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cowboydoc
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Home Schooling
11/11/04 09:25 AM
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Well I think the time has come to home school our daughters. I won't even go into the public school mess and the crap they are doing to our kids these days. Any recommendations for good programs, internet courses, etc. How did you do it? How is working out? What about college acceptance? Thanks for any help.
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Hakim
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Hi Cowboydoc,
We homeschooled our sons Ibrahim & Muhammad from about 3rd grade thru the end of high school. They both "attended college," at the State University of New York at Binghamton, considered the "Harvard" of the NY state university system. Straight A's for both of them.
I could tell you everything about home schooling. It is not right for everyone, I suppose, but for most people it is the answer to your richest dreams for your kids. They will just love it, specially on your farms.
For several years we "did it all" ourselves (in New York) and filed the "quarterly reports" and related stuff for the school district.
Then we enrolled them in a physical, non-traditional school, Oak Meadow School. Oak Meadow has several levels they can provide--- assigned teachers and curriculum, evaluation portfolio style, and some that just do an annual grade. Prices vary.
The nice thing about Oak Meadow is that they are an actual state-accredited high school (in Vermont). So, your girls will get an actual high school diploma. Once you enroll them at Oak Meadow, they will "transfer" from the local school, and you need have no other interaction with the local district.
Oak Meadow also has a real, live, graduation ceremony, held in June, which our sons attended. They have one on each coast. It makes it meaningful, and gets around the "GED" problem for independent home schoolers.
Oak Meadow is one of the oldest (or maybe THE oldest) home schools in America, and as a matter of fact, provides curriculum materials for thousands of US grade schools and high schools. So, it is certainly "acceptable" in terms of the quality of the education.
The head of Oak Meadow is Dr. Lawrence Williams, who has a PhD in Education from Columbia University. I could not be higher in my praise for the experience. It costs maybe a few hundred dollars a year per student.
Link to Oak Meadow School.
There are various ways to approach homeschooling, and Oak Meadow will assist you whatever way you choose. The methods range from "school at home," meaning they do everything EXACTLY like school, just at home: pledge allegiance at 8:20, same texts books, same lunch break, same vacations, etc.
The other end of the spectrum is "unschooling," which is basically letting your kids find their own way, and you guide them. This was basically the way we went with Ibrahim & Muhammad. TBN, actually, was a significant part of their educational process for several years of high school (English, grammar, graphics/art, etc.).
I would never consider any other way except homeschooling for my children.
Hakim Chishti
Staff/Moderator
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cowboydoc
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Hakim]
11/11/04 05:10 PM
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Hakim,
Wow I couldn't have asked for a better person to give insight on all of this. I appreciate your comments so much and really hope that I can pick your brain as this progresses. Our parent/teacher conference today cemented the fact that I am doing the right thing. I'm getting tired of getting treated like a second class citizen in my own kids lives.
I will look at the Oak site and get back to you. Thanks again for the help getting started.
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Bird
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Hakim]
11/11/04 05:42 PM
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From what I know of your boys, you certainly did a good job, Hakim.
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Hakim
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Bird]
11/11/04 07:54 PM
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Hi Bird,
Thanks for your thoughtful and kind comments. But considering how much you have provided to all of us, especially to them, in the form of insights and wisdom, and your constant, caring oversight, not just about tractors, but the way to live one's life with honor, dignity and service, I am giving half of any credit -- to you.
Hakim Chishti
Staff/Moderator
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CJDave
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 My experience with home skool kids is that their education is no better than what their parents can give them. If the parents are sharp and well educated, it's OK; otherwise there will be gaps in their education that you can drive a truck through. I had a kid working for me who was a hi skool (home school) grad and he could barely write. By that I mean he could barely form letters let along form sentences and paragraphs. In home schooling, so much depends on the parents. I recently sat in on a high school business class and the teacher made several comments about the Bush administration that were inaccurate and of a definite liberal slant. The 20-minute educational TV program they watched at the beginning of the class was also liberal-slanted.  The BIG ADVANTAGE to home schooling is that the kids will not be taught to challenge what they have learned at home as far as values are concerned. Many schools are liberal, pro-homo, anti-God, and VERY subjective when it comes to morality and values. 
CJDave
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fivestring
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Good on you, Doc.
Good luck and hope everything works out good.
Gary
Bluegrass Music ...
Finger-pickin' good!
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BrianP
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: CJDave]
11/12/04 03:39 PM
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OK ......
