Do I Homeschool or go Private School with my kids?

[jllundqu]

I have a 4 year old that we are trying to decide how to educate. Public schools = crap. I would never send my child into the Arizona public school system.

I am left with a few options.

1. Homeschool - My wife (stay at home mom) would handle the basics, but there would also be a homeschool Co-op, play groups, music class, karate class, sign-language class, field trips, etc...and plenty of the "socialization" that statists bitch about...

OR

2. Private school - We are fortunate enough to be able to afford a great (A+) rated charter school that is nearby. I know parents whose children attend this school and they rave on and on about how great the school is, small classes, advanced curriculum, activities, etc.

My wife wants to do 100% homeschooling as described above. I am on the fence. I am very very much pro-homeschool and I wish there were some combination of private school and homeschool so my son could get the benefit of both. If I choose private school, my son would still get many of the homeschool benefits since my wife and I are always teaching him something.

My son is academically advanced for his age (he reads at a 2nd grade level, has wonderful vocabulary, and knows more sign language than I do). If I put him in school, I fear he would be immensely bored.

Although he is academically advanced, I would say he is socially/emotionally acting age appropriate.

One of my hesitations is resting the entirety of my child's education on (mostly) my wife's shoulders. She is more than up to the task, she finished her degree before I did by a 2 years. But I know it's a big time-consuming committment with it's pros and cons to go with it.

I am a product of the public school system. I consider myself lucky to have made it out with some sanity and basic critical thinking skills. I want the absolute best for my son. So which is best? The highest rated and recommended private school in the state or homeschool?

I guess my question to RPF would be... What would you do?

[Matt Collins]

Well whatever you do you have to ensure that it is supplemented with lots of extras, little league, Boy/Girl Scouts, church, etc.... That way they'll be well balanced and rounded, plus getting experience in dealing with lots of personality types.

If you can afford a private school, I would suggest that because they often feed into the better colleges (although whether college as we know it now will exist by the time your child is ready to enter is another subject entirely). However, as long as you can tolerate having your child at home all day ever day, and can stay disciplined to get the work done, and it's quality education, there is nothing wrong with home schooling.

[TaftFan]

How many people are enrolled at the charter school?

[dannno]

http://www.ronpaulcurriculum.com/

[jllundqu]

It is a k-8 school and has a total of 1500 students. It's a 10 out of 10 on "great schools" and the reviews are stellar.

[TaftFan]

It is a k-8 school and has a total of 1500 students. It's a 10 out of 10 on "great schools" and the reviews are stellar.

Good.

From Pre-K through 4th grade I went to a small Christian school that never had more than 150 students at a time. Most were in the lower grades. My 4th grade class had 4-5 people. It went up to 8th grade as well but I left because of the expenses. I was a much better student in private school.

On the other hand, I feel going to my small private school left me a step behind socially. Now, I don't have an outgoing public personality so that probably had a lot to do with it. I take after my parents, as I think most kids do. Your kids likely will too so keep that in mind when you make your decisions. A school of that size will keep your kids in good shape socially. Homeschoolers and small private schoolers can be good socially too, if they have that type of outgoing personality to begin with. The saying in the business world is, it isn't what you know, its who you know. I think it is a mixture of both.

If it were me I would put my kids in that private school. Sounds like the best of both worlds.

[fr33]

If my wife was willing to do it, I'd totally go for the homeschooling. We've been having these talks about it since she is pregnant with our first child (shhh our families don't even know yet) and she's not sounding very enthused about it. I can't be the daily teacher because I work more and make most of our income.

[jllundqu]

Yeah... I am leaning toward homeschool I think. At least for the first years. Maybe when he's older we will give him the choice of whether to continue homeschool or go private/charter.

[Lindsey]

In my state, charter schools are public schools, so your post is a little confusing to me.

I'd probably visit the school you are considering: observe how they treat the students, how the students are behaving and ask to review some of the teaching materials they use - is what they are doing acceptable to you? (Elem schools may not let you observe a class, but you'll still see staff interacting with students in the office/hallways.)

Having attended private school for my entire school career, and then working in a nice public school for 2 years - my choice if I do have kids will not likely include a traditional private school or public school. I will be looking for an alternative school, such as a Sudbury school, or if that's not an option we'll pursue homeschooling - probably more of an unschooling format than what you are considering. My reasoning for this is that no matter how well-intentioned, well-rated, well-funded, etc a school is, kids lose 12 plus years of their life following directions and fulfilling everyone else' expectations - rarely free to explore their interests and have the time to develop their talents and thoughts on their own. I agree that there are a few basic skills that everyone should ensure their children have: reading, writing, arithmetic, logic, verbal communication, negotiation, basic science, computer skills, etc - but these can be taught without force-feeding it to kids in time-segregated blocks. Teach when your kids are ready and in a way that connects with them, and give them the rest of the time to develop whatever they want, whether it's becoming the next David Beckham, Randy Rhoads, J.D. Salinger, Ron Paul or Marie Curie.

