melissel Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 Would you think you should do it when they're younger, so they can transition more easily? Or at the start of high school? Or do you think it doesn't matter too much? I'm definitely not making any decisions right now, because my current work cycle is absolutely killing me, but it's not permanent. I know what I'm feeling now may very well change in January. But there are other factors as well, factors that I've been ignoring, and I fear they're going to hurt us all in the long run. Mainly, I'm afraid that I'm going to keep on doing what we're doing until say, 3rd or 4th grade, when I potentially run out of steam/enthusiasm, but I think that's just about getting to the very worst possible time to put a HSed kid in school. I guess I'm wondering if I'd be better off enrolling her early so the social ramifications are minimal, or holding on until the last possible minute and risk enrolling her at a bad time. Also, I know many people enroll their kids in high school, for various reasons. How does that work? Is it a bumpy transition, or are the kids generally old enough and mature enough that it's relatively smooth? I think about my high school experience and couldn't imagine enrolling a kid at that point, but I also attended a very small-town high school, so a larger school might provide a very different experience. I'm probably rambling, so if I am, I apologize! I'm exhausted, DD3 is sick, I'm going nuts trying to get ready for our trip etc. Too much going on in the old noggin these days :rolleyes: TIA for your thoughts! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatieJ Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 I heard a speaker at a homeschool convention say if you are going to enroll your kids in Public school, do it after Junior High. I would have to agree that Junior High is an extremely difficult time for kids and that transaction could be more difficutl then. All of mine attended Public high school after being homeschooled. They had no problems adjusting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aurelia Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 I think I would wait until high school. Middle school is where the behavior problems really start cropping up in my experience, so I would not want my child publicly schooled at that age, but that's just my opinion. I figure by high school the child should be mature enough to handle most of the things at school. I don't think enrolling your child in 3rd or 4th grade would be the worst possible time, she will have plenty of time to acclimate to her schoolmates before middle school starts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in PA Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 I heard a speaker at a homeschool convention say if you are going to enroll your kids in Public school, do it after Junior High. I would have to agree that Junior High is an extremely difficult time for kids and that transaction could be more difficutl then. All of mine attended Public high school after being homeschooled. They had no problems adjusting. I agree. For me, elementary school is an important time to homeschool to lay the foundation for the child's education, and middle school is an important time to homeschool because the social dynamics in most middle schools are abysmal. Totally sex/clique/bullying centered, for the most part, and nothing I would want my kids to be a part of if there were any possible way to avoid it. So for our family, the earliest possible time that I would want to have my kids in school would be high school. As long as they've had a solid education at home, kids I know who've entered school in high school haven't had a problem adjusting. Erica Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 If you can wait until after Junior high then do. That is the worst and hardest time to be in ps. I put my ds in 9th grade from home school with no problem - I took him back out in 10th grade, but not because he didn't transition well. He had several other homeschool friends that went into highschool that year that transitioned well also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ria Posted November 22, 2008 Share Posted November 22, 2008 (edited) I can tell you about my experience, if it helps any. Last Feb. I enrolled my four youngest kids (all boys) in public school. They were in 5th, 6th, 8th, and 10th grades (junior high here is 6-8). My kids not only were new to public school, but they were enrolled near the end of the 3rd quarter...a bit of a challenge for them, to be sure. They have all thrived. It took them all about 2 weeks to become comfortable with what their classmates had been studying, and from then on they had no problems. We experienced absolutely zero social issues. The middle school here is fantastic and the kids really seem nice. My high schooler already knew a lot of kids at the school, and he fit in right away. Academically, everyone did fine. My high schooler was placed in 3 honors courses and did very well; he made honor roll. The younger 3 made straight As. This year I have two in the middle school and two in the high school. Again, the high schoolers have honors courses; one son has straight As, the other made high honor roll (2 B's, 4 A's). The middle schoolers have straight A's. All the boys have lots of friends...nice, good kids...and enjoy school. I am glad that I homeschooled all the kids through elementary school (well, the youngest spent a few months in PS before moving on to middle school). As someone pointed out, homeschooling can lay a very solid foundation for future studies. For us, middle school has been