phathui5 Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Is there anyone here homeschooling in New York? Can you tell me about it? Laws? Groups? Homeschool community? Charter schools, etc? Dh is flying up there for a job interview in the morning and I'm obsessing over the details of possibly moving. His interview is in Syracuse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellie Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 My best advice for NY? learn your regs!!! be able to quote them! check out this site first: http://nyhen.org/RegsSum.htm, *especially* read the part about “Revised Questions and Answers on Home Instruction -- 85 questions and answers on some aspects of the regulations which the State Education Department considers important†BECAUSE that is info straight from the state, not other homeschoolers. No bias problems there, eh? LOL! Print it out and have it on hand. I’m not sure if LEAH includes it in their own manual, but I suggest getting one of their manuals anyway. very helpful :-) Here are some basics: First, you need to notify the school district [*not* the local school or principal] every year. This is called your Letter of Intent [LOI]. The regs state that it should be in by July 1, but the regs also allow for it being in w/in fifteen days of deciding [or “commencingâ€] you will be homeschooling. You can simply take the position that you will be reassessing your child’s educational needs on a year-by-year basis and NOT worry about getting your LOI in till the end of August if that suits you better :-) Once you have sent in your LOI, you need to send in an Individual Home Instruction Plan [iHIP]. This is simply a one-page sheet [per child] that lists all subjects required to be taught [see the regs] and what you plan to use for instruction [curriculum, internet, library, co-op, etc etc]. The school district can NOT decide if what you use is “okâ€: they can only check to make sure that the subject *will* be taught: YOU are in charge of deciding how to teach. You can unschool in NY if you write up your IHIP correctly :-) Don’t forget a disclaimer on your IHIP: “These plans are subject to change as needed for the child’s educational benefitâ€. You will need to pick 4 dates [somewhat evenly spaced] that tell when you will be sending in your Quarterly reports {Quarterlies}. Pick a time that you know will not be stressful: putting down December as a quarterly date is asking for STRESS, lol! Usually some time the beginning of November, January, March, and end of May/June. Your school year does NOT have to follow the school district’s. Quarterly reports: this is basically your IHIP’s subject list, accompanied by how much of your “curriculum†you’ve covered, like lessons 1-50 in a workbook [if using library books, maybe 5 topics covered], and an assessment/grade level. I always put down “satisfactory†even my kid is a flipping genius. Period. For “hours of instructionâ€, you are supposed to claim the hours but you are not required to DOCUMENT them anywhere except on those quarterlies and the state is NOT allowed to request “proof†of your hours: they can’t see lesson plans or daily schedules. Simply claim 255+ hours and be done w/ it. Many people use their IHIP that they typed up, copy it into another document, delete what they don’t need, and start updating it :-) Attendance records: You are required to document [and produce said documentation upon request] that your child attended 180 days of school. find a school-year calendar [9 months on one page]. --check donnayoung.org— . At the top, write “Attendance Record for [child’s name]â€. . Under that, write “Absences Marked w/ an Xâ€. File it. Done. You are required to do 180 days of school. YOU decide what counts as a day of school. You may decide to do 2 days worth of work in one day. Do your school work the way YOU want to do it, and don’t worry about the specific day count. Again: claim it, but you aren’t required to keep lesson plans, children’s work, or anything else except your attendance record. Testing: you are required to use a state-approved standardized test starting in 4th grade. Technically, you are s’posed to test “every other year beginning in 4th gradeâ€, so 4th grade can be your “other†year and you can put off testing till 5th grade. there are about a dozen tests recognized by the state ed dept, and the PASS test is one of them. Also, you do NOT have to send in your student’s results unless the district throws a fit: you simply have to say that they scored “at or above the 33d percentileâ€. For tests that require a certified teacher, ask your local groups or private Christian schools. More at NYHEN.org. End of year assessment: You are allowed to give a narrative of your child’s progress. The easiest? “[Child’s Name] has satisfactorily completed his school work for the 2004-2005 school year. Please see IHIP and Quarterly Reports for more details.†DONE! All in all, your file of “paperwork†for NY would look like this: one page w/ 3 sentences on it as your LOI one page for your IHIP. 4 one-page quarterly reports one page end of year assessment Home visits? absolutely not allowed unless you are on probation [see the regs] AND they ARE REQUIRED to give you three days notice by certified mail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted August 24, 2009 Author Share Posted August 24, 2009 What kinds of cool places are there near Syracuse to go on field trips? Here, we go on a field trip every Friday. