[addictedtocloth!]

I would like to homeschool my daughter. I dont have a highschool diploma, but I consider myself to be very smart and capable of teaching her. She is eight years old and being terribly bullied at school. She is overweight and is told everyday at school how fat she is by other kids. I have talked and talked and TALKED some more to every official in the school. Their stupid thinking is that if they didn't hear the other kid say it to my dd then its only hearsay.

All of this is tearing my dd down, she HATES school, she is depressed after every school day since Kindergarden. Thank gosh summer is here.

My dh has a Masters degree so he would be of great help to us to homeschool her for a long time.

I have been told that if I homeschool social services will have to be notified of this and keep tabs. Is this true? (i was told this by the principal at dds school)

Should I just forget it?

 

[phathui5]

Quote:

I have been told that if I homeschool social services will have to be notified of this and keep tabs. Is this true?

That is what we call a lie. Here, each county board of education has a homeschool liason that conducts portfolio reviews of homeschoolers' work. The law is different in each state, but there's nowhere that it's overseen by social services.

Quote:

All of this is tearing my dd down, she HATES school, she is depressed after every school day since Kindergarden.

It sounds like she could really benefit from you homeschooling her. With it being summer, you have time to research and figure out the laws in your state and what homeschooling methods you want to try. It's not like you're required to be doing anything now, so you could officially start in the fall.

 

[midstreammama]

Just wanted to chime in and say...you don't have to have a HS diploma to homeschool your dc.

 

[rsps]

Yes -- you can homeschool!! First step is to find out the laws for your state

http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/...Legalities.htm
or
http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp

to get a summary of the laws for your state.
then find state or local homeschool organization where you can talk to people in your state to find out how it really works (summaries of the law are sometimes not an accurate picture of how it works in practice.)

Once you have this information you can make your next move.

good luck

 

[2 in August]

You can def homeschool!! I agree to check out the laws in your state. It sounds like you could have a much better environment for your dd to learn in. She can't learn when she's being harrassed. You may have to turn in a letter to the school to say you are taking her out, but the state law will tell you if that's neccesary or not. There are 101+ ways to homeschool so there will def be a method that suits you, dd and complies with your laws.

 

[elizawill]

i think in most states you don't even need a HS diploma...but you do need at least a GED (at least in SC that is the minimum requirement). there are SOOOO many options for you! you can absolutely do it and give your daughter a great education!! you have the advantage of being one-on-one with her and following her interest and spending ample time as needed on each subject or topic. homeschooling is so different than public school, as you have one student and not 20 or 25. there are many curriculums to choose from, but i love to pick and choose to create my own. i love unit studies best, but you will find what works best in your family. you can check out www.homeschoolreviews.com to read about all of the curriculums you will run across. also, if you buy anything, i really recommend purchasing used items. my favorite website is www.homeschoolclassifieds.com and http://www.vegsource.com/homeschool/

there is so much info here, so don't worry....you'll find the answers and reassurance you need.

best of luck!!

 

[arlecchina]

You dont even need a GED. (most states IIRC) but look at the hslda site, and they have other valuable info as well. there are lots of resources in this forum as well, you're more than capable of teaching.

 

[momto l&a]

The beauty of hsing is you don't teach, you provide.

You provide the tools they need, places to get info, encouragement ect

 

[MistiMama]

I just wanted to add something since my state WA does have requirements in regards to the parents' education. Here, you either have to have at lest one year of college or take a class that sort of "certifies" you to homeschool. The class is only, like, 6 hours or something (I'm not exactly sure) but it's super easy and offered lots of places and it's basically info. for you on different types of homeschooling methods, where to find resources, the state laws, etc. There's no testing for the parent or anything like that. However, since your husband has his master's you wouldn't need to attend a class here anyway. Just as long as one parent (doesn't have to be the teaching parent) has some college education then you're fine.

I know you may not even live in WA, but just wanted to add what it's like here. Definitely check into your state's laws. The schools never like it when you tell them you're going to homeschool. (They lose money when a kid leaves to be homeschooled, by the way.) Some districts are nice about it, but some can be a nightmare. Don't let them scare you.

I agree with other posters, definitely take this summer to do your research. You can DEFINITELY homeschool and it sounds like your daughter would really benefit from it.

GOOD LUCK TO YOU!!!

 

[Wilhemina]

Quote:

Originally Posted by addictedtocloth! I have been told that if I homeschool social services will have to be notified of this and keep tabs. Is this true? (i was told this by the principal at dds school)

This really makes my blood boil.

:

Good luck with your research/decision making this summer. I'll bet you'll be pleasantly surprised how easy and fun it will be!

 

[homeschoolingmama]

Oh hun..you can homeschool!!
Whenever I tell someone that I homeschool I get comments like..Oh I could never do that! Or I don't think I am knowledgeable enough to do that!
You don't have to be very knowledgeable to homeschool! I had doubts in the beginning. I have noticed that by teaching my children I am already learning things. My oldest is only 4 1/2 and I am learning right along with her. Many curriculums have it set out for you. They are shown how to teach. Our school teachers growing up didn't have all of the answers either. I am sure they had questions they couldn't answer and had to look it up as well. I am horrible with Math but the Math program we chose helps with that. Plus it helps that my husband is good at it

I think the most important thing is that you love your child and want the best for her! It sounds like she would really benefit with homeschooling. Poor thing..children can be so cruel! I know it seems scary in the beginning but you will gain more confidence as you research and start teaching.
Good luck!!
Neely