fantastic, but our middle school has a great program and interesting set-up. The various grades are separated in different wings of the school. They don't even pass through the same hallways most of the time. Lunches are by grade, so you are always with your own grade during middle school. In each grade, the kids are divided into "teams" of about 150 kids each (there are 4 teams per grade, I think). Each team has a group of core teachers (Literature, Writing, Math, Science, History), so only the kids in your team will be in those classes with you. Electives (computer, gym, music, etc) are made up of kids from various teams of the same grade. Each year the teams are reassembled, so you go to classes with a new group of kids. I think this approach really helps to make the middle school experience seem much less intimidating to students, and it helps them to make friends since they see the same group of 150 kids every day during the year. Well, that's probably more than you wanted to know! Ria Edited November 22, 2008 by Ria Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peek a Boo Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 If you can wait until after Junior high then do. That is the worst and hardest time to be in ps. i hear this advice repeated often by homeschoolers who have BTDT. i also hear lots of stories about homeschoolers doing well in high school right off the bat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmamainva Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 I would also wait until high school. In our county, homeschoolers can take up to two classes per semester at the local high school and still be considered homeschoolers (and that means any class, including band and drivers ed). My oldest did this for one semester when she was 14 and she didn't care for it at all. She enrolled at the community college the next semester (when she was 15) and she loved it! She's been there ever since and she'll have over 30 college credits under her belt by the time she graduates from our homeschool this spring as a senior. (Of course, laws vary by state, so you'll have to check and see if homeschoolers can take high school classes part time and you'll have to check the dual-enrollment policies at your community college as well. Our cc allows high school students to take up to 4 classes per semester and they can be any classes they want, except for developmental classes -- i.e., you can't take Algebra at the community college if you're under 18...they expect students to be able to handle college level math - which is precalculus and up - by the time they make it to the cc level) But I can't say enough good things about her experience at the community college!! She's had wonderful professors and she's met a very nice group of kids!! The difference, according to my daughter, between the kids at the high school and the kids at the community college, were that the ones in high school were there because they had to be, and most of them didn't take their classes seriously; at the community college, they're there because they want to be and most of them study hard and want to succeed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam "SFSOM" in TN Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 Also, I know many people enroll their kids in high school, for various reasons. How does that work? Is it a bumpy transition, or are the kids generally old enough and mature enough that it's relatively smooth? I think about my high school experience and couldn't imagine enrolling a kid at that point, but I also attended a very small-town high school, so a larger school might provide a very different experience. I'm probably rambling, so if I am, I apologize! I'm exhausted, DD3 is sick, I'm going nuts trying to get ready for our trip etc. Too much going on in the old noggin these days :rolleyes: TIA for your thoughts! I thought about this pretty hard with the second one, because I home schooled the first one from K age through 4th grade with combinations of Calvert and Sonlight (depending on the year) and US public and German schools. (It was a strange life that poor kid had, lemme tell you!) He went back into school full time when he was 9, then away for school when he as 11. I don't recommend that route. What I decided for the now 15 y/o -- and keep in mind she is such a different kid from the first, and that factored in, of course -- was to do the first five years, K-4, in small public schools, then pull out for 5-8, then back into a small high school. (In our case, the small high school is private, but I can't see the ultimate transition being very much different.) Home schooling the middle years gave dd an amazing sense of self. I hope like anything to be able to walk the little dd, now in K, down the same path when she reaches that age. I'm pretty sure that the path we chose would seem pretty heretical to folks who choose the "homeschool all the way" route. But it worked for us, and could I do it over, that's how I would repeat it for both older kids. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 I'll just stand with Ria in saying that not all middle schools are to be avoided at all costs. ;) Even after I put my son back in ps, I used to say I would probably homeschool for middle school (7-8). I hated middle school and I was sure the social atmosphere would be awful at all of them. But, for various reasons, I kept my son in ps for 7th grade. He loves it. Well, he wishes the classes were more challenging, but he's enjoying his teachers and the other students. Our school does some of the same things as Ria's--although ours is a lot smaller. I guess what I'm saying is, take your specific schools into account. