I'm going into homeschooling kicking and screaming, dragged along by forces beyond my control.
So why homeschool?
Well, two reasons.
First, my child was not learning in his school.
He had a really hard time with constant seizures the first half of the school year and never really recovered from that missed learning time or from the negative treatment he got for "not paying attention" and "being rude" when he was stuck in seizures.
I watched my seizure kid sent home, while in the midst of status seizures that landed him in the ER, for refusing to talk to the administrators or for snapping at staff at the school that they hadn't given him instructions. (After all, from his 6-year-old seizing brain memory, they hadn't, since his seizures prevent him from processing the instructions.)
I fought and fought for the school to make accommodations (and I understood exactly which are required and which are not as a lawyer with tons of experience in education law), but the school is a parochial school and would promise the changes, but not actually follow the plan.
I finally had to make peace with the fact that we were not welcome in a place I had come to think of as home. To not reach that understanding, in my own heart, was to put my child in danger.
Second, I saw so many of you rock homeschooling.
Seriously.
It's hard to deny that most homeschool kids excel.
Homeschool is possible under most circumstances, but certainly in my case.
I work part-time, have family resources to help with childcare and homeschooling, work from home, and am a former certified teacher with a Master's degree in education.
So homeschooling it is. I'll try to keep you updated on our progress.
Pictured: Mead Primary Journal Creative Story Tablet, Grades K-2 and Mead Composition Book, Wide Ruled, 9.75 x 7.50 Inch Sheet Size, Black Marble, Bookbound, 100 Sheets.
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Etcetera.
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3 comments:
I'm really shocked to hear how the school treated your son. It's probably better that you take him out before they do any more damage to his self esteem.
I too am shocked at how the school system treated your son. Prior to retirement, I worked in an elementary school in the office and my job was to set up all of the IEP meetings for children that needed special accommodations. It must have been so frustrating for your son and for you as a parent.
I'm sorry to hear that things were so difficult for your son. I would think that it is a matter of being understaffed and undereducated. It can be hard for them to meet any individual needs. (My mom is a special ed teacher, so I know some of the challenges. But I won't go into the difficulties with the educational system, etc.)
I never really wanted to homeschool, but we've been doing it for almost 7 years, and I've learned to appreciate it. My son was in public school K-3rd grade, in the US and Canada. He had an overall positive experience, but wasn't learning as well as he could. There were some really positive things, though.
Now that we're homeschooling, I like the flexibility of the schedule, being able to move at each child's pace to some extent, and I've enjoyed much of our history and cultural studies.
I hope your homeschool attempt is going well. :)
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