Homeschooling with foster kids....

Once upon a time it was very easy to get permission to homeschool foster kids. Not so much anymore. I have homeschooled a few kids in the past, with great success. Somewhere around 2008 Oregon made some pretty intense changes to foster parenting rules. Now it is really hard, nearly impossible even, to get permission to home educate the displaced youth in foster care.
The trouble is, in my humble opinion, the kids in foster care seem to be the ones who would really benefit from homeschooling. Academically as well as socially. Keep in mind that as of yet, the past 8 or 9 years, my family has worked with kids from birth to 10 years old. I have little to no experience with preteen kiddos in foster care. Keeping that in mind, here are some ideas for homeschooling with foster kids.

If the foster child is of a similar age or educational level as one of your own children....Save some of the daily lessons which would benefit both children and have them do the work together either in the evening or perhaps on the weekend. I have found it to be beneficial to my kids to (if younger) receive instruction from a peer who understands a concept, as well as (if older) be the peer to explain a concept. There have been many occasions in which my kids have further cemented a concept in their mind by simply explaining it to another child. Not to mention, the ego boost a child receives when they are able to "teach" a concept. A lot of my foster kids have had really low self esteem and that damaged self image proves detrimental in school and blocks their ability to learn. Sometimes a simple task of helping a younger sibling with their school work, can go a long way towards building up their self worth.
If the foster children are younger or not educationally similar...
Have the older sibling be responsible for a ten to fifteen minute daily assignment together with a younger sibling. It is nice for the little ones to have something fun like a story or drawing or craft time together with another child each day.
As much as possible I try to work with my foster kids on whatever areas of weakness they have. Sometimes that is education based sometimes not. I try to make up for what they miss out on as far as one on one and small group activities. i know public school teachers are tasked with educating a wide range of kids daily, their skills are so vastly different from each other. I have yet to meet a teach, who was unwilling to share what needs a child has that could be improved to help make school more pleasant for both the child and their classmates. Sometimes that is a deficiency in healthy boundaries, sometimes it is learning to be patient, sometimes an educational goal. I highly recommend working with your foster child's teacher and school. More often than not, they will be grateful.


Foster parenting is an important job. Today's youth need loving homes when their homes are no longer safe. I'd like to personally thank those who choose to be the shelter in the storm.

Reminder: Why We Homeschool

I have been reading around the bloggy world quite a bit lately and I keep running into the same theme over and again; Why we homeschool. It is funny to me because most of them hint around as to why their family has chosen to homeschool. Most say God called them or lead them to it. Of course most of the blogs I read have a religious spin to them anyway, so it makes sense to say that God called them to homeschool. I kinda think we are all lead to homeschool by the influence of God, whether we know it (or Him) at the time. That is just my thinking. I tend to believe our actions are guided by either God or some variation of the Adversary. I'll leave that alone for now as not to offend anyone.

