OK, now that you've had a chance to catch your breath from the school year, what are you doing to prepare for next year? Are you looking at something new, planning lessons, or ....
How are you getting ready for the new school year?
Blessings,
Christine

Hi!

Well, I am just beginning the idea of homeschooling. I am currently using BFIAR and am trying to decide to do FIAR, or do Little Hands to Heaven.
I am really attracted to the Sonlight curriculum, and will probably go with that, but I need to wait at least a year before beginning their preK program, from what I am told.

I am also taking a homeschool course that encourages a more delight directed approach and to not be tied to canned curriculum. Either way we end up, I am thrilled that God has placed me in this position to be able to consider homeschooling as an option for my boys.

HI Leigh,
Welcome to the board! I hope we hear from you often.
Who says you can't be delighted in a planned schedule? We often ask our kids what they want to study and 9 times out of 10 they want to go deeper into something we are already studying! If the topic is presented with enthusiasm and passion, it becomes delightful!
Of course, there are always rabbit trails to follow, such as answering everyday questions, like yesterday's from my son: "How long to bees sleep?"

Blessings,

Christine

Well, I can't say that I've actually been able to catch my breath yet! We finished school May 19. My mom came for a visit that day and stayed for 2 weeks. It was great, but I didn't get a thing done the whole two weeks! She left June 2 and took my middle daughter home with her. June 5 I got my youngest off to camp and then took my oldest daughter with me to go to my mom's house for two days and brought both girls home with me on June 7. My youngest got home on the 9th, my son left for his missions trip on the 10th, and we started VBS at our church on the 11th. Yesterday I had a pool party for our homeschool group and tonight is the VBS finale. Whew! I'm hoping that once I get thru this weekend I will be able to catch my breath and actually think about next year.

I actually have started thinking about it, just haven't had much time to do anything about it yet. I think I have everyone's curriculum planned. Now I just need time to go thru the books, see what I still need to buy, and start working on our schedule. It will be different since my son graduated this year (yippee!!) so I'll only have 3 students. Two will take co-op classes on Thursdays and since neither of them are driving yet I'll have to work that into my schedule (my son drove them last year). I'm looking forward to having a week or so to just focus on school plans, then be able to set them aside for a while and take a break before we start back. I don't know when that week will be, though, so I may end up just having to squeeze it in between everything else.

Do any of you know yet when you're starting back to school? Our first day will be August 7, which I think is a couple of days before the public schools start.
Lori

Hi Christine!
Thanks for your welcome!

I believe that "you don't know what you don't know" and using an established curriculum is a good way to learn something, then be flexible to sxplore further if the kids express a strong interest. I am attracted to having structure and not "reinventing the wheel."
However, this course I am taking is really increasing my confidence to be able to create your own lesson plans and not fear ruining your children's lives .

My big challenge now is to hold myself back from wanting to teach my kids everything in one day!

Hi Leigh,
Sounds like a balanced approach.
Now you've caught my curiosity - what course are you taking about making your own lesson plans? Tell, tell!
Christine

It is with Barb Shelton at homeschooloasis.com. A ton of reading, a ton of growth...

Hey Leigh,
Can you tell us a little about what you're learning from Barb Shelton at homeschooloasis.com?
Curious,
Christine

Hello ladies, I hope you don't mind if I jump in. I was reading your posts, and would also like to know more about this course on homeschooling. I have 2 daughters, 3 and 1. I want to start my 3 year old on some pre-K work this fall, but I have no idea where to even start!!! I feel totally overwhelmed, and don't know much about any particular curriculum. How do you find out which ones are good, and which ones aren't? Are there any out there that offer structure, but also the freedom to "stray" from a lesson plan to study something more thoroughly? Should I start with unit studies and just focus on one thing for a few weeks, or vary things every day and cover everything from telling time, counting, writing letters, etc. etc. I am excited to begin this journey, but a bit intimidated as well! Any thoughts, tips or advice are welcome! Take care and God bless, Hallyn

Hi again Hallyn,

I'm so excited for you! At these ages, we were reading books, taking nature walks, playing with art stuff and following things they were interested in. When they were ready to read, we might pick up something like Alpha Phonics and a math workbook from the grocery store, but keep it light and fun.
A neat book that might be in your library is called Slow and Steady, Get Me Ready by June Oberlander. It has developmentally appropriate activities for ages 1 - 5 or 6 and may give you some good pointers.
Does this help?
Blessings,
Christine

Hi again Christine! (by the way, my younger daughter's name is Kristine! Thank you for the tip, I will check that book out and look it over. It is hard to tell exactly where my daughter is developmentally, because she constantly surpises me. I haven't really been working with her at all on writing letters out, but the other day she had her magnadoodle out and said, "Mama, I wrote "Hi"" And SHE DID!!! I about fell over! I have no idea where she picked that up! So, she is more ready than I realized to start learning. However, I have no intentions on pushing her to fast, or making her sit down and do school work for long periods of time. I'm not competing with anyone, I want her to love learning, and learn at her own pace. But, I also want her to be challenged and curious, so that is why I wanted to start her on pre-K stuff this fall.

Once again, thanks for the info, and if you think of more, I am always open for more advice!

Take care and God bless,
Heidi

Hi Heidi,
Or get a couple sets of plastic letters from the dollar store and make simple words with them on a cookie sheet.
Christine

Hi,
Sorry, I so late in getting back to you. The course involves a ton of reading. You may have read some of the books. She covers alot of territory. She is not only educating on the logistics of hs'ing (record keeping, avoiding burnout, creating notebooks, etc.) but also incorporates:

-prayer and personal spiritual growth
-the politics of public (traditional)school
-shepherding vs. teaching vs. training
-creating a lifesyle of learning
-dating and courtship
-creating a clear vision for your family

This course satisfies the requirement for HS teaching in Washington state. But, it has also helped me to become clear and confident in why I want to homeschool and helps articulate these reasons to others.

