Home School - Boise,ID

This is our 3rd year HS'ing.

The biggest thing to keep in mind is that HS'ing is easy, it's parenting that's hard.

There are SO many different options out there for people, and the one truism amongst HS families is that none of us do it identically. The flexibility to do what works best for each of our children is one of the biggest reasons many of us KEEP doing it, regardless of the reasons we started. <laughing> I NEVER thought we'd spend 5 months a year doing school up in the mountains when we started. But I've got an adhd kiddo who needs a LOT of action in his life, and we discovered snowboarding. So now, when the snow hits, we go up 3-5 days a week and do school on the mountian during breaks. Last year we moved 3 years "upward" in kiddo's reading level in just one snow season. It just worked out. It's a big up front charge every year, but it breaks down to less than $50 a month per person. I can budget that.

Point being, there are as many ways to HS as there are families out there.

Idaho (if I'm remembering correctly) may actually be one of those states where you get your tax money BACK if you homeschool (aka you get money for each child out of your taxes the way public schools get money for students, you just have to prove it's going toward education expenses). Only 1 or 2 states do this (every STATE also regulates homeschooling differently, Tx being one of the easiest and Ny being one of the hardest). If I'm remembering correctly, it's around $1200. Not a ton, and nowhere near what the schools receive per student, but better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick. All in all we spend about $150 a month HS'ing... so that 1200 would take care of about 2/3's of our budget. ((ALSO, because families all HS differently, and because thing vary so much by region... we all spend different amounts. I know people who HS for free, and those who spend $500+ a month)).

I'll list off what *we* do in a moment, but probably the best place for you to start would be looking into philosophies and curriculum and getting on some homeschool boards (like mamapedia but for HS'ers). Here are some links to start researching through:

For philosophy and general info, these are my two favs:

http://www.homeschooldiner.com/
http://homeschooling.gomilpitas.com/ - this site can be a little confusing, because it's payed for by ads. The ads are in the center (mixed in with articles) and to the right. The links are on the left. HOWEVER, there is soooo much info on the site, including legal schtuff, and it's the best "per state" site I've come across. She compiles not only HSLDA stuff but acres and acres of local groups, support networks, tons of things. Plus some killer articles and links. I personally like HS Diner more as a site and the depth of the info presented, but there is just MORE info on more topics on a-z homes cool. Just type your state in the search bar and see what I mean.

For curriculum & curriculum reviews

http://www.homeschoolbuyersco-op.org/
http://www.grovepublishing.com/

For homeschool boards.. my personal fav is Yahoo Groups. I'm on over 10 of them. Ranging from a national Secular Homeschool board, to 2 local boards (one fieldtrip group and one support group). Just type homeschool plus a qualifier (like secular, christian, ADHD, special needs, Boise, etc.)

For a common sense LAUGH
http://www.secular-homeschooling.com/001/bitter_homeschoo...
esp... check out the bits on socialization v socializing

Personal Schtuff

We're "eclectic HS'ers" which doesn't actually tell you anything except that we do a lot of different things. <laughing> And there is a *wonderful* mum here on mamapedia that she and I do almost the exact same things (rare), but we describe them differently. What works, works. Regardless of the name. My only piece of advice here, is NOT to spend a bunch of money off the bat. Try as many things out at you can BEFORE purchasing. It's the number one complaint of veteran HS'ers... how much money we waste the first year, because we're nervous and want to do things "right". It's because we're parents, we ALL want the best for our kids (whether we homeschool or awayschool, we all just want what's best). Unfortunately, "best" is hard to find, and even harder to quantify. It's a learning experience. So regardless of how any of us describe this educational adventure, it's something that changes and grows as we do, and as our kids do.

