:iagree:$3000 for the year would be way too much for me to even consider spending. Most of the time CC teachers are just regular homeschool moms like us-- not that there's anything wrong with that, but it's not like they are necessarily classical education scholars-- which is what they would have to be for me to consider paying that amount of money. Otherwise, I feel like I could do something equally good at home myself. We do participate in a co-op that meets for 30 weeks of the year, and that has been wonderful for our family. Each of my three kids has 5 classes per week of our choosing, and the cost is less than $300 for all three. There are a few books to purchase as well, but they are materials that we would use at home for those subjects anyway. I can't imagine paying *10 times* that amount for CC!!!

Yes, we definitely take the full summer break!! We do 180 days of school, then we are off for the summer. Of course we take field trips, read, etc. during that time, but not official school.We all need the break, most of all me! And the break gives me time to relax, then plan for the next year. The only thing we do is review math faths and concepts (for elementary school age students) occasionally over the summer, so they don't have to do much catch up in the fall.

:iagree: I haven't seen the ps bashing either. I'm surprised that would be the focus in Susan's comments here. I guess having read Susan's viewpoint here, I'd have to say that this board's general perspective and attitudes actually do seem to reflect her position pretty well.

I did this a few years ago, in Delran, NJ. I liked it a lot. It was very challenging, because we needed to learn a very specific grading procedure for each new test, but challenging in a good way. I have always loved grading papers, so this was right up my alley. I worked second shift, maybe 5-10pm? I think I was paid something like $12/hr. I would recommend it. The only reason I stopped is that we moved away, and there isn't another location near us now.

Our local elementary school is a 4, and the parents around here rave about what a wonderful school it is. I had never seen this rating before, and I'd have thought based on what I've heard, that this school would be in the 8-10 range. It reminds me of a quote I read in a book once that said that surverys show that a majority of people think schools in general are below par, but only a tiny minority thinks that their locals schools are.

In my experience, schools today tend to expect a lot, sometimes more than what is appropriate, of elementary school students, and then not nearly enough of high school students. Elementary school students are often expected to do logic stage work.... and high school students aren't expected to do much more than logic stage work either. The effect of this is that many elementary school kids don't have a solid foundation of the basics, and then continue to do just more of the same type of work (i.e. read a chapter in a textbook and answer the questions at the end of the chapter) through all twelve years of their schooling. Having elementary kids doing logic stage work doesn't necessarily mean they are being well-educated-- and can mean the opposite.

I would not use KJV. I have worked with so many children at various ministries who simply could not understand those words, and it broke my heart that so much understanding was lost just so we could say we were using the KJV. For some of those kids, it might have been the only Bible they were ever exposed to, and they would have benefitted so much more from hearing those words in modern English that they could understand and apply to their own lives. Imo, understanding is more important than tradition or beauty. In our family, we use ESV, and our church uses NKJV.

I probably would not cut back too much on schoolwork, just because I don't think it would necessarily help. I definitely would move it into the priority position in my mind, and work on the situation very hard, but I don't think it would take all day, every day, to do this-- in fact, having a bunch of kids, with not much to do all day could make things a lot worse. Also, I think most of the changes and thinking process probably need to come from you and your husband, with just follow through with the kids. This might mean that in the evenings when your dh is home, the two of you sit down, discuss, plan, pray, etc. Then the next day, carry on with your normal schedule, implementing the things you and dh have established. I would think that doing schoolwork and sticking to a routine might make the changes you are seeking more possible. While we aren't quite in the situation where you are right now, I was just confiding in a friend the other night that my three kids (14, 10, and 8) don't seem to like each other very much. There is more namecalling and just general antagonism than I would like, and it makes me sad. It's strange to me too because dh and I have a very good relationship, and we each have a strong relationship with each of the kids-- so I don't know why they don't get along better with each other than they do. Your post has reminded me that we need to get more proactive with addressing these problems too. Thank you for the reminder, and I wish you all the best.

