Caleb is growing up so fast that it's scary. He is almost 17 months old going on 17 years old. You would think that because of how independent he is these days. Want to teach him how to use a spoon? Give him a spoon and he's convinced that he KNOWS how to do it himself....thankyouverymuch!
As I watch his growth and development every day I am becoming more and more aware of how important proper schooling is going to be. I am in the stages of deciding where I stand on public school, private school, and homeschooling. I confess I am attracted to homeschooling because of the flexibility in schedule and curriculum. But, homeschooling seems so expensive because you have to buy your curriculum. What is a Mom to do?
Well, I came across The K-12 Free HomeSchool and I was intrigued. It is a community sponsored online homeschool academy. All the courses from Kindegarten to 12th grade are tuition free and optional electives are offered at 25-50% discounts. How in the world is all this possible? It is done through corporate and non-profit supporters and also parents who are in the program themselves. Due to the nature of the program space is limited but many families gain entrance after only 2-5 days.
I have to say that this program makes me want to seriously consider homeschooling even more. What a cool idea! Not only do you get homeschooling for free, but you also have a community of other families who have the same commitments you do. I think it is worth a look.
Thursday, November 22, 2007
A Free Online Homeschool?!
Mere Scribblings by Sarah at 7:15 PM
Labels: Homeschool
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3 Readers Shared Their Love:
Sarah,
I found your blog through my friend Susan. (It's so nice to "meet" you!) =-)
Just thought I'd offer my input on your thoughts of homeschooling. That is, thoughts from a mom who's been DOING it for the past 5 years or so. I too struggled with what was best for my boys. I would LIERALLY CRY when I thought of sending them off to school. (I'm a big sap, I admit it) However, when I started looking beyond my own personal reasons for wanting to teach them at home I was BLOWN away! It's PROVEN that children who get "one on one" attention will advance at a much higher rate than those who don't. If you (his Mom) are working with him daily then you know his weaknesses and his strengths. You can quickly move forward in the places that he "gets it" and can linger as long as necessary on things that he doesn't.
I think the argument AGAINST homeschooling that you'll hear most often is that of socialization. I thought I'd let Dr. James Dobson answer this one for us....
"12/19/2004
HOME SCHOOLING CAN CREATE RIGHT KIND OF SOCIALIZATION
QUESTION: Don't you think home schooling might negatively impact the socialization process? I don't want my children growing up to be misfits.
DR. DOBSON: This is the question home-schooling parents hear most often from curious (or critical) friends, relatives and neighbors. "Socialization" is a vague, dark cloud hanging over their heads. What if teaching at home somehow isolates the kids and turns them into oddballs? For you and all those parents who see this issue as the great danger of home education, I would respectfully disagree for these reasons.
To remove a child from the classroom is not necessarily to confine him or her to the house! And once beyond the school-yard gate, the options are practically unlimited. Home-school "support groups" are surfacing in community after community across the country. Some are highly organized and offer field trips, teaching co-ops, tutoring services, social activities and various other resources. There are home-schooling athletic leagues, orchestras and other activities.
Even if you're operating completely on your own, there are outings to museums, parks, visits to farms, factories, hospitals, seats of local government, days with Dad at "the office," trips to Grandma's house, extracurricular activities such as sports and music, church youth groups, service organizations and special-interest clubs. There are friends to be invited over, relatives to visit and parties to attend. The list is limitless."
Taken from http://www.uexpress.com/focusonthefamily/index.html?uc_full_date=20041219
Okay, that was just MY input... hehehe... You seem to be a great Mom, I KNOW that GOD will lead you to what's best for your son. I won't keep babbling - if you have any questions feel free to email me. nason5@aol.com
In HIM,
Tonya Nason
Be wary of this. I'm a homeschooling Mom of 7 years as well as a "retired" legal assistant. This sounds too good to be true. I would be curious who these vague corporate sponsors are. I suspect this is nothing more than a charter school.
I thought I'd just post a positive reply to your K-12 Homeschooling post.
One of the Pastor's in our church uses it and loves it. My son, who is 7, is currently on their waiting list. I'm new to homeschooling, this is our first year. SO, while I don't have personal experience with it yet, I can say that knowing this woman, she wouldn't recommend it if it wasn't good.
Carey and Ben
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