Anyway, all of these posts have made me think about why we chose to homeschool. In the beginning, 9 years ago, when our oldest was 4, I couldn't imagine putting him in a classroom with people of the same age for kindergarten. Not because public school is evil, or anything, simply because academically he was way too advanced to be with kids who did not already read, write, and do arithmetic well. When I looked into having him skip kindergarten and begin in first grade, the requirements were what we thought to be ridiculous. He needed to be tested academically, we thought that was understandable. He needed further independent testing by a psychiatrist to determine his mental and social maturity. That included dropping my child off with a stranger for eight hours of rigorous testing, including a psychological evaluation.That seemed to be too much for any child his age. Not to mention the cost would be our families responsibility. It really felt like the school district was less than accepting of the idea to skip kindergarten, which in our state is not even required by law.
After talking it over with my husband, we decided that I had been homeschooling him since birth, and he was doing really well. Why not continue through "kindergarten" and revisit the public school idea when he was old enough for first grade. We figured we could encourage his love of learning and wait until he was older and kids typically get broken down into groups based on ability at some point in or after first grade. Make sense?
We of course prayed about it, talked about it and rediscussed it over the next few years and in fact continue to discuss it. At some point in morphed from " We'll homeschool a year at a time" to "we'll homeschool for as long as we can make it work". I believe God has called us to homeschool. I believe we ran into issues with our original plan as a way to get us here. God is smart. He knows what each of us needs for motivation and encouragement. He rewards us for our efforts.
I think it is hard to homeschool some days. Some days, not so much. :0) I love our life, as different from other people's lives as it is, our life as a homeschooling, foster parenting, work from home, 24/7 together family has blessed us beyond measure. (Even if my dear hubby cringes when the word "blessed" is tossed around:0)) We have grown as a family and it is great.
Do I have days where I question our decision to homeschool? You betcha. Those days are usually more frequent when it is nearing a testing day. We are required to have our kids given standardized tests after 3rd, 5th, 8th, and 10th grades. I have issues with getting nervous toward the spring of those years. Nervous that I haven't taught the boys what will be on the test, not that my kids haven't learned what I've taught. I could change my methods to teach what is on the test, but I don 't actually want the state dictating what I teach. My kids usually do really well on their tests. So I should probably learn to let that fear go, but I probably never will master that one. :0)
So there it is... Why we homeschool. Any questions? Please feel free to ask.

My Newest Idea For Our Homeschool

I am excited to have the boys start using their blogs to keep a log of daily work. Not everything will be blogged but slowly we will begin to "journal" about our day through our individual blogs!

I hope to use this for accountability as well as giving the boys a creative outlet to track their own schooling adventures, who knows, maybe it will inspire them to blog about other things.

I would love to see Brady blog about his passions, currently, Minecraft! (Not to be confused with butt crack, right Brady? Lol, sorry, you had to be there!) or angry birds, or ants, fish, frogs..... The list is endless.

I hope Dakota will post pictures of some of his artwork, either drawings on apps or paper. It would be great to see his awesome stop motion videos forever archived on his blog! What other ideas would be fun to document? I would love some ideas and suggestions....

I am excited. :0)

Back to the ole grind :0)

If we followed our public school model, we would likely be spending a lot of time today and in the weeks to come, discussing how we are safe in our school. In the wake of the Connecticut shooting many children are scared to go to school. Many families are choosing to homeschool instead of public school. I keep reading about children and families who no longer feel safe in their public schools. It is tragic. Not just the horrifying loss of innocent lives, but the waves of innocence damaged by the aftermath. The reality that we are not as safe as we once felt. The reality that no community is immune from the effects of mental illness.

Today I feel lucky. Lucky to have chosen to homeschool and thereby alleviate the fear of a school shooting. Lucky to have my kids and husband nearby on a regular basis. I feel like I have been given a gift of time with my family. I feel a bit less burdened by our family's choice to home educate.

I am excited for this new year. All of the possibilities still laid out in front of us, like a fresh blanket of snow.

I will continue to pray for the families who lost children to this tragedy and the other families affected. I will pray for change in our health care system, that we may be able to help the mentally ill before they snap and commit such horrendous acts of senseless violence.

As for my family, today is a day like most every other. We are cuddled up on the couch reading and writing and talking and laughing. Back to the ole grind :0)

Summer, where have you gone?

