Jay3fer Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Most of the time at hs gatherings, it feels like I'm surrounded by unschoolers. I get seriously embarrassed sometimes, admitting that my dd6 even does schoolwork - let alone my ds4. At a recent gathering before Xmas, I had some old school stuff out on my bake sale table (to sell) and another mama said, "oh, you're into THAT," like it was porn. :lol: Does anyone have a nice community of classical hs'ers around them? Who are the majority of hs'ers in your area?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly Christian homeschoolers using boxed curriculum. I started a secular group, open to everyone, two years ago, however, and we now have fifty families (granted, only 15 are active...) I am the only classical homeschooler I know of. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
higginszoo Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly boxed, school at home people in the group I spend the most time with (which isn't a whole lot -- I'm an introvert, and after 9-10 years, pretty confident in going it on my own). We're eclectic, child-led, not quite unschoolers really, though our tidal approach takes us there for chunks of the year when most of the others are still on their schedules. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heidi @ Mt Hope Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Well, my sister, best friend, cousins, and close friends all homeschool classically (well, 'classically' like we do :)). We belong to a Classical Conversations group with many of my friends (and sister), and we've made so many new friends. I consider myself so fortunate to have such an awesome community of support and friendship! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErinE Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Almost all religious. I am the only classical. In fact, surprising given the size of the community, I have yet to meet one who has heard of the WTM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LuvingLife Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 We lack homeschooling families in our area, and those who do are not like us. We actually do schoolwork while so many other families are more focused on things that don't really matter, most of their activities take up their whole day leaving little time for schoolwork. :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Veritaserum Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I know a few classical and structured homeschoolers, but TJEd (a type of unschooling) is HUGE where I am. I am a former TJEder tuned anti-TJEder. :tongue_smilie: I sought out the more structured folks because TJEd types frustrate the heck out of me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorMama Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I actually think we may live in the same city. I think I recognize your name from the local yahoo group... :001_smile: I meet mostly unschoolers, too. I met one lady with similar-aged kids to mine who was WTM-based, but we didn't really click. I suspect my not sharing her religious views was a deal-breaker for her, and we lost contact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
laundrycrisis Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Most people I meet seem to lean toward unschooling. I am into old-fashioned structure and I end up keeping that to myself a lot, because I am tired of unsolicited lectures about relaxing, trusting, allowing them to bloom, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly unschooling hippies. There is also a sizeable group of Christian homeschoolers who use ABeka and so on, and I used to hang out with them too, but their group did not allow for anyone who joined a charter. So now I just hang with the hippies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Three years ago it was mostly a combination of Christians using boxed curriculum (often along with Classical conversations. There are a LOT of CC/Abeka folks around here) and unschoolers/very relaxed schoolers. Now, academic homeschoolers are on the rise, mostly those who have tried traditional schools and found that they're just plain not a good fit for their kids, especially a lot of people with kids with special needs or who are gifted (or, often, both), so there are starting to be more activities and groups that meet that need. It's been kind of a chaotic time, especially because the Christian homeschool group refuses to let people using the K-12 virtual school participate in activities, so many of those folks have ended up in the secular group-which until a couple years ago was mostly unschoolers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Onceuponatime Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 We've got some Abeka video homeschoolers, some ATI, my neighbor unschools, and a lot of eclectic homeschoolers. I'm eclectic. I only know of one classical hser in my area. I think she uses the omnibus program (name?). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoxcell Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Most of the ones I have met are either Unschoolers(i.e. saying things like maybe I should start doing math with my kids, or we really haven't done any history yet.), or School at home(i.e. Abeka, and ACE). I have only met one lady who had heard of HOD, and she was using MFW. I generally keep are schedule to myself or I get comment like, wow you do a lot, or you are like super scheduled. Which is funny because I think I'm pretty laid back and I'm always looking for more to do.;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicAnn Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly unschoolers. Some that I would even call radical unschoolers. But that's my particular circle of associates. I'd say in the whole city it's about 50% unschoolers, 45% religious boxed curriculum. 5% everyone else. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
