RainbowSprinkles Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 We are in Alaska right now, but we will be moving in less then 2 years and we are thinking about where we might want to go next. We are strongly considering Wa State or Oregon and I just wanted to see if anybody on here is from there and can tell me a little about it! How homeschool-friendly is it? Is there lots to do for families with young kids? How are the Winters? What's the cost of living like? and anything else that you'd like to share! Thank you!:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tressa Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 I am in Washington right now. Homeschooling in this state is easy. It looks harder on paper than it really is. We have to test every year, but that is easy to do. We were involved in a co-op for awhile and we met a lot of homeschooling families that way. There aren't many homeschool "groups" in my area, but in the Seattle area there seems to be more. Last winter was very unusual. Lots of snow and very cold. Usually we have mild, wet, and dreary winters. I am not a good judge on the cost of living. My husband is military and we do all right. I think the homes are kind of pricey especially in the Seattle area. The price of gas seems high to me too, but it is probably less than Alaska. We will probably feel like a bargain down here. :) The answers to these questions also depend on the side of the state that you are on. The east side is much different than the west side. Maybe someone from Spokane will jump in? I love Washington. Lots to do if you are an outdoor person, but it does rain a lot. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thea Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 I'm in Oregon. Western WA and OR are very green, lots of mountains, plenty of rain, mild winters and mild summers. Gardening is great. Eastern WA and OR is high desert. The cost of living in and around the metro areas in the western half is fairly high. Even with the housing issues, housing prices are ridiculous. OR is fairly homeschool easy, although friendliness depends on the local school district. The only requirements are notification and testing in grades 3,5,8 and 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
myfunnybunch Posted September 30, 2009 Share Posted September 30, 2009 We're in Oregon. Oregon seems homeschool friendly to us. There aren't lots of hoops to jump through. I sent a letter to notify the school district we're homeschooling. My ds has to test this year (3rd grade) and again in 5th and 8th grades. That's about it. Our school district is very homeschool-friendly and there are many homeschool groups and activities in our community. There are many things to do with young children, especially if your family enjoys the outdoors. Winters are rainy and cool west of the mountains; dry and cold east of the mountains. Not sure how the cost of living compares to Alaska. Cat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosy Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 I've lived in western WA my whole life and my in-laws live in OR, so we're down there 2 or 3 times a year. Western OR is more rural than western WA, so if you can get outside of the Portland metro area the cost of living would probably be better in OR. Houses in the city are around $400-500k for a family-sized home, if you can get out of the city about an hour they're more like $150-250k. Further out it's cheaper. WA is super easy for homeschooling--a yearly letter of intent and a standardized test that you don't have to send in, and I think you have to have 45 college credits or meet some other requirement. Also, there are some good virtual schools if you're interested. LOTS to do in the Seattle/Tacoma area. Lots of parks and beaches, and you can get memberships to the zoo, the aquarium, the children's museum, etc. Winters are rainy and overcast. Most people are bugged more by not seeing blue sky for months on end than by the actual rain. Most people ignore the rain, it doesn't rain all that hard most of the time. We've been having some decent windstorms once a year or so lately. It gets below 25 for maybe a week or two of the winter typically, usually it's in the 30s to low 40s. Summers are perfect (except we seem to get a hot week or two each year, this year was the hottest on record). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tam101 Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 (edited) I'm in SW Washington, with Oregon just minutes away. We find the political environment better on this side of the river. I know we aren't supposed to talk politics here, so I'll keep just leave that as a broad statement. But if your family is politically minded you might want make sure that is a good fit for you as well. WA has one of the highest gas taxes in the country right now I'm paying about 2.85 gallon. My Mom was here a few weeks ago and thought our food prices were high and she is in the Bay Area of California. I believe Median house price is $250 down here in SW WA. Home school laws are easy. You send in an intent form. You're supposed to keep records, but they don't specify what those records are to be. You are supposed to school for 180 days or 1000 hours per year, but they are "liberal" in what counts as school so that is easy to do. Someone mentioned that testing is required in WA, but I'm under the impression that you don't have to test unless you are a) after a WA State Diploma or b) if the student has any contact with public school. For example if a high school student was taking one class at the local school then they would have to test, but even then I THINK you can