Wow, it's hard to believe summer is about half way through. Time to start preparing for the next school year. I am both excited and a little uneasy about this coming school year. My oldest will be in the 7th grade. That my friends, is junior high. It seems the longer I homeschool,the less likely it is that my children will ever be in public or other school. I know that is a good thing. It still gives me reason to pause and ponder. And of course,it gives me a reason to worry. That is my specialty. Ask my mom. I have always been a worrier. It is really quite silly. My kids are taking their end of year testing this week and I am at my peak of worry. And stress. And sweaty palms. Wait. That is not a feeling..... But it is true. As I have said in the past, I am not worried about their performance nearly as much as I am worried that I have not prepared them adequately. I find myself almost wishing. Taught my kids the specific information needed for the testing, but that is one of the reasons I like to homeschool, we like to teach our kids to learn, not to test.... I really loathe the requirement to test our kids. Although, compared to other states, Oregon is pretty lenient with regards to homeschool requirements. It is strict compared to others.... What exactly is this testing supposed to do anyway? Show what each child has retained from rote mastery of skills and information they may or may not know how to apply to real life? Put children from a variety of schools spanig the U.S. from poverty stricken areas to posh, comfortable, wealthy districts? Hardly seems fair. Well, to me, anyway. I really don't care how my kids "stack up" against random kids from accord the nation. So why does it bother me so? It feels like a massive judgement on me. There. I said it. My kids test scores are somehow indicative of the kind of mother, teacher, person, I am... What? Does that sound too egocentric? Well, I think it is true.... Maybe you agree, maybe not? What are you planning for the 2012-2013 school year? I am working on compiling some unit studies as well as an awful lot of math. Oh yeah, my kids and math are only somewhat compatible. It is my fault. I am to math what oil is to water. No joke. I am hoping to fix that with my kids, and myself over the next few years. Any suggestions? What curriculum do you use? One of my kids is a kin esthetic ( hands on) learner and the other is more of a visual learner... I would love to hear suggestions and thoughts on the subject as we have only ever used Abeka math and it is not working very well for us... Maybe if I get my stuff together I will post my plans on here. I have seen others do it and I think it would be great for accountability as well as possible inspiration for other as it has been for me...

We Homeschool Our Way :~D

We homeschool differently than a lot of people. Then again, I think a lot of homeschool families feel that way. I think much of the beauty of home education lies in our ability to accommodate our children and their individual needs. I love being able to see the spark ignite as my child grasps a concept that has been evading him. It's like watching him crawl for the first time. My heart races. It is awesome. Every child learns at a different pace. Every child has his or her own preferred method of receiving instruction. I love being able to "trick" my kids into learning. I love it when they tell people we homeschool. I think my favorite example is when they were talking to a friend, who happens to attend public school, about how they don't really do much "school work" but they play on their IPads, and read books. Then in the next breath my youngest started spouting facts about Ben Franklin, frogs and their life-cycle, and telling him about a book he had just finished reading. :~D

I love it when they learn and are not aware of it.

Why am I telling you all of this?

It's testing time again. This is the time of year I really struggle. Not that my kids are not smart enough, that really isn't my concern. I really worry that I have not given them all of the tools they need to test well. I do not teach my kids to test. I don't even test them myself. I bet I could make their test scores amazing if i did :) I don't really want to though. I don't want to tailor their education to the states approved testing material only. I like our self-directed learning. We could be more structured, it wouldn't hurt. The kids are happy. The hubby is happy. I am happy.

What more can a girl ask for?

Well, there is always that! >giggle< Have a great day. 

Thanks for listening!

Do you homeschool? Leave a comment about your favorite moment, or at least one you love! Have questions about homeschooling? Feel free to ask!

This is So Stinking Awesome!

Info graphic about grammar goofs that make you look silly!
I found this on Pinterest and I had to post it.


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It's almost time for summer vacation!!!!!

Hi friends. <shameful, sheepish, grin>

Its been ages since my last post. 

I could bore you with all the reasons. 

I won't. 

 I will say I am sorry. 

 I hope to catch up on some of the interesting things that have gone on in the past couple of months. Like

•  Chicken pox, aka , polka-dots! Yes, the kids have all been vaccinated....not that the chickenpox care.....
• The arrival of our fourth foster kiddo (currently living with us, not the fourth ever) We call him Pie. He is 4, and cute as a button, and full of mischief, and a bit of a sprinkler..... Don't worry, I will go into more detail soon. 
• Hanging with the biological family. Not mine :0)
• IEP planning. I love, love, love working with public schools! <insert sarcasm>
• The Broken arm, or not....
• Trying not to let tantrums take control of our home.
• Vomit, vomit, vomit......
•  Transitioning home?

