My son is in a SDC, how do I start home schooling?

[Guest terriplus5]

I'm new to all of this. There's a lot of abbreviations and language I don't understand on these boards. What are these programs people are using? How do you find the programs and institute them? How do you work it out with the school district? Do the kids still take state tests? What about P.E.? :confused:

[myfunnybunch]

Welcome!

 

What is an SDC?

 

I found my programs by reading The Well-Trained Mind by Susan Wise Bauer and Jessie Wise, visiting the curriculum review boards here on the Well-Trained Mind site, reading curriculum review websites, talking to friends who homeschool, and reading the Rainbow Resource catalog. It helps to have a clear idea of your homeschooling goals and philosophy before you start, so that you can narrow down the choices. (Editing to add: That sounds really overwhelming. Really, you're just asking yourself, "Why do I want to homeschool? What do I hope to accomplish?") There is a lot of information to absorb at first, so you have to be patient with yourself and the process of learning about homeschooling.

 

Board abbreviations:

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1503

 

Homeschool laws vary widely from state to state. Google "Homeschool law" and the name of your state to find out the state guidelines and regulations. State testing depends on the law in your state. Some states require it, and some do not. My state, for example, requires testing for homeschooled students in the same grades that testing is done in the public schools: 3rd, 5th, 8th and 10th.

 

P.E. can be a gymnastics or karate class, or a walk around the neighborhood. The beauty of homeschooling is that you and your child can think outside the institutional group-schooling box and find what suits you. That might mean enrolling in a homeschool physical education class, signing up for a physical activity like dance or swim team, going for nature hikes or watching exercise videos at home.

 

Deep breath. :) This is a great place to learn, so keep asking questions!

 

Cat

Edited November 2, 2011 by myfunnybunch

[....]

Hi, I'm not sure what an SDC is...

 

But, if you want to start homeschooling, google homeschool+laws+your state and there should be several websites with directions on how to withdraw your kids from school and what state regs you need to follow (depending on where you live).

 

If you are interested in Classical Education, buy The Well-Trained Mind and read it over the next week or so. There is an entire map of K-12 classical ed in there. It will guide you on what to cover in each grade.

 

Also, I'm a big fan of Cathy Duffy's Top 100 Homeschool Picks. She gives an overview of learning styles.

 

Latin-Centered Curriculum is great, too.

 

As far as working with the school district...where we live now (Texas), all we do is withdraw our kids from school and follow the homeschool laws. There is no contact with the school district. We don't have to do standardized testing or anything like that. I'm able to focus on things that I want to teach, instead of worrying about what is going to show up on the ITBS or TAKS, etc.

 

For us, we school year-round and homeschooling is part of our lifestyle. We're able to cover a ton of material that way. For us, PE is covered thru stuff like...my kids take Tae Kwon Do...last winter they were all on a basketball team, etc. Some people do co-ops which have a formal PE class.

 

Also, the HSLDA website has a bunch of information about homeschooling...that might help.

 

You could post what state you're in and someone might have a link to your homeschooling laws.

[Beth S]

Studebaker Drivers Club?

Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation?

San Diego CA?

Silver Dollar City?

 

Ha! Welcome to the WTM boards. There is actually a list of all the acronyms used somewhere.

http://www.welltrainedmind.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1501&highlight=board+acronyms+abbreviations

 

Feel free to use the "Search" feature in the upper right hand corner of this page to find the basic information. There are plenty of friends here who will fill in your gaps and answer your questions.

 

And you will learn things you NEVER even thought about.

 

Welcome to the roller coaster of educating your son at home.

Edited November 2, 2011 by Beth S

[Guest terriplus5]

Thanks so much for the info. A SDC is a "special day class". My son has a few learning disabilities. I am in California. So, no one checks on your child's academic progress and whether or not he/she is being active? Not that I think it's necessary at all, that's great that you can just focus on teaching your child what he/she needs without being micromanaged. Thanks again, I'll look up the info for California.

[Beth S]

If you are planning to withdraw a special needs student mid-year in California, then you need to do a bit of planning.

