Feeling Nervous about “Middle School”

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

DS (nearly 9, 2E w/ ADHD) is handling his work more independently. He has begun writing essays & will be ready for PreAlgebra next year. He’s learned to type sufficiently to participate in online classes in real time - though he does still need me in the room to keep him on task. He can take notes. He makes connections between his life & the literature we read or one book & another. In many ways, it feels as if “middle school” is looming. 

The idea gives me pause, though. I feel unprepared to provide the variety of experiences that middle school electives & extracurricular activities would. Foreign languages, learning an instrument, technical art, theatre… all of these are subjects I want to provide access to. 

The academic gap between him & his peers  is widening to the point that B&M school may never be a feasible option. It hadn’t ever really been my intention, but it was something I’d always kept in my back pocket as a possibility. 

I know we’ll be alright. I’ll keep going, adjusting everything as needed to meet him where he is. I always have. But planning for this next year just feels… different. 

[HomeAgain]

I get it.

I will say most of ds's middle school expectations actually fell into place this year (ages 11 & 12), but his academics are more aligned with high school.  This is the year where he can do many things independently, keep himself on task, and use various study methods to gain information.  I actively teach each subject about once or twice a week now, with more independent work spacing my time out.  It's...different, but it's a continuum of all of the things he practiced over elementary years.

[freesia]

For us, it was natural, too. Do you have a co-op you could join. That’s where my kids get fun options. They also join more extra curriculars at late elementary/middle school age—Scouts, theatre, TKD, places they can explore interests. 
For foreign language at that age, what has worked best is Duolingo plus watching cartoons on YouTube. Outschool has classes that look fun. 

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

34 minutes ago, freesia said:

For us, it was natural, too. Do you have a co-op you could join. That’s where my kids get fun options. They also join more extra curriculars at late elementary/middle school age—Scouts, theatre, TKD, places they can explore interests. 
For foreign language at that age, what has worked best is Duolingo plus watching cartoons on YouTube. Outschool has classes that look fun. 

All the co-ops here are suuuper religious (we are secular) & require teaching others’ kids as well, which I’m not interested in doing. We are in a park day / field trip focused group. 

He’s involved in Scouts, competitive soccer, homeschool tennis, homeschool ice skating, & swimming lessons. We do plan to have him choose between learning either an instrument or a foreign language once he completes swimming lessons. He’s also taken some elective-type online classes through Athena’s so we’re exploring those options. 

Edited January 24, 2022 by Shoes+Ships+SealingWax

[Drama Llama]

For my advanced kids, while they were ready at 9 for middle school or high school content and skills, the structures and routines and teaching methods that suited them best were still very much elementary school methods.  We did lots of snuggling up on the couch for a read aloud of Life of Fred Statistics, and hands on games and activities.  

To me, that was one of my favorite things about homeschooling was that we could meet both the "little kid" needs and the need for advanced content.  

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

2 hours ago, HomeAgain said:

I will say most of ds's middle school expectations actually fell into place this year (ages 11 & 12)…

I actively teach each subject about once or twice a week now, with more independent work spacing my time out.

It’s nice to hear how it’s worked for you. Perhaps he won’t really desire that “middle school feel” for a couple more years.

Hopefully by then he will have wrapped up swim & could begin music lessons or a foreign language. We’re also awaiting a promotion for DH that would make some local fine arts corses (art, band, theatre) & Upper-level AOPS courses more feasible. 

Edited January 24, 2022 by Shoes+Ships+SealingWax

[daijobu]

I outsourced my first class (writing/English) in middle school, and it was still my busiest time in homeschooling.  I had NO TIME for anything.  Most of my extra time was spent prepping for science which was a step up in complexity and required me to demo projects in advance so I could run them with success for my kids. 

Because I was outsourcing even more (especially science), high school was much easier.  

[freesia]

1 hour ago, Shoes+Ships+SealingWax said:

All the co-ops here are suuuper religious (we are secular) & require teaching others’ kids as well, which I’m not interested in doing. We are in a park day / field trip focused group. 