[BuddyRey]

I'm nowhere near the same stage of planning as you are, since I have no kids, wife, or other encumbrances yet, but just from what I've been hearing about Common Core and how the Feds are trying to bring even the private schools under their purview, homeschooling seems like a vastly preferable option if it's feasible for you. And though I know personal anecdotes don't count for much, I absolutely loved homeschooling because I got to work at my parents' business and get some practical life skills along with the book learning, which a lot of kids seem to miss out on. And what the progressives say about homeschooled kids being socially awkward or maladjusted is mostly bunk. Of course, being forced to spend 8 hours a day with acquaintances you didn't get to choose for yourself and would never even talk to otherwise will make anyone become an introvert.

[Smart3]

I recommend the charter, but of course do what's best for your family.

[bolil]

Since you asked? Do whatever it takes to keep your child, the future, out of public school. Even private schools must adhere to state curriculum. Home Educate, I wish I had been.

If your child is naturally curious and possesses an advanced degree of intellectual aptitude then homeschooling is the best option.

Let me put it this way: Education is what I received in between my eight hour a day stints in child prison.

[catfeathers]

Let me put it this way: Education is what I received in between my eight hour a day stints in child prison.

I feel that way too but I did have some excellent teachers in elementary school. My last 2 years there were similar to what I imagine a home school co-op would be. We had 3 teachers who taught 2 subjects each. They were free to teach their subjects however they wanted. One taught poetry, which I loved (I'm not sure about some of the other students). He also taught history and dug out enough old KY History books for us to share so we could study that subject. Another did spelling and math bees at least weekly, maybe more often.

I home schooled my youngest son. I think that if he had stayed in public school he would have been bullied because of his easy-going nature. He is now a college student who makes friends easily, I don't think he was stunted socially even though he didn't have that much socialization growing up. I was shy and didn't feel like I fit in when I was in school and it took me a long time to overcome my shyness. I think some of my school experiences made my shyness worse.

I would advise you to try home schooling. If the other classes (co-op, etc.) are not a good fit don't feel that you have to stick with them for socialization. He can get plenty of that just being out in the community and playing at the park. Field trips are fun if you can avoid the screaming hordes of public school students! Also some amusement parks have home school days with discounted rates while most kids are still in school.

[ronpaulfollower999]

Honestly, I think I'd hate it if I was homeschooled. I don't have a kid, but I'm a few years removed from high school (went to a private Christian school), and even though some people were complete @$$holes, I got through it just fine.

[fisharmor]

My wife wants to do 100% homeschooling as described above. I am on the fence.

Well, since you're going to do so little of it, your fence-sitting doesn't count for much.
I say this as one who is also not doing much.

I am very very much pro-homeschool and I wish there were some combination of private school and homeschool so my son could get the benefit of both.

What is the benefit of private school? Your kid will learn to blindly recite the pledge, will be punished for acting like a kid, will get bullied, will get into fights... think about all the bull$#@! you put up with when you were really young in public school, and then realize that it's not any different in private school.
I know, I did both.
(I eventually asked to go back to public school, because with all the bull$#@! happening on a daily basis, more "rigorous" academics were not welcome. And by "rigorous" I mean "tedious, repetitive, and overly demanding.)

My son is academically advanced for his age (he reads at a 2nd grade level, has wonderful vocabulary, and knows more sign language than I do). If I put him in school, I fear he would be immensely bored.

What pushed me over the edge was when I was talking to a homeschooling mother when my oldest was 2 1/2 years old. I told her that I didn't want to take a girl who already knows the alphabet and how to sound out words and put her in what would be remedial classes, but I was still apprehensive about homeschooling.
Her response: "Well, what I just heard is that you already ARE homeschooling."

One of my hesitations is resting the entirety of my child's education on (mostly) my wife's shoulders. She is more than up to the task, she finished her degree before I did by a 2 years. But I know it's a big time-consuming committment with it's pros and cons to go with it.

It's no more time-consuming than a part-time job. And she gets to go to play group and meet other parents. My wife has made fast friends with some of them.
You'd be surprised at the type of people you start meeting who are also homeschooling - especially what their political opinions are.
A lot of them are people you live close to whom you're going to want to know, if $#@! goes down.

