A Little Advice Please

[Philip]

[Jazzy]

Hi Philip, I don't think I can answer all of your questions, but I will try to give a little help.

1 & 2. You are right that you can't move into geometry and algebra until your dd has her basics down. I would definitely start there. I bet she will pick it up fairly quickly and you will be able to move on. There are a bunch of different programs you can try, depending on the skills she needs help with.

Calculadder is a program that is strictly math drill that you can use to practice certain skills.

Key Curriculum Press has a series of books that concentrates on different areas like fractions and decimals.

Mastering Mathematics is a program that focuses on mastering a specific skill before moving on. If your dd is reading on a 2-3rd grade level she should be able to do certain skills on her own.

You also have the option of using any of the popular home school math programs on the market, but working at her grade level. You can find information about choosing a math curriculum, along with math curriculum reviews here.

For phonics, you may want to try something like Explode the Code workbooks to help build her skills.

3. My only concern about having the school babysit your daughter is that she would be frustrated and discouraged by her experiences there. Do you have a family member your daughter could stay with during the day? Do you have the resources available to hire a babysitter for your dd or paying a trusted friend or family member to watch her until one of you can make arrangements to be home with her? Would either of your bosses be open to a work from home arrangement or an alternate work schedule?

If the speech teacher is the only reason you are leaving your son in school, perhaps you could ask her if she'd like to earn extra money by working with him a few hours per week outside of the classroom. That way you could still get the speech therapy, but homeschool him as well.

I hope something I said was helpful. Best wishes!

[mschickie]

I am not sure what state you are in that has those requirements for homeschooling. Most states will accept just telling them what curriculum you are using. As long as you are using a curriculum and not making up your own it should not be that difficulut.

IMO I think that homeschooling would help your daughter alot. A program like Saxon Math where they introduce topics gradually with lots of practice and repetition would probably work well for her. Having her in school just as a babysitter is going to be detrimental to her education and self esteem.

If homeschooling is not going to work because you do not have proper care for her during the day then you may want to check into a private school. Having her stay in her current school situtation may cause stress and anxiety for her because she can not get it the way other kids can. We had this with sd and I wish we had taken her out in 5th grade instead of 9th. She is great at math now but hated it for years since she just could not get the concepts then, just like your daughter. She just needed to be told what to do, one way and have a routine. Right now she is an B+ - A student in Math and will be doing Calculus next year.

Homeschooling requires sacrifice sometimes. Is there a way that one of you can switch your job hours? I know some families that Mom or Dad goes to work after the other gets home so they can homeschool. Do you have a family member that could watch her during the day? The other option is can one of you stay home and not work. That will probably mean drastically altering your spending and lifestyle but you have to weigh that against your child's needs. It is a hard decision to make. Good luck and I hope things go well.