He’s involved in Scouts, competitive soccer, homeschool tennis, homeschool ice skating, & swimming lessons. We do plan to have him choose between learning either an instrument or a foreign language once he completes swimming lessons. He’s also taken some elective-type online classes through Athena’s so we’re exploring those options. 

That sounds great.  It sounds like you are providing access to those extras. Honestly, you are doing well. 

[freesia]

1 hour ago, Baseballandhockey said:

For my advanced kids, while they were ready at 9 for middle school or high school content and skills, the structures and routines and teaching methods that suited them best were still very much elementary school methods.  We did lots of snuggling up on the couch for a read aloud of Life of Fred Statistics, and hands on games and activities.  

To me, that was one of my favorite things about homeschooling was that we could meet both the "little kid" needs and the need for advanced content.  

Yes, this. 

[Shoes+Ships+SealingWax]

24 minutes ago, freesia said:

That sounds great.  It sounds like you are providing access to those extras. Honestly, you are doing well. 

I appreciate the vote of confidence. It does sound like a lot when I type it out, I suppose.

It bugs me somewhat that it leans so heavily athletic, but DS needs the physical outlet for his ADHD. I think I’ll feel better about things once music or foreign language replaces swim.

I do like that between tennis & ice skating he’s seeing some of the same friends 3x a week. Same for his friend down the street. The frequency allows for more depth to develop in those relationships. 

Once DH is promoted there are ($$$$) homeschool classes offered by the local university-model dance / theatre professional school that I could put him in once or twice a week for Art, Dance, Theatre, & Music. Or kids’ cooking classes. Or coding. Or the in-person AOPS Academy. I wish he could do all of it, but then even in school he’d have to pick & choose - you don’t get to do ALL electives! 

[freesia]

27 minutes ago, Shoes+Ships+SealingWax said:

I appreciate the vote of confidence. It does sound like a lot when I type it out, I suppose.

It bugs me somewhat that it leans so heavily athletic, but DS needs the physical outlet for his ADHD. I think I’ll feel better about things once music or foreign language replaces swim.

I do like that between tennis & ice skating he’s seeing some of the same friends 3x a week. Same for his friend down the street. The frequency allows for more depth to develop in those relationships. 

Once DH is promoted there are ($$$$) homeschool classes offered by the local university-model dance / theatre professional school that I could put him in once or twice a week for Art, Dance, Theatre, & Music. Or kids’ cooking classes. Or coding. Or the in-person AOPS Academy. I wish he could do all of it, but then even in school he’d have to pick & choose - you don’t get to do ALL electives! 

Right! But you may even cover more as you aren’t locked in for a year. Things will grow and change as he ages. I predict you will be surprised what he’s done when you look back in four years. 

[madteaparty]

I’m in a similar boat except DD will go into brick and mortar school for middle school (6th grade).  I am confident the school will be okay academically—the only subject she’s years ahead of peers is French. For the rest, whatever fare an excellent public school ( we have to move) has to offer has to be good enough. I’m really done with homeschooling, she was never on board, and some things like robotics etc have been really difficult to manage on our own here. This is a funny turn of events for me because as I went through it with my son, I strongly believed (and still do) that middle school is where one could make a real difference with homeschooling. I’m just not interested anymore. I see how it ends and conclude some other things I cannot manage while homeschooling matter more. 

Edited January 25, 2022 by madteaparty

[Ting Tang]

I've had the same concerns for my oldest. The local public school is k-8, underperforming, and also lacks courses that seem basic to me, such as foreign language.  Mine stopped attending public school in 2nd grade due to the pandemic.  He was in the "advanced" groups there, but I feel returning him to that school will require he take several steps backwards.  He is social, though, and we haven't provided him with the outlets during the pandemic to have those interactions.  If we continue to homeschool, we will need more outlets for him. To me, it sounds as if you are doing a wonderful job providing your child with the "extras."  It reads like an extensive list to me and completely sufficient.