We have six kids currently, I am loving it, and sometimes not so much. What? You want honesty right? Most of the time it is great. Sometimes I am tired and cranky and just need two stinking minutes to myself. Mostly it is great :0) The first few weeks with a new kid is always an adjustment. No matter what the child has experienced, we have a lot to learn about each other. There are always boundaries being tested, and for whatever reason, each of the other children in the house has to make sure we still know they are here. I hope to be better about posting in the future. Summertime is probably my favorite time of the year! No school for the kids in public school (we don't have the option to homeschool our foster children) and a lot more relaxed schooling for our boys. I am very excited for all of the wonderful teaching opportunities the summer has in store for us! I love the trips to the library, watching our kids devour book after book. I love nature walks and camp outs (at home, but that is another story). I love the green grass and the warm sun. I love watching the kids in the sprinkler and pool. I love quiet reading time and family chore time. So much to love about summertime. Popsicles and play dates at the park. Cousins sleeping over.Grandpa and Grandma taking the kids for a few camp-outs. Canning with my kids. Canning with my sister. Canning salsa with my cousin. Teaching the kids how to weed the garden. Yummy, fresh from the garden, veggies. Farmers fruit stands opening up everywhere. Trips to the river. Yay for summer. What are your favorite things to do in the summer?

Love the rain clouds. Do you see the          eagle?            =>

Ovarian Guilt....

I know I am NOT alone when I get to thinking that my life is crazy. I can't be. After all, I am NOT the only mom out there. I'm NOT the only homeschooling, foster kid having, stay at home, mom of many (well at least today there are many :0) I am NOT the only parent who has to get kids to therapy weekly, chat with caseworkers, deal with the biological parent visits, doctors, occupational therapy, speech therapy, psychiatric appointments, physical therapy, library, field trip, suspension, CASA worker, public school for some, homeschool for two, and on the list goes.

 I KNOW I am NOT alone. 

I am NOT special.

I am a MOM.

  It sounds like it, but I am also NOT complaining.

 I am making excuses. At the very least I am trying to justify my lack of attention to people outside of my home. I have guilt. I have heard this particular kind of guilt referred to as "ovarian guilt". We women are so good at making ourselves feel bad for, well, doing our job. I feel guilty for not making time for my friends. I feel guilty for not staying in touch with my sister, even though I know her plate is full with seven kids, a husband, a job, church activities, school activities as well as a bunch of the others I listed above... I feel guilty that I am not able to visit with my parents as often as I would like too, or my brother and his family.  I find comfort in knowing that I am giving my best to my family at home. My husband and children get my very best. They get all the time they need from me, and right now, I don't have a lot left over. My kids are benefiting from me being with them and loving on them and putting them ahead of the rest of the world. My husband feels special because I am able to give him some special time every night, either reading, or watching a show, or talking, I am even playing video games with him in the evening. It has been great for us. But the guilt remains....

Anyone have suggestions for alleviating said guilt? How do you balance it all? Leave me a comment with your suggestions or strategies. I'd love to hear from you.

Homeschool dilemma. Warning, serious rambling follows..

Ever wonder what goes on in other people's homeschool? I do. I think it is common for us homeschool momma's to want to know what everyone is up to. We like to compare ourselves and measure ourselves against each other. Oh, that's just me?  I doubt it. :0) I don't think there is anything wrong with being curious, or sharing ideas for that matter. I miss the days when I first started out and my best friend was also a homeschool mom. We shared ideas, projects, worksheets, lesson plans, frustrations, and successes. It was great. Then we moved....
I long for the days of old. I wish I had found some wonderful homeschool family that operated similarly to mine. I have not. I am in a community of many homeschoolers but I often feel like an outsider. Maybe because we also are a foster family. Maybe because we can't or haven't found our place in a church. I feel judged. It kinda sucks.
Maybe I need to let it go and try again? Although my last attempt was quite awful for me, and the others. Let me share my story....When I went to a meeting I discovered that some of the women wanted to exclude other women based on their religion. Honestly, that wasn't a huge issue for me. Co-ops are usually for like minded families to share in teaching and learning opportunities.  At least that is my take on them. My problem was in how it was being handled. It felt very sneaky and hurtful, rather than just honest and open. So I backed out of the co-op, which led to the dissemination of the whole thing. I am left feeling like I let everyone down. Yet, I am proud of myself for standing up for my beliefs. I fear trying to participate in any of the functions within the community. I don't care to be a topic of gossip......I don't like that I let people down.........It's not a great situation....
My kids are not worse off because of it. They are quite happy with our homeschool. I just wish they had more interaction with kids in our homeschool community. Maybe it isn't all that important. Maybe this is one of those moments where I am doubting my ability to adequately teach my kids.... It's funny, even with the doubts, I still know my husband and I have made the right choice for our kids. I thought the doubts would go completely away one day, after 7 years of homeschooling I guess the doubts are just part of my process. I have been and will continue to pray for guidance and strength. He always provides. This time will be no different.
Thanks for letting me ramble and rant. You rock!

