Homeschool World Forum

[iltos]

this is a long story.....but it boils down to a bright 14 year old who just started high school and hates it.

she's taken to just not going through a variety of deceits (she calls it a prison, and i cannot disagree -tho i also see that her friends have happily made the adjustment), aided by a just-completed bout of mono that knocked her out for a month

her mom and i are separated, and mom feels it's all due to a lack of boundaries and consequences...our parenting styles are very different....she tends to react out of anger and impose laws....i feel she is destructive to self confidence....my weakness is that i'm too forgiving, too supportive....borderline enabler no doubt....so there is some substance to mom's critque of me as our daughter's primary parent.

my daughter wants to go into the independant study program at the high school, but i know the way her mind works....unless it's something that fascinates her (biology...most sciences), she's not much of an "independant study" kind of person...and the program is basically just high school without the class time.....

my dream would be to tailor a program for her interests, and not worry about "the future" (meaning college, i suppose) for a while, but i have neither the time (i do have to work) nor the expertise to challenge her

and i doubt her desire to work with dear old dad, anyway....i have conciously raised an independant and spirited/passionate kid, but am faced with a situation i never anticipated, at least to this degree.....in a sense, she is being held back by her age, tho of course there is a part of her that IS exactly her age, as well....

i don't know what to do

any thoughts?

[robinsegg]

I have a friend in college who was homeschooled through high school and does very well. However, she had always been homeschooled, and this brings forward a very different attitude toward "schoolwork".

There are unit studies that can be done based on her interests which would include assignments to read, write, compute (math), learn the history of, learn the science behind whatever the topic is. She could get a good education that way . . . If you're willing to put the effort in to a) make sure each discipline is adequately covered in each study and b) make her stick to her work and complete it. If you're not willing to do those things, homeschooling won't work well for you.

If you think it's something you're willing to do, I always recommend the book So, You're Thinking About Homeschooling? by Lisa Whelchel, which gives a good overview of the styles and curricula available.
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Rachel
teacher at home
The Cleft in the Rock Academy