Poll: High School choices......

[hmsch4me]

If you had the option to choose one of these methods to homeschool your high schooler, which would you opt for and why?

 

A.) Local Homeschool High School w/option to take as many or little classes as you want, using their curriculum. They keep transcripts and will offer a diploma and graduation ceremony.

 

B.) Homeschool at home the whole way.

 

C.) Homeschool at home enrolling in a Community College for some classes.

 

D.) None of the above - I'd do...............?

[justme]

I am leaning towards public online high school. We enjoy being home and having our freedom of schedule, but I lack the confidence to 'do' high school alone, keep records, etc... By then, I would also like my dc to have the experience of answering to someone else and having their feedback. I also feel it would make them feel that school was 'their' experience instead of mom continuing to be task-master. I have looked into a few and they seem good, with a lot of hs-ers choosing them as an option.

[hmsch4me]

nt

[Beth in TN]

My ideal homeschool situation would be to have my dd take a 1 or 2 classes a year in a group situation with paid teachers. I would teach a class or two myself at home and have the rest be just us. I would love to have a group graduation ceremony, but I would like flexibility when it came to transcripts because some classes would span more than one school year.

[Linda in NM]

My son will continue to be enrolled in Clonlara School in Michigan, which allows us to select our own curriculum (pending approval, of course), design our own program, and monitors our progress. This way, we maintain eligibility for NCAA sports in college (my son is a superstar athlete--doesn't get it from me!)...

[Myrtle]

If public schools had an open campus I'd enroll him in a few classes in the ninth and tenth grades and still homeschool other classes. In the 11th and 12th grades I'd opt for dual enrollment at the cc level and homeschool at the same time.

 

Public high school courses that I imagine that I'd enroll my child in would be art, music, speech, shop, home ec, possibly even English if they performed a class play.

 

I would still want to do math and history at home.

[Sharon in MD]

If you had the option to choose one of these methods to homeschool your high schooler, which would you opt for and why?

 

B.) Homeschool at home the whole way.

 

C.) Homeschool at home enrolling in a Community College for some classes.

 

 

I know that opportunities vary widely from state to state. We live in MD and are part of Cedar Brook Academy, a homeschool academy recognized as a private school. It is really a hybrid of homeschool and private school IMO. They keep the transcripts, offer a graduation ceremony etc. They are also my accountability. I must provide summaries of what we do, testing, writing samples and such, on a semester basis. I must assign grades, which I turn in to them for each semester. They provide group classes that meet once a week as part of the bargain (for which they assign the grades) as well and assistance in whatever you might need counsel for.

 

DS, a junior, is taking speech, Am. Lit, watercolor printmaking, and improv. through them as well as being in the main stage play production. At home he takes Physics, Pre-calc, piano, Am. History, Spanish II and World-view.

 

I love doing it this way. He gets to take classes from someone else and we get to choose which ones/how many. He has to meet someone else's deadlines and learn to pace himself. He gets to be in programs that require a large group to really work well like the play (they have a chorus, yearbook, and band too). We have a good bit of freedom in scheduling ourselves as far as time off goes....but we really try not to miss those group classes since it is like missing a whole week of school.

 

Next year we will probably do a class or two at the CC to help transition a bit more and plus, I'm not sure I want to teach Calculus at home :eek: We are thinking about doing a science course at the CC, but I'm concerned that doing both will be too much since ds will still want to do things at the academy as well. We might try just one each semester....I really don't know yet.

 

I do think it is wise to outsource some things in high school....I have a hard time keeping up as it is, without doing all the courses myself. There are so many options out there to make it easier for us...the CC, hybrid programs like we are in, Co-ops, on line courses. I think it is great to treat it like a buffet....take a little from here and there and build the plate you want. Customize your program to be the best for you and your kids.

 

The really great thing about homeschooling through high school is the incredible relationship my dh and I have with our ds. I really think it makes a difference.

 

HTH

[Beth in Central TX]

My choice is C.

 

This is my 5th year of homeschooling. I know my boys are still young, but I'm still under the conviction to homeschool them to the end. Of course, some days I question this decision, but all in all, I truly enjoy homeschooling.

