I really wanted to enroll Olivia in preschool this year but the place I wanted to get her into has a strict policy with being 3 by September 1. Well her birthday is September 23 and Mike and I don't think that we should have to hold her back a whole year because she missed a deadline. I know that there are other preschools that don't have this strict cutoff but it does bother me that the school system has this cutoff date when really it should be based on the child's ability and maturity levels. I have also met a lot of people who homeschool in Boise so I have been reading a lot of books and blogs and checking out a lot of curriculums in the homeschool world.
Mike and I have discussed it before but I figured I might as well see what is out there. I found a lot of great information and I chose the Sonlight curriculum. There isn't much for the preschool years but I though it would be a good test run this year and next year to figure out if this is something we really want to do. I think I am a well rounded person in education but teaching little kids kind of freaks me out. Plus with our current situation Mike would be doing most of the teaching.
Things I like most about the Sonlight curriculum is it has a bible section where kids learn about bible stories and learn scriptures, it is literature based and it has everything planned for you. I am a firm believer that having good reading/writing and reading comprehension skills is essential to learning other subjects and that is what they focus on the first couple of years. The books on the reading list are classics and I checked the curriculum for middle school and high school and it was a meaty list. I also liked that even though the bible is a huge component they incorporate exposing kids to other religions and backgrounds. The curriculum incorporates other homeschool packages that have received awesome reviews like Break the Code to teach reading and Handwriting without Tears.
We already read to Olivia almost daily but this will be nice to expose her to more classics and give Mike and I the opportunity to spend some quality time with her. The preschool schedule only requires about 20 minutes a day. Plus money was another factor. Preschool would be a huge expense in our budget.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
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4 comments:
I've never heard of that program. I'll have to check it out. I've read the Thomas Jefferson Education books and I like a lot of his theories (based heavily onleadership and the classics), but there is no curriculum. In theory the ideas would work, but I need a schedule to actually do things. Good luck!
Props to you for exploring that. I know myself well enough to know that I'd never be disciplined enough to be able to home school. We're doing preschool through her daycare. We looked into doing it through the school district, but they had an August 31 cut off. They will let you enroll late if there's room, but you pay for the entire year, which I wasn't fond of. I've already looked into charter schools who will let her test in for Kindergarten because of the school district's cut off of 5 before Aug. 31 with no option to test in. Ry is already showing that she's about 6 months ahead in her educational development and even further ahead socially, so why hold her back when she's obviously ready? I agree that it should be based on ability, not age.
I totally think it's possible to homeschool a preschooler. However, as a public school teacher, I am a little hesitant to homeschool school-aged children. Obviously there are some circumstances where it's the best choice but let me give you some food for thought: 1) not all home school curriculums are accepted by universities. I know several families where after graduation the student still had to get their GED to get a diploma and that test is really hard. Also, there are so many social benefits for schooling. Also, when the curriculum gets harder, do you think you will be the best person for the job? For example, I teach middle school and there is NO WAY I could teach even middle school math. It's way too advanced for me :) If you aren't happy with the public school program you might want to look into charter schools or other private schools that have more of what you are looking for. I am not against homeschooling, but it does take a certain kind of focused person to make sure their child is getting a well-rounded, full education at home.
Way to go in investigating. You always seems to do a lot of research and find good stuff.
I just had a comment about holding someone back/starting later because of age. I think it feels important to parents, but in reality I don't know if it is a big deal. I was youngest in my class and I wonder how my experience would have been different if I were the oldest - a whole year of emotional maturity can make a HUGE difference in high school when there are a lot of pressures. Plus, the oldest kid in the class gets to drive first, etc. And for sports, a year more of growth hardly hurts. Just some food for thought about worrying too much if your kid is old enough or not.
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