Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 There is a possibility that we'll end up moving to Maryland. It has a couple ways to homeschool, including portfolio assessments with the public school and church umbrella schools. I've never used an umbrella school. I don't have an issue with the religious tie in. But I was wondering what people look for in an umbrella school. Do you just go for what is least expensive? What is offered by your church (of course we'll be looking for a new church home at the same time and even what city we'd be in is up in the air)? Do you look for certain offerings from the umbrella school or certain qualifications from the people doing assessments? If this were to happen, it would likely be in the middle of the school year, so I expect that I would need to find an umbrella pretty swiftly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 Not a Marylander myself (across the line in DC) but not all the umbrellas are church affiliated, just fyi. Most people I know do the portfolio option because it's free and, at least for elementary school, not too much of a hassle - at least so say the folks I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 5, 2010 Author Share Posted July 5, 2010 Not a Marylander myself (across the line in DC) but not all the umbrellas are church affiliated, just fyi. Most people I know do the portfolio option because it's free and, at least for elementary school, not too much of a hassle - at least so say the folks I know. Any idea what the portfolio reviews are like for middle school? The oldest would be 7th grade when we got there midyear. I'm not afraid of a school portfolio review, they just looked, from the outside, like the bigger hassle. Of course I am pretty confident in my eduspeak and am sure that I could baffle them with bs if I wasn't dazzling them with brilliance. Are you actually in the District? There weren't many homeschoolers there when we were stationed there before. I am enjoying the prospect of maybe doing US history in the DC area. Lots of fun field trips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaillardia Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 I will pm you. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted July 5, 2010 Author Share Posted July 5, 2010 I am in MD and in an umbrella. I chose one that was local and low key. They meet with me once a year in my home. I have a high schooler and soon to be fifth grader. They just check to make sure you do all the subjects required and that there is progress. Very quick and painless. It is a church affiliated group and they do require bible as a subject. Our co-op has one but there are many more steps I would have to take that are not required by law so I chose not to use that one. Can you suggest a good summary of the requirements? I've looked at the HSLDA analysis but I don't feel like that is giving me a real feel for example into what would be in a portfolio for the school assessment. How did you find your umbrella? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 Yup, actually in the District. There still aren't that many of us, but it's a growing number. The number of kids in the District is growing and the schools aren't getting that much better. It is a great area to homeschool, IMO. My kids are just in K... oops, 1st next year!... so I don't know people doing middle school reviews so much, but I have heard of people who join an umbrella especially for high school. I don't know where you're moving exactly, but if it's suburban DC, there's a great Yahoo group - MHLN (Montgomery Home Learning Network) where I'm sure someone will know just the umbrella for you. Good luck :) Any idea what the portfolio reviews are like for middle school? The oldest would be 7th grade when we got there midyear. I'm not afraid of a school portfolio review, they just looked, from the outside, like the bigger hassle. Of course I am pretty confident in my eduspeak and am sure that I could baffle them with bs if I wasn't dazzling them with brilliance. Are you actually in the District? There weren't many homeschoolers there when we were stationed there before. I am enjoying the prospect of maybe doing US history in the DC area. Lots of fun field trips. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 I look on the internet and choose the least restrictive kind of umbrella school. Then I look for co-ops, academies, support groups, and that kind of thing. I wouldn't do a portfolio mainly since I am not that organized and it would be a lot of work for me plus we do a lot of work orally. If I have a choice of portfolio or test, I always choose test. If I have a choice of nothing or something, I choose nothing. I know that I found some umbrella schools that were fairly non intrusive as we were thinking we would be moving there four years ago. We ended up moving to FL and I used an umbrella group there for a while. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 I know several people who have used www.homelifeacademy.com and have had good experiences. Two students have graduated and they did great with getting transcripts, dual enrolling, getting a diploma, and getting financial help into college. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted July 5, 2010 Share Posted July 5, 2010 I would start by looking at the information on the Maryland page at A to Z Home's Cool website. I'd personally want something flexible and as low-key in its requirements as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gaillardia Posted July 6, 2010 Share Posted July 6, 2010 And type in "homeschooling in Maryland". There were a few threads on the subject.;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phathui5 Posted July 6, 2010 Share Posted July 6, 2010 We homeschooled in Maryland for years and chose to go through the county for portfolio reviews. They never gave us a hard time and I was happy to not pay for an umbrella. One thing to watch out for is that some of the umbrellas require more than the state does, so there are more hoops to jump through. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MommaOfThree Posted July 6, 2010 Share Posted July 6, 2010 I'm in MD and currently go through the PS oversight/portfolio review. In our county it's fairly easy: 1-Simply provide examples of school work from "required" subjects 2-Provide info on what curricula/books are used 3-Reading Log for each child I am planning on sticking with the PS Review until high school because the umbrellas in the area are so costly, or they require a certain amount of religion to be covered (we're a little more secular). If you would like to pick the brains of some more MD Moms and maybe get more info based on the county your moving to, here is the link for the MD Homeschool Yahoo Group. http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Marylandhomeschool/ If you're moving towards the Western MD region maybe I can help, let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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