learningmama Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Where I am at, I've met many who use online programs and the kids are mostly middle school aged or older. Those with younger kids do boxed curriculums. I feel like most of the mothers around here are at least 10-15 years older than I and in a whole different stage of child rearing and educating (not that I'm super young or anything- just 33 with one in Kindy and other in 2nd). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my area? Invisible. I know they're out there. I've heard people mention all the homeschoolers in our town. I've found the used hsing books at the thrift stores. There was even a picture of some of them in the paper once. But I sure as heck can't find them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JennyD Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have no idea. I have yet to meet any other homeschoolers here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dolphin Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have only met one homeschooling family near me that is not an unschooler. Unschooling seems to very popular in Oregon. I have meet a few boxed Christian Homeschoolers. Most I meet if I go into the city, I don't just run into other homeschooling families. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pamela H in Texas Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 It's been awhile. A couple years ago, the ones with teenagers (many had younger children also), were mostly non-schoolers and extremely relaxed homeschoolers. They bought some materials; but children did school whenever or never. They were VERY far behind the average public school student. Two years ago, I went to a park day. It seemed that people were pretty relaxed; but they were able to talk about things like SOTW and various phonics programs. They also talked about "doing school." That seemed like a step in the right direction. Of course, I don't know whether they do it 2 hours twice a week or 5 hours five days per week. I did talk to a woman whose children were extremely delayed. That was likely because mom said she wasn't willing to spend more than 15 minutes per kid. Wow! NO ONE sounded like what I was doing with my friend's kid at the time or what I intend to do with my littles (whether homeschooling or afterschooling). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoxcell Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have only met one homeschooling family near me that is not an unschooler. Unschooling seems to very popular in Oregon. I have meet a few boxed Christian Homeschoolers. Most I meet if I go into the city, I don't just run into other homeschooling families. Yep, we are in Oregon too. I forgot to add Connections Academy though. I know a few families who use this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquinas Academy Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Well, there aren't many people in my area to start with, so homeschoolers are few and far between. Most of them are unschoolers, a few are boxed-curriculum types. We're the only classical homeschoolers around, as far as I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JessReplanted Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Most of the time at hs gatherings, it feels like I'm surrounded by unschoolers. I get seriously embarrassed sometimes, admitting that my dd6 even does schoolwork - let alone my ds4. At a recent gathering before Xmas, I had some old school stuff out on my bake sale table (to sell) and another mama said, "oh, you're into THAT," like it was porn. :lol: :lol: SO funny!! There are 2 homeschool groups around us, and I don't feel like we fit into either one. One is Christian (which we are) but seems to be geared only towards families with older kids. Another one is a hodgepodge mix of relaxed homeschoolers. They were all very nice, but I did feel very uncomfortable during a conversation about 'letting kids learn to read when they want to.' :001_huh: Needless to say, we are still without a HS group. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nakia Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my immediate area, most of the homeschoolers are very very very (did I mention very) conservative Christians using Abeka or another similar boxed curriculum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WIS0320 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly Christian homeschoolers using boxed curriculum. :iagree: I belong to a Catholic group so there is a lot of Seton, a bit of Kolbe and Calvert and some Sonlight. Teaching Textbooks and Saxon seems really popular within my group as well. No one in real life seems to have heard of most of the things I'm using. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JessReplanted Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my area? Invisible. I know they're out there. I've heard people mention all the homeschoolers in our town. I've found the used hsing books at the thrift stores. There was even a picture of some of them in the paper once. But I sure as heck can't find them. :iagree: I often feel this way too. When we go out during the day I find myself looking for other homeschool families. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay3fer Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have met...a few boxed Christian Homeschoolers. Sorry, but :lol::lol::lol: at the thought of "boxed Christians" in general and also "boxed homeschoolers." I wonder if that's what we eclectic hs'ers think of them in general... folks in boxes. (I don't; I'd absolutely love a curriculum from a box that suited our religious views and what we want to teach/learn... failing that - we're classical / eclectic!) I actually think we may live in the same city. I think I recognize your name from the local yahoo group... :001_smile: Hmm... very possible! Are you active here??? I run around tilting at windmills and trying to organize various cultural events so my kids can participate. But irl I am also very shy, so pleeez introduce yourself so I will know I'm not the only "schoolie" one around! (I'm at the WE drop-in at least every other week, possibly tomorrow) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forget-Me-Not Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 (edited) In my circle, there are a lot of families using charters with home-study options (or charters that are dedicated to home-study). The big draw is that they are able to give out quite a bit of money per student, and some of it can go towards things like dance and gymnastics. I'm sort of the odd man out, filing my PSA and going Classical across the board. The charter thing has been tempting, but then I'm brought back to earth when I hear the complaints about standardized testing and having to work with a teacher-facilitator (who can really make or break the whole home-study experience for you). I really value my independence and at the moment, the charter school money just isn't tempting enough to give some of that up. Edited January 5, 2012 by LemonPie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephanieZ Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I think homeschool activities draw more unschoolers than classical or traditional homeschoolers . . . because, honestly, they have time. I don't have the time: My kids have too much work to do to spend a lot of time doing co-ops or parkdays or what have you. I enjoyed those things when the kids were smaller, but now I have to pick and choose very carefully. I know a lot of homeschoolers, and a few are