Finding time, enjoying the moments, spreading the love :0)

As a stay at home mom, home school mom, foster mom, or whatever other mom hat I am wearing, I am often asked how I do it? How do you find time for yourself?or How do you have a good relationship with your kids, if I was around mine all day I think one of us would be (fill in the blank)... or some other such question about how I manage to have a head full of hair, lacking in bald patches :0) and a close relationship with my husband and ALL of my kids and foster kids.... It's really not all that complicated. Let me explain...

There are a  few very important things to remember... (in no particular order)

The time you once had for yourself is no longer there. You chose to be married and to have kids, they come first, always. That is not a bad thing. It is a true blessing to be a wife and a mom. We just have to find things to do around our homes to have a few moments to renew our patience, and relax a bit. I personally like to hide in my room and fold laundry while watching a t.v. show, or take a bath, or read quietly on my bed. I also like to clean in a room that is not occupied by others. All of those activities gives me a little productivity mixed with some space to think. ( I also like the occasional weekend where the kids stay at grandma and grandpa's house ;0)

It is important remember that our children are not a burden, but a joy.  Sometimes I feel short tempered with my kids. Often when I look at the reason I feel that way, it has to do with some perceived denial of something I feel entitled to at the time. For example, freedom from redonkulous games of 1000 questions, or the ability to use the bathroom, not only alone, but, without someone hollering at me through the wall about someone else infringing on their right to privacy or some other such nonsense. We moms have to remember that our time is no longer our own, and just as our children will likely not go off to college in diapers, we will also not have their continual questions and the ability to be their hero forever. We are lucky to be entrusted with the care and nurturing of tiny people, who will one day be grown up and on their own. We have a limited amount of time to love on them and dote on them and teach them. We teach them to have a servants heart by demonstrating our own ability to lay down our desires to accommodate their needs. I have to remind myself often, I don't think dying to self comes naturally to most of us, but with time and continual practice we can get better at it. My husband has an honest gift in this department. He has the ability to see the kids as entertaining, comical, and a source of joy. He actually comes by it naturally and I find myself envious of that trait, because it doesn't come so naturally to me. :0)

You can have fun while staying home with your kids. I find myself feeling shorter tempered, more easily agitated, and finding less joy in the little things, when I am on the run. I have found it to be better to plan outings in one or two days during the week, if possible. I try not to have to leave the house for appointments as much as possible. Sometimes having foster kids can add to the struggle to stay at home, I have asked therapists and CASA workers, caseworkers, and skills trainers, come to the house, whenever possible. I try to schedule doctor and dental check-ups for more than one kid in the same day. I would like to say I am consistently good at this, but it is not always possible. I also try not to commit to outside activities that are not necessary. When you are trying to train new children on how to behave, it really makes things hard on them (and you) if you are always dragging them around outside of the home. Once the skills are attained at home, then I will make more outings to practice the same skills in a variety of social settings.  I just find that being home is an easy step to having a less chaotic life. Kids like board games, coloring,  play-doh, tag, hide and seek, bike riding, snuggling up on the couch for a good story, or other home based activities; as much as a trip to the park, or other outing.

