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School Funding:
Socialization Skills of Children Taught at Home
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The biggest concern that people have about home schooling is the socialization aspect. Will the children get to interact with other kids? This topic has been blown way out of proportion. The most important issue is the quality of education. The rest will follow.
What is socialization? Kids interacting and learning to work with others on a daily basis is one part. Let’s be honest. In schools, there are bullies, unstable people, teachers with issues of their own, and a lot of other behavior problems. Socialization in the public school can become a nightmare.
We’ve all been there. Some kid who spreads rumors about us is giggling every time we pass by. Someone else may not like the clothes we wear or the sound of our voice. A teacher having a bad day may be less tolerant of student antics. Not knowing exactly what to expect each time you walk through the front doors of the school creates a stressful environment for school children.
Kids are social creatures. Unless we teach them to be otherwise, they will gravitate towards other kids they don’t know simply out of curiosity. School is not the only place to find new friends.
Home schooled children can participate in the same after school and weekend programs as public and private school children. Programs like 4-H, Boy and Girl Scouts, YMCA, and church groups offer chances to interact with other people. There is no shortage of opportunities to see other kids their age.
With a home school curriculum, parents have control over how much or how little to cover in a single day. They also have control over field trip schedules, project deadlines, and homework. A child may not have homework or may participate in a shorter school day when they have other commitments like scouting. Doing so allows the kids to enjoy their other experiences without homework hanging over their heads.
Another avenue for developing socialization skills is partnering with other home schooled children in the area. Parents can get together and plan field trips, meet and greet group activities, and community service projects. As the kids get to know each other, parents get a break as well.
Home schooled children who started out in public school don’t have to leave their friends behind. Having more control over the curriculum means that kids can plan visits to see their friends. If they live in the same neighborhood, getting together will be that much easier.
Home schooled kids don’t spend every day in the house. The world has just become their classroom. Finding friends is not a concern for them, just ask the kids themselves.
Online schools and Curriculum
When parents decide to take a closer look at homeschooling many become concerned that they are not qualified to teach their own children or that they won’t have enough time to do it properly. They may worry that their kids will fall behind their peers or that they aren’t quite sure how to measure academic progress and make sure their kids are keeping up with their studies. This is why structured curriculum is so popular. It provides parents and students with a step by step process and a measuring stick for progress. Structured curriculum is not without its own issues though, such as expense and the very real possibility that your children will become bored and frustrated with it.
More and more homeschooling parents are now looking to online schools and curriculum, particularly the K12 program as a viable alternative. The K12 program was designed to help children who were not having success with traditional education models and to help parents who wanted structure for their homeschooling kids.
K12 is basically an online curriculum or school. The work is done online and with the aid of books and teaching aids. Children have access at any time to certified teachers in their area and they can work at their own pace. Many online public schools have opened in numerous states to offer this curriculum at no extra cost to children who are not thriving in a traditional public school setting. Many homeschooling parents are thrilled that they can now keep their children at home while still using the public education resources that they pay taxes for. Some 26 states and over 1 million children are using the K12 online curriculum at this time and these numbers are sure to grow.
K12 uses and Intranet program that children and parents log into to do their lesson plans, chat with teachers, and take tests. They combine the online work with book work and they provide all the books necessary. Most schools using the k12 curriculum will also provide you with a computer. They usually have meet and greet parties for students, as well as planned fieldtrips to museums and other educational venues, providing opportunities for socialization and fun. Many yahoo groups exist to help online schooling students and parents meet up with each other. Other online schools with their own curriculum will also usually lend a computer and printer to their students. Some schools gift an iPod to their students and they listen to audio lesson plans and instructions.
Benefits of online schooling include allowing your children to be educated at home, flexibility with scheduling and progress, and having numerous resources available to you at no extra cost. Many parents enjoy having that support system. It is also a great program for students who did not flourish in brisk and mortar public schools. Drawbacks would include the mandatory attendance that is common with public schooling and not all online schools are created equal. Parents will need to do their research and see which one would best suit them.
The availability of online schools and curriculum is just one more resource and option for parents who want to educate their kids at home. So did you know that Ohio has 6 online schooling options? They also have a K12 school called Ohio Virtual Academy (OHVA). Good luck!
