2 million children are being homeschooled according to HSLDA http://www.hslda.org/docs/media/2011/201101140.asp
Wow. That’s amazing. Yet still I’m afraid to homeschool my own. My eldest has a learning disability. I’m terrified of messing up and making him fall even further behind his peers. I fantasize about homeschooling a lot. It would be relief to have him home. He has been going to both school and summer school since Pre-K. It has left very little time for me to work with him myself. It’s reassuring to know that if I get fed up enough to take the plunge, I will be in good homeschooling company.
I have two with learning disabilities and amazingly enough when I did homeschool they did well and I was able to do more with them then their current school does with them now.
I was able to work at their pace and not push them to hard but just enough to challenge them in their own way.
I had no need for an IEP or 504 or any of those stupid plans that schools hardly ever follow. I was able to love and apprieciate their differences.
Fastforward and my girls wanted to give school a try this year. I’ve been very actively involved since they’ve been there this fall and let me tell you the wasted time is just unreal… and they go to a REALLY good school too.
Teachers teach in a box and if your child even has a slight difference they just can’t handle it. Its sad. They don’t know how to adapt. But when you homeschool , as a parent , you just learn to adapt and its great to see them enjoy the subjects they are learning.
This year my 11 yr old for the first time proclaimed that she HATES math. She’s always struggled with it here at home but she never ever out right told me that she’s hated math until now. I was always able to sit with her, help her when she needed and adapted to get the point across to her when I needed too.
Even with my girls attending a good private school, .let me tell you, as a parent you can do so much more for your child then your giving yourself credit for. Also remember you have to WANT to homeschool. So by creating a fear that is unfounded really means you don’t want to right now.
As for messing up? Thats’ a fear all homeschoolers have regardless of how long you’ve done it. I homeschooled for 8yrs previously and I had those fears off and on. Sending my girls to school though has eliminated those fears altogether.
No, my two older girls are not geniuses, if it were not for the school’s math program , they would be on honor roll. My 7yr old has had honor roll since the beginning of the year, and my 4yr old. Well, she’s ‘advanced’ period with a teacher that doesn’t appreciate that in the least. But my two older children are advanced in socializing skills, gets the best accolades of being the best well behaved kids in the class. I’ve seen their homeschool creativity in their work ( so all that stuff we did at home didn’t go to waste).
I’m homeschooling my 5(almost 6 year old) he has mild autism and is doing exceptionally well at home. I know with my son I don’t trust that the school will be able to do all that they can do for my son. He is very intelligent, but if he is not constantly challenged tends to get into trouble.
I homeschool my four children and love it! Is it hard at times YESSSS. My oldest daughter was recently dx with dysgraphia and my youngest had down syndrome and I believe that for us home is the best. My girls get soo much more one on one time at home and they are contantly stimulated with new information. My youngest daughter is almost two and is starting to read she shocks everyone around.
Sandy
Believe it or not we help around 15 children now with learning challenges and disabilities homeschooling them. I like to find the right nik for each individual child to learn on their own pace at their own level instead of trying to match the so called criteria that the public schools recommend. Education is about teaching the child at his/her own level not just about core content. Learning the find the nik for your LO’s is the key. I created a years worth of curricula with a dog theme, a car theme, and so on. I have created power point software for children who were parapalegic and so on. Getting to the root of your child’s abilities and or disabilities is the kaey. Do not take anyone’s words for it, no matter what your child is faced with they can learn one way or another. I have seen children who were as a vegetable learn and respond in their own ways. If there is a will there is a way to nurish the challenges and or diabillities.