Update: It's been a busy few weeks here, with lots of reading on my part, and phone calls, trying to decide on what is the best next step for dd. What I've decided to do for now is go through Reading Reflex with dd. She scored much better on the test in that book than I would have thought-- high second grade, while she is a young 3rd grader (August birthday). I would have said she was on a first grade level. I've started the activities in the book, and I think they will be really helpful to her. I actually have seen an improvement in her reading just in the past week! I'm thinking that if she has dyslexia at all, it might be very slight. Or maybe she is just one of those later readers. I know that Reading Reflex isn't nearly as indepth or structured as many of the reading programs that are generally recommended here, but from what I've seen so far, I think it might work for dd. If in a few weeks it doesn't seem to be going well, I will rethink again, possibly trying one of the more indepth programs, as well as seeing the reading therapist in person (we did talk on the phone, which was helpful), and possibly considering the vision therapy again. I just think for now it is best to start with the simplest possible solution, before jumping into more expensive and demanding approaches. Anyway, just wanted to update here. I appreciate all of your help and input. Thanks again!

(Christian perspective here) I have always thought my 10 yos would do great in public school. He is outgoing, friendly, loves group activities, fits in well in any crowd, is a focused worker who is works well at grade level in every subject (not above or behind in anything), teachers love him, etc. I have an older son who works above grade level, and a younger daughter who is struggling with reading, so it's only my 10 yos who I ever really think about putting in school. I am confident that he would be a very good student and enjoy himself most of the time at school. However, what always brings me back is that God has given me these children to raise and instruct, and I simply cannot do that if they are away from home for most of their waking hours. Could the school do a decent job academically with this particular child? Maybe, maybe not. But I know that as his parent, I can do better. He benefits from being in a loving family, being close with his siblings, and most of all, from being taught biblical principles throughout his schooling. I don't want his faith to be something pushed to the side for most of his time, only to come up in the evenings and on weekend. I don't feel that a secular education is the best thing that we can provide for our children. So no matter how much he might enjoy school and do well there, these things are simply more important. We do go to a weekly, full-day co-op which meets 30 weeks of the year, in part so that he and his siblings can get the group experience that they crave. They love it, and it gives a great balance to our week-- 1 day out, then 4 at home. It has really worked well for us.

You can homeschool inexpensively and still do a good job. I just always take the price of a curriculum into account before I start getting too excited about it. It can be a wonderful language arts program, but if it's $100, I'm not even looking at it. I buy whatever I can used, combine kids in one subject as much as possible, reuse resources for younger children, and just try to buy the cheapest good programs I can find. I don't tend to buy teacher's guides, which saves money. I get library books whenever possible. I usually spend no more than $200 on my oldest (14 yo), and much less for my younger kids (10 and 8) because I'm reusing stuff from my oldest. I don't think I've ever spent more than $300 on one school year, not including co-op fees, music lessons, or extracurriculars. Some of the programs I have used over the years are Rod and Staff Grammar, Horizons Math, Singapore Math, Elementary Greek, Apologia science, Considering God's Creation, Draw Right Now, Reason for Handwriting, Natural Speller, Explode the Code, Phonics Pathways, First Reader, and Story of the World.

I guess I think that there are so many ways to homeschool, so many approaches and ways to schedule your day, that I could be okay with doing it, in some way, if it were really important to my spouse. There's outsourcing classes, co-ops, etc. to help too. I think just about anyone with spousal support could find some approach to homeschooling that could work for them. Also, it is possible to choose to find contentment in any circumstance in life, and so while a person could hold onto resentment and bitterness over the years, I don't think that's the right thing to do. I would try to do it, and also choose to be content with it.

I would say that one spouse's "VERY" strong desire to have the children homeschooled (presumably on principled grounds) would trump another's feeling of just not feeling like it. I would do it to please my husband, and on the basis that a principled stance carries more weight than a simple preference.

Update: We went for the vision therapy consult after her screening test last week, and they recommended she start therapy. She tested below her age level for four out of seven categories. However, dh and I have some reservations about whether this is really her problem, because there are some things with her memory and other areas that vision therapy wouldn't address. I called a reading specialist recommended to me by a friend, and this therapist said that from what I told her, it sounded more like dyslexia to her. So.... I'm thinking we will go ahead and have this therapist test her and see what she finds. I'm just hoping that it's not going to be crazy expensive, because we cannot afford it at all.

Thank you for the information. Dd is homeschooled-- is the procedure different from what you described above?