Your husband deserves your time and attention, even if you are tired. If you have the privileged of being a stay at home mom, you need to show you appreciation to your husband for his hard work, which allows you to do just that. Even if you help with some kind of side job or other means of income, your husband still deserves to feel appreciated.  The number one complaint from husbands seems to be that their wife, who once thought he hung the moon, is now devoting ALL of her time and energy on the children and he feels neglected. This ladies, is a sad state of affairs, one we all have likely participated in. I have found that much like the flowers or compliments we love to receive from our hubby, he appreciates small acts of kindness to him. A nice warm bath, with attention paid to him, or an "at home spa day" complete with foot saok, calf massage, and back/shoulder rub with yummy smelling oils are great too! They really enjoy it when you take the time to show interest in something they are really in to, even if it's football or NASCAR, or fishing (if you are lucky, he will bait your hook and remove slimy fish for you too!) My point is, it doesn't take a lot. My husband is really happy to get special attention, just for him. I feel good too! It is amazing how wonderful it feels to give a gift of time or service to my husband and see his face light up. After nearly 14 years, he still needs to know that he is the hanger of the moon and stars....

Children want to feel special too. All of them..... It doesn't matter if you have 2 children or 15 or somewhere in between, they ALL desire some one on one attention with Mom (and Dad). If you homeschool, a lot of time is given in the day to their education and interests. They will enjoy time with you, especially if you make sure they know you are enjoying time with them. Each of my kids has a special talent around the house, and I make sure they know that I see their talent and appreciate it. One of my kids likes to cook, and is quite good at it. One of my kids is fantastic at reading to little ones and keeping their interest. One of my kids is really happy to do housework along side of me. One is really great at helping remind the 2 year old to use the potty. One is great at stacking random things and knocking them over! Woot ! Woot!
(Well, he is only 2 :0) All of those talents lighten my load in one way or another. I try to make sure the kids know  I notice, and that I am truly grateful.


See, not so hard, right? We will all inevitably mess up on one or more of these skills. That is OK. We just have to try again, practice again, sacrifice our natural comforts and tendencies, in order to create a loving and nurturing home enviornment for the people we love the most.  They deserve it, so do you :0)

How do you make your family feel special? What do you do to take a moment out for yourself?

Vision Forum So Many Chances To WIN!!!

Hi! This post may seem a bit redundant, I assure you it's not. Last week when I posted about vision forum having a chance to win gift certificates in the amounts of $100, $200 and $300, I was thrilled! Still am, if I am to be honest! Only now I realize there are many more ways to win!!! There are multiple blogs with the opportunity to win, each having there own $100, $200, and $300 gift certificates to win!!! What I am saying is, check out the following sites and enter. They enter you in a different pools for a chance at a different outcome! Each has it's own set of certificates,(and ways to enter) totaling $3600 available to be won!!! Someone has to win, why not you?

Remember to link Vision Forum to your own blogpost if that is how you choose to enter! Thank you Ladies for the oppertunities to win gift certificates to buy Christian Books, toys, Cd's, movies and so much more!

 Check theses FABULOUS Blogs out!!!!! Merry Christmas to all!!!

Raising Olives

Smockity Frocks

The Modest Mom

A Wise Woman

Generation Cedar

I am Thankful

I am thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who sees through my sins to the woman He created. I am thankful for His grace and merciful forgiveness that knows no end.

I am thankful for all the soldiers, past and present, who have fought for the freedoms we enjoy everyday. I am thankful for all of those who sacrificed for us. I love this country and I am thankful for being born here.

 I am thankful for the freedom to homeschool my children...

