As promised, here’s the rest of Charter & Other Free Online Schools as a distance learning option for homeschoolers. As discussed in the Part 1 a “free” school is a public school and therefore will be controlled to varying degrees by government regulations either at the local or state level.

People choose homeschool for many reasons and in my opinion the question to ask is:

Why are you homeschooling or considering homeschool?

• You don’t agree with what was/is being taught in the public school?
• For religious reasons – you want your children to learn from a faith perspective?
• You want to remove your child from the physical environment and influences of the public school?
• For health or some other reason, your child is unable to attend school?
• Frustration with the long hours that traditional public school requires, including the homework?
• To alleviate some of the stress you are observing, particularly in you highschool student’s life because of the demands and expectations place upon them?

Having given thought to why you want to homeschool, let’s take a quick look at the advantages and disadvantages of choosing an online government school or public brick & mortar charter school as a distance learning option. Read the rest of this entry »

You know, when I introduced this series on distance learning options for homeschoolers, I quickly realized that I needed to take more time to research it, because the information I was finding was confusing. Well…I’ve researched & guess what – I’m still confused!

I decided to begin with charter schools because they are such a popular topic and misunderstood, even by many homeschoolers. My plan of attack is to try to coherently share what I’ve learned, give you some questions to think about if you are considering a charter or other “free” online school and some links to resources so that you can be as confused as I am. This will probably require a two part post. Lets go.

Why were charter schools started?

Charter schools began in the early 1990’s in response to the obvious problems with our public education system. Advocates claim that the competition of charter schools will force the traditional public schools to “shape up” and produce better results in order to keep their students and the state money they receive for each student.

The premise is that charter schools can deliver programs adapted to the needs of the children and thereby provide educational excellence. According edreform.com, they “are one of the fastest and most successful growing [educational] reforms in the country”.

What is a charter school?

Simply put, charter schools are public schools, plain and simple. Read the rest of this entry »

Well, the 2007 Homeschool Blog Awards contest is officially over. Thank you all to all who voted! Homeschool through Highschool came in 4th place (tied for 4th with two other super blogs) for the Best New Homeschool Blog category! I am thrilled!

I hope you had an opportunity to check out all the great nominees – there is some fantastic homeschool blogging going on out there in the cyber world!
Also, much thanks & gratitude for the team of women who put this all together & donated time out of their very busy schedules to do all the work!

Lastly, big congratulations to all the winners! Well done!

Keep pressing on!

Sue

I spent over six hours yesterday trying to get this post written, but kept running into technical glitches that I couldn’t fix – mainly trying to embed the YouTube video mentioned below – you’ve got to watch it! Because it’s so important, I’m going to give you the links to check out the information yourself. Please do!

Freedom’s never free; the cost is paid in blood.

Rest easy, sleep well my brothers.
Know the line has held, your job is done.
Rest easy, sleep well.
Others have taken up where you fell, the line has held.
Peace, peace, and farewell…

The above picture is of Arlington National Cemetery and the Wreaths Across America project started in 1992 by a company in a small Maine town. Please check out this site for more information about the project and most especially watch the stirring YouTube video found about halfway down the page. Make sure you have your sound turned on. Read the rest of this entry »

Today I begin a series on distance learning options for homeschoolers. I thought, “I’ll start with charter schools – a common buzz word these days. That shouldn’t be too hard to pull together.” I thought I could do some research and put out a simple article explaining charter schools. Silly me!

As I began to researching charter schools, the more confused I became! But, I guess that shouldn’t surprise me. Typically, when the government gets their hands into something, it becomes complicated and since charter schools are government funded public schools, of course it will be complex. I now realize I need more time to put together information about charter schools. Read the rest of this entry »

Thinking back to your school days, some of your best memories were probably field trips. The memory was good, not necessarily because the subject was something you were interested in, but because you got out of classes for the day – Yea! – plus, it was a break for the norm. As homeschoolers, you have the advantage of doing as many field trips as you like even, during the high school years! The opportunities are virtually endless!

Living in or near a large city, presents literally countless field trip destinations. Even if you have to drive 2 hours, make a day of it and have a blast! If you can afford it, stay overnight and make it a real event! Another great option for a high school field trip is a city tour. Major cities such as Chicago, Washington D.C., New York, Boston, Nashville and Atlanta are just a few interesting choices worth considering.

Involve your high school students when planning a field trip. If the trip involves travel, Read the rest of this entry »

As life bears down and we, as homeschooling families, grow weary from the demands upon our time and emotions, we sometimes can use reminders as to why we chose to do what we do – home educate our children. This post is an excerpt from the prologue of John Taylor Gatto’s newest book, The Underground History of American Education.

Who is John Taylor Gatto? He is a former public school teacher from New York City, three times named “New York State Teacher of the Year”. While still carrying the title of New York State Teacher of the Year, Mr. Gatto announced his resignation on the OP ED page of the Wall Street Journal claiming that he was no longer willing to hurt children. His most well-known book to date is The Dumbing Down of America.

You aren’t compelled to loan your car to anyone who wants it, but you are compelled to surrender your school-age child to strangers who process children for a livelihood, Read the rest of this entry »