Organizing a Home Schooling Household
Insanity has been lovingly defined as doing the same thing over and over but expecting a different result. 
Anyone who has had to run a household can attest to this. If all the clothes were washed on Monday, but the following Monday at least half of them would return. Organization can break the cycle of insanity, especially in a home schooling household.
The home has taken on new meaning in the past thirty years. It used to be that people ate and slept in their homes. Now, businesses are conducted from home and so is schooling. When you take that first long relaxing look outdoors, it could be eleven o’clock instead of 6 a.m. Household dynamics have changed, but one thing has not - organization is the key to running a tight ship.
The first thing to tackle is the setup of the school atmosphere. Just as with a home business, the idea is to create a separate room or area where only that particular activity is conducted. Confusing two spaces will confuse the children as well.
Pick an area with a table such as the dining room where all of the main work can be conducted. Use bookshelves, rolling containers, and other storage media to keep supplies organized and in one area. If you are home schooling children in different grade levels, separate their items into different containers so materials are easy to locate when you need them. This area will double as your grading and lesson plan area when class is not in session.
Decide how many hours a day will be devoted to school. This time can begin at eight o’clock or at ten o’clock. The schedule will work around the best time of day for you and the children. Sleepy children do not make good students.
With that issue taken care of, don’t forget chores. Design a master calendar or white board for a chore listing and one for class schedules. Each child will know when the school day begins, when and what chores they need to do each day, along with other activities. This will help your child to establish their own routines as well, by knowing where to start each day.
The house will not be neat as a pin all the time. There will be toys, books, clothes that need washing and the rest. A list of chores enlists the aid of the entire family to keep the house organized in light of the home school atmosphere. When you don’t have to tackle everything by yourself, the stress level goes down for you and the rest of the family.
Qualifications Needed to Home School
The choice to teach a child at home away from the public school life is a major undertaking. If the child 
ever attended public school the transition may be jarring. Parents used to be in charge of their children’s education, but have long ago put that responsibility in the hands of others. To take charge again, what are the qualifications needed to home school a child?
Home schooling doesn’t require an advanced degree or that you write a dissertation. What it does require is a love of your child and a love of learning. Because a parent understands their child and their quirks, creating a curriculum to fit their unique needs is a bit easier than a cookie cutter program created to fit everyone.
As a part of the research into home schooling, check with the state to find out what specific qualifications are needed to pursue the title of home school teacher. States may require that a parent be observed by a licensed teacher for a school year to evaluate technique and the thoroughness of the program. Along this same line, the state can require that the schooling consist of the same amount of instructional days as public school.
There are no qualifications such as a teaching certificate or a bachelor’s degree. Parents who are not familiar or strong in a subject can hire a tutor to aid in teaching the subject matter. Any state testing can be administered by a licensed teacher if it is mandated by the state.
All of these legal and state educational requirements can be found online. Begin far in advance preparing the paperwork that has to be filed and letters of intent to home school your children. The state probably wants to see that a curriculum is in place already before they allow a child to participate in alternative education, especially if a child is removed in the middle of the school year.
One bonus to purchasing established curriculum packages is that they already comply with the state requirements for home schooling. Part of the package includes grading services, administrative needs pertaining to recordkeeping, report cards, and other services. A parent can speak to customer service personnel for support, information, and help with any additional paperwork.
Persistent parents who care for their children are not daunted by rules and regulations. The education and safety of their children far exceeds any frustration they may encounter. In the long run, no one is better qualified to teach our children than the parents who have their best interests at heart.
More on Homeschooling
When it comes to having children, one very important issue will be the decision on how your child will be educated. You will have many options to consider such as public funded schools, private schools, charter schools, and home school. Many parents don’t give homeschooling any thought, but there are many benefits to homeschooling that you should consider.
When your child goes to school it is normally 20 or more students to one teacher, at least in public schools. In some areas it can be up to 30 students for each teacher. This means that children get very little of the teacher’s undivided attention. Homeschooled children typically get one-on-one time and this helps them to learn for efficiently and retain what they learn.