I am a product of the public school system. I consider myself lucky to have made it out with some sanity and basic critical thinking skills. I want the absolute best for my son. So which is best? The highest rated and recommended private school in the state or homeschool?

The highest rated private school is still a school.

I don't know how old you are, but I've been out of public school for 20 years. And I've learned more in the last four years than I ever did in high school.

Consider three hypotheticals.
Let's say your son doesn't go to school at all and has zero credentials at age 18.

Hypothetical 1) So he can't get accepted into a great college.
So he has to go to community college.
Regardless of what college he gets into, he has to take a battery of standard tests as the very first thing. They will do a thorough analysis of his reading, writing, and math skills.

If he flies through those tests, then he gets into calculus and upper level English classes with no problem. He gets an associates, transfers to a 4-year, gets a bachelors, and then future employers review his resume which doesn't have a high school diploma on it and they don't care because they never care where you went to high school.

Hypothetical 2) He totally flunks those tests, then he has to go back and do the remedial classes.
This is totally offset by the fact that he doesn't have to spend his teenage years imprisoned in high school. If community college is going to teach him remedial English and Math anyway, why not stick him in there when he's 14? It's also most likely cheaper than private high school... and he can take his sweet time earning an associates by the time he's 18, and then he'll have something he can put on a resume, as opposed to being able to remember all those times he had to sit and watch a pep rally.

Hypothetical 3) He becomes his own man at age 18, and goes out and becomes the next Thomas Edison or Richard Branson. He has not spent his childhood being browbeaten into doing what authority figures want, and decides to go out and do what HE wants.
People like Edison and Branson aren't made in schools.

[jllundqu]

We decided to go with Homeschooling! My wife and I took several different homeschooling resources and compiled a custom curriculum for my boy. It will cover the basics like reading, writing, science, math, etc. But I find he learns the most when we "unschool" and just start talking about things he is interested in.

Example: When he asks me about the moon, I actually spend an hour explaining it to him, with videos, diagrams, back-and-forth conversation, etc. He absolutely eats it up! Same thing with all topics.... he really is a little scientist. So far I can tell he's into rocketry, space travel, astronomy, and electronics....

[tod evans]

+rep for interacting with your kid!

I'd give ya' more if they'd let me..

Way too many whistle-dick dads out there today!

[osan]

I have a 4 year old that we are trying to decide how to educate. Public schools = crap. I would never send my child into the Arizona public school system.

I am left with a few options.

1. Homeschool - My wife (stay at home mom) would handle the basics, but there would also be a homeschool Co-op, play groups, music class, karate class, sign-language class, field trips, etc...and plenty of the "socialization" that statists bitch about...

If you REALLY love your children you will never ever leave them to fate, which is what you effectively do when you leave them in the hands of others.

Home school them. They will live to thank you one day. If you can find a few other like-minded families, hire a teacher and have them school them in your homes, perhaps on a rotating-venue basis.

OR

2. Private school - We are fortunate enough to be able to afford a great (A+) rated charter school that is nearby. I know parents whose children attend this school and they rave on and on about how great the school is, small classes, advanced curriculum, activities, etc.

Most private schools are $#@!. Not as bad as public, perhaps, but methinks that is a case of splitting hairs.

My wife wants to do 100% homeschooling as described above.

Listen to and oblige your wife. If you do not, do not call my cell phone for help as she is chasing you around the dining room table with a butcher ax. I will not lift a finger for you.

I am on the fence. I am very very much pro-homeschool and I wish there were some combination of private school and homeschool so my son could get the benefit of both. If I choose private school, my son would still get many of the homeschool benefits since my wife and I are always teaching him something.

There IS no benefit to private school. Do as you wish, but if you go against your wife I will be obliged to raise a glass to the dear girl in toast if it comes to my attention that you died in your sleep, tragically and accidentally, of course.

If I put [my son] in school, I fear he would be immensely bored.

You fear correctly. I was so bored in school I could not stand it. It effects you negatively and profoundly so. If you love your child you will listen to someone who knows about this from both the perspective of the student and teacher. I would sooner drown my child in the toilet than place him in such a place, public or otherwise. I exaggerate not a whit on this. It is THAT important to keep your children out of such institutions.

Although he is academically advanced, I would say he is socially/emotionally acting age appropriate.

They will turn him into an emotional retard. You have been warned.

