. I just feel that science and math are two things that you have to do hands on.
I know that this seems like a lot of information at once, and it is. Here is a list of some of my favorite homeschool related websites.
Popular Sites to help you pick curriculum <----these seem endless! http://www.k12.com/
http://www.thebackpack.com/
http://www.abekaacademy.com/
http://www.aop.com/
http://www.texasvirtualschool.org/
http://www.connectionsacademy.com/
http://www.time4learning.com/
Organizations that offer great resources!
http://www.americanhomeschoolassociation.org/
http://www.unschooling.org/
http://www.homeschool.com/
http://www.home-school.com/
http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/
http://www.hslda.org/
http://www.chadd.org/
http://www.autism-society.org/
http://www.nfb.org/
Please feel free to comment with resources that you feel are helpful for homeschooling!
Thanks =)
ReplyDeleteHere's another 1 for ya that I been uding for Hev, they also have this section for bigger kids
ReplyDeletehttp://www.1plus1plus1equals1.com/ForBigKids.html
Cool! Thanks! I meant to add to the end for anyone who has a resource they want to share to do so! I will go back in and edit it!
ReplyDeleteI am still a little nervous, but I know in my heart it is the best thing for us.
It's a lot of info to take in but once you get set in a routine it goes a lot smoother (has been for me anyways)
ReplyDeleteFirst of all, I love your disclaimer!! I admire people who take responsibility for themselves; it's so aggravating when people have a crying fest on their blog because of something someone said to them!! People say stuff; that's all there is to it, but when people like you go ahead and put it out there for people to accept, the other people can't say squat!! ;o)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I am one semester away from my special education degree, so sharing about your daughter makes me very passionate about your decision to home school!! After I teach a few years, I will be home schooling as well!! My husband was home schooled, and my aunt home schools, so I am already doing my research!! Good luck; I think that's GREAT!! :o)
@Crissy- I love that site link you shared! Her blog is really neat too!
ReplyDeleteYou are right, once you dive in, it starts to fall into place, and things start to make sense. The Cafemom group helped me the most with my "dumb questions" about the basics of hsing.
@Southern Reflections! Soooo glad to have you stopping by!
ReplyDeleteI just realized that I might be offending people, even though what I share I feel is okay, others may not always feel the same way. At least this way, they know up front that maybe this is not the blog for them.
It really is nice to hear people who are in education studies or careers themselves comment on homeschooling and the benefits. Sure its not for everyone, but I think it is just what we need.
Good luck with your studies. I am sure you will have soooo many rewarding moments with such an awesome career choice!
Dee
I love your disclaimer..lmao LOVE IT
ReplyDeleteI find myself on her blog everyday..she has some good ones in her blog list that I check out too, most would help you cause they are bigger kids
I found another good site for free printables
ReplyDeletehttp://www.sitesforparents.com/index.html
Ummm no links but forget praying for you and Monkey, I am praying for BEAN!!!!!!!!! My poor son in law will have both of you all day long! Just kidding ummm kind of ;)
ReplyDelete