Perish the thought a dopey Canuck should intercede, especially within the context of 'pro homo, anti-god, etc., etc..' 
Our major issue, and our sole issue, was the quality of education our kids would get. Public school is lowest common denominator and expects everybody to learn at the same rate. Some kids learn to read faster than others, some may be quicker in math and slower in reading.
Public schools frustrate and impede bright kids and slower kids.
Properly designed home schooling should be 'just right': always challenging the kids, but never making them feel stupid. These days, a bright kid is likely to be prescribed Ritalin, or sent to counseling. Not so bright kids may be sentence to ‘special’ classes. If there was an interest in education at public schools, the advanced kids would be challenged more, and the not so advanced kids would have their reading, or math, or whatever, worked on to help them catch up, not abandoned.
Some parents take home schooling seriously, some not so much. My wife considers it a full time job and is very good at it. Our neighbors are a different story.
I’d suggest anybody considering home schooling do two things: 1) contact the local school principal and see if there are any support systems for home schoolers such as curricula, and so on, and 2) see if there are any local home schooling organizations.
For the record, we believe it is possible (and necessary) to teach morality, ethics, and so on at home. I can understand devout parents not wanting to participate in a (so called) secular public school system. Most poeple you meet on a day to day basis went to public school. Most can't (or don't) read, few can write intelligently, and the general lever of practical understanding of science and math is abysmal.
I get a little confused by some people’s idea of morality: it is unclear to me where, if ever, Jesus commanded people to be ‘anti-homo’. I thought the general rule of thumb was ‘do unto others …’
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RMeadows
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We homeshool 3 kids, 13, 10 and 7. There are many options. We use Alpha-Omega and Saxon for our lessons.
What you need to do is contact a local homeshool group. Homeshoolers are always willing to help each other. This way you get all the local info you need.
Try www.homeschool.com and http://www.hslda.org. Both of these are great resources. Also, a local resource is http://www.eduevals.com/resources.htm
Roger Meadows
TiAnViCa Ranch
Mulberry, Florida
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fadams
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Hello cowboydoc. I am new to the forum but am a veteran homeschooler and couldn't help posting to this thread. I have nine children, four natural and five multiracial adopted. We have home educated for twelve years. I can not say enough good about it. First, it keeps our family integrity intact. Our childrens best friends are their siblings and parents. The educational schedule is flexible. The boys and I run a trap line during the weekdays. We ski as a family on Tuesdays at the local ski resort on "Homeschoolers Day". I don't have to have "spring break" off to take vacation with the kids. We take vacation whenever we want. We work, study, play, eat, and worship together so our values are their values. I think you avoid the "generation gap" problems particularly in the teen years because of this. Second, it is easy to achieve academic excellence in the home school environment. The teacher student ratio is small. You can choose among a wide variety of excellent commercially produced curriculum. The teachers (you) really care. The teachers (you again) know the students needs, strengths, and weaknesses and can taylor the pace and material accordingly. We have some naturally bright children that we have advanced quickly. We also have a deaf child with a cochlear implant that has special needs we attend to. So we can be as flexible as needed. We have used various curricula such as calvert, christian liberty, abeka, and covenant. Mary Pride's book The Big Book of Home Schooling evaluates these. A piano teacher comes to our house to give the older children individual lessons. Our rule is you can play any instrument you want as long as it is the piano. We also rely heavily on the internet for courses such as Latin, literature, and writing using ISLAS and Wes Callahan's Great Books. As for college entrance, we just sent our first off to Belhaven College in Mississippi on a full academic scholarship based on her SAT of 1410. She got in every college she applied to and was offerred half to full scholarships to several. My 13 year old scored 1380 on his first attempt. This is not meant to brag but to show how well homeschooling can work. HSLDA data does indeed show superior test scores compared to public schools.
There are costs to be counted before homeschooling. It is a big time committment for my wife (but hey, so is nine kids). It requires a lot of support, encouragement, and discipline (wait until your father gets home!) from me. It can be done on a shoestring but we budget $500-1000 per month for it. Criticism from relatives, neighbors, press, etc. are common but becomming less so as it proves itself in the educational marketplace.
I could go on but won't. Hook up with a good local homeschool group, join HSLDA, and enjoy the blessing of educating your children at home.
Frank
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Hakim
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: fadams]
12/05/04 07:48 AM
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Hi Frank,
Thank you for one of the best essays on the glory of home schooling I have ever read. And congratulations to your children for their excellent achievements, which I am sure will continue to expand as they grow into fabulous human beings in their adulthood. You and your wife are just about the perfect parents.
