sandalwood Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 After a long wait & lots of things that fell through before, we found out we will be moving to FL in a couple of weeks. If you live in FL, what do you think is the best option to use? I have a little fear of homeschooling in FL, just because whenever I used to get that HSLDA free mag. monthly, it always showed FL in one of the states with a lot of contacts. Should I be nervous or is it an easy state? I have lived in two super easy states so far, so I am spoiled. Help:eek:??? ANY info is appreciated... feel free to reply to this, pm or email! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Don't be scared. It's easy here. Not as easy as TX though. ;) You send in your Letter of Intent, keep a yearly portfolio, and have a yearly eval. The evaluation can be review of the portfolio by any certified teacher, or a standardized test. The results of the test do not need to be sent in. You just need to send in a letter from the tester/teacher saying that your dc has made progress according to his ability. That's it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandra in FL Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Don't be scared. It's easy here. Not as easy as TX though. ;) You send in your Letter of Intent, keep a yearly portfolio, and have a yearly eval. The evaluation can be review of the portfolio by any certified teacher, or a standardized test. The results of the test do not need to be sent in. You just need to send in a letter from the tester/teacher saying that your dc has made progress according to his ability. That's it. Yep. I don't even keep a yearly portfolio. As long as you send in the evaluation/test results on time, no one bothers you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbrandonsmom Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 http://www.fpea.com/ Easy so far. I meet so many home schoolers, compared to where we used to live. Since ds is only 5, we haven't sent our letter of intent yet. In addition to what other pp have said, maybe check yahoo once you get here for any local home school groups to meet? See if you like any of the people/make some friends, etc. Fl has a huge h/s convention in May, in Orlando. There are smaller ones in each county I think though. On the fpea, you can find your area rep and contact them for your county info. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandalwood Posted September 11, 2010 Author Share Posted September 11, 2010 (edited) Thanks so much for the info so far. Does the testing have to be given by someone else? In other words, I can' t give the IOWA (or something else) myself there? Edited September 11, 2010 by sandalwood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 I register under an umbrella school, which is free and has no requirements other than noting "attendance". That's another option here in Fl. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Yep. I don't even keep a yearly portfolio. Me neither. I figure that if it ever comes up I can slap something together. So far, it's never come up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Thanks so much for the info so far. Does the testing have to be given by someone else? In other words, I can' t give the IOWA (or something else) myself there? I'm not sure actually. I've had my friend (and fellow home school mom) do our evals because she is a certified teacher. This past June I had ds take a test and I had the tester come out to our house. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjbeach Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 I register under an umbrella school, which is free and has no requirements other than noting "attendance". That's another option here in Fl. Ditto. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Kathy-i see you're on the east coast--so are we! which umbrella are you using? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trish Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Letter of intent needs to be sent within 30 days of starting school (might be wise to send it certified). Annual evaluation or standardized test -- a licensed teacher can admininster it. Lots of homeschool groups have such contacts. We're in central Florida, things seem pretty straightforward and easy. Read an article last spring that homeschooling is exploding in Florida. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjbeach Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 (edited) Kathy-i see you're on the east coast--so are we! which umbrella are you using? Last year I registered under Florida Family Learning Academy (Kathy out of Titusville). She was VERY helpful last year because my district started to give me some difficulty.But I don't think she's doing it this year. Her website isn't up anymore. I know a number of people who register with Florida Unschoolers. I cannot get through to FFLA so I suppose I'll reg with FL unschoolers. I gave myself one more week to do so. Who do you register under???? :) ETA- here's another. http://www.alternativeeducationinstitute.org/ Edited September 11, 2010 by cjbeach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 Last year I registered under Florida Family Learning Academy (Kathy out of Titusville). She was VERY helpful last year because my district started to give me some difficulty.But I don't think she's doing it this year. Her website isn't up anymore. I know a number of people who register with Florida