One of the wonderful benefits of home schooling is the ability to incorporate "Real Life" into your child's lessons. I am really thankful that all of the activities we do in a day, we can do together. I am thankful to be able to spend time with my kids. I am thankful that my boys are learning to cook and help with household tasks. I am thankful that my husband is teaching the boys about routine vehicle maintenance and includes them in his shop as much as possible.I am thankful that my kids can jump on the internet and look up information about whatever is of interest to them at that moment. I love that in our house, bookwork is only a very small part of our daily education. My kids are learning to explore the unknown, and follow their interests, to satisfy their curiosity.  I am incredibly grateful for that freedom. I am thankful for the opportunity to serve my country.  I am thankful to have served when I did. I am thankful to have met my husband when I did. God's timing is wonderful. I am thankful for the challenges that have provided us opportunities to live in faith and trust in God's plan, even when it was hard to see past the struggle.

I see my children's education as an opportunity to learn to love finding their own answers.  It makes my heart sing to watch them discover new things. I am so proud of the little things I get to experience with them daily. I am very lucky to be with my family and nurture our family bond through day to day living and learning.

I love my kids. I love my husband. I love that he works from home and is able to be a part of our lives in a way that some fathers can't. I am very thankful for the opportunities God has provided for my family. Some of the tough stuff has opened doors to great things. We will likely never be rich, but our bond as a family is strong. I can honestly say my family is full of my favorite people on earth. I enjoy the time we get to spend together. I am thankful. :0)

I am thankful for parents who love me like no other. They put up with my fickle behavior. I am super lucky, and thankful that my parents love my husband as if he were their own son. Not everyone can say that. I am thankful that I can.

I am thankful for a brother and sister who can go without speaking for periods of time and pick back up where we left off. I am thankful for an upbringing that encouraged a close relationships. I love my family.



I hope you have many things to be thankful for. Happy Thanksgiving!

Why we homeschool

The reasons for homeschooling are as numerous as the people who live the lifestyle. It is a lifestyle, not just an educational choice. For some, the reasons are religious in nature, the lack of prayer, and exclusion of all things Christ, missing and disallowed in the public school setting, is counter intuitive. For some the student/teacher ratio is too much to tolerate. Some struggle with the curriculum. Still others can't tolerate the bullying, and school violence that is reported all over the news far to frequently. There are those whose lives take them on the road a lot and homeschooling allows their families to travel together. There are the military families station in foreign countries who have little or no other option but to educate at home. The list goes on and on.

My family homeschools for a lot of reasons. It started when our oldest child was a toddler. I was working from home as a child care provider. The kids and I did preschool style lessons on a daily basis. He began to read quite well by the time he was 3. I just adjusted his "preschool" activities to reflect his abilities and needs. When it was time for him to enter kindergarten, he was way too advanced, and without a really complicated and, in my opinion, ridiculous, psychological testing, the school wouldn't even consider him beginning in 1st grade rather than kindergarten. I was still working from home. I talked with my husband, and we decided to give homeschooling a shot. We only planned on one year, our son is in the 6th grade (by age and standards of public school) and we still homeschool him and now his brother as well.

Over the course of time our reasons have changed. We have attempted to put our kids in the local school, not once, but twice. Both times we were all miserable. Our children had severe behavior changes. One child was being bullied by a student, the other child was often in trouble for doing more than the teacher asked of him. (Not kidding!) I won't say public school was entirely horrible. The kids had some good social outlets there, but the cost of their self esteem, education, behavior, were more than we could justify. I still struggle from time to time, about whether or not we are making good choices for our kids. I think the doubts are common amongst us homeschool mommas (and papas). My children are doing great. We have them tested most every year and the are always well above their peer group. They have friends ( although not as many as I would like for them), we have a close relationship and they are well adjusted, respectful kids.

Online homeschool resources

Here is a list of websites I have seen referenced on other sites I have visited. I have NOT checked them all out, but most I have. Check back often, there is bound to be more added frequently. If you have any you like to use please pass them along and I will add them here. 


www.math-drills.com
www.amblesideonline.com
www.tanglewoodeducation.com
www.khanacademy.org
www.edhelper.com
www.mathmommath.com
www.coolmath4kids.com
www.coolmath.com
www.learningpage.com
www.enchantedlearning.org
www.donnayoung.org
www.mrdonn.org
www.homeschooling.gomilpitas.com
http://www.homeschoolshare.com/Lapbooks_at_HSS.php