Our experiences in home schooling mirror your almost exactly. TBN is the "product" of home schoolers.
Many, many people ask me (when they meet my sons) "how did you ever get them to turn out that way?" They mean, clear, polite, intelligent, healthy, etc. I just say, "We spent time with them."
I think that is the #1 key to success in home schooling -- you are there with them and can really and truly know your children, and they of course get to be influenced by you and your wife in thousands of positive ways. 
All the best,
Hakim Chishti
Staff/Moderator
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cowboydoc
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Hakim]
12/14/04 04:41 PM
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Well the first few weeks were pretty tough and I must admit I thought we might have done the wrong thing. However, my wife and I rearraged our schedules and set specific time apart to teach the girls. My wife has taken on our first grader and I'm working with our fourth grader. Now that we have a schedule it's going very well.
Before when I would ask how school was you got a canned answer. I feel so much better now knowing what they need to work on. When we're driving or have down time at rodeos and shows it's easy to quiz them on problems or go over difficult material.
We're still learning and fitting it all together but I can't see ever sending them back to public school now.
Thank you all for your advice.
Richard
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Pat
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Home schooling is just like a lot of other things.
If you want it done right you often have to do it yourself!
 Pat
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
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fivestring
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Good on you, Doc.
You determination will pay big dividends later in their life.
Gary
Bluegrass Music ...
Finger-pickin' good!
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RaT
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Very good informative post. I have a 3 year old son and am just now understanding what the worry and concern about public education is all about. I am inspired to learn more about the various home methods mentioned here
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Leesa
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: RaT]
04/29/05 04:50 PM
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I've thought about homeschooling for awhile. Now that my son is in middle school and has learned stuff from other kids that he should not know, I wish I would of started him off in homeschooling.
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Tevi
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Leesa]
04/30/05 11:48 AM
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I don't think it's to late.My work keeps me at public scholls 90% of the time and it floors me what I see on a regular basis.If it wasn't for traveling so much I would do it.
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fish_wisperer
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: BrianP]
05/04/05 02:26 PM
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i think standing for good things and never being against bad things is exactly the reason why we keep getting beat up by the left. this is a good example of our problem, CJdave was right to speak against a "pro homo" agenda in our schools in a public forum, i say good job cj. i would expect certin groups to have something bad to say about it , but not fellow christians or non christians with good common sence. we can never expect to have prayer back in our schools or the 10 commandments back in the courthouse if even the people on our side jump us just for speaking against bad things.
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SLOBuds
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I am reading these postings and wondering if it is possible to do home schooling without using products that have a religious focus?
Almost all of the posts in this form have some kind of emphasis on religion. Or maybe that is just the way that it sounds to someone who has no experience with this schooling method.
If I wanted to start home schooling WITHOUT a religious emphasis, where would I go?
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Hakim
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: SLOBuds]
05/06/05 05:18 PM
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Hi,
Glad to hear you are considering home schooling. The stats are that about 50% of home schoolers are "faith-based" in curriculum, and the other 50% are non-Christian, or more or less secular.
We enrolled our children in Oak Meadow School Oak Meadow Web Site, where they attended for most of grade school, and graduated from high school there. Your child(ren) will receive an actual state high school diploma from Oak Meadow. Not all home school s can do so. Oak Meadow accepts students of all faiths, nationalites and backgrounds.
Our sons own and operate this CountryByNet.com forum, and also www.tractorbynet.com and several other major sites.
They both attended college at SUNY Binghamton in New York right after graduating form Oak Meadow.
I could not praise our experience with them more highly.
You will love it. More importanty, your kids will be very happy.
Hakim Chishti
Staff/Moderator
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SLOBuds
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Hakim]
05/06/05 09:03 PM
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Thank you Hakim.
All of my children are adults. I am not considring home schooling for my children. I am just trying to educate myself a little bit about how the process works. And probably I could actually research this on the net, but this group seems to be fairly active and also seems happy to answer questions.
Almost everyone I know who does home schooling seems to have a faith-based reason. And usually it is a Christian faith. I never recall knowing someone who is Jewish or Muslim or athesist who does home schooling. This is probably because I just haven't met those people.
The parents of those children always appear to be of high moral standards. And the children seem to be happy, well-adjusted, and smart. The fear that non-home-schoolers show towards home schoolers is mystifying to me.
Thank you for the information Hakim. I will look at that web site.