Last thing (I promise) before getting into what we personally do... is college. 20 or even 10 years ago, college was an unknown quantity with HS'ers. These days, it's a VERY known quantity. Our kids not only have a better chance of getting in, but are actually sought after, and even actively recruited (like sports). Don't take my word for it. Look up the stats of homeschool entry into the ivyleagues and state schools. Look into the articles claiming "unfair advantage" by away school parents, becuase our kids have so much more time to become well rounded or to pursue a passion or because our kids get to present "portfolios" of their work for entrance into most schools... which DOES present a really strong advantage for entry (although not an unfair one imho), and (joys of the internet) go onto school websites and look up admissions. Most of the teens in my area who HS, aren't actually schooled at home anymore. Between the ages of 14-16, most are starting community college (in our state it's FREE for any highschool student under the age of 18 to attend community college, it's called "Running Start"). Those shooting for ivy leagues use those 100 & 200 level courses as their highschool credit, and those shooting for state schools do a direct transfer and hit the state universities as juniors. It's a BIG difference from the days when if a parent didn't jump through hoops of fire their child had to get a GED and would have a harder time than an awayschooler at getting into school. <grinning> This is one of the aspects, that while in the future, I just LOVE about HS'ing, and am so grateful for all of those parents and students who paved this road with their hard work and determination.

Okay our schtuff:

We do about a 40/40/20 split between Montessori, Charlotte Mason, and "whatever works". (For example, we do "unit studies" for history, and do 3.5 entirely different math programs at the same time. Singapore for ME -so I can keep up, but singapore doesn't work for my numbers guy, who sees numbers in a way I could never understand- is the .5. For my son we do Montessori, Borenson, & computer games.. links below)

Maths:
- http://www.freemontessori.org/?page_id=9 (free)
- http://www.borenson.com/Home/EducatorsHomePage/tabid/933/... (algebra, $35 total)
- http://www.amazon.com/ search math in software games. Kiddo's favorites are cluefinders and carmen san diego ($10 apiece)
- plus a ton of online games

Science
http://www.noeoscience.com/
http://www.discoveryeducation.com/
http://www.montessorird.com/index2.php?cPath=1&amp;osCsid...

English / Lit / Geography & others
http://simplycharlottemason.com/basics/started/charlotte-...

Latin
http://www.minimus-etc.co.uk/

Art & Music & Drama

- Outside classes. Ironically, I'm an artist and my H is a musician. But we're too "close" to these subjects to really do them well at this level. Plus it's great for our kiddo to be working with peers and other teachers. And these really provide that for him, in addition to all the sports he does.

I homeschool. I have a 4th grader and a 7th grader at home.

Look up hslda.com I think, it might be .org It will give you the legal rules for your state.

Then look at curriculums, you can do a total package or separate.
I do separate.
I chose Singapore Math, it's a bit more advanced than Saxon. Either one are fine.
I use Surley Grammar which lays a great foundation but gets repetitive and we skipped a grade from 3rd to 5th and will go into Rod and Staff next year with my 4th grader.
I use spelling words from our book we are reading, this month is Mrs. Frisby. I also have Modern Curriculum press's spelling workouts.
I used Cursive Without Tears.
Bob Jones Science 4. I have heard that Apologia is also excellent.
I'mstill looking for a good history program. I do use Evan More's History Pockets adn the kids love them.
My kids take an art class through the park district, which also offers tennis lessons and other types of lessons, French, Spanish, fencing. We cant' afford all of them.
I do Latin, The Latin Road to English Grammar, higher level, lowest age is 4th grade, very thorough.
We start about 9am and get through English/Grammar, Reading, Math, and Latin in the am take a break at noon and do science and history and projects in the aternoons.
We have piano lessons on Thursdays, we also do library on Thursday after piano.
My kids are involved in Scouts and Wednesday night church youth programs.
I started in August to be finished in May.
Try to go to some of the homeschool expos in yoru area this next summer. Then you can look at curriculums.

well i myself do home schooling i do what is actually called achievement house charter school its a cyber school that is online and certian classes you are in a live classroom... home schooling and cyberschooling are kinda the same. if you fail a class you repeat the whole school year all over again.. or find a friend or family member who has home schooled there child. it is a great idea to home school because then there aint any bulling, harassing or any of the other issues that go on in the school district...
I am doing cyber school because my freshman year (9th grade) i was harassed and assulted and the school wouldnt do anything about it and then my dads health went down and i have 2 younger siblings and if my dad would happen to have another stroke i wouldnt want my younger siblings coming home from school and finding our dad noresponsive so i am being cyber schooled. i dont get the bullying, harassing, or any of the other natures of public school. then i found out that i was pregnant and that was the final thing so i still do home schoolng. with him being at a young age being home schooled is going to impact him not having a socialization life

Hello.
I was home schooled. Keep in mind that Public school is free.
I used Bob Jones University. And the books can cost alot of money.
also you have to keep up with all there school work and send in info to the state. Also look into, a grad program, so all credits will be accounted for.
My mom messed up, an i had to take my GED.
Also if your child does an out of state program, your child might not me able to get certain grants from your state. Look into that.
Its really good, but alot of paper work.

