Help Convincing Well Meaning Family That Homeschool is Right
Posted: Wed Jan 25, 2012 12:21 pm
This is going to be rather long and I apologize in advance but I can't think how else to explain our situation and ask for help without giving lots of details. Thank you so much for bearing with me and I appreciate y'all's wisdom and experience so much!! Please throw any thoughts, ideas, help my way!!
My son attended a charter school here in Texas and because of health related problems, (surgery, etc.) he missed a ton of school last fall. We did make up work and kept his grades up to all A's and 1 B and he is a very bright 2nd grader. He reads at a 7th grade level and we do lots of supplemental (at home) science and reading, etc. so he stays challenged.
Last week, with no prior notice or warning, his school informed us that with the number of school days he's missed we have a few "choices". 1) withdraw him from their school and home school him 2) sign a form that states that he will NOT miss one more day of school until the semester ends (Jan- June) or 3) have him repeat 2nd grade. Repeating 2nd grade would be torture for this child. He is so far ahead of his class in so many subjects right now, next year would be like a nightmare for all of us. Option 2 just isn't feasible and the school administrators don't care whether or not we submit doctor's notes or that he was hospitalized- to them an absence is an absence. From what I've read online, since they are a charter school and not a public school they are not required to make any special accommodations to help him.
When they told us last week, at first I was shocked. Then, after it all sunk in I thought, "This is awesome! I WANT to home school him! It's the ideal answer with his health problems!" My son and husband and I have done all sorts of online research into the whole process, what is required by law, curriculum choices, finding support groups, all that great stuff and we are really excited!
We are totally pumped up about it BUT..... my mother thinks homeschooling my son is the worst idea ever! She wants me to fight the school to keep him in and do battle with the school district and get them to alter their policy. To some folks 'what grandma thinks' might not matter but my mom and I (despite living 1,400 miles apart) are very, very close (I am an only child) and she and my son (her only grandchild) are very close. We talk every day and she is very strong willed and opinionated but usually in a good and loving way. Simply saying "Mom, this is the way it is, deal with it" would create a huge chasm.
I guess what I'm looking for is folks's person experiences on how they helped their families come around to the idea. My husband is totally on board, my son and I are excited but grandma wants to put on her suit of armor and come and wage war with the district/school to keep him from being home schooled. She thinks that without the structure, discipline and regime of school that my son will become unmanageable, unable to return to school if/when that time comes, that it will encourage him to be lazy and that homeschooling is for fringe-nut-cases. I guess this means that we are happily now fringe nut cases and I'm good with that. Please share your experiences with me. I'd love to know how y'all handled situations like this and I am so grateful that this forum is here so I can find the support and help that we need. A million thank yous in advance!!
My son attended a charter school here in Texas and because of health related problems, (surgery, etc.) he missed a ton of school last fall. We did make up work and kept his grades up to all A's and 1 B and he is a very bright 2nd grader. He reads at a 7th grade level and we do lots of supplemental (at home) science and reading, etc. so he stays challenged.
Last week, with no prior notice or warning, his school informed us that with the number of school days he's missed we have a few "choices". 1) withdraw him from their school and home school him 2) sign a form that states that he will NOT miss one more day of school until the semester ends (Jan- June) or 3) have him repeat 2nd grade. Repeating 2nd grade would be torture for this child. He is so far ahead of his class in so many subjects right now, next year would be like a nightmare for all of us. Option 2 just isn't feasible and the school administrators don't care whether or not we submit doctor's notes or that he was hospitalized- to them an absence is an absence. From what I've read online, since they are a charter school and not a public school they are not required to make any special accommodations to help him.
When they told us last week, at first I was shocked. Then, after it all sunk in I thought, "This is awesome! I WANT to home school him! It's the ideal answer with his health problems!" My son and husband and I have done all sorts of online research into the whole process, what is required by law, curriculum choices, finding support groups, all that great stuff and we are really excited!
We are totally pumped up about it BUT..... my mother thinks homeschooling my son is the worst idea ever! She wants me to fight the school to keep him in and do battle with the school district and get them to alter their policy. To some folks 'what grandma thinks' might not matter but my mom and I (despite living 1,400 miles apart) are very, very close (I am an only child) and she and my son (her only grandchild) are very close. We talk every day and she is very strong willed and opinionated but usually in a good and loving way. Simply saying "Mom, this is the way it is, deal with it" would create a huge chasm.
I guess what I'm looking for is folks's person experiences on how they helped their families come around to the idea. My husband is totally on board, my son and I are excited but grandma wants to put on her suit of armor and come and wage war with the district/school to keep him from being home schooled. She thinks that without the structure, discipline and regime of school that my son will become unmanageable, unable to return to school if/when that time comes, that it will encourage him to be lazy and that homeschooling is for fringe-nut-cases. I guess this means that we are happily now fringe nut cases and I'm good with that. Please share your experiences with me. I'd love to know how y'all handled situations like this and I am so grateful that this forum is here so I can find the support and help that we need. A million thank yous in advance!!