Do you count these as school days?

[mohop]

Last Friday was the end of our first week of homeschool (Kindergarten), and I wanted to make it a light, easy day.  We basically just quickly went over our memory work for the week, listened to some songs together, read our FiaR book, and did one activity related to it (made butter). We spent the rest of the day hanging out with cousins who are in town visiting. I was thinking of doing just 4 days of regular "school work" (including phonics, handwriting, math), and having Friday generally be a fun day with songs, quick review, and just FiaR.  We will probably be done with everything within an hour.  Would you count that as a school day for attendance-keeping purposes? 

 

Also, this morning, my DD has woken with a cold and not feeling well.  I think we will probably end up doing another light day.  If your child is not feeling well and you do less than the normal with her, do you also count that as a school day or not?  

 

Thanks for helping out a newbie! 

[HelenNotOfTroy]

To be honest, if I were someplace that required me to keep attendance, I would pick a calendar framework that would cover the days needed and not worry about what school actually happened on those days.

[kristi26]

It counts for me.  If we do school work, then it's a school day!  There are plenty of days throughout the year where we do things that are counted toward their year and I don't count them as a day (like worship practice or singing at church, going for a bike ride on Saturday, swimming on Sunday afternoon, fun art projects on a Saturday afternoon, etc). I figure it all evens itself out. :)

[marbel]

Yes, I would count that day. 

 

When my kids were 8 and 10 we moved to a state that required 180 school days.  At those ages, I decided that a day would count if we did math, because if we did math there was also enough reading and other learning going on to count the day.   Now that they are older the bar is set a little higher.

 

Even at that age I would count a sick day as a school day, because most likely I would be reading to my kids, or they would be reading books on their own. 

 

If I still had a 5-year-old and lived in a state that required a count of days for her, I'd just count every day and not give it another thought.  Every day is full of learning experiences for a 5-year-old!  I've never heard of a state that required it for such a young one.  Oops, I shouldn't assume you are in the US.

[craftyerin]

Absolutely. 

[linders]

For Kindergarten, a day when we did readalouds was a school day. A day when we went out and observed the pond was a school day. Almost anything was a school day. Don't worry about this until upper elementary.

[2_girls_mommy]

Yes, for K, that is a full day! 

[duckens]

I would count it.

 

Do you really think that most early elementary school teachers are piling on much schoolwork the first week?  I'm sure the big goal is to discuss systems and expectations, learn everyone's names, and make sure that no one gets lost on the way from one class to the next.

 

So, if your daughter knows that you're planning to do a schoolwork most days.....

And she and you know each others' names......

And she doesn't get too lost on the way to the school table or to and from the bathroom......

......you're probably good.

 

:laugh:

[2_girls_mommy]

There is at least one state that requires age 5 to be counted..

[mohop]

Thanks everyone.  I don't have any friends or family members who home school in my state, so I'm just at a loss sometimes as to what is normal/proper.

 

There is at least one state that requires age 5 to be counted..

 

I live in TN.  It used to be that mandatory schooling started at age 6, but they recently changed the law to age 5. 
 

[abacus2]

Yes. Just choose your calendar and go with it. The schools don't count days by how much they accomplish. If school is open it is a school day, even if kids miss with illness, the fire alarm interrupts class, or everyone's on a field trip.

[elegantlion]

Yes, I would count it. 

[FO4UR]

Yes, I would count that for K.

 

I always end up with way more hours than required anyway.  (I have to count hours, not days.)

 

[mohop]

Our school "day" is supposed to be 4 hours.  So the requirement is 180 days of 4-hour days.  Of course, even on our normal days, we are not sitting down for 4 hours, but we do about 1.5 hours of structured stuff at home, she goes to my mom for another hour (with breaks) for arabic, and the rest of the time I figure is "enrichment" or "pe" or whatnot. 