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OH Kim Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 We have successfully transitioned two from homeschool to high school. The first grading period was a bit wild and crazy with the kids learning the balance between their worlds. My son came home every day and begged to be homeschooled again, my daughter would never consider coming back (I don't offer band! Our system doesn't permit hsers in.) The first weeks are rough, but ultimately, my ds is 4.0 and a National Merit Scholar. My dd has similar plans. I think post-puberty works for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sharon in SC Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 Would you think you should do it when they're younger, so they can transition more easily? Or at the start of high school? Or do you think it doesn't matter too much? I'm definitely not making any decisions right now, because my current work cycle is absolutely killing me, but it's not permanent. I know what I'm feeling now may very well change in January. But there are other factors as well, factors that I've been ignoring, and I fear they're going to hurt us all in the long run. Mainly, I'm afraid that I'm going to keep on doing what we're doing until say, 3rd or 4th grade, when I potentially run out of steam/enthusiasm, but I think that's just about getting to the very worst possible time to put a HSed kid in school. I guess I'm wondering if I'd be better off enrolling her early so the social ramifications are minimal, or holding on until the last possible minute and risk enrolling her at a bad time. Also, I know many people enroll their kids in high school, for various reasons. How does that work? Is it a bumpy transition, or are the kids generally old enough and mature enough that it's relatively smooth? I think about my high school experience and couldn't imagine enrolling a kid at that point, but I also attended a very small-town high school, so a larger school might provide a very different experience. I'm probably rambling, so if I am, I apologize! I'm exhausted, DD3 is sick, I'm going nuts trying to get ready for our trip etc. Too much going on in the old noggin these days :rolleyes: TIA for your thoughts! Oone thing I know I wouldn't do - I would NOT put them in during the middle school years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Atl Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 High School is our plan (if dd gets her way..:lol:). We are looking at a couple highschools (regular and charter) as possibilities. But I'm waiting till next year to worry about it. Do schools let you do a tour if they are public? :confused: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melinda in VT Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 High School is our plan (if dd gets her way..:lol:). We are looking at a couple highschools (regular and charter) as possibilities. But I'm waiting till next year to worry about it. Do schools let you do a tour if they are public? :confused: Our elementary school did. You might also contact the schools and see if they have a regular orientation day in the spring for the kids moving up to the high school in the fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BabyBre Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 Well, I guess I've got experience with both situations to an extent. Ds15 went back into ps in 9th grade (he came home in 5th) and I had SO many of the same fears that you have, mainly that he would make poor social decisions in order to feel like he fit in with someone. On the contrary, apparantly he was raised well! :D He's been delightfully mature and sensible! My theory is that since he wasn't raised in all the social bs of your typical ps during his most formative years up to this point, but largely around mature and sensible adults (disproportionately so, compared to the majority of ps kids), that's how he knew to respond. On the other hand, dd7 entered ps in 1st, and quite honestly, I've seen regression in her social behavior. She was mature beyond her few years and in the last two years, I've seen her turn into, well, a "normal" kid. I know, I know, at least she's not abnormal, but that's little consolation for all the ground we've lost. Of course, I don't mean to sound down on her, but it frustrates me greatly at times. Conversely, ds6 went to ps in K and has improved socially from where he was, but he was slightly behind. We're delighted that he's now a "normal" kid! So, were it my decision to make and all things fell into place, I would wait until high school. The young years are so fragile, I would like to keep control over what influences them until they have the foundation and developed the maturity to deal with the ps social scene. But that's me. And my observation in my own dc has been that the social diva, dd7 - already accomplished in all areas, social and academic, has regressed in those areas since entering ps just over a year ago. The socially timid ds6 has made leaps and bounds in social behavior (he was already academically accomplished and has yet to be challenged in ps). And ds15, the follower, slightly immature for his age, that had me SO worried about his fate in pub hs has proven himself to have been ready for the challenge. Don't know if any of that helps. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BabyBre Posted November 23, 2008 Share Posted November 23, 2008 Oone thing I know I wouldn't do - I would NOT put them in during the middle school years. I second that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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