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saille Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 The MOST Museum is a good one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KellyGirl Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Hi! I'm homeschooling in Syracuse. You've already gotten a rundown on the laws, which I don't really think are too bad. Once you get the hang of submitting the paperwork, it's no big deal. The mandatory testing can be a pain if it's not something you were planning on, but most districts will let you bring your kid in and test w/ the PS kids if you want (so it doesn't cost you anything). We belong to a co-op called HIM ministry that is for prek - 12th grade (You can google to find their website). There is also a Syracuse chapter of LEAH (Loving Education at Home) - they are the people who put on the annual NY Homeschool convention... I don't know much about how active there co-op is, but I know that you can do gym classes and stuff with them. There is also a secular homeschool co-op that is brand new...can't remember the name of it right now, but I can find it if you want it. As far as field trips... we have a pretty good zoo and a great science museum right in the city. We're about an hour and a half from Rochester which also has a lot to do. There is a lot of Revolutionary War history nearby. The Erie Canal Villiage, Herkemer Dimanod Mines, and the Baseball Hall of Fame are all reasonable day trips from here. People who have lived there whole lives here tend to to complain "There is nothing to do in Syracuse", but after spending 25 or 30 years trying to gett out of here (and visiting some of the places we thougth we wanted to move to), my husband and I have really fallen in love Syracuse. Good luck!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I talk to the trees Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 Best of luck to your DH on his interview!! Ellie's comments pretty much covered what you need to know. Know the law, and type up your own forms. (The ones the district will offer you will, in my experience, ask for a LOT of information you are not legally obligated to provide.) It's really a piece of cake once you resign yourself to the absurd amount of paperwork- which can be a royal pain, but it actually is nice to have a paper trail that you can whip out if ever you are questioned. I'd be happy to share a copy of our IHIP, if you like. PM me. -Robin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted August 24, 2009 Author Share Posted August 24, 2009 Arg! He's on the plane on the way back now (I think). I haven't talked to him today and the suspense is killing me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peek a Boo Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 well, Ellie very efficiently beat me to the punch ;) Thanks Ellie! When we were in Syracuse, I really liked the Erie Canal Museum. be sure to check out the stairwell in the back. PM me and I'll try to find the lock fieldtrip we set up --came complete w/ handouts and curriculum worksheets. The Erie Canal Museum also does a Gingerbread contest every year --i loved it so much we're gonna try something similar down her for our library. If you want to enter, ask them when applications get handed out and need to be turned in -- i think they start handing them out late oct/ early nov. maybe sooner. even if you don't enter the contest, be sure to attend! Hit the State Fair next year --there [was] a couple of booths that offered 50 cent hot dogs and sodas. You can see my profile page for a pic of what the best thing was we saw at the fair ;) LEAH is the resident christian group, but they allow anyone to attend [there was a Muslim gal in it when i was there...Sakina?]. SAHA was a secular local group --check the yahoogroups for them. I wasn't impressed w/ the Everson museum of art. It's where i saw that piece w/ the neon, um, yeah. In Oswego we got to see a recreation of the Amistad and a museum with a hiding cabinet. Lots of underground RR history....... There were two drive in theaters up there: one in Rome and one ....uh....northwest....somewhere. hope the interview went well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mschickie Posted August 24, 2009 Share Posted August 24, 2009 There is a ton of stuff to do in the WNY area. We are over in Rochester which is about 1hr away from Syracuse. We have a good zoo, Science museum, Genese Country Village and Museum, Susan B. Anthony house, George Eastman House and there are a ton of other things too. I am a member of a LEAH chapter and would highly recommend it along with the convention. Hope the interview went well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted August 28, 2009 Author Share Posted August 28, 2009 They just called and are sending us an offer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted August 28, 2009 Share Posted August 28, 2009 We are a couple of hours from you. I don't find the regulations difficult. Feel free to e mail or pm me with questions. Wishing you well in all your decisions! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted October 2, 2009 Author Share Posted October 2, 2009 The mandatory testing can be a pain if it's not something you were planning on, but most districts will let you bring your kid in and test w/ the PS kids if you want (so it doesn't cost you anything). What tests do the schools use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peek a Boo Posted October 2, 2009 Share Posted October 2, 2009 What tests do the schools use? I don't know, but i would rather avoid teh hassle of dealing w/ the school district and just use one of teh dozen tests you'e already allowed to use ;) and if this is your first year, you probably don't have to test anyway [unless you have a high schooler...] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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