 

(I'm in rural KY, so I am clueless . . . but know that those three characteristics make withdrawing a bit more complex.)

 

You may consider joining HSLDA.org for more advice. It offers homeschooling legal support for members . . . but is also overtly Christian (and Republican :glare:).

 

Sometimes moms withdraw the child at the semester break, so it is less noticeable. I'm sure you will find someone who has BTDT to help!

Edited November 2, 2011 by Beth S

[Ellie]

Thanks so much for the info. A SDC is a "special day class". My son has a few learning disabilities. I am in California. So, no one checks on your child's academic progress and whether or not he/she is being active? Not that I think it's necessary at all, that's great that you can just focus on teaching your child what he/she needs without being micromanaged. Thanks again, I'll look up the info for California.

I'm from California and had never heard of "SDC." :001_huh:

 

Homeschoolers in California, because of a 2008 court case, are considered private schools, and as such are unregulated by the state. Each private school--even if it has only one child--must file a private school affidavit annually, but there are no requirements for testing, number of school days, teacher certification, or any kind of approval or permission. It's a pretty good deal. :001_smile:

 

There are, of course, always school officials who don't believe that's right, and so they give homeschoolers a bad time. They don't win, you understand, but they still try. It's a little trickier removing a special-needs child from a public school; after all, not only will the professionals not believe that mere parents are capable of teaching their own children, but they are getting more government money for that child than for other children.

 

It is usually recommended that, if possible, you withdraw a child during a major break, such as Christmas. My personal recommendation is that you join HSLDA before you say anything to the school. If you start now, you should be all ready for the Big Adventure in time for Christmas. What a great present!

[Stacy in NJ]

I'm from California and had never heard of "SDC." :001_huh:

 

Homeschoolers in California, because of a 2008 court case, are considered private schools, and as such are unregulated by the state. Each private school--even if it has only one child--must file a private school affidavit annually, but there are no requirements for testing, number of school days, teacher certification, or any kind of approval or permission. It's a pretty good deal. :001_smile:

 

There are, of course, always school officials who don't believe that's right, and so they give homeschoolers a bad time. They don't win, you understand, but they still try. It's a little trickier removing a special-needs child from a public school; after all, not only will the professionals not believe that mere parents are capable of teaching their own children, but they are getting more government money for that child than for other children.

It is usually recommended that, if possible, you withdraw a child during a major break, such as Christmas. My personal recommendation is that you join HSLDA before you say anything to the school. If you start now, you should be all ready for the Big Adventure in time for Christmas. What a great present!

 

:D

[tex-mex]

I'm from California and had never heard of "SDC." :001_huh:

 

Forgive me for jumping in on here and being the lone dissenter... but SDC is a common term in CA educational system for Special Day Classes. I taught in CA public schools and SDC classrooms were for students who either could not be mainstreamed into an Resource Classroom program (or in a regular classroom) or placement into SDC was for special populations via County programs. I am very versed in SDC.

 

To the OP:

Homeschooling for a former SDC student takes on its special challenges. You can do it easily in CA. But you may need the current OT or PT to stay in place, for example. Or speech services. And the SDC teacher or district may harass you. I would sign on to a group like HLA or HSLDA for legal protection.

 

Quick question... what are some of the overall quarterly or yearly goals on your child's IEP? Can you meet those goals? There are so many wonderful resources for special needs homeschooling. You can do this.

Edited November 2, 2011 by tex-mex

[Guest terriplus5]

All of info an support is great! Some his goals from his IEP are; When presented with eight multiplication with two and three digits multiplied by a single digit number, he will complete with 75% accuracy (with or without the use of a multiplication chart). With teacher guidance, he will complete a graphic organizer, write, revise, and edit a four paragraph composition that includes and introductory paragraph, three supporting paragraphs with details, and a concluding paragraph with legibility, acceptable letter sizing, indenting, and margin boundaries on three final drafts.

 

I would love to hear some suggestions of curriculum I can use to help him. :001_smile:

[....]

How old is he?