A new reason to homeschool my kids

[TexasT]

I didn't really think of that, btw I don't have kids yet, not planning to any time soon either.

I'm a teacher and the connection between education and smarts is less than most people think. She could've received the best education from the most prestigious school in the country, but if she chose not to listen, that's her.

[Flying Grype]

I was unschooled! And where I lived there was no mandatory testing -- the laws were loopholey on it so nobody did it. As a teenager I did some testing for my own interest and scored post-secondary on everything but math.

Materials, what? We bought a few books but mostly used library resources. If we wanted to do math we'd get a book that we didn't have to write in, and write in a notebook. With the internet it must be even easier to find free materials.

[Teefies2]

In the future, a PM to the member would be preferred. But since you didn't offer the company's name or a link, we're fine with it.

Just an FYI to everyone: Even non-profit adverstising is usually prohibited. When in doubt, send a PM to Raps or a mod and ask permission.

My apologies

[fireheart]

I'm a teacher and the connection between education and smarts is less than most people think. She could've received the best education from the most prestigious school in the country, but if she chose not to listen, that's her.

Fully agreed.

From a local point of view, there seems to be a general attitude that if a parent chooses to send their child to a local public school, said child will graduate to becoming a drug dealer, prostitute or criminal. And yet there are quite a number of examples where that's not the case, yours truly being one of them.

Funnily enough, one of the column writers in the local paper today said that she took her nine-year-old son from a prestigious all-boys private school to a local public school. Best decision she made.

[Exaspera]

You could always get homeschooled by someone like the Sail Salmon woman!

[Chromatix]

I'd say the difference between normal schooling and home-schooling is all about the quality of the teacher involved - and with home-schooling, that teacher will probably be yourself. So if you truly think you can do a better job than a trained professional, go ahead. Mind you, you do have an advantage through only having to deal with your own kids, and not 20+ of other peoples'.

In my case, I was taken out of the normal school system after they began to utterly fail to keep up with my abilities, which resulted in my being bored out of my skull. They thought I was just being "difficult", so they started giving me detentions, during which they gave me more of the same mind-numbing work to do. There's only so may pages of *extremely* simple arithmetic problems one can do before it gets old, fast. This was also around the time I discovered I could read considerably faster - while still understanding it, mind - if I ignored the instructions to read it out loud.

The home-schooling materials began with a series of tests to find out what I already knew or could cope with. They then sent new material which was interesting simply because it was new and challenging. Within a few months, I had actually exhausted everything they had on maths at primary level.

For various reasons, I was sent to a private school for secondary level, and there I took my Maths and Science exams well ahead of schedule. Having a good Maths teacher there - who knew how to keep pace with my aptitude - certainly helped.

[Whiskey]

True. I was homeschooled growing up (and got a MUCH better education than would have been possible in my town otherwise), and we didn't have to take any state exams,

My two cents.

I was homeschooled and got a worse education (thats more parents than material) and had to take state exams.

[Gidgetdigit]

I'd say the difference between normal schooling and home-schooling is all about the quality of the teacher involved - and with home-schooling, that teacher will probably be yourself. So if you truly think you can do a better job than a trained professional, go ahead. Mind you, you do have an advantage through only having to deal with your own kids, and not 20+ of other peoples'.

I have two masters degrees, as well as a degree in optometry. and I must say that while I would do an excellent job at homeschooling two of my three children, I would be an absolute disaster with the third. I have spent a lot of time serving on the PTA as well as on school boards and curriculum committees, and I bow down to teachers in our school system. They do an amazing job with the different learning styles they encounter each year. That said, they are not burdened with the emotional baggage that a homeschooling parent deals with. When you are related by blood, and you have seen this child since his or her day of birth, if affects the way you deal with that child profoundly. Sometimes, it doesn't matter and you will do a fine job with homeschoolong or unschooling; other times, it is a poor choice.

[Zellie Crescent]

I know it's kinda really late for me to be saying this but the whole homeschooling thing was intended as a joke about an idiot, I never thought that it would turn into this huge thing about education.

[RetailWorkhorse]

This is one from yesterday night. A woman comes up to me and wants to know where the "sale salmon" is even though she was looking at it. She asks me where it's from and I tell her it's wild caught from Alaska, then she asks where that is. Really, where's Alaska? I tell her Alaska is part of America. She orders a pound and a half, I cut it and give it to her. I went home and thought about how much homeschooling would cost.

RW: *Chirps* It's right over THERE! *Points south-east* Just keep going, at some point you'll run headlong into it!

Don't pet the Bars. I mean Bears. Or the meeses and gooses.

[DemoDiva]

She asks me where it's from and I tell her it's wild caught from Alaska, then she asks where that is. Really, where's Alaska?

You should have said something like, "Just outside of Denver," or "It's the state next to Ohio," or "It's a small country in Europe."

I can just see her googling it later...

"Wait a second...That damn clerk TOTALLY lied to me about where Alaska is!"