I'm using First Reader for phonics, with review phonics flashcards as we go. She reads aloud from level 1 readers daily. She seems to be responding fairly well to this, and I've seen some improvement recently in her reading. We're just using basic curriculum overall-- 2nd grade Abeka spelling (she can do the daily work fine but has trouble on the tests), just started Horizons math 3 today. Math concepts are her best subject; she only needs help with the reading in the workbook. We do science and history mostly orally since she has problems with reading and writing. I don't know what her problem will turn out to be. I know that she has problems reading (remembering the sounds of letters and the look of sight words), trouble copying from one page to another, very hard time remembering how to spell words when taking tests or just writing in general, holding her pencil correctly, and there is something about her short term memory for details that is a problem... for example, learning AWANA verses is very, very difficult for her. We can spend hours over several days working on one verse, and she still won't learn it. However, she is excellent at narration and can retell the main events of a story very well. So it's something with details, especially details that don't have a logical flow. She has an excellent vocabulary and is very verbal. She can answer critical thinking questions very well. So it's something with reading and some kinds of memory, as far as I can see. I'm really anxious for the VT consult today-- we're going to find out the results of her test. Also, what is OG?

(This is a crosspost from the General Board.) I'm reaching the conclusion that my 8 yod isn't just a late bloomer, but may have an actual learning disability. As I've posted before, she is extremely verbal/auditory, but her reading and writing skills just aren't progressing the way they should be. She's just barely able to read early first grade level readers, with help. There is a huge gap between what most people would consider her intelligence, and her performance in school. When I read checklists of symptoms of learning disabilities, she seems to have most of them. So... what do I do first ? A friend told me about vision therapy, and dd has an appt. with a dr. there on Tuesday to see if that will help. But what else should I do? Where should she be tested for, and for what? Should I go through the public school system, or do this privately? If I do go through the public school, will we be obligated to then use their services or be more accountable to them in some way? If anyone has btdt, I would love to hear about how you dealt with this sort of issue. Any good websites with info on homeschooling children with learning difficulties would be appreciated too.

Yes, I'm unsure about which to do first, the testing or vision therapy. I just kind of jumped into the v/t because a friend told me about a good local place, and that seemed easier to start with than lots of general testing. At the same time, I don't want to waste time and money on the v/t, only to have testing further down the line reveal the real problem to be nothing vision related.... so, I'm not sure which should be first.

That's great that you had such a good experience with the school district. Our finances might dictate that we must use that option. I hope ours will be that positive as well!

Yes, it's that gap that really bothers me too. In addition, I have been working on phonics regularly with this dd since she was four. I do not know of anyone else whose child has been consistently worked with on phonics and sight reading for four years, and still can't read more than a level 1 reader. There are also other things she does that seem unusual as well. My gut tells me something more is going on here.

If we can possibly afford it, we'd like to go private as well.

Thank you for the information!! I was shocked by your mention of the vision therapy price! If it's even half that for dd, there is no way we will be able to afford that. I'm hoping that it's either much cheaper here, or that our insurance will pay for it.

Thanks, I forgot about the special needs board! I will cross-post there.

I'm reaching the conclusion that my 8 yod isn't just a late bloomer, but may have an actual learning disability. As I've posted before, she is extremely verbal/auditory, but her reading and writing skills just aren't progressing the way they should be. There is a huge gap between what most people would consider her intelligence, and her performance in school. When I read checklists of symptoms of learning disabilities, she seems to have most of them. So... what do I do? A friend told me about vision therapy, and dd has an appt. with a dr. there on Tuesday to see if that will help. But what else should I do? Where should she be tested for, and for what? Should I go through the public school system, or do this privately? If I do go through the public school, will we be obligated to then use their services or be more accountable to them in some way? If anyone has btdt, I would love to hear about how you dealt with this sort of issue. Any good websites with info on homeschooling children with learning difficulties would be appreciated too.

I'm not sure how this is going to work out. My 8 yo dd, whose learning difficulties I have posted about here before, needs to take her first standardized test this spring according to PA's homeschool law. The child cannot read. I don't see how this is going to work. At all. :confused: I have been told that you don't need to have the student take the third grade test, that they can take the second grade test instead. I sent for a second grade test prep booklet, with sample questions, and received it in the mail yesterday... she will not be able to read any of it. She wouldn't even be able to read the directions, let alone all the words in each question. Sooo....what should I do? PA doesn't accept the WRAT test anymore, which was largely oral. Our co-op administers the CAT test, and you can elect to skip the science and social studies sections, which we would certainly do. But is there anything else I can do? I just see total disaster awaiting, and a lot of stress for dd as she sits in that room with everyone else zipping through the questions while she can't make heads or tails out of any of it. Maybe I should look into administering a test here at home instead. Has anyone else had a non-reader who needed to take a standardized test?