One of my hesitations is resting the entirety of my child's education on (mostly) my wife's shoulders. She is more than up to the task, she finished her degree before I did by a 2 years. But I know it's a big time-consuming committment with it's pros and cons to go with it.

If she WANTS to do it, get the hell out of her way. Do this and in 10 years you will write to me and thank me profusely and offer me money for having saved your child from destruction.

Do NOT experiment with your child as guinea pig. Keep him home and safe from the various dangers. He will be facing them soon enough. Allow him his brief innocence and purity and for God's sake do not turn learning into a trauma, which is precisely what schools do.

'Nuff said.

[XNavyNuke]

Example: When he asks me about the moon, I actually spend an hour explaining it to him, with videos, diagrams, back-and-forth conversation, etc. He absolutely eats it up! Same thing with all topics.... he really is a little scientist. So far I can tell he's into rocketry, space travel, astronomy, and electronics....

Excellent! May I suggest that you get a subscription to Make.
XNN

[angelatc]

I recommend the charter, but of course do what's best for your family.

Look - the resident socialist is pushing for charter school. That right there should tell you that home school is the better choice.

[Ender]

We decided to go with Homeschooling! My wife and I took several different homeschooling resources and compiled a custom curriculum for my boy. It will cover the basics like reading, writing, science, math, etc. But I find he learns the most when we "unschool" and just start talking about things he is interested in.

Example: When he asks me about the moon, I actually spend an hour explaining it to him, with videos, diagrams, back-and-forth conversation, etc. He absolutely eats it up! Same thing with all topics.... he really is a little scientist. So far I can tell he's into rocketry, space travel, astronomy, and electronics....

I was unschooled- now I have 3 Master Degrees.

Let him follow his interests- he will become more educated than any kid that's ever gone to public school as well as most homeschoolers.

[Eagles' Wings]

We decided to go with Homeschooling! My wife and I took several different homeschooling resources and compiled a custom curriculum for my boy. It will cover the basics like reading, writing, science, math, etc. But I find he learns the most when we "unschool" and just start talking about things he is interested in.

Example: When he asks me about the moon, I actually spend an hour explaining it to him, with videos, diagrams, back-and-forth conversation, etc. He absolutely eats it up! Same thing with all topics.... he really is a little scientist. So far I can tell he's into rocketry, space travel, astronomy, and electronics....

You are a very blessed family. Please keep this thread going with more that is going well.

[Eagles' Wings]

+rep for interacting with your kid!

I'd give ya' more if they'd let me..

Way too many whistle-dick dads out there today!

You put things so well. :-)

[jllundqu]

Bought him a cool book on the solar system last night... read it while drinking hot cocoa. He fell asleep talking about how there's no air in space so we need to bring more plants to make more air.

Love that lil man.

[Eagles' Wings]

Bought him a cool book on the solar system last night... read it while drinking hot cocoa. He fell asleep talking about how there's no air in space so we need to bring more plants to make more air.

Love that lil man.

The solar system is so awesome. We still go out at night with the telescope and look at the sky. This is a lifelong enjoyment.

[Romulus]

Is he an only child? If so, I would socialize him well if you do homeschooling. If it were me and I could afford it, I would do that private school. I'm all about the concept of homeschooling but it often leaves them real socially awkward.

[heavenlyboy34]

I don't have enough experience to make a good suggestion, but I have an anecdote-my parents taught me to read at home (a type of home schooling) and I was always well ahead of my grade level in reading, writing, and comprehension.

[jllundqu]

Is he an only child? If so, I would socialize him well if you do homeschooling. If it were me and I could afford it, I would do that private school. I'm all about the concept of homeschooling but it often leaves them real socially awkward.

We have a 8 month old daughter too. I'm not at all concerned about socialization. He plays club soccer, music class, sign language class, and karate. Not to mention playing with neighbors and play dates with friends. I think the "socially akward" stigma is bunk... something people say to dissuade people from homeschooling.

[AnarchoCapitalist]

Homeschool.

/thread

[RJB]

We decided to go with Homeschooling!

Awesome! You won't regret it!

To add what the above people said, you guys will feel more like a family rather than opponents. The pecking order and peer pressure from classmates as well as the condescending manner many teachers speak to children as if they aren't just young but mentally slow tends to ruin the beauty of childhood.

After a few years of being around homeschool families, you'll be able to spot homeschooled kids, and not just by them wearing gingham clothes They are usually active but well-behaved. There is an honesty about them where they don't put on obviously facades (hip-hop, too-cool etc.) Of course life isn't perfect but a homeschool family unit is the natural state of being.