Learning at the pace the child is ready to learn at is important. When it is just you and a couple of children you are able to take the time to let them learn things according to their own schedule and skills. Children all have different strengths and learning styles and don’t understand the same things at the same time. In public school there isn’t time to let the kids learn at their own pace, that’s why they get so much homework. Homeschooled children need not made to meet these unrealistic expectations.
Each child learns things a different way. Many teachers only teach one way. Some children are visual learners, some learn by listening, and some learn by doing. Some teachers only teach one way though, which leaves the rest of the kids out. One of these kids might be yours…
Homeschooling also allows for more life skills training. This is one of the best parts of homeschooling in fact. You see 18 year olds coming out of high school that have no practical life skills that will help them get a job. They usually feel they need to jump right into secondary education instead. Can they budget money for their new apartment, balance a checkbook, or fix things that break around the house? Many times the answer is no. For the last 16 years they have been too busy learning how to do algebra, trigonometry, and learning definitions of huge words they will never use. Homeschooling can allow you to teach your child more practical things they can actually utilize later in life. You can teach them about saving, investing and paying bills. You can teach them about how fix things around their home, like the car, the toilet and electronics or computers. Homeschooling can give them the advantage they need.
The absolute best thing about homeschooling though is the fact you get to spend so much time with your children. No teacher will enjoy your child as much as you, nor will they enjoy watching your child learn as much as you.
No parent ever says “I wish I hadn’t home schooled and spent that much time with my kids” Think about it, in the end what are going to say? Consider homeschooling, you won’t regret it.
The Benefits of Homeschooling
When many parents consider homeschooling their children they often think the longest about all of the challenges that would face them as homeschooling parents. Often times the hardships, perceived and real, dwarf the benefits. Parents wonder how they will find the time to homeschool. They may doubt their ability to be a good teacher or instructor. Lack of socialization and structure may also be a concern.
What about the benefits though? Are they receiving the same consideration or do they get trumped by all of the potential hardships and problems? What are some of the benefits? Here are few things to consider:
Homeschoolers Can Work at Their Own Pace
The public schooling system is often times criticized for its failure to consider the individual needs and learning styles of each child. In classes with 20 or more students it is impossible for children to get the one on one attention they may need and it is easy for a child to be labeled as “slow” or learning disabled because they appear to be behind their peers academically. The problem with this thinking this that it does not consider the very real possibility that they are simply learning and working at their own normal pace and development. When one standard of excellence is forced upon all children then inevitably some children will fall behind and be made to feel inadequate. Homeschooling can be incredibly liberating for you and for your child when they are allowed to grow and learn on their own terms and at their own unique pace. The one on one time you spend with your child may be just what he or she needs more than anything else.
Homeschooling Is Not Constrictive
Parents of publicly schooled children are all too familiar with pressure. Their lives are dictated by alarm clocks, bus schedules, lunch money, school activities, teacher’s conferences, homework, and bedtimes just to name a few. It may seem that public school is the easiest option for a busy parent but when all of the demands placed upon parents by the public schooling schedule are considered it starts to look more like a burden than a benefit. Homeschooling can be done on any schedule that works for your family.
Homeschooling Allows Parents to Teach Family Values
Parents of publicly schooled children will often be the first to tell you about how the issues that face young children in schools today are of great concern. Children are exposed to foul language, drugs, smoking, illegal activities, and sex just to name a few. Most parents would probably consider this peer top peer education to be inappropriate and lacking. Parents that homeschool are in the unique positioned to be the able to teach their children about these issues on their own terms and at the appropriate time without too much outside influence counteracting their instruction.
Homeschooling Can Increase Socialization for the Whole Family
The availability of homeschooling playgroups and support groups and other homeschooling activities such as travels to museums and historical areas of interest provide opportunities for socialization for everyone. More and more homeschooling parents are realizing that they don’t need to stay home and assist their child with workbook drills. They can take their children out of the home and benefit from real life experiences, meeting to new people, and seeing new things and places. The whole family benefits when learning is expanded in this way.
When considering homeschooling for your child it is easy to dwell on the hardships that may be presented by this choice but don’t forget that there are a lot of benefits too.
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