How many homeschooling families do we have on BYC?

[jazzyfizzle]

farrier! :

Quote:
If you want Spanish, PM me your address and I'll send you my copy. I'm finished with it, and it does no good sitting around here gathering dust.

I've also got a Gaelic language set if anyone wants.

I would love to try the Gaelic for my 13 yr old....

Woops, sorry, didn't see your post before sending mine

 

[007Dawn]

That would be us! AND we LOVE IT!

 

[aflowerfairymom]

I'm in Torrance and homeschooling!

I only just found BYC..anyone still reading any of this?

Cat

 

[phoebeeliza]

I was "unschooled" after I finished 6th grade, due to being severely bullied and feeling held back by the limitations of my tiny public school (lets just say that if a 2nd grader is regularly correcting the spelling, grammar, and vocabulary of her teacher, it is not a good sign!). If you're not familiar, unschooling is like free-range homeschooling. I basically studied what, when, and how I wanted, with some gentle nudging from my parents, grandparents, and any interested adults or older kids here and there. It definitely isn't for everyone; I don't see it working for a child that needs strong boundaries or supervision in order to behave and motivate, but since I was always the dorky kid who would rather sit at home with my nose in a book than go out and find trouble, it worked great for me! I was very lucky to have lots and lots of intelligent, educated, and diverse adults in my life, so though I didn't have a curriculum, lesson plans, or a set schedule, I feel like I learned everything I need and more. If there was something in particular someone in my family or friends thought I needed to know, it was as easy as buying me a book about it - I will read literally anything I can get my hands on. I really hate math, but when math meant designing, calculating materials for, and building a chicken coop and raised garden beds with my mom, it definitely didn't feel like math or work! And when I realized that the math skills I had still weren't advanced enough to get into the kind of college I wanted, I took an algebra class at community college to brush up. I volunteered at an "alternative" bookstore, met tons of brilliant and political people, and ended up starting an Anarchism and alternative political systems study group with another unschooled teenager and one of the bookstore owners. I also spent a couple days at a Waldorf school with a different friend, and attended church services at a variety of different religious organizations; I really don't feel that I was at all limited to my parents' views or beliefs.

I get told all the time that I come off as much older than I am; people are generally very surprised to find out I am only 19! I think this is because I spent so much time with adults and older kids. One of the arguments against homeschooling that I hear most, is that public school prepares kids for the real world; but where in the real world does anyone spend all day with only people their EXACT age (and the same general social and economic class), with one or two older people in charge? Unschooling prepared me for the real world because instead of being locked away in a classroom all day, I was already in the real world - having to interact with people of all ages, classes, and political and religious affiliations.

Sorry, I didn't mean for that to be so long! But I loved being unschooled, and I think that a lot of people, even in homeschooling circles, don't know about it or disregard it as way too "out there". But I really feel that for the right kind of kids (and parents) it can work. I hope to be in a position to unschool my own kids, should I ever have some, a long, long, LONG time from now!