 

Honestly, part of my concern with this is in terms of honestly meeting the legal requirements, but a large part is also in responding to the many questions  I get from the many non-homeschoolers in my life regarding what we do all day, how much my DD is actually going to be learning, how structured our day is, etc.  People seem to have this impression that homeschoolers don't actually do much real learning. 

[freeindeed]

Yes, I would count it.

[Ellie]

"Attendance" for homeschooled children is silly. You get up every day and there they are, for heaven's sake!

 

Yes, I'd count it.

[Kathryn]

I divide all of our curricula across 36 weeks, so 180 days, which is our attendance requirement here. Once everything that is written in for a day happens, it is counted as a school day. So, if we did half of our subjects that were written in for day 41 on Monday, and the other half on Tuesday, then I count Tuesday as a school day but not Monday. But, if we did half of day 41 on Monday and then the other half as well as day 42 on Tuesday, both Monday and Tuesday would count as school days.

 

I realize that I'm in the minority here, and I don't make any judgment on how others count their days. Kindergarten was different though. At that point I counted pretty much any day we spent dedicated time learning.

[lea_lpz]

We did exactly what you are doing. We did school 3-4 days a week focusing on the 3 R's and then usually did a light day similar to what you describe and / or a field trip. We're doing it again this way for 1st grade and this seems totally manageable. Many homeschoolers do a 4 day week or light Friday.

 

I would also take things easy if I or the children don't feel too well.

[Alice]

Our school "day" is supposed to be 4 hours.  So the requirement is 180 days of 4-hour days.  Of course, even on our normal days, we are not sitting down for 4 hours, but we do about 1.5 hours of structured stuff at home, she goes to my mom for another hour (with breaks) for arabic, and the rest of the time I figure is "enrichment" or "pe" or whatnot. 

 

Honestly, part of my concern with this is in terms of honestly meeting the legal requirements, but a large part is also in responding to the many questions  I get from the many non-homeschoolers in my life regarding what we do all day, how much my DD is actually going to be learning, how structured our day is, etc.  People seem to have this impression that homeschoolers don't actually do much real learning. 

 

For the legal stuff, maybe there is someone in your area you could ask for advice. I don’t have to count days or attendance so I don’t worry about it. I would absolutely consider what you described as a school day for a kindergartener. But to reassure yourself on the legal standpoint you could see if anyone else around you has BTDT with your specific requirements. 

 

As for the questions...they will never go away. :) Figure out what kind of questions you want to answer and how much detail you want to give. For me it depends on who is asking and why. If they are generally curious I answer more. If they are being rude, I answer less and just walk away from the conversation. I have honestly found that to be very rare though.

 

When ds was in 1st grade I found out his entire Cub Scout den (all public schoolers) had been bugging their parents to be homeschooled because they envisioned that he just got to play all day They were all a bit deflated when I explained that he actually did math and reading and handwriting, etc. 

 

And don’t forget that you can turn anything into counted school hours. Just use edu-speak....

 

Helping bake cookies becomes...

-Activity integrating multiple subjects. Core knowledge areas address include 1) following directions 2) Introduction of fractions and measurement 3) Safety and personal hygeine (washing hands, using stove) 4) Use of design and pattern creatively (decorating) 5) Nutrition 6) Science as we discuss mixing and how heat changes dough into solid cookie 

 

Not that I’d suggest that you kill all the joy in your day by doing that with your normal everyday activities but that many of the things you do during the day are very valid “subjects†for kindergarten. 

[lea_lpz]

Honestly, part of my concern with this is in terms of honestly meeting the legal requirements, but a large part is also in responding to the many questions I get from the many non-homeschoolers in my life regarding what we do all day, how much my DD is actually going to be learning, how structured our day is, etc. People seem to have this impression that homeschoolers don't actually do much real learning.

If people are saying those things you are probably reacting in a way where they feel like they can over step your boundaries. I know it's hard just starting out, but if you feel confident about your decision in homeschooling, when you say you homeschool you will sound a lot more determined in your decision and people will be less likely to make a comment that would make you question your decision. Of course some people will continue to say rude things. The way you answer will likely either encourage them to continue to ask questions that make you uncomfortable or stop.