Hello!

We are on our 3rd year homeschooling and last year we decided to sign her up for an online academy. So far we everything has been wonderful, she went from being below grade reading level to two levels above in one year! She was also doing poorly in math and once we figured out what her issue was she is now soaring through all her math.

We do applied scholastics online. The nice thing is they give you the curriculum AND you have a certified teacher accessible to you at any time. It cost us $350 for the initial testing and now it's $40 a month. She won't need any more testing, all other assessments are included. The great thing is she will receive a diploma from the school, so if she stays with the program through high school she will get a high school diploma, not a GED. We still have the flexibility of homeschooling on our schedule and we work with the school on what we want to teach. We wanted to do a unit on fish so we did a unit on fish! They work WITH you! They also keep all the records for you so if you ever have a problem you have the school to back you up.

http://www.appliedscholasticsonline.com/

Hope that gives you another option, but ultimately it's what works for your family!

I am always on the look out for home school programs. I have two and we are military and moving a lot. Already my 1st grader has been in 3 different schools. The school district we are in now. I do not like it. I don't like they way they are teaching the kids. They are putting so much on the parents and not actually giving the kids assignments that they can be held accountable for. I am really wondering what is it they are doing all day at school? and if I am going to be teaching my kids to read why not go all out and just home school them anyway.

There is a program called the itty bitty bookworm that focus on reading. it is about $20 for a month's worth of lessons. There are a lot of things on the net for free. Math pages and such.

Given his age. You want him to really focus on his letters and sounds and simple math. Your public library will be a great place to meet other people that are homeschooling as well. Also check out museums and zoos in your area. Now a days they have programs just for kids that are home schooled.

Good luck!!

Hi, I'm also looking into homeschooling next year (in Boise). So, I have started researching as well. In Idaho, I do not believe you can get tax money back, but I might be wrong. There is a home school charter school where you do the homeschooling and they do testing and have teachers available to help. In that case, they will buy your curriculum and even give money for extra activities. It is called IDEA, http://www.idahoidea.org/Main/Default.aspx.

There is also the Idaho Virtual Academy which is an on-line school. And there are co-ops as well. I see Tonya posted a lot of links, but the Vineyard church also does a homeschool co-op where the kids go there 2 days a week.

I also just found this great link while researching:
http://www.classicalathome.com/links.html

Good luck and let us know what you figure out!

We are considering home school our children also. I asked some questions on here not too long ago and got a lot of great information. I wanted to share the link to my question so you can see all of the responses I received.

http://www.mamapedia.com/questions/16972485104192585729

What an exciting time for you as you spend this year preparing to homeschool your son. I remember those days well! It was very overwhelming to me. I have just done a quick google search for you and found some good sites for you to look into:
http://www.chois.org/
http://www.hslda.org/hs/state/ID/default.asp
http://www.thehomeschoolmom.com/support/idaho.php
http://www.homeschoolinginidaho.com/
Personally, we use Veritas Press curriculum. It is a Christian Classical model, which we like. But, there are so many options that it would be so hard to say that any one particular one would be best for you. I took that first year to determine what type of schooling we wanted to do (classical, workbook based, unit studies, etc. -there are 100s of choices!). Then, once I narrowed that down, I researched various companies we could use. That's how we landed at veritas. (veritaspress.com) Curriculum is merely a tool that you will use to teach your children what you think is important for them to learn. The first year of homeschooling was very hard for me because it meant a major paradigm shift in my life. However, once we got used to it, we found we loved it. I cannot even imagine doing something differently now! We love having the children together all the time, and with us. We love our family dynamics. Wouldn't trade it for the world! Feel free to send me a message if you want more encouragement or ideas.
Blessings!