blondeviolin Posted October 7, 2015 Share Posted October 7, 2015 All of my second-grader's friends go to school. It's something new and mysterious and he wants to try it. The autonomy would probably be good for him. In some ways it would be nice to have someone else be his teacher. BUT! There is no math differentiation in this school. He will be finishing at least BA 4B (if not all of 4) before next year and yet entering 3rd grade. We have had three other families on our block pull kids out of the school and another one seriously consider it. From what I've heard, there's little to no history and science done. The only recess is 20 minutes around lunch time. After schooling Isn't a strong option because he's also on a very competitive swim team so he swims most afternoons. I am not convinced that this is a good choice for him. Normally I'd just say no, but I do want him to feel like I've considered his wants and desires before just shutting him down. What do you do? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 Sounds like a poor fit but is it possible for him to shadow at school for a week? Just one day might not do much to show either of you what it would be like but a full week might help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Garga Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 Out of curiousity, where do the kids go now who were pulled out of that school? I personally would discuss it with him but still say no. Well...perhaps I wouldn't "discuss" it with him. I would tell him why he doesn't go to school and why going to school wouldn't be a good fit. He's just too young to make this big of a decision. I'd also ask him why he wants to go. And possibly stay away from him reading books about kids having fun in school all day without all the testing and bullying and boredom. Read books about kids going to camp instead, or having adventures on their summer vacations. Sometimes kid books can make school sound like lots of fun even when it's not. Perhaps if he can articulate why he wants to go, you could show him how he already has that or something like it, or you could add something that's like what he wants. Perhaps not, but there's a chance. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grover Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 My 6 year old AL has decided to try school. She visited last term and as of this coming monday will attend full time until the end of the year. The school tells me they can offer in class enrichment. I wish them luck with that, however I think that my DD needs to see and experience for herself what "school" learning is about so she can truly kknow what she has at home compared to what she has at school... she's my "want what I don't have" kid. I have asked her to commit to a 10 week trial (which is one of our school terms). We'll see how it's going after that. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiguirre Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 We have had three other families on our block pull kids out of the school and another one seriously consider it. From what I've heard, there's little to no history and science done. I think that's your answer. If it's bad enough that you know 3 families on your block that bailed, don't even bother giving it a try. That's a massive failure rate! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEmama Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 I'll disagree. Putting my son into ps for K and part of grade 1 was a great decision. We did it because of outside circumstances, but even though we obviously pulled him out it gave him the opportunity to not only experience the realities of school (oh the endless boredom!) but also for him to see it wasn't a good fit. As a result, he has opted every year since to study at home. He doesn't question what the classroom experience might be like because he's btdt. I think having the child's buy in to homeschool is critical. While we all have our own reasons for educating our kids at home, I wouldn't want the struggle of trying to do so against the child's will. To me that would defeat the purpose and take too much energy away from what ought to be a positive experience. I don't know your reasons, but it might be worth exploring what the worst outcome might be if she tries ps and loves it. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 (edited) . Edited January 12, 2016 by wapiti Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 FWIW, my kids are very much wanting to continue homeschooling because they did experience brick and mortar education and it was not a good fit for them. It has been a great fit for some of their friends (sometimes that has actually been the better option by a long shot) but they are not "grass is greener" in their attitude since they had that first hand experience. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MinivanMom Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 Personally, I wouldn't let a 2nd grader make the decision about whether or not to attend public school. For us, that's just too much responsibility to put on a young child. I do agree with the idea of buy-in (we have let our children decide whether to go to middle school or continue at home), but it has to be age-appropriate buy-in. If I were in your place, I would spend a lot of time listening to ds's reasons for wanting to go to school. Just listen, listen, listen. Then I would - very gently - correct any incorrect perceptions he has about public school. If it's about his friends, then I would be gently pointing out that with x number of 2nd grade classes, it is highly unlikely that he will be placed in the same class as his friends. If he were placed in the same class, then they still wouldn't be allowed to socialize in class or in silent lunch. I would explain how limited recess is and try to help him understand how small a span of time that is in relation to the full school day, and I would offer to facilitate more play dates. Is his swimming schedule getting in the way of spending time with friends after school or on weekends? I would try to find a way to work around that. At the end of the day, I think it's less about making a super-convincing argument for why homeschooling is the best choice and more about making sure that your child feels heard and understood. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OneStepAtATime Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 Is it possible to really push to create weekly playdates with other homeschooled kids, where there would be time to bond and make friends and have some unstructured down time together? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathnerd Posted October 8, 2015 Share Posted October 8, 2015 Your child is still young - so plenty of time to homeschool. So, why not let him try "real school" for a while - he can see first hand for himself what he likes and does not like about school - any AL in a typical classroom setting is going to spend 6-7 hours bored. That would make them form their own conclusions about school rather than relying on books and tv shows for what schools might be really like. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AggieMama Posted October 9, 2015 Share Posted October 9, 2015 You might want to see if you can get a hold of "grade" level work the school uses. Have your son do it at home for a week or two, or until he is bored. The whole time tell him that is what PS is like. Also have him practice lining up, putting his head on the table until he is ready to move on, and only give him 20 minutes of play time during the hours school would be. This might have him see a different side of thing without having to put him in school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
displace Posted October 13, 2015 Share Posted October 13, 2015 I'd consider a gifted school if available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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