x-post: one day a week academic programs

[oneddmanybooks]

I posted in Parents' General Forum asking if anyone had experience with a one day a week academic program for homeschoolers. Students attend the program one day a week and then have assignments to complete at home. Thanks!

 

ETA: I totally forgot to clarify that this is a private program and tuition-based. It is not connected to public school. It is like a one day a week classical Christian school. Sorry to be confusing.

 

ETA: Ok, here is the rest of the other post (from the general forum).

 

I'm considering these two options for third grade next year.

 

1. One day a week classical Christian program for homeschoolers (History using VP and Mystery of History; Literature & Composition using IEW and Shurley; Apologia Science; Gospels study; Logos Latin; Art; and Shurley English). Other subjects are done on our own.

 

2. Use the same materials as #1 but on our own, with the possibility of enrolling in the above program one year later

Pros (in mostly random order) of the one day a week program:

1. Godly teachers who are passionate about their subjects.

2. Great opportunities for growth and learning.

3. Share learning and fun with classmates.

4. I share the responsibility with others.

5. Schedule and self-discipline; accountability (for both of us!).

6. Awesome classes.

7. We would get more accomplished

Cons:

1. Schedule – not flexible.

2. Grades, some pressure (mostly from herself).

3. Not individualized (some assignments may not be on her level).

4. Loss of choice of most subjects (this could be a plus, as I won’t even have to think about making any changes)

5. Dd says she does not want to do it, but does not know much about it.

6. Long day (about 7.5 hrs.)

Edited March 4, 2012 by oneddmanybooks
clarity

[musicianmom]

Only if you're happy enough with the tutorial's curriculum choices to be willing to give up what you're already doing.

 

It has been stressful for me to run HOD Beyond only 4 days a week and try to finish by the end of the school year. I just received the re-enrollment forms for the tutorial and want to cry. For me, the school year would go much more smoothly without the tutorial, and yet it would be very bad emotionally for dd if I took it away from her.

[oneddmanybooks]

Only if you're happy enough with the tutorial's curriculum choices to be willing to give up what you're already doing.

 

It has been stressful for me to run HOD Beyond only 4 days a week and try to finish by the end of the school year. I just received the re-enrollment forms for the tutorial and want to cry. For me, the school year would go much more smoothly without the tutorial, and yet it would be very bad emotionally for dd if I took it away from her.

 

Yes, I agree with you. I don't think we could use HOD next year anyway. We will finish Bigger this summer, but I don't think she is ready for Preparing. HOD is a wonderful program, but I don't know if I want to continue with the layout.

 

I'm very happy with the one-day school's choices. But it is still a hard decision. I'm not very good at making decisions. :)

[meggie]

I'm not exactly sure if this is the kind of thing you're talking about. If it's not, I apologize. :001_smile:

 

Digby goes to a charter school one day a week. In doing so, I was aware of what it meant:

 

~He'd have to do standardized testing when he was old enough (they don't do it in Kindergarten. I'm not exactly sure when they do it)

~We'd have to keep track of our hours (again, not so big a deal in kindergarten as kindergarten isn't mandatory here)

~We can't buy any religious curricula with the money we get from them. If I wanted any (I don't) I would have to pay for it out of my own pocket.

 

All that stuff is not really anything I care about, as I was going to do the first two anyway and we already use secular materials.

 

The reasons I signed him up:

 

~To get the "school" experience. He has a cubby and a coat hook. They do circle time and teach fun songs (I'm so not very fun). He gets to take a lunch and have recess and take a snack.

~Mostly so he could make some friends. Poor kid is a shy extrovert. He loves being around other people, but is scared to ask them to play. I tried various groups where he could socialize, but they weren't working very well with my two littles' schedules. But at school, he's branching out and making friends and his teacher is helping him ask to join in.

 

So those are the only reasons I signed him up. I honestly don't care about what math program they're using there. I don't worry about how much he gets it or where he's at on reading. I already know that. I'm just happy he's making friends and having fun.

[oneddmanybooks]

Thanks, Meggie. I edited my original post to clarify that it is not a charter school.

 

Thanks for reading and replying! :)

[musicianmom]

Yes, I agree with you. I don't think we could use HOD next year anyway. We will finish Bigger this summer, but I don't think she is ready for Preparing. HOD is a wonderful program, but I don't know if I want to continue with the layout.

