Gifted Issues Discussion homepage Forums Parenting and Advocacy Finally homeschool ! Any suggestions ?

So after 2nd grade that was a nightmare for DS , we have come to a decision , that we're doing homeschool this year . This will be very first time , we're a little nervous about it . It is not quite 100% homeschool , we're doing an online school , we still need to learn the structure and all . I think once we're comfortable with this , we can try doing 100% homeschool . We talked with DS before deciding about homeschool , and he actually wouldn't mind to try homeschool . At the end of the 2nd grade last year he ended up hating school and kept wanting to skip school , and this is from a child who hates holidays because he loved school so much .

I've told friends about DS being homeschooled , very few friends supportive about our decision . But most of them , seems like they're against the idea of homeschool .They commented " oh i wouldn't be able to do it , my kids are already smarter than me " or " What about friends ? how is he going to learn to socialize ? "
I was hoping that they could be a little bit supportive , last year was so depressing for everybody in this house . DS wasn't happy and of course we weren't happy either , we tried to advocate for him , we had many many conferences with school , but they just failed to keep their promises . And DS ended up hating the school .

This summer , DS is back to being himself , he is so much happier , love learning things, and doesn't have that anger in him anymore , i am not saying he's a perfect angel , but we're doing better , we're all a lot happier now .

So i am a bit nervous doing this homeschool thing but also i am a bit excited about it too . I know it's not going to be easy but i guess it'll be a lot easier to deal with ourselves than having to deal with school that doesn't do anything .


If any of you have any suggestions for us , please share !

Thank you !!!

Check online to see if you can find a homeschool co-op nearby! Down here in Texas there are a ton of them, and they seem like a great way to continue some group learning and activities while homeschooling.

Ohh-- and be aware that in some places, "homeschool-homeschoolers" may not be all that welcoming. After all-- you're still associating yourselves with a virtual school, see...

Which, to be clear, I have nothing against. Obviously. We're entering our 8th year doing the same thing. So clearly there are benefits, not the least of which is not having to buy multiple sets of curriculum each year for a HG kid that eats through them like potato chips!!

So, social advice here?

If...

1. most friends/family are against "homeschooling" (why? because it's 'hippy-dippy' or because it's what isolationist zealots do, maybe? Anyway-- it's weird.)-- point out that you are not homeschooling. You're making it easier to meet your child's needs for acceleration and enrichment by using a charter school via a distance model. It is, too a real school. With report cards and everything. HA.

2. you encounter friends who are pro-homeschooling or ANTI-school (yes, you'll meet them in the homeschooling community, trust me), nod and smile, and point out the HOME-LEARNING environment, your commitment to "spend this time WITH my child" and the like. Flexible pacing, flexible scheduling... (just leave out the part about school-required dates, health forms, and that kind of thing). This also prevents a proselytizing sermon about how you are MORE than equipped to homeschool, you certainly don't need anyone choosing curriculum for you, etc.



Good luck, by the way!

we're doing this for the first time, too!

and i hear you on the negative reactions - it took me ALL summer to refine my response. for friends, family & strangers alike, i now simply offer this: [big smile] oh, we're homeschooling this year. [full. stop.] and then, if they ask anything else, i essentially kill the conversation with the very firm but delightfully nebulous, "it's the right choice for our family right now."

it was pretty liberating to realize that i don't actually have to defend this decision to anyone!

and, i too, am very excited to just be dealing with ... us! onward and upward, amiright?

We started homeschooling several years ago for many of the same reasons. Our DS is very happy now. (It took about a month for him to re-discover his love of learning.) And, we also had a lot of negative feedback from friends. I think they were worried for us and maybe even a little jealous that we were courageous enough to try it. At first I was upset by their comments, but over time I learned to brush the doubts they created aside.

It's funny...some of these same people will ask me how we're doing now 5 years later, and when I tell them all the amazing things we're learning and how great the kids are doing with their friendships, etc., their follow-up question is, "so when are they going back to school?" -- It appears they still can't break out of their brick-and-mortar mentality. At that point I just say, "who knows...maybe never."

I would second the suggestion to look for a coop that matches your needs. We have always belonged to a coop of one sort or another and have found them to be wonderful experiences. Not only do they give the chance for the kids to socialize, but they can also provide extra learning opportunities, as well as a support network for homeschooling parents. -- In our last coop (where we used to live), there were several virtual school students. The parents used the coop to supplement what the kids weren't doing at home.

Good luck. Smile say this is what is best for ds at present. Change the subject.

Thank you for all the great suggestions from all of you , i really appreciate it .

I am excited for DS for this whole new journey , i think we'll do fine , just like y'all said , have to have the confidence , right?

Thank you again for great advises and the great supports !!!!

We homeschool now and it has made our lives far easier, aside from the snotty side comments. I generally decide whether or not I care what this person thinks of me. If I care, I try to bring them along with good stories and invite them to spend the day with us or see my DS's work. If I don't care, I have a stockpile of equally snotty comments back :-)

"When are you going to send your child to real school?"
answered "When are you going to stop pretending yours is "real?"
and nicer "We do a lot of what you might consider real school, we just do it at our own pace. Come hang out with us one day and try it!"

"How can he possibly socialize if he's at home?"
answered "I don't know, I never thought about it since he's always locked in the basement."
and nicer "We have tons of activities that keep us out of the house most of the day- with a wide age range of people. I think he gets more social time now than he ever did in a classroom!"

There are lots of DYS moms and very, very gifted mom bloggers if you look for gifted homeschooling or academic homeschooling you'll find several. Just know you're not alone :-)

Wow-- socialization? Do you mean spending all day every day with a group of other {insert appropriate}-graders? Like Lord of the Flies, do you mean?

I guess I figured that I'm not trying to raise a {insert appropriate level}- grader, so why would I want to limit his/her exposure to only them?

I was rather hoping that at the end of this process, s/he'd be a functional, civilized adult.




Best. response. ever.

my new stock socialization response is, "oh, she's very social. we do a lot of extra-curricular activities and she always fits in beautifully."

of course, they assume i mean with age peers. but what i actually mean is that her extra curriculars are ability-grouped, and everything works so much better for her when the other kids are approximately double her age.

it's such fun to tell the truth... if not the whole truth!