 

A firm, "this works for us and I enjoy homeschooling my kids and feel very confident I am offering the best education we can afford by homeschooling," works great for strangers and acquaintances.

 

To family members, a very simple, "this is not open for discussion. These are my children and it my responsibility to decide what is best for them."

 

If people at that point continue, don't discuss it with them.

[abacus2]

I would encourage you to look into homeschooling legally under Home Life Academy in TN. Under TN law, when you use an umbrella school you follow the umbrella school's requirements. Home Life asks you to report grades and attendance, but you only have to report your total number of days, not the dates or hours of instruction.

 

ETA: http://www.homelifeacademy.com/faq/Default.aspx?sub=Grade_Reporting

 

I believe TN's 4 hours requirement is based on the fact that public schools have to be in session for that many hours to count as a day. Of course homeschool doesn't really work like other schools and a 4 hour school day in the public schools in no way means 4 hours of active book work.This is why I say to set your school calendar and go with it. Homeschools really are always open and students are extremely rarely absent.

[Coco_Clark]

Memory work, games, quality reading, narration, and the occassional project or field trip WAS my kindergarten year. And I only did THAT 4 days a week. So from where I stand you are golden ;)

 

As far as record-keeping goes, it really depends what your state requires. This year I'm under an unbrella school that requires me to count hours (20 a week) along with recorded monthly goals and if we met those goals. I'll stay honest with my goals but plan on buffering my hours with things that we do but dont necessarily consider school ourselves (our weekly hike is now "nature study", bedtime reading with dad is "literature"). Maybe I hang with a non-rigorous crowd but nearly all the homeschooling parents I know do this. Public school kids watch movies and play ice breaker games and count it as school after all!

[Joyofsixreboot]

It counts for me.  If we do school work, then it's a school day!  There are plenty of days throughout the year where we do things that are counted toward their year and I don't count them as a day (like worship practice or singing at church, going for a bike ride on Saturday, swimming on Sunday afternoon, fun art projects on a Saturday afternoon, etc). I figure it all evens itself out. :)

This :iagree:

[Hoot]

For a kindergartener, yes, I would have counted that.  For high school, however, we have to count 1/2 days vs. whole days and have a total of 180.  This means that if we only do 1 or 2 subjects, it is counted as a 1/2 day. 

[Katy]

I wouldn't worry about it.  I don't know about other states, but I can tell you that in Iowa when I went to high school that the day counted for public schools that if the buses run and pick up even one child and then school gets cancelled. Even if NO learning or classroom attendance occurred.  So when they can see an ice storm coming and already had more than three days to make up for the year, they would sometimes pick us all up, get us to school, and then cancel before the first class even started.  That happened at least three times that I can remember, and a few more times where I would get picked up and the bus would turn around and drop us off less than 15 minutes later.

 

So by my view, if you do anything educational that day (including camping in the living room with kleenex and pj's and watching educational screen time when everyone has a cold or even just if mommy is sick), it counts.   With constant review and wasted time and partial inservice and time wasting that goes on in public schools, I would not worry about it.

 

Then again, we pretty much school year round here, so I never worry about it.

[happypamama]

If my kids crack open a book of any decent literary quality, or if they do anything that falls under any one of the portfolio subjects, I count it as a school day. They took tennis lessons this summer -- two hours a day of solid running around and playing tennis. I counted those as full school days. If we listen to audio books or music in the car, I count those as school days. If they go on a bike ride with DH, it counts as a school day. They went to a couple of museums the other day when DH took them out so the newborn and I could sleep -- that counted as a school day. We typically log well more than the required 180 days.

[Erin]

When the kids were little and we'd be able to work ahead of schedule, I'd count EVERYTHING.  ;)
These days we never get done everything I want to do, so I don't have to worry whether it needs to count or not.  I NEED more days!