classical, a few are religiously based, a few are unschoolers . . . but, espcially among older kids, it's the unschoolers who go to the homeschool activities more frequently. When the (oldest) kids are under 10, it's a lot easier to do it all, but at some point, you have to make choices, and for more serious academic homeschoolers, the fun activities often take a back seat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay3fer Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 One more thought: We actually do schoolwork while so many other families are more focused on things that don't really matter, most of their activities take up their whole day leaving little time for schoolwork. :confused: But wouldn't they say those activities are an essential PART of their children's day of learning? We do field trips, gymnastics classes, drop-ins, along with grocery store trips and other "things that don't really matter," and they usually end up being as educational as the book stuff. I'm no unschooler, but Charlotte Mason has given me a healthy sense of "get over the workbooks, get your kids into real LIFE." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebunny Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Most of the time at hs gatherings, it feels like I'm surrounded by unschoolers. I get seriously embarrassed sometimes, admitting that my dd6 even does schoolwork - let alone my ds4. At a recent gathering before Xmas, I had some old school stuff out on my bake sale table (to sell) and another mama said, "oh, you're into THAT," like it was porn. :lol: Does anyone have a nice community of classical hs'ers around them? Who are the majority of hs'ers in your area?? We have between 500-600 families homeschooling in India. I'm one of the few who actually follow a systematic education plan. The rest of them are Radical Unschoolers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sweetpeach Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my immediate church family -- the *entire* spectrum is represented. Uber-Classical . . . everything inbetween . . . Uber-Unschoolers. Makes for great dynamics. (hardy har har) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SonshineLearner Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have only met one homeschooling family near me that is not an unschooler. Unschooling seems to very popular in Oregon. I have meet a few boxed Christian Homeschoolers. Most I meet if I go into the city, I don't just run into other homeschooling families. I think it'd be fun to meet you :) I can't remember where you said you are, but even if just for a field trip, I'm always up to meeting someone :) My son is 8 and he loves new friends.... OMSI or Gilbert House are common places for us to go :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myeightkiddies Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Around here they do Florida Virtual School, Abeka, or School of Tomorrow Paces, most of the time. PCC is in this area so Abeka is very popular. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Well.... mostly protestant boxed users in the area. With that said, I do belong to a lovely group of Catholic homeschoolers. Seems like a mix of boxed and some classical. I, however, felt the *need* to start my own all inclusive group. Not secular really, as I encourage discussion of faith (but no conversion tactics allowed!); we welcome everyone, regardless of beliefs (or a lack of) and/or homeschooling method. I feel a bit out of the loop, though; and I'm considering turning the group over. It seems to have attracted almost nothing but unschoolers and it isn't as diverse as I had hoped. Militant unschoolers at that... you know, the kind that try to push and shove their methods on unsuspecting newbs.:glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twoxcell Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I think homeschool activities draw more unschoolers than classical or traditional homeschoolers . . . because, honestly, they have time. I don't have the time: My kids have too much work to do to spend a lot of time doing co-ops or parkdays or what have you. I enjoyed those things when the kids were smaller, but now I have to pick and choose very carefully. You know maybe you hit the nail on the head. We did a local co-op last spring and this fall, and it was a hassle to fit into our school day. Especially since the topics were things we had pretty much already covered at greater depth. We aren't participating this spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I've found lots of homeschoolers. Most of them are conservative Christian and so not a good fit for us. I joined a new group a few weeks ago for pagans, atheists, etc. Most have young children (6 and under). Most tend to be unschoolers. I'm still hoping to find a couple of boys around my ds11's age to hang with. Not looking too hopeful though. The group does seem nice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 (edited) Around here mostly unschoolers. I am seen as being too tough on the kids by teaching the way I do. Which is funny because in this group I feel like a huge slacker. I think it is more common to have teh groups filled with unschooler's because generally speaking the classical schoolers etc are too busy teaching to attend park days and other social events. THe unschoolers are the ones with time everyday to do all that. ETA: In my current town I am the only homeschooler. In the next town over there are a few more. The whole support group is only 8 families and we all live within 1 hour radius so not all from the town it is in. My old city on the other hand I was in several different homeschool groups, and teh city itself offered homeschool classes, there was co-ops etc. I met a lot more people back then that used other forms of homeschooling at all the different things not just park days. That is one thing I miss from the city, all the opportunities to meet other homeschooler's that schooled like me and with older kids. Out here the only kids as old or older than my kids are 3 girls from 1 family. They do not want to hang out with my ds and my dd is a bit young for them. Everyone else is several years younger. Of the families around here most put their kids in ps for high school because there is nothing around here to help like the city has. Edited January 5, 2012 by swellmomma Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Homeschooling is very common in my area. We have Everything here. Just in my neighborhood, I know a family that used Liahona, a video recorded classroom (LDS version of Abeka Academy). Another that uses a mix of secular/Christian materials. Another that is completely secular. Another that I don't know know what they use. Another who used a lot of field