It's legal here and I've done it in the past. However, I was homeschooling a cousin who was the same age as my oldest, they got along really well, and were close enough academically that they could do most things together. I was also paid (slightly more than full-time babysitting rates at that time) and given total control over her education. I just treated her like my own. I would only do it again if similar conditions were in place. I have no interest in answering to anyone else about where we go and when and what we learn and how.

First, :grouphug:. When anxiety makes kids act this way it is sure hard on their mamas. Ask me how I know. Whew.... I'd also like to second the recommendation for TF-CBT, even if she has no post-birth trauma history, EVEN if she won't talk. We found an amazing therapist for my now 8 yr old that managed to use TF-CBT techniques to help my kid learn to deal with his anxiety in a much more productive way (read - not flipping out, screaming, eyes rolling around in head, fighting as if his life depended on it way ;)). Oh, and he spoke to her maybe twice in the 1.5 years that we worked with her. He was listening, and I was listening, and we were able to implement strategies that REALLY helped. I guess Durham is too far for you to drive for therapy? Praying for you and your girl...

Praying for your daughter and for you.

I also loved Ecotopia by Ernest Callenbach.

Thank you for the prayers. I'm also open to advice if anyone has any on other things that I can try. Starr, I have thought about going over, but I feel so uncomfortable and have no idea what to say...especially now that I've acknowledged that there's a problem by offering to help and no one has taken me up on it. This isn't a home that I've ever just stopped by - I haven't been there in years. Then again, I don't want to let my own fears or discomfort keep me from doing the right thing. Ugh. I just don't know what to do.

Would any of you who feel compelled please pray for physical & emotional health for a baby in my extended family? Her name is Laney & she's 5 months old. What I'm hearing about her mother (drugs, emotional neglect, stating that she doesn't want the baby) makes me worry terribly. It sounds like a recipe for attachment disorders. As an adoptive parent of kids who suffered neglect/trauma in their early years and now pay the price of that this makes me feel sick. That whole branch of my family is filled with chaos and dysfunction. Not meanness - just horrible sadness and substance abuse issues. I go years without seeing or talking to them. I have told several other relatives who are in contact with them that I would be glad to help this mom and baby in any way that I can. I initiated contact with my cousin (baby's grandma) before the baby was born to offer my help - she seemed grateful and receptive...and then she sort of dropped of the planet. She an alcoholic. I don't take it personally. This week I sent a message to a sister of the mom again offering to help in any way that I can. I think she's the most functional of the bunch, and it sounds like she's trying to help with the baby when she can but she has her own young family and not much support herself. I haven't heard back from her. I don't want to harass them. I just want this baby to be okay. Actually, I WANT to drive over there and get that baby right now, and hold her, and rock her, and teach her that it's okay to trust the world and other people. Since I can't do that...I'll pray. If any of you feel like sending some prayers or good thoughts out I'd really appreciate it.

I know I'm late reading this, but I'll also be praying for peace for you. My youngest was diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome a few months ago. I KNEW it...really I did....but hearing the eval team say those words still felt like getting punched in the gut. It's really hard. I'm sorry.:grouphug:

Thanks, folks! This is all helpful. I still have no idea what I'm going to decide to do, but having more info has to help me make a better decision. I'm guessing that it's going to take some trial & error to figure out what works best for us.

No advice, but I'm listening & taking notes. My 6 yr old has FAS.

Well, hopefully some of these wise women can help us out! I've googled this question every way I can think of and I'm not having any luck finding answers. Even if someone has tried this general approach (going deep in 1 subject/day) with another curriculum I'd love to know how it worked.

I'm going to be using OM with my 8th & 10th graders next year. I'm wondering if any of you who have used OM for middle or high school can help me out with some scheduling questions. The 4 OM courses that we'll be using all follow the same general format in most of the weekly lessons: some reading, some vocab. and/or short answer questions, then longer essays/projects/activities. I'm worried that if I have them start on Monday & spend the week working through the lessons doing some work in all subjects each day that they'll spend all day on Monday reading & then be really crammed on Thursday & Friday doing papers & projects. Am I thinking about this right? How does this work for your kids? I'm considering having them delve deep into one subject per day, working through an entire week's lesson in that subject in one day. While that does put them working on one subject for a long block of time, I think it will actually provide more variety in the kinds of work (input & output) that they'll be doing that day. Has anyone tried this? Am I crazy to consider it? Math & foreign language will be done every day regardless of what I decide. We're not using OM for those courses. The OM courses are for English, Science, History, & Health. Any input is appreciated!

My 15 yr old was IUGR. He was born at just under 37 weeks and 5 lbs exactly. He spent 11 days in the hospital with breathing problems but went home healthy & growing and stayed that way. He did eventually get a diagnosis of mild cerebral palsy, but he's a super smart, interesting kid that functions just fine in the world. I had hyperthyroid during pregnancy & was treated with anti-thyroid meds. Both of those things can cause IUGR.

Since this thread's been resurrected I'll chime in too. Both of my younger sons are 2 years behind in some areas. My 8 yr old came to us severely developmentally delayed at just about 3 yrs old. Though he's made tremendous progress he is still only just beginning to read (& has been an emerging reader for the last 2 yrs) and is 6-12 months behind in math. Since beginning homeschooling at the beginning of this year though his anxiety, OCD, and attachment related behaviors have gotten soooo much better though. His maturity and other skills are fairly typical, but I suspect that academic learning will always be a challenge for him. My 6 year old was recently diagnosed with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome. When he came to us at 4, speech and some emotional/behavioral things were really his only issues, but as he's gotten older the gap between him and same aged peers has gotten wider. It does help that he's small for his age, but I hate thinking about how the gap between him & peers will continue to get wider as he grows. Right now looking 5 and acting 3-4 isn't a huge deal. When he's 16 (even if he looks a little younger) and acts 8 it will be much less fun. It's awfully hard when all of my gifted friends talk about the wonderful things that their gifted children are learning/doing/reading. With my older set of kids I would have been right there with them, but teaching my younger boys is so completely different. I hate when they try to offer me advice on how I can get my boys reading more....grrr. I try to remember that they mean well.

I had five. Four came in and were removed sometime in high school. The fifth came in about 10 years later. It was a tiny, half-formed thing that the dentist was just able to pull out easily.

We're gay. That alone makes us pretty atypical in the homeschooling world. We're also (not surprisingly) very liberal. I'm divorced, remarried, & homeschooling kids from both marriages. The kids & I love Star Wars, Star Trek, & D&D. Oh, and I'm Christian & active in my church, though we homeschool for purely non-religious reasons.