 

I'm very happy with the one-day school's choices. But it is still a hard decision. I'm not very good at making decisions. :)

 

I see that you have just one child. If she's easy to get up and out in the mornings, I'd say go for it! Besides the curriculum issues, my dd is a poky little puppy in the mornings. So I'm grumpy because not only will she not cooperate, but I'm not all that excited about sending her either! And then I have to get the other two in the car also for pickup in the afternoons.

[blessedbyHim]

We love ours! Only our middle schooler attends. Because he attended a Christian school full time until 4th grade, he really missed "real school". He attends a cottage school on Mondays and takes 4 classes each lasting 1.5-2 hours. He then has assignments for the rest of the week and I teach a couple other subjects at home. It has been great academically and socially to get to have friends his age.

 

The school is a branch of a Latin school so there are certified professional instructors and they use Memoria Press. It has really been the best of both worlds for us. We will consider putting each child in at middle school age if finances allow.

 

I will say the only con is there are times that I miss choosing what he studies but I am working on building around MP for next year. I wasn't sure how it would work this year and we discovered the school only a week before classes began.

 

ETA: The school is currently for 3rd grade up. Didn't want it to sound like it was only for older kids, that's just how we plan to use it.

Edited March 4, 2012 by blessedbyHim

[oneddmanybooks]

We love ours! Only our middle schooler attends. Because he attended a Christian school full time until 4th grade, he really missed "real school". He attends a cottage school on Mondays and takes 4 classes each lasting 1.5-2 hours. He then has assignments for the rest of the week and I teach a couple other subjects at home. It has been great academically and socially to get to have friends his age.

 

The school is a branch of a Latin school so there are certified professional instructors and they use Memoria Press. It has really been the best of both worlds for us. We will consider putting each child in at middle school age if finances allow.

 

I will say the only con is there are times that I miss choosing what he studies but I am working on building around MP for next year. I wasn't sure how it would work this year and we discovered the school only a week before classes began.

 

ETA: The school is currently for 3rd grade up. Didn't want it to sound like it was only for older kids, that's just how we plan to use it.

 

You know, I've been wondering what exactly is a cottage school? I've heard the term but am not sure what it is. I'm guessing it relates to the "branch" of another school?

 

Your ds' school sounds a bit similar to the one I'm considering. It also begins in 3rd grade and continues through 12th. I would miss making some of the choices, but with all that time (!) saved, I could hopefully concentrate on becoming a better math teacher and planning more fun stuff.

[oneddmanybooks]

I see that you have just one child. If she's easy to get up and out in the mornings, I'd say go for it! Besides the curriculum issues, my dd is a poky little puppy in the mornings. So I'm grumpy because not only will she not cooperate, but I'm not all that excited about sending her either! And then I have to get the other two in the car also for pickup in the afternoons.

 

Well, up is no problem - she wakes up on her own about 6:30 or 6:45 most mornings. OUT is a whole different thing. I think it will be a bit of a challenge until we get into the routine.

 

If I had two younger ones, I'm not sure I would even consider it! ;)

[BarbaraL in OK]

There is a two-day-a-week classical Christian school in our town, and several one-day-a-week "co-ops" in nearby towns (the teachers are employees and are not students' parents, for the most part). Both follow the model of classroom teaching, projects, tests, etc., when they meet, with parent-supported "homeschooling" the rest of the week as the students complete their assigned work.

 

I know lots of local homeschoolers who have chosen one of these two options, for various reasons. None of it appeals to me because I don't want to be tied to a school-classroom-teacher mode with their schedule and their assignments and their curriculum choices. On the other hand, I do understand much of the attraction.

 

Did you have any specific questions?

[oneddmanybooks]

There is a two-day-a-week classical Christian school in our town, and several one-day-a-week "co-ops" in nearby towns (the teachers are employees and are not students' parents, for the most part). In this program, teachers are employees. Most teachers also have students in the program, because most of the teachers are currently homeschooling (or have finished hsing). Both follow the model of classroom teaching, projects, tests, etc., when they meet, with parent-supported "homeschooling" the rest of the week as the students complete their assigned work. I see your quotes around hsing, and I'm not really surprised. But - I would be actively working with my dd at least 4 days a week. Since many hser's only school 4 days a week, I still consider it homeschooling - with no quotes needed. :D Yes, I would be paying someone to do some of the work. But if a parent hired a tutor for a few hours a week, would you say the person is no longer really a homeschooler? Just curious.

