[jazzharmony]

cross posted in the learning at school forum.

If a small progressive elementary school were willing to allow your child to attend half time (k-8th)would you consider that? If so, how would you envision that working?
I am mulling this over in my mind and would love any and all input from those who have been in a similar situation or who would consider such an option.

 

[moominmamma]

My dd is doing this. I'm fine with it. It's working well for her.

However, she's 15 and mostly in upper-class high school courses, hanging out with teens who are older than her and pretty mature and secure in themselves. That prevents a lot of the social stuff from affecting her. And she's in a very self-directed program, self-paced independent study, which gives her the ability to set her own hours and come and go as she pleases. For instance she took all of January and February and the last week of March off (for travel / touring), takes off every Tuesday afternoon (for piano & choir) and half a week off once a month (for violin) plus any morning or afternoon when she's tired or just doesn't feel like going. She's got an awful lot going on outside of school and this part-time schooling only works because she's the one who is in charge. She's still able to take time away from school on her schedule to follow her passions and to participate in family experiences.

If she had to be there on a specific schedule set by the school that would be much less suitable to our family lifestyle and her needs.

Miranda

 

[birdie22]

I just found out about a "homeschool enrichment program" offered by a local church. They offer weekly classes, 3 hours each, specifically for homeschooled children, K-8. So for K, he would go one morning per week, and the class explores a semester theme such as nature, travel, food, etc. It's not a school per se, but it's very schooly.

In fact, for the older children it starts to look more like a college structure, where they can pick and choose the classes they want, without having to compromise on homeschooling.

My ds is not old enough to go yet, but I am intrigued. I'm keeping it in my back pocket in case ds is intent on going to "school" like his friends. And it would be convenient to be able to say "he goes to XYZ learning center," knowing that most people would assume it traditional kindergarten.

For me (keep in mind ds will be 5), I would be looking for a program with a flexible attendance policy, no grades or state testing, and homework optional.

 

[homeschoolingmama]

I wouldn't. We want to surround our children with family and have that be their core. I would be afraid that by sending them they would lose some of that. I wouldn't want them picking up a new vocabulary and lose themselves in the shuffle. My children are still pretty young and very impressionable. Plus, I would miss them terribly. I am not saying this happens with all children but I would have that fear with my own. Homeschooling full time is working wonderfully for us so I wouldn't change it.

 

[mom2ponygirl]

We are considering a similar situation. My dd would be attending a small charter school part-time. It is grade 8-12, but she will just be turning 11 in the fall. She is very advanced academically so it is a good fit for her. We're considering it for a few reasons. I need more time for my part-time job. She craves some more intellectual interaction. I can't quite balance my mental requirements to keep on top of job and home and finding her resources for learning and discussing things to the level she would like.
We'll see how it all works out....

 

[LovemyBoo]

I would consider it for high school, not for k-8. Not unless our circumstances changed and full-time hsing were no longer a possibility.

 

[Jennifer3141]

It would depend upon each child for me. If it seems like a good fit and you want it too, you can always try it.

There are lots of things I thought would work for my kids that didn't. Gymnastics for one. My kids HATED it. And then there are other things like swimming that I thought weren't working that suddenly just became passions.

Part time school would probably work great for DD but not at all for DS. What do you think you DC wants?

 

[mamanOiseau]

I would consider it, because it would make things easier for me, and I think that *me* being more rested would benefit the whole family.

 

[lorrielink]

I think you should do it if you and your kids love it. No one can tell you what the right or wrong way to homeschool your family is.

Can you go for some 'tester' days to get a better feel for the fit it would be? Talk to the other parents and see how it is with them, find out how much is 'required' and how much flexibility you would have. You can always try it for a little while and cancel if it doesnt work out for everybody, you just neve

r know till you try. it could turn out to be a total fail or it could be the best thing that ever happened.

 

[jazzharmony]

I think we have decided to just jump in and try homeschooling with both kids (already hs one child) next year. There isn't a school that we know of with a totally flexible schedule where the child/family could choose when to come and go.

Thank you all for your input

 

[phathui5]

There was a time when I would have considered it. Now we have a "homeschooling lifestyle" and seem to have found our groove where we have things we do from week to week and month to month and I wouldn't want school to interrupt it.

 

[ocelotmom]

Not quite the same situation, but our school district has an independent study school. For elementary grades, they offer three hours of workshops a week, plus each student spends an hour meeting with their teacher individually.

We didn't intend to use them, but my son was in tears over the idea of not "going to school", and it seemed a good compromise. I'm glad we did, as the teacher is an excellent resource, and the meetings and activities end up providing a bit more structure and accountability that would likely have got lost in the shuffle (this year has proved more busy stressful than anticipated for reasons unrelated to homeschooling). I don't know how long we'll stick with it - after elementary school it becomes more focused on self-taught "school at home", and if we're going to be officially enrolled somewhere, some of the virtual charter schools in the area offer much better benefits - but for now it seems a good option for us.

In this case, all the other students are also being homeschooled, and are the same kids he interacts with at other homeschool events, so from a social standpoint, it isn't significantly different than if we were homeschooling on our own.