refuse. Testing has been a hot button in WA for while in the public schools and they are rolling out a new one this year to replace the WASL that everyone disliked so much. I had a teacher tell me that the old one has just been redressed with a new name, so it remains to be seen if it will be any better. My son takes resource classes with the public school and I know good portion of the parents have refused the test. For whatever that is worth. LOL Winters are rainy with occasional snow. There is plenty to do. Down here we end up going to Portland for somethings like OMSI or the zoo. ETA: Looked it up on HSLDA.org and testing is required, but there is a loop hole in that you can get an evaluation by a "certified person". http://www.hslda.org/laws/analysis/Washington.pdf Edited October 1, 2009 by Tam101 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 (edited) We live in the Willamette Valley, just off I-5, about a half hour south of Salem. I wouldn't live anywhere else. We live in the country, but are only a couple miles from town (of 50,000). Within 1 - 1 1/2 hours are the ocean, the mountains and a large number of recreational areas, and 3 major cities (Salem, Portland, and Eugene). Just a little farther east and we can be in the high desert (with many more recreational areas). We have memberships at the children's museum in Salem, OMSI in Portland, the aquarium in Newport (near the beach), and Evergreen Aviation Museum. I love, love, love visiting The Hult Center in Eugene for performing arts. We will be attending 2 or 3 educational performances of ballets this season. There is a really wonderful Renaissance Faire nearby every September. The Oregon Garden (northeast of Salem) is beautiful to visit and has a homeschooling day each fall. A large teaching hospital is currently being built about 15 minutes east of us. Yes, it rains a lot, but everything is green and there is so much here agriculturally. I love seeing the vineyards, orchards, and small farms. It sure is easy to buy food locally, that is for sure. I like not having to deal with snow during the winter, but we usually travel and hour or so to the snow several times each season. Our summers are beautiful and mild, and fall is often gorgeous. Homeschooling is very easy. You send one letter of intent (not yearly), and not until a child is 7 years old. Testing is only required every few years. That's it. :) Edited October 1, 2009 by Heidi @ Mt Hope Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WTMCassandra Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 We moved to eastern WA--Tri-Cities--about three years ago from the East Coast. We really like it here. Westerners still think of us as the "Dry-Cities," but I don't think that's accurate anymore--we've been irrigating land for over 50 years. There are mature trees around, and the rivers help make it really beautiful and guard against it being bleak. We have 2-3 months of the overcast skies and misty rain, but that's a lot less than the west side gets. Other than that, it is very sunny and a dry heat in the summer. It does get hot here, but since it's dry, shade really helps a lot. We have an above-ground pool, which really helps us enjoy the summers. And it costs waaaay less to live here than westside. We have all the basic shopping that people need (3 WMs, Target, Staples, Lowe's, mall, etc.), except for fancy stuff like the Apple Store, for which you have to go to westside. Some people like to dip down into OR to shop, which can save some sales tax. Tri-Cities has enough people and diverse interests that it keeps momentum going, but not enough for a big-city feel. (I like that--the traffic is rough on westside.) People here have an active lifestyle--boating, fishing, hiking, biking, etc. There are ton of parks, many along the rivers, and it's a family-friendly atmosphere, a bit more conservative than westside. We also have a local airport, so you aren't forced to drive to Spokane or Seattle all the time to fly out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anne in CA Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 Portland is pretty homeschool friendly with lots of choices for your kids. It's almost too many choices and too much stuff, but there is a wide range of affordability. Portland is not cheap, no home prices have plummeted in my neighborhood. People are still asking 270k for crummy three bedrooms if they are on a 1/2 acre lot. But the eastern side of the state is not as cheap as people think. Hope you pick a place you really like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicmommy Posted October 1, 2009 Share Posted October 1, 2009 We moved down from Alaska to Seattle area when I was in high school. I remember hearing everyone talk about how dreary, rainy it is here, but honestly, it really didn't feel that way to us. We are now in the Willamette Valley, about 45 minutes from Portland and love the area. Lots to do...ocean and mountain are both easy to drive to. As far as cost of living goes. It is definitely a bit higher here than in other areas, but then again, compared to my friends in Anchorage, it's not any higher. (and in many ways lower) There are a lot of homeschoolers here where we are. And the University here also offers classes for homeschoolers. I'm pretty sure that I'm just echoing what everyone else is saying so feel free to ask specific questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RainbowSprinkles Posted October 1, 2009 Author Share Posted October 1, 2009 Thanks everyone for all the replies! I need some time to look through them:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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