Advice needed for anyone who has homeschooled and now have kids in school

[momofthree]

I have been unschooling my almost 7 yo for 2 years. He really wants to go to school in the fall. He has always wanted to go. I am thinking I should let him go. Have anyof you homeschooled your kids and then found great unexpected things at school for your child or yourself? My son is very active and thrives doing activities and playing with friends. I get worn out keeping up with him with having 2 other kids to take care of, a home, errands etc.....Need of support, advice...new here at mothering.com today. Very cool site!!!

mom of 3

[lauren]

Welcome, momofthree! Glad you like Mothering. I have not experienced moving a child from homeschooling to public school, but I can relate to your description of your child! I have a very spirited 8 y.o. boy who is always on the go and hard to occupy for very long. We seriously considered, but ultimately chose not to homeschool partly because of his temperament. He has done really well in public school, though he has some trouble with the "sit down" rules! There are times I think we will homeschool him in the future. I like the idea that I can take it year by year and do what's best for him. You could try public school and then if it's not working out, go back to hs.

[K&JsMaMa]

Momofthree,

We just went through this. In mid-January we put our 8 yr old son into 2nd grade.

First, . For me this was a really difficult decision. I loved hs'g. My son loved it also. I NEEDED to put him in school. I was going to college myself and taking really hard classes. We unschooled last year but this year started following the Classical Method (which requires a lot of work on my part).

My son is also very social. He now loves going to school. He has made tons of friends and is excelling academically.

There are problems though. We are sending him to a private Christian school. This required some conformity on his part. The first three weeks were rough. Then he started to get into the swing of things.

I would just say that sending a child to school is just different. You pick your problems either way. They are just different problems. Homeschooling isn't perfect and neither is sending them to school. They both have their pro's and con's.

My best advise would be: Take is year by year. If it doesn't work out for you, you can always bring him home. And there is no harm in that.

Maybe the school you are looking at would let him go for a half-day or maybe just an hour. Can you pick who his teacher will be? Can you meet with him/her ahead of time to see if they will be a "match"?

Best of luck to you in whatever you decide.

[momofthree]

Thanks lauren and K&J'smama....year to year seems the way to go. Actually we can do things whenever if he goes to school and a month, week, day later he says he doesn't want to go...then we can change and go back homeschooling. I love homeschooling, well unschooling...I love our life because it is our own choosing. School will dictate our life by requiring when we get up, go to school, etc...also the homework and activities will take other demands of our lives, but it all can be good too. Look at the positive and make it work I guess!

momofthree

[hippiemom]

dear mom of 3,
i too am a mom of 3, and i can relate to having the "busy" temperamented child. when it came time to think about school for my 1st daughter, i was very cautious, and horrified at her falling into any of the common pitfalls of public school. we checked out waldorf, montessori, private, charter, and the local public schools, as well as considering homeschool. we moved and bought a house in a town where we thought the public schools were excellent. now my daughter is in 4th grade, public school the whole time, and i can't say enough about it. she has thrived and learned well, made great friends, and had good learning experiences negotiating her way thru difficulties. the school embraces parent involvement on any level, and i have had many opportunities to teach enrichment groups and work side by side with my kids' teachers. it has been a lot of fun and learning for me as well! the moral of this story, is choose your school well, really check it out. our principal met with me very willingly before my daughter even attended school there, and i had a chance to explain my concerns and talk about how they would be addressed. now i have 2 kids int he school and they are both very happy. it is a good gateway to other activities as well. it keeps my high energy daughter very stimulated and satisfied for sure. good luck!

[Greaseball]

I don't have school-age kids, but:

I think kids should receive the kind of education they want, even if it's not what the parents would have thought they would like. Some children do want to go to public school. One reason is athletics - if they are really serious about sports, high school athletics will offer them more options than a community team will.

Another reason is they may wish to learn something that the parents know nothing about. In my case this would be nearly everything above the 3rd grade level!

Just my .03!

[KatherineinCA]

Hi momofthree:

We are going through this scenario right now. Tomorrow my 8 year-old twins (son & daughter) start their third week at their new school. We had homeschooled for the last two years, but after a very rough pregnancy most of last year, then our baby's death in November, and my depression that stemmed from that, I finally had to admit that I could not provide the academic or social environment they need. We applied to a local charter Montessori school and it is perfect for us. I am so grateful we made the switch. It is different to "have" to be up at a certain time, and the afternoons are certainly more high-energy. But it is so nice for Brittany and Spencer to be learning so much, to be around other kids, and to have more structure in their lives. And it is a great chance for my three year-old to have me all to himself, instead of getting lost in the shuffle. I am getting so organized with my errands and appointments. I can't believe how much easier the grocery shopping is with only one!

I was very dedicated to homeschooling, and it was extremely difficult to make the decision. (In fact, it just intensified my sense of "failure" over not having the homebirth I had planned, and not having a baby born alive--now I "couldn't" even homeschool, either! Doing better with that now, though) I really was forced to put them in school because of my circumstances, but now I see how well it's going for them, and what a nice situation it is for all of us. I have to say that for us, it seems to be so much better to have them in school. Although, we're still getting used to this new idea of checking the school calendar before planning a trip. Before, the only consideration was dad's work schedule! And bedtime has become much more important.

Definitely follow your instincts concerning your son. And your choice never has to be final.

Best wishes,
Katherine