? about standards in differnt states and "compareing"

[Momma Aimee]

 Ok I am a order addict (LOL) and a compulsive list maker :).

I have been looking at 'standards" and "criteria" for different subjects at different grade levels, just to get my mind around 'what and when'.

The state w e will be moving to before the boys are officially of an reportable age has very easy laws re: homeschooling, and whil the boys both have IEPs currently and so will have contact with the school that thy might not otherwise I am not worried about legal requirements.

I am interested, for ourselves, in keeping an eye one where w hat w e are doing "compares".  This is for me and DH, not the boys. 

I have searched the Net and you can find a zillion website of standards (math by state, or most states standards are avaiable too, and so on)

My question is this -- there is such a w ide "difference -- just as an example some state counting to 20 for Kindergarten and some state counting to 100 for pre-school ...

so --

1.  w  here do you ffind your guadanc

where do you find your guidance -- do you follow -- your state's?  another state?

2. 

is one state generally considered more "strict" than the rest -- or more lax?

3.

how are you sure -- at the older grades -- that your child is "covering everything" -- granted no one can cover everything -- school building or not -- but there has to be some level of functional ablity, right? 

thoughts?

[AAK]

While "national standards" are voluntary, I would use that as a guide (if I was inclined to use something)

Here is a link:  http://www.educationworld.com/standards/

Amy

eta: if you think your child may actually go to public school in the future, I would also look at the standards for the district you are in

[MommaCrystal]

Never thought about this.  As a former public school teacher I saw "standards" deviate wildly from one town to the next.  For some the state standards were the minimum, for others they were the ultimate goal.  I don't put any stock in them at all.  What brings about your interest so heavily?

[Momma Aimee]

Originally Posted by MommaCrystal 

Never thought about this.  As a former public school teacher I saw "standards" deviate wildly from one town to the next.  For some the state standards were the minimum, for others they were the ultimate goal.  I don't put any stock in them at all.  What brings about your interest so heavily?

not much now , but our "plan" is for the boys to go to school -- ie building outside the home -- by 4th or 5th ... so i, at some point, want to be sure they are on a level w ith their peers on the "hard subjects" math skills, grammer, writting, and so on -- science and history and so are, of coures, a bit more subjective -- differnt districts and even differnt teachers.  but math skills, grammer -- that is more universal.

so for now, it doesn't really matter, just give me some direction -- w hat to introduce, what to expose them to -- since w e are not "at the table" w ith them yet and thus not working though books or anything.  It will matter at some point.  ^shrug^

did i mention i am rather ocd about check lists and so on .... i can't help it ...

 

[kgianforti]

Originally Posted by AAK 

eta: if you think your child may actually go to public school in the future, I would also look at the standards for the district you are in

Our ps has a math curriculum map posted on their website, perhaps your future ps does as well.

[PGTlatte]

I find I am not able to read "standards" written in the format that our state uses, or these national standards - I just get really lost.  They make no sense to me.

What I use is this:  Calvert has a scope for each grade level on their website.  It is very helpful.  At this point I am not using their program but I may consider it (possibly Verticy) for the future - their scopes help me gauge how our son is doing according to grade level standards.

[SundayCrepes]

We are unschoolers, but I bought these guides to get a sense if my kids are following societal standards. http://www.fun-books.com/books/living_is_learning_guides.htm That doesn't mean I'll enforce my kids meeting all these standards, just that I want to know how we compare.

Here's the description from the website:

These guides are put together by Nancy Plent, founder of the Unschoolers Network in New Jersey and a long-time homeschooler. She reviewed the scope and sequence charts and curriculum guides of dozens of schools in various states, then combined the highest standards of elements from each to create these guides. Why purchase these curriculum guides? 1) They may help you to fulfill your state's legal requirement to provide an educational plan 2) They allow you to see some of the highest standards for schools at various grade levels, just in case you are curious about what the schools expect or are anxious about what you are doing 3) They provide record-keeping space that can help organize a portfolio.

Besides providing a checklist under each subject, Nancy offers suggestions on how to translate real-life experience into curricula goals. She also lists resources from a variety of companies. Each guide covers two or more grade levels. The first four are in comb binding, while the high school guide is in a 3-ring binder.

[moominmamma]

If it helps you worry a bit less about the variability in curricular standards, imagine that your boys are going to school in state A, and you expect that in three or four years you might be moving to state B. Would you be trying to pin down state B's curricular standards now, and trying to fill gaps and make sure that what they learn in state A's school aligns as closely as possible with those standards? I doubt it. You'd just let your kids go to school in state A and make sure that they're progressing well, and if/when you move, you'd accept that there might be a few little things that they'll have to adjust and adapt to as a result of discrepancies, but overall a good education is a good education and so they'd fit in okay in the new school. Kids moving from school to school, state to state and country to country have gaps and discrepancies all the time. They're not a big deal.

I see homeschooling-to-schooling as pretty much the same thing. 

Miranda

[Momma Aimee]

thanks everyone.

I just can't help but vonder / vorry about the gaps -- be it from IA to MO in public school or Home to School ... i hate to see the boys "behind" and trying to play catch up at som e point ...

thanks again