Leigh,
So you have to take a course in WA to homeschool? I never heard of such a thing!
Can you give us an idea of how much this cost?
What's the URL again?
Thanks a bunch!
Christine

WA state requires you to complete one of the four qualifiers:
-45 college credits
-written approval by your school district superintendent
-be supervised by a certified teacher
-complete a course in home education

I have the 45 credits, but felt that taking a course would benefit both myself and my children in the long run. There are many courses that you attend for a weekend, but I found this one instead that I can do at home. I began it in February and still have four books before I am complete. It is much more in depth that the other courses and has a Christian context, whereas the others are secular.

You can obtain more info at homeschooloasis.com.
The cost is registration ($25.00?), and price of books (It does not matter how you obtain the books. You can purchase from her, elsewhwere, or library.) I chose to purchase all from her to help support this program. My guess is that I have spent about $250.00, but I now have an impressive library that I will be able to utilize for years.

Gosh, we are spoiled in Illinois! We don't have to do nothin'!
But, the course certainly sounds interesting.
Thanks,
Christine

Christine, we live in Illinois as well, am I correct in that we don't even have to register with the state that we are homeschooling? We just have to offer our children the same things that the kids are getting in public classes, right? ie. a language in 6th grade, PE, etc.
Heidi

Hi Heidi,
I cut and pasted this from www.hslda.org. Hope it helps!
Christine

Home Schooling in the United States:
A Legal Analysis
2005-2006 Edition
ILLINOIS Compulsory Attendance Ages: “between the ages of 7 and 17 years.” 105 Illinois Compiled Statutes Annotated 5/26-1. Required Days of Instruction: 176 days. 105 ILCS § 5/10-19 (Not mandatory for private or home schools). Required Subjects: Language arts, biological and physical science, math, social sciences, fine arts, health and physical development. 105 ILCS § 5/27-21 through 22; Ill. Admin. Code tit. 23, §§ 1.420 – .440. Also honesty, justice, kindness and moral courage. 105 ILCS 5/27-12. Home School Statute: None. Alternative Statutes Allowing for Home Schools: 1. 105 ILCS § 5/26-1. If a child is “attending a private or a parochial school where children are taught the branches of education taught to children of corresponding age and grade in public school,” and where instruction is in the English language, the child is in compliance with Illinois compulsory attendance law. Home schools that meet these two requirements are considered legal private schools. 2. People v. Levisen, 404 Ill. 574, 90 N.E.2d 213 (1950) is a landmark case which held that a home school is a private school. A private school is “a place where instruction is imparted to the young … the number of persons being taught does not determine whether a place is a school.” 404 Ill. at 576, 90 N.E.2d at 215. The Illinois Supreme Court emphasized the right of parents to control their children’s education: “Compulsory education laws are enacted to enforce the natural obligations of parents to provide an education for their young, an obligation which corresponds to the parents’ right of control over the child. (Meyer v. Nebraska, 262 U.S. 390, 400.) The object is that all shall be educated not that they shall be educated in any particular manner or place.” Levisen, 404 Ill. at 577, 90 N.E.2d at 215. 3. The Levisen decision noted that once a truancy action has been filed against the parents in court, they must come forward with evidence to show that they are in compliance with the law. 4. In order to avoid truancy actions, home schoolers who are contacted may wish to file a “statement of assurance” with the local school district or send form ISBE 87-01, (the “Nonpublic Registration, Enrollment and Staff Report”) to the Illinois Department of Education in order to show their good faith. This statement of assurance and the form, however, are voluntary, and parents are not required by law to initiate filing either of them. Parents who fill out either of these forms when contacted by school authorities do so simply to indicate that their private school meets the standards required above, distinguishing themselves from actual truancy violators.
IL-1
Illinois IL-2
5. HB 1726 (enacted in 1989) removed the authority to investigate educational neglect from the Department of Children & Family Services. Truancy investigations are left solely to school district. 325 ILCS § 5/3. 6. The U.S. District court in Scoma v. Chicago Board of Education, 391 F. Supp. 452, 461 (N.D. Ill., 1974) found the Levisen decision to be “reasonable and constitutional.” Teacher Qualifications: None. Standardized Tests: Not required by statute. Religious Freedom Act: 775 ILCS 35/1 et seq. The Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA), passed with the help of HSLDA members, gives religious home schoolers another legal means to protect their right to home school. If the parents’ free exercise of religion is substantially burdened by having to comply with the homeschool law, the parents may use the RFRA as a defense or file suit against the state. Under this statute, the burden is on the state to prove that its requirement "furthers a compelling state interest" and is the "least restrictive means" of fulfilling its interest that children be educated. This Act restores the highest protection of the individual's right to freely exercise his religious beliefs taken away by the U.S. Supreme Court in its 1997 City of Boerne decision. 520 U.S. 507. Call or write to receive a free copy of HSLDA’s newsletter and membership application.
HSLDA, P.O. Box 3000 Purcellville, VA 20134 • Phone: (540) 338-5600 • Fax: (540) 338-2733 • Website: www.hslda.org
Copyright 2005, HSLDA, all rights reserved. May be reproduced only by permission.
THIS ANALYSIS DOES NOT CONSTITUTE THE GIVING OF LEGAL ADVICE.ine

In Arkansas, we're required to register the children, state a schedule and curriculum, sign a waiver to the state and submit to standardized testing every year from 3rd grade to 10th.
The compulsory age has been lowered to 5!!! good grief!

Quiver,
That's pretty stringent. Who does the standardized testing? Do you get to choose the testers?
Blessings,
Christine