Martin
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Hakim
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: SLOBuds]
05/06/05 10:54 PM
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Hi Martin,
The number of families home schooling has increased dramatically over the past 10 to 15 years.
You can find a lot of information here American Home schooling Assn. .
We happen to be a Muslim family, and interacted with all kinds of other home schoolers, including various Christian religious groups.
I think for many people who desire to make a life of sincere religious behaviors the bias of their life, home schooling is about the only viable alternative to public schooling.
Catholics, of course, have had their own school system for more than 100 years. Jews have their own schools as well, including special school after regular public school for those who do not attend the Jewish school full time.
Many more "secular" people are joining home schooling, simply because of the deterioration of academic standards, violence, moral issues, etc. that plague public schools.
I never was interested to "debate" those who oppose home schooling. It was fantastic for us.
I am sure there are some parents who are ill-equipped to "teach" their children adequately. But from my experience of home schooling for almost 15 years, I never saw any evidence of children not properly supervised, taught and loved while home schooling. The opposite was true in my experience.
The main "argument" we always heard was that our children woulkdn't be "socilaized" (whatever that is supposed to mean). That is just ludicrous. Anyone who has met home schooled children can easily see their maturity, intellignce, sincerity and well-rounded personalities.
Plus, they outperform the general school populations in terms of academic acheivement, by several gfrades levels, and have for many decades.
Good luck in the information search.
Hakim Chishti
Staff/Moderator
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Tevi
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Hakim]
05/07/05 08:51 AM
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I think it's the fact that most partents want to raise their children in a morally correct enviroment.The problem with public schools is that discipline is based on religious morals and since you have to seperate religion from state then they can't discipline.
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SLOBuds
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Tevi]
05/07/05 09:44 AM
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I haven't looked at actual class content recently, but what are those things that they teach in the 'morals' classes at public schools now? I read all the time in newspapers that public schools are teaching values and morals at school. What kinds of things are they teaching in those classes?
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BlueRidge
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: SLOBuds]
05/07/05 09:44 AM
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Well, you've already gotten some good links for resources for schooling, but let me add a word on the subject of legalities.
Home schooling is clearly legal in some states, and a gray area in others. But even where a state's constitution clearly spells out the right to home school, you may sometimes have problems with the authorities. There are some pretty dangerous ideologues in many public education systems, and they absolutely HATE the idea of any child being out from under their control. They will do all they can to make life miserable for you. Then there are the social workers - for the most part a very liberal group, dedicated to the idea that The State Knows Best. And then there are ignorant people and just plain cantankerous neighbors. One phone call (often anonymous) from one of this last group to someone from either of the first two, and you can be fighting the State just to keep your children in your 'custody'! Even grandparents have been known to do this to their own children because they disagreed with home schooling. Sad but true.
No, this is not an exaggeration. Yes it is the worst case, but it happens too often. And lesser problems happen more frequently.
So what to do about it? I recommend a 'religious' solution. The Home School Legal Defense Association is a Christian organization, but they accept members from all faiths and no faith. A membership will keep you informed of developing trends in your state's home school legal climate, and more importantly, will provide you with legal assistance in the event you run into trouble with the authorities. It's amazing how a phone conversation with a lawyer can calm down a hot-headed social worker on your doorstep!
Take a look at their web site and read up on some of the cases they've handled. You might be amazed at how bad things can get.
I don't say this to discourage you - on the contrary, I'm a big fan of home schooling. All 6 of mine are home schooled and I wouldn't have it any other way.
But the reality is, you are bucking the establishment, and that is always risky. An HSLDA membership is cheap insurance.
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SLOBuds
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It's terrible that you have to fight these things all the time.
As I mentioned above, I do not have children who are school age now. I am just interested in the topic and everyone on this board seem very informed.
As much as I hate to say this, I also have an impression that home schooling families are somewhat discriminated against. Maybe it's not discrimination in the typical way we think of it, but the types of questions they get are very similar to the kinds of negative feedback that are (either innocently or deliberately) dished out to minotiries. I see everything from 'strange looks' at the home schooling families, to consistent (and ignorant) questions about socialization, to disbelief about the practice, etc.
It seems like most homeschool parents are used to these questions. But just like minorities, they must also be always 'on edge' of sorts. Maybe always thinking that strangers have something against you.