 

I know lots of local homeschoolers who have chosen one of these two options, for various reasons. None of it appeals to me because I don't want to be tied to a school-classroom-teacher mode with their schedule and their assignments and their curriculum choices. Yes, I understand. I'm torn about this myself. On the other hand, I do understand much of the attraction.

 

Did you have any specific questions?

 

Thanks, Barbara! I didn't copy my whole post from the other forum, which I should have done. I'll try to edit my o.p. in this forum to include a description of the courses. I am curious if it sounds like an appropriate course load for a 3rd grader. Mostly I just hoped to hear about others' experiences and maybe get some advice.

[nikkid]

I think I know which classical program you're talking about since we're in the Chicagoland area too. We debated for HOURS and HOURS about putting my dd8 in that school for 3rd grade. One of my best friend's kids go there and it's a perfect fit for her family for now. In the end, we decided not to enroll her. The biggest reason was because the curriculum wasn't what we would choose; we were liking what we were doing and didn't want to pay that much money to have to do curriculum we weren't really fans of. Also, it was a drive for us. Carpooling didn't work out like we thought it would. Also the writing assignments were very specific and rigorous, which we didn't think our dd was ready for. (I am more of the opinion of SWB of not requiring them to write original writing until they have more of a model in their head.) Oh, and another big reason was we are planning to move in a couple years and didn't want to start that type of rigorous classical schooling without being able to see it through long-term, as this is kind of a unique setting.

 

Some days I wonder if we should have sent her, because now I think she is ready developmentally (8 and 1/2 yo just seems so much more than 8 looking back!) and we really could use some more structure in school. I want my dd to learn how to respect authority figures, to learn responsibility with school assignments and have opportunities to learn things I just don't have time to teach (like Latin). I think having me be the teacher and mom isn't working so well...my dd has a hard time separating my teacher hat "please correct this sentence or math problem" from my mom hat "you did a great job! thanks for doing your best". She only hears the first part and tunes out the praise. So...sometimes I wish we did send her there.

 

The program does keep you on your toes with the amount of homework and projects. But maybe that's just what your child needs to help them achieve their best. I wish you luck in your decision.

[oneddmanybooks]

I think I know which classical program you're talking about since we're in the Chicagoland area too. We debated for HOURS and HOURS about putting my dd8 in that school for 3rd grade. One of my best friend's kids go there and it's a perfect fit for her family for now. In the end, we decided not to enroll her. The biggest reason was because the curriculum wasn't what we would choose; we were liking what we were doing and didn't want to pay that much money to have to do curriculum we weren't really fans of. I really like most of their choices. Also, it was a drive for us. It's only a short drive for us (10-12 minutes). Carpooling didn't work out like we thought it would. Also the writing assignments were very specific and rigorous, which we didn't think our dd was ready for. This is one concern I have and is definitely on my list of questions. I need to learn more about IEW. (I am more of the opinion of SWB of not requiring them to write original writing until they have more of a model in their head.) Oh, and another big reason was we are planning to move in a couple years and didn't want to start that type of rigorous classical schooling without being able to see it through long-term, as this is kind of a unique setting.

 

Some days I wonder if we should have sent her, because now I think she is ready developmentally (8 and 1/2 yo just seems so much more than 8 looking back!) and we really could use some more structure in school. I know the feeling! I want my dd to learn how to respect authority figures, to learn responsibility with school assignments and have opportunities to learn things I just don't have time to teach (like Latin). Yes. I think having me be the teacher and mom isn't working so well...my dd has a hard time separating my teacher hat "please correct this sentence or math problem" from my mom hat "you did a great job! thanks for doing your best". She only hears the first part and tunes out the praise. Yes, I think it would be great for her to have feedback and correction from someone other than me only!! So...sometimes I wish we did send her there.

 

The program does keep you on your toes with the amount of homework and projects. But maybe that's just what your child needs to help them achieve their best. I wish you luck in your decision.

 

Sounds like you understand what we are going through! It's a tough decision; sometimes I wish someone would just force me to do one or the other. ;) Right now I'm leaning toward "just do it." :)