trips/ living museums to lead their studies...but were exclusively Christian in materials. We were more classical for a while and more unschoolish for a while....and a little of everything in between. LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsJewelsRae Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 We have a large Christian homeschooling group here that we belong to, I don't know any secular homeschoolers irl. From what I can tell, most are traditional hs'ers and I'd say Abeka, BJU, Sonlight, Teaching Textbooks, and Apologia are among the most popular programs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Greenmama2 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Mostly unschoolers here. I know there are others, I just don't meet them very often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MorganClassicalPrep Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 In my immediate area, most of the homeschoolers are very very very (did I mention very) conservative Christians using Abeka or another similar boxed curriculum. In my area also. Like, super duper, can't even do math without relating it somehow to Christianity Christians. (And I don't mean any offense by this, just that it is not our style, and makes us vaguely uncomfortable.. as a result- we don't do much with other homeschoolers!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myeightkiddies Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 As far as homeschool group diversity, there is none here. Not many meet any more, but the ones who do, and have all these years, are about the same. I've never met a Catholic homeschooler or a LDS one. Orthodox is non-existent as well. There may be a secular person here and there but none who really claim that they are. I'm looking forward to the move. I'm hoping the SW portion of Ohio has more diversity - even a little diversity is more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhotoGal Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I haven't chatted with enough homeschoolers to really know what everyone is up to. But I am surprised that people aren't hanging out talking about curriculum all day. Isn't that half the fun? :D There was a mom at the park talking about how her 7 year old son finally decided that 2 1/2 hours of video games per day was probably about his limit since his eyes were hurting after that long. :001_huh: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WarriorMama Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Hmm... very possible! Are you active here??? I run around tilting at windmills and trying to organize various cultural events so my kids can participate. But irl I am also very shy, so pleeez introduce yourself so I will know I'm not the only "schoolie" one around! (I'm at the WE drop-in at least every other week, possibly tomorrow) I PMed you! For a city with what seems to be SO MANY homeschoolers, it can be awfully hard to find folks with the same sort of philosophy, huh? (Or even just ones who don't think you're crazy for teaching math. :tongue_smilie: ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay3fer Posted January 5, 2012 Author Share Posted January 5, 2012 Another thought: around here, anyway, homeschooling seems to have grown out of attachment parenting - ie when the kids get too big to wear, you unschool them. Discussions revolve around ideas like, "I bet there isn't anybody here who didn't cosleep." (Umm.... me??? I just couldn't. Sleeptime is growly mama-tiger time... I get very, very touchy about small people in my personal space while I'm sleeping. But can you imagine raising your hand during THAT discussion?) :-) (and don't mention vaccination - which is a good policy anywhere - not that I'm mentioning it HERE!) Also, either the religious homeschoolers are hiding or they are nonexistent (or they have their own gathering, and didn't invite me, which is entirely possible!). But this is the chilly northeast, where you don't generally speak about God or religion outside of church (or synagogue). It was amazing to me when a rabbi speaking to our class once said there is a whole other WORLD out there where people are not afraid to openly talk about God. Around here, people seem chicken to admit that's why they homeschool. :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acurtis75 Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 We have tons of homeschoolers around our area. There's a co-op about 15 minutes from here that meets at a Christian school and has 500 families. There are about 75 kids in the p.e. class we go to. There is also a nice bookstore/co-op/school in the area that offers a one day classical school. We also were considering visiting a church about 30 minutes away and discovered that they have a classical school that meets 2 or 3 days a week and the rest of the week is at home. I think that's called university model?? We aren't really joiners and tend to do our own thing but the few moms I've talked to during pe seem to lean towards unschooling. On top of being classical in our approach dd is also pretty accelerated so I pretty much avoid curriculum conversations. I considered the 1 day classical school but we had already covered the materials they were using this year so it seemed like a waste of money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shellers Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I have no idea. I have yet to meet any other homeschoolers here. Same here! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lailasmum Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 (edited) Around here it is mostly unschoolers. Some radical but not all. I am sure there are people following a more structured, planned approach but they don't make it known. Amongst my immediate friends there are two families I would say follow an eclectic/classical type approach but they are sending their kids back to school this term. Edited January 5, 2012 by lailasmum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 Jay3fer and Warriormama what province are you two in? I see you are both Canadians so now my curiousity is piqued. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cassy Posted January 5, 2012 Share Posted January 5, 2012 I don't know of any homeschoolers locally. There are a few about 20 miles away, but mostly unschoolers. It can get a bit lonely, but then I come here :001_smile:. In reality, even if there were dozens of classical homeschoolers nearby, I don't know how involved I'd be, as I never seem to have enough time or energy to get the essential things done (except for this week, we've not started back after the Christmas break yet :D). Cassy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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