Just like minorities who get this stuff all the time, I'm thinking that home schooling families always get this stuff - or THINK they are getting this 'stuff' even whether or not it is actually happens. That's the bad part of the story. The GOOD part of the story is that folks who are subjected to this type of negative feedback can become naturally strong individuals. At one with themselves, as it were. The kids too.
Anyway, it's all very interesting to someone like me who never personally experienced home schooling in my family.
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knucklehead
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: SLOBuds]
05/07/05 03:13 PM
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Very good discussion; honest questions and honest answers. I've been away from this forum for a while, doing other things. I am very happy to return and read the civility with which everyone conducts themselves.
When we first had children, we were against homeschooling because we considered it to be isolationist. "Lamp on a hill and not under a basket", we thought. Then we thought more about it; about our responsibility as parents and the commitment we were making. We thought about the tender and easily impressed minds we were so blessed to be entrusted with, and about our opinions of the importance of early development of children. We wondered what balance there should be and where that balance point lies between nurture and overprotection. We thought about our childhood experience through the 60's and 70's in Maine, and what a childhood would be like in the 80's, 90's, and 00's in Maine.
My wife had already decided (I played devil's advocate but secretly had my fingers crossed) to stay home and become involved in their education; it eventually just naturally seemed easier to assume responsibility for the whole process. We (I should say she) first asked around of other homeschoolers, familiarized herself with some common processes (including the state requirements), then stepped out into the Whirled Wide Web for info. What an overload! The single hardest part about homeschooling is choosing from the vast landscape of educational information and opportunities available.
We understand now that homeshcooling does not necessarily mean teaching your child at home; it means recognizing your responsibility for all of the decisions about their upbringing and education, and acting confidently on that responsibility. If every parent did that, schools would transform overnight. We now explain this to those who say they would like to homeschool but "could not" for a variety of reasons. We encourage them to view themselves as the controlling party and the schools as subcontractors. Perhaps a little intimidating, as some "educators" may sound (and be) condescending initially, but most are thankful for involved parents.
Bad examples abound and are growing as the "anything goes" societal model spreads, but most of us would soon discover that a relatively small effort from parents, the earlier the better, pays off in huge behavioral and educational results well before our kids reach the double digits. Reading to a 1-6 year old and teaching them to recite the alphabet is one of the easiest and most profitable expenditures of time anyone can make. Listening to them read, spell, and perform the four basic math functions from 6-10 or so will cement study habits AND a family relationship that carries them through the rest of their lives. Throw in a few games of checkers, chess, cribbage, etc., and/or playing catch, pass, or kick in the backyard, and drowning several worms (or pieces of hotdog/bologna for the squeemish) per month will make a stellar citizen.
Is there anyone here who does not feel qualified to do any of those things?
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BlueRidge
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: SLOBuds]
05/08/05 10:29 AM
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In reply to:
As much as I hate to say this, I also have an impression that home schooling families are somewhat discriminated against. Maybe it's not discrimination in the typical way we think of it, but the types of questions they get are very similar to the kinds of negative feedback that are (either innocently or deliberately) dished out to minotiries. I see everything from 'strange looks' at the home schooling families, to consistent (and ignorant) questions about socialization, to disbelief about the practice, etc.
Very true. It's expressed in very subtle ways, at times, and very obvious ways at other times. Some of hurdles are from officialdom; there are struggles with things like driver education rules, college admittance, daytime curfew laws, etc.
The socialization one is the most:
a) Uninformed objection
b) Funniest objection
c) Saddest objection
The thing that is called "socialization" in the usual sense is exactly one of the things that most homeschoolers want to AVOID for their children. It's really nothing more than teaching children to follow the crowd. It's teaching them that those who are their same age are their peers instead of those with whom they share core values. It's a problem to be solved, not a goal to be sought!
So, uniformed because it completely misunderstands what is going on in schools and what homeschoolers are trying to do, funny becuase of the vast disconnect from reality coupled with the zealous sincerity of those who raise the objection, and sad because Americans, for the most part, have so completely abandoned their responsbilities as parents that they think only a state run school can properly teach their children what it means to be part of society.
In reply to:
But just like minorities, they must also be always 'on edge' of sorts. Maybe always thinking that strangers have something against you.
Given human nature, that's always a danger, but I've seen very little of it, really. With a few, yes, but very few. Most of us are aware of and prepared for, but not EXPECTING, negative reactions.
In reply to:
THINK they are getting this 'stuff' even whether or not it is actually happens.