Unschoolers. I cannot get through to FFLA so I suppose I'll reg with FL unschoolers. I gave myself one more week to do so. Who do you register under???? :) ETA- here's another. http://www.alternativeeducationinstitute.org/ We use Florida Unschoolers, and so far so good. No problems with them, and she just set up a brand new system for you to note your child's attendance (a simple online form) and she sends out reminders for you if you forget (nice!) And she's free. Obviously, we're not unschoolers, but it hasn't been an issue at all. And she responds to emails very quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cjbeach Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 We use Florida Unschoolers, and so far so good. No problems with them, and she just set up a brand new system for you to note your child's attendance (a simple online form) and she sends out reminders for you if you forget (nice!) And she's free. Obviously, we're not unschoolers, but it hasn't been an issue at all. And she responds to emails very quickly. Awesome. Sounds wonderful. I know a few families who are not unschoolers but have also registered with her for a number of years and also have had really + experiences. Sounds good to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in FL Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 We use an umbrella also. You could test yourself but my understanding is if you do you still have to get a certified teacher to sign the note to the school district (assuming you don't use an umbrella). There are so many things for homeschoolers here. I've seen a lot more people homeschooling this year because they've taken their children out of private schools. Our co-op is just overflowing with people this year (we so need a bigger place). We're in the Tampa area, if you're coming near here let me know! Melissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChristusG Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 This is my second year homeschooling in Florida. I sent in a letter of intent. And you have to do a standardized test by a certified teacher at the end of each year, but that's it. They say to keep a portfolio, but I don't know of anyone who has ever been asked for their portfolio. I keep all my kids work anyways, so if the need ever arises, I can throw something together quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted September 11, 2010 Share Posted September 11, 2010 This is my second year homeschooling in Florida. I sent in a letter of intent. And you have to do a standardized test by a certified teacher at the end of each year, but that's it. They say to keep a portfolio, but I don't know of anyone who has ever been asked for their portfolio. I keep all my kids work anyways, so if the need ever arises, I can throw something together quickly. You don't have to test. We just had a certified teacher review the portfolio and sign off that they made progress. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandalwood Posted September 11, 2010 Author Share Posted September 11, 2010 Wow, thanks again for all the info so far! I'm learning a lot! I feel better about it already. An umbrella school seems like a good option to me, I'll read up on the different options. We will be in the St. Augustine area. We've been in and out of a hotel and the lady at the desk there tells me of kids on her street homeschooled and a realtor we talked to told me of several on her street. Maybe there are a lot in that area? I'd love to hook up with a group eventually if anyone knows of any in that area. I'll probably take a while to settle in a routine, but in a month or two I'm sure we will be dying to get out and meet other homeschoolers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted September 12, 2010 Share Posted September 12, 2010 We will be in the St. Augustine area. Absolutely one of my favorite cities. I love to walk the historic streets or hang out at the beach. We are just north of you in Jacksonville. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renee in NC Posted September 12, 2010 Share Posted September 12, 2010 Wow, thanks again for all the info so far! I'm learning a lot! I feel better about it already. An umbrella school seems like a good option to me, I'll read up on the different options. We will be in the St. Augustine area. We've been in and out of a hotel and the lady at the desk there tells me of kids on her street homeschooled and a realtor we talked to told me of several on her street. Maybe there are a lot in that area? I'd love to hook up with a group eventually if anyone knows of any in that area. I'll probably take a while to settle in a routine, but in a month or two I'm sure we will be dying to get out and meet other homeschoolers. I know of quite a few Catholic homeschoolers in the area - if you happen to be Catholic pm me and I will send you the parish's name where most of the homeschoolers go.:D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
learninearnin Posted September 12, 2010 Share Posted September 12, 2010 You can't do the test yourself, here are the requirements: http://www.stjohns.k12.fl.us/depts/os/student/homeeducation/requirements It's a great state to HS in. In fact, Jacksonville has the largest # of HS in the country, so there's lots of groups and resources in FL. Much harder is getting used to our constant humidity! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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