[FloridaLisa]

We are squarely in D. I love, love, love having the flexibility to choose between courses at home, on-line, tutored or co-op'd. We've not yet dual enrolled, but, again, I love that the choice is available. To me, this allows us to get the best of all worlds: outside accountability, class experience, working with other teachers, flexibility with schedule and start-dates, ability to choose curricula and reading for home courses.

 

I love homeschooling my dc through high school.

 

Lisa

[Jan P.]

I would go with your last choice. I am using a Co-op now, but the time to get to the co-op and to get back home is eating away too much of our day. My dd could better utilize the time at home perhaps in taking one or two online courses. I taught at this co-op last semester. There is too much of the same type problems there that I know of are at public schools. It is hard to get the students on task which had to be done quickly due to our limited time. Also the courses are only once per week so too much information had to be given in one class in only one hour. I have done both online classes with my oldest (now graduated ds), and I much prefer the online classes or a dual enrollment class for my children. The only other option would be some type of distance learning class utilizing snail mail.

 

HTH,

[Holly IN]

Homeschool all the way with the use of our homeschool co-op for science labs and few classes (max of classes through co-op would be 3 classes and the rest at home).

 

Holly

[Beth in SW WA]

Looking ahead, we will probably continue w/ a hybrid form of classical homeschooling w/ tutors, local classes and home ed. My kids will meet all state/natl standards and do strong SAT prep -- combined w/ ministry/discipleship and community service. I cannot imagine being able to accomplish those goals w/ any one strict form of schooling.

 

I'll tell you, it was sure easier to pay the tuition bill for private school. But we know that wasn't the best to accomplish our goals for our older kiddos.

[mcconnellboys]

D, I would homeschool at home with him taking some classes at an area college (NOT a community college, however) until I could transition him into college for all coursework.

 

Regena

[Begonia]

We're planning a combination of C and D. A few homeschooled classes, several online through Scholars Online, PAHomeschoolers, and Keystone. CC classes for Spanish and science, once she's 16yo.

[Cedarmom]

I would do C....or maybe D.

Right now he is doing 10th all at home,except for Debate club. Next year he is planning on math at the Community College. But he may also take some online classes. One of the best things about homeschooling high school is all the choices.

 

Cedarmom

[Michelle in MO]

because in our small town, we're running out of other social opportunities for her. I also think she's capable of at least some community college work. I also think more independence would be good for her, while she's still here at home and can learn to figure out how college life works. Nan in Mass. had an excellent post about that before Christmas (or during Christmas, perhaps), about how thankful she was for community colleges and the opportunity for her dc to learn about college life while being at home.

[percytruffle]

We have done and will continue to do choice "C". The dc are completely hs'ed until 12th grade when they take 2-3 classes at the local community college. It works well for us. Some parents send them earlier, but there is still too much I want to cover with them here from a Christian perspective. I'm not willing to hand them over to secular education any sooner than 12th grade. We do not have any homeschool high school options. Our co-op is not very desirable. The dc have taken an occasional online class or had a tutor for a short time (SAT prep), but the rest of the academics we tackle ourselves.

[Alyce]

I was afraid of high school as well but I found there really are a lot of good curriculum out there with excellent resources for the teacher. A lot of the higher level math and sciences come with DVD's or CD's that assist the teacher. I really have been suprised at how easy it was. My dd is a senior this year and will be going on to UNC-Charlotte and my son will be a junior next year. I did utilize our local CC but that's because I wanted my dd to have some college credits already under her belt. We knew she wanted to go to UNC-Charlotte so after visiting the college I found out they have a shared list with our local CC of what they will accept and what course it counts for at UNC-C. We've been following that list in choosing our CC courses. She'll have 21 college credits when she graduates which means there will be 7 less classes she has to take when she gets there. I also liked the CC because it has given her a taste of what to expect when she gets to college full time without overwhelming her. It's provided her with a gradual progression into full-time college.

[Plaid Dad]

D - homeschooling combined with classes (online or in person) and tutors. Community college classes would be a possibility but not my first choice because in our area they are surprisingly expensive. If I'm going to shell out that much money, I'd rather hire a private tutor.