Oh, it happens! It happens plenty. Just check the HSLDA website for some horror stories! And the minor stuff happens routinely. But most of us really aren't bothered by it. We are on a mission, and we understand that these things are part of the price we pay for swimming upstream. And, as you say, this makes a stronger person.
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BlueRidge
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Knucklehead, all I can say is AMEN!
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home schooling is a great option today, since there are so many hazards and dangers threatening our children outside of our home. it is a two way process, with the parent guiding their child/children to better and greater individuals. it does not limit the child's capability in social interaction. people should not be so harsh in viewing home schooling.
[a href="link"] www.homeschoolforsuccess.com[a]
[a href="link"] www.commanderandcheese.com [a]
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CJDave
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I work in kind of an: "educational interstitial" so to speak in that I do volunteer teaching in a small Christian school not too far from where we live in SE Iowa. It isn't HOME SCHOOLING, but some of the course materials are the same as what home schoolers would use. Of course small schools are constantly struggling with budgetary issues so when I called and asked if they needed a volunteer to do some of the HEAVY LIFTING like teach advanced Math and Physics and so forth, they could hardly believe their ears. The classes are small, and it is easy for me to teach almost one-on-one. The school is big enough that the kids get "socialization" without the priviledge of being mugged each day for their lunch money, or having their learning constantly interrupted by those who I refer to as: "professional disrupters". I also do substitute teaching in local public schools and each school has a handful of brats whose total focus seems to be: TO KEEP EVERYONE ELSE FROM LEARNING. The admin is powerless against these kids because they won't take unified action; there is always one or two teachers who are willing to put up with these disrupters at the expense of their own lesson plan. It is a joy to teach in an environment where real learning can take place. Because they can zooom across town to take Chemistry or Band at the local high school, the Christain school in which I volunteer is definitely, in many ways, the best of both educational worlds for those kids.
CJDave
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Pat
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: CJDave]
11/30/06 02:09 PM
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Dave, Good on you for volunteering! I thought about doing that too but have too many other distractions AND a good friend of mine (he and his wife are both retired teachers from the JC HS level (and a private academy) mostly advised me against it for some of the reasons you mentioined and more. She is MA in English and he is PhD in Biology.
He asked me why I thought my personal psych profile would empower me to "handle" the BS spewed forth from what passes for learners these days. I reflected on it quite a bit and have pretty much found other things to do but later when (if) I get caught up I might want to help out some. Out here on the fringes of civilization my background in physics, math, computer sci, and software engineering could probably supplement the available instruction nicely.
One of the local consolidated high school teachers brought her class to tour my house and hear about the various engineering concepts employed in the design and construction.
Oh, and Dave... did they ask if you were bilingual?
Pat
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
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CJDave
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: Pat]
11/30/06 06:56 PM
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: If they did ask, I would have answered in Spanish.  I don't know much Spanish, but I know enough to SOUND like I know how to speak Spanish. I can ask if the brakes work; which is MORE than 90% of the kids in a H.S. fourth year Spanish class knew. The teacher that I took the class for had them making posters that depicted different SA countries......sixth grade level crap....and here they couldn't even ask someone if their car was an automatic....er I mean ...grancha automatico. Pat, what you need to do is teach a UNIT of a certain subject. In the first place, you'd have more specific knowledge of that particular unit than the instructor who was teaching the whole course, and in the second place, the students would remember it better if it came from you, an outsider. I did a unit on parasitology....totally without the text book.... for two sections of Science at a local Jr High skool about a year ago, and some of those kids STILL come up to me in the store or in the barber shop and comment on it. They had no problem remembering the life cycle of a tapeworm. YUK! those cestodes are really gross! You should visit with some of the local Profs Pat and see about that; I'm sure it would be right up your alley. The other thing you would like is teaching in one of the gifted programs; those kids are SMART, and they would figure out right quick that YOU were smart and you'd have their respect. Gifted kids respect brains, so they would instantly connect with you and it would be a great opportunity for learning to take place.
CJDave
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Pat
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Re: Home Schooling
[re: CJDave]
12/01/06 08:17 AM
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Dave, I guess if I have fooled you I could fool them.
Pat
"I'm not from your planet, monkey boy!"
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i'm researching homeschooling as well, and have come to many sites discussing these topic. there seems to be a lot of people considering this. people have different views on how education ought to be, and we have freedom to choose what we believe is right to us.. good luck with your choice... my link supports homeschooling, so if you want more information, you can just visit it..
[a href="link"] www.homeschoolforsuccess.com[a]
[a href="link"] www.commanderandcheese.com [a]
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