Some thoughts and some resources on homeschooling come to mind. 1) I enjoyed the homeschooling that I did. I was able to do much more in a smaller amount of time than at school. Then I had lots of free-time for practicing my violin, writing, swimming, whatever. I never missed my friends because there are TONS of ways to make friends outside of school. 2) It is not as if a child cannot or will not develop or keep friendships if they don't spend 8 hours a day together. 3) Most cities now have homeschool co-ops. This is nice because you can opt for your child to take one or two classes that you don't feel confident to teach and they get to be in a classroom setting for it. 4) Most Community Colleges will allow high school level students to take "dual-credit" classes. This means that if you want your daughter to have Spanish taught by someone who really gets it, she can take it through the college and not only get high school level credit for it, but college credit as well. 5) Many universities (including Ivy Leagues) are actively recruiting homeschoolers because on average they are more self-motivated and have better study habits and more consistent levels of performance than students coming out of regular school. 6) There are many ways to evaluate your homeschooler and to compile a resume and academic portfolio. 7) You can opt for your homeschooler to take standardized tests at regular intervals to track their progress and to help leave a paper-trail for college application. It is not necessary, but you may find it helpful.8) Homeschooling does not necessarily limit you or your student in any way. If you open your mind and get creative, you have lots of opportunities that kids bound to a classroom for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, 9 months of the year don't. 9) Just because you set a particular schedule for them now doesn't mean they'll be stuck in it for the rest of life. You may have one child who likes to sleep late and another who rises early. With home educating you can meet them both at their best most alert hours. More and more jobs are becoming flexible with their hours because of 24-hour service, commutes and computers. It is highly unlikely that in 10 and 12 years flexible scheduling will be less available. So, even if your daughters decided that they'd never gotten up early and can't start, there will be myriad positions available in a multitude of professions that they can choose to suite their schedule.10) As far as germs, you will encounter the germs of the masses if you go out of your house to any public place. This will expose their immune systems. There is no reason to spend 40 hours a week in an environment just for exposure. It isn't just over-exposure to germs that lurks in a public environment, it is recirculated air, flourescent lighting, sitting for obscene lengths of time which all together serve to cause malady in the body. And public school isn't the only place this happens. The longer your kids stay healthy, the healthier they will ultimately be. Remember that a child's immune system is not even fully developed until 7-8 years of age. Resources: <U>Homeschooling for Excellence</U> by Colfax (written by a couple whose homeschooled sons graduated from Harvard)<U>Christian Unschooling</U> by Brown and Wahl (you don't have to be a Christian to get some great ideas from this book. It also talks about how to create a portfolio for students schooled untraditionally)<U>The Well-Trained Mind</U> by Wise and Bauer (a big book, but it gives guidance to classical-style homeschooling and provides blue-print academic plans for each grade-level)If you combine the three books you get the picture of a VERY workable, flexible style of home education. Feel free to email me at <A href="mailto:jaloughlin3@sbcglobal.net">jaloughlin3@sbcglobal.net</A> for more resources or information.Do what you feel is right for YOUR kids.
