Not Another Homeschool Blog

Here's a fun video in the them of *stuff* people say to ....  Homeschoolers That's nothing compared to what people say to homeschool parents! FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

 This past weekend we went to the CITA (Christians in the Theater Arts) High School Festival. It is a competition and college fair for Theater minded Christian Students.  My daughter participated in 3 events and while she did not win in any of them, she got great feedback she can use to try again.  A bunch of her friends from her homeschool program did do very well, so we have a great time celebrating their victories. While the kids were there to show their stuff and get feedback on their acting chops, the parents (in our case anyway) are there to hear from colleges interested in recruiting these talented kids. (This is how we found the college my son will be attending in the fall).  It was interesting to talk to these colleges with strong theater departments and hear then complement her performances and talk about what they had to offer.  It was also great to see my husband come around to accept theater as a real college major... though he still wants to s...

How to Choose the Best Tutor to Supplement Your Homeschool Curriculum    By David Greenberg,  Parliament Tutors You're a homeschool mom that's teaching three children. It's Friday afternoon and the weekend seems so close. You have just gone over the same algebra problem six times and you think your daughter finally gets it. You have a smile on your face and then she turns to you and says, "Mom, I just don't understand."   Some students really need that extra attention to grasp a concept.  Sometimes a new and fresh perspective is the best approach.  So... you turn to your favorite search engine, and within seconds you're drowning in listings from tutoring agencies and independent tutors, all vying for your attention.  How do you navigate through the thicket? Any good tutor would tell you that to tackle a big task, break it into smaller steps.  So let's take this task step by step.  First, let's get to know who we're dealing with, ...

I just read an awesome homeschool blog where the mom was celebrating a CLEP pass .  It is very exciting. I touched on CLEP exams some time back as my hope was that my son would put a ton of college credits behind him before graduating.  But Alas, that did not happen.  He did get 6 English credits that the college he is going to will accept, and plans take one more in math before the end of this school year. Maybe he will even attempt one of the two tests he did not pass last time.    But in the end, he is the type that needs to actually sit through the class to pass it, so his CLEP success has been limited. Let's face it CLEP exams are HARD.  It is a college level test, so there is no shame in not passing it when you are only 15 or 16 years old. There may be shame in not trying though. For us, even when he did not pass,  it was a learning experience in figuring out his strengths and learning how to study.  Studying for the tests have also give...

The school-contracted illness in LeRoy NY may be coming to light. Dr. Siegel says it could be a chronic strep infection that causes the illness caused PANDAS, but it is being covered up.  Kids and parents are not being given the information on their illness.  This may actually be a public health risk but no one's talking. There is a serious problem when parents aren't allowed to get information about kids health issues. FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

I have read what the experts have to say , but am having a tough time swallowing it. After baffling doctors there is a diagnosis. A condition called Conversion Disorder. "This is subconscious, they're unaware of what they're doing," explained Dr. McVige Which makes Conversion Disorder very complicated to diagnose and treat. The disorder is caused solely by psychological factors, not a neurological or other medical condition. "What it is...is maybe stressors, things that are uncomfortable events in your life mount up inside and kind of manifest itself in a physical manner," continued McVige. 12 girls at one highschool all get the same illness and they are calling it hysterical?  I am not a medical expert, but it appears to be environmental to me.  Maybe it's even food-bourne? (note: changed video... other video stopped working) Several of them are now being homeschooled. I wonder if this can't be somehow related to a disorder ca...

I just answered a series of emails regarding previous posts I made about Georgia and so I thought I would share my final word on the program. It is not that I want to discourage homeschoolers from using the program, but I do want homeschoolers to be careful about putting too much weight on the program.. Here is my reply to an email requesting Clarification: Here's the deal. To be successful you have to spend two-plus hours per day per class. They even say that in orientation, but my kids and I heard that and said " that's just crazy" and spent the hour a day that they've always spent, per subject.  Eventually, we realized that that was not going to cut the mustard and adjusted. It it was too late.  Top that of with programming glitches (that we were able to prove existed) that deleted completed work and my kids ended up dropping two of thee classes.  I am not saying don't use GAVS.  I am saying tread lightly. Take the one or two classes that you know you ...

When I let my family know were were homeschooling, they weren't exactly all nice about it.  Some of the reactions/ comments: "One day they are going to outlaw that homeschool mess!" "I'm not surprised, I always thought you were crazy" (and that was from the supportive person) Or the relative that came to me at the end of each year and said, "so are you putting the kids back in school next year".  I finally had an emotional outburst and she stopped. And there there are the relatives that just talked about us behind our back....  now they all want education advice.  Interesting. Does this video sound familiar?  Actually, I would prefer my family were this nice. FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

I had to share this homeschool video.  This cool homeschooled kid sums it up pretty well. Oh, and yeah, we wear our pajamas too. I try to buy pajamas that look as much like street clothes as possible in case I want to make a quick run and don't want to bother getting dressed. i.e. yoga pants.... I tried yoga once.   FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

I've always done my best to not even suggest to my kids that they need to homeschool the next generation, but I do know my daughter has no intention of sending her own kids to school.  Will she be at traditional homeschooling mom?  Probably not.  She intends to work in theater and drag her kids along... whatever that means.  I wonder if her future will look anything like Tim Hawkins....  She's definitely a younger, darker, female version of him. I just came across a video by Tim Hawkins, who was homeschooled and is now homeschooling his own.    I really like the fact that homeschooling kids turned adults manage to find their passion in life and are able to chart their own paths.  I feel like he has done that. Tim Hawkins per Wikipedia:  Tim Hawkins is a Christian comedian, songwriter, and singer, best known for parodying popular songs, such as Carrie Underwood's "Jesus Take The Wheel"   and "The Candy Man" stand-up...

Brief synopsis: I just wanted to talk about an item in local/national news. A school near me sent home math worksheets with references to slavery.  For example, If Fred got two beatings a day....  or Each tree had 56 oranges, if 8 slaves picked them equally, how much would each slave pick? Ok this is kinda sickening. I am not saying homeschooling will protect your child from what other people stupidly thinks are good ideas, because you can't escape dumb... but it does illustrate why it is important to be in charge of your child's curriculum.  Hence... homeschooling is a really good idea. FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

YouTube is an excellent source for homeschool lessons. Here is a video series where a teacher talks about a Midsummer Night's Dream. He suggests watching the video.  I recommend reading the book and watching the video, and viewing his series.  (as I write this he has completed two videos and promises to complete the final one... I have every confidence that he will complete the series.) Enjoy Video 1 Video 2 Video 3: coming... FREE HOME EDUCATION WEBSITE MY BUSINESS WEBSITE

Transcript (summarized) I just want to do a quick video about homeschoolers and the GED. I hear a lot of people ask me how I prove that homeschooling is complete, that it is done, that the child has learned enough.  And when I answer that we look at what others are doing and what the colleges have done