Need to decide soon re homeschooling

[Tanikit]

My DD (4.5 years) is due to start kindergarten (or grade R as it is called here) next year. South Africa has a terrible school system and most of the public schools here will see people arriving to enrol their English children and suggest they go elsewhere simply because they know the school is not giving a good education. Apparently only 7% of the student population has English as a first language at home so if you send your child to an English public school very few of the children there actually speak English which means many classes are remedial to begin with. I won't go into more detail about it here - needless to say very few South Africans who want their children to have a good education will even consider sending their children to public schools which leaves only 2 options: private schools and homeschooling.

In order to send my child to a private school I would have to go back to work full time and to do that I would also have to send my second child to school which would double the fees. She went for an assessment recently and these are the things they asked or did with her:

1. Draw a picture - she wrote some of her name for them too to label her picture
2. Catch a beanbag three times - she did this fine
3. Count as high as you can - I think she counted beyond 30 - maybe they stopped her as she can count much higher
4. Identify shapes
5. Talk about what she did that day (I suspect they wanted full sentences but that is always how she speaks and has done so since 2 years)

And that was about it - so they have no clue that she knows all her letters never mind that she is actually reading at a third grade level and will be well beyond that by January next year. And while she can count higher than they might have expected and knows her shapes, they don't even know she can identify numerals and do addition and subtraction, tell time to the half hour and a whole host of other math skills that are beyond kindergarten level.

So now we must decide. But it is more complicated than that because here I have had her booked into that school since she was 18 months old and we are 6th on the waiting list - if we give up her place now there is very little chance of getting her into any good private school (many of them have waiting lists for children who have not even been born yet) so it is a long term decision - if I homeschool I must more than likely do so through til high school or even all the way through as many high schools here do not like accepting homeschooled children (I am not sure why)

And at the moment I am homeschooling her while working two mornings a week and occassionally doing week long locums - which means if I am doing formal homeschooling I would have to do so year round to be able to fit everything in and still be able to work a bit (and I must for financial reasons and also to maintain my registration for my degree)

I do worry about the socialisation though she is at the moment going to art class and a kids group and if she is home for grade R then I would attend a homeschool co op once a week.

Does anyone have any thoughts on this - there doesn't seem to be a clear right answer here. Is it possible to homeschool the elementary grades on 3 (possibly 4 days a week if we do work on Saturdays too)

[Scruff]

Hello Tanikit

Thinking of you with this difficult decision that you need to make.  If there was no financial issue (You didn't have to work or private schools were reasonably priced), what choice would you make?

What school have you applied for?  With regards to the assessment, perhaps they were just doing minimum assessments that they do for most kids as opposed to assessing how much she knows?

If you do choose to home school for primary school, I suspect that high schools here might change their attitude towards kids that were home schooled just because it is becoming a lot more common that it has been in the years gone by?

What time would you get home if you have to work full day?  Personally for me, I would feel quite a lot of pressure on me if I was working half day and then still have the responsibility to home school when back from work.  I have a lot of admiration for all home schooling parents who are very disciplined to educate different aged children as well as run a household.

If she does go to school, you could still do advanced learning with her when she is home.  I hope that the school she might go to takes her knowledge level into consideration. (Teachers giving her extra or other stimulating tasks) I was able to read before school, so my Grade 1 teacher sent me to the Std 1 teacher to get books to read.  I do know that "they" don't encourage learning to read before school here but I purely think it is for ease for the teacher.  There is no chance of that happening with my little one because she is only 4.5 months and we are already doing Little Reader ;-)

Sorry I don't have any good advice, only a lot of questions.

[MamaOfWill]

Hi TannieKit  

Ya, schools in SA hey, we can only cry about it.

It really does sound like a tough choise you have to make right now.  Personally I think that going with the private school would be best, I have friends and family with kids in private schools.  Her teachers will soon learn your child is ahead and they will give her some challenges, you can be sure of that.  You've done a fantastic job giving your kids a great start in life and education.  I personally feel that I want to do my 6 to 8 years at home with kids, but I too want to have a working life and some personal success beyond my children, both for myself and as an "example" to my kids.

On the other hand, you starting to work fulltime might not be in your younger child's best intrest.  

I'm hoping to read some good advice from the other moms here, because these are all questions that I'm struggling with myself.  

[Kerileanne99]

Tanikit-I certainly empathize with the dilemma as we are having school issues much sooner than we expected to, although it looks as though we will be leaning towards Homeschooling because of the peculiarities of our current local, in Central Texas....
So while I have very little knowledge of the issues you face in S. Africa, I thought it might help you in your decision to know what soothed my panic attack!

I am thrilled with the idea of homeschooling A whilst she is little!  In the US, I think we have a tremendous amount of pressure to focus on 'socialization', as in, if you don't send the kid to preschool you will traumatize them for life!  I recently read a book basically premising that whilst a certain amount of socialization is important, the new focus on it came about as homes became dual-income families and went off to work...the 'necessity' of it and emphasis came about only as a popular means to assuage the guilt and anxiety of moms forced/ encouraged to put the kids in day care...not a popular opinion, and I am 100% sure this is not the case with many programs, especially things like Momtessori programs designed around the child!

Unfortunately, not all Montessori (or other!) programs are created equally, as in the case where we live!!!I was actually told that the toddler program here could 'not meet her needs', and the 3-6 group has such a shortage of toddlers that it is really a 5-6 group...as the things I was told go against every Momtessori principle I know, I am quite glad I will have the opportunity to keep her home...


Hence my PANIC ATTACK    As you touched on, it is one thing to consider homeschooling a LO and quite another to commit to YEARS of scary responsibility to homeschool all the way through! Serious Kudos to those able to make the decision from the beginning!

After much researching, and a chance article in a UK paper whilst visiting Hubby's family, I stumbled upon an option that allowed me to breathe again
I found several British Online Schools that cater to Expats and those residing in locals not always conducive to a great education.  They have a vast number of resources, even 'online community rooms' where the kids can hang out and chat!  They even have annual get-togethers for the kids and offer participation in your own local activities for credit...there are a few that we like in he UK alone, surely more in other countries.  Some are pretty pricy, others pretty reasonable!

Anyway, maybe not what you are looking for, but as it helped me in the long term picture, I thought I would share!
Here is just one of our favorites:
http://www.briteschool.co.uk/

[Mandabplus3]

Any mum who can survive and thrive on the learning long enough to teach a kid to read and do some math up to first grade level,  obviously has a passion for education. A passion is all you need to homeschool successfully. Please don't be worried about whether you can do it. Don't be worried about whether you can do it in 3 days a week either. School is 5 days a week minus a day and a half in lunch and play breaks anyway! Plus you have to keep the attention of 2 kids not 30 before you start to teach!
The real question is do you want to go back to work? How important to you is it? Is the amount you do know enough o keep you happy? I question going  back to work full time to pay for private school, will you resent it in years to come or is your career fulfilling to you?
As to the test they did, I wouldn't be too concerned about that. It was a fairly simple school readiness test. It isn't a test for her ceiling. That testing is usually done after the child has started school. In the first few weeks of first year. However I wouldn't let them of the hook that easily either. If it was me I would book in another interview, ask for the grade level teacher to be present and present your concerns. Then they can let you know if they are happy to take on the challenge or if home schooling is your best option. You really can't make an informed choice until you know what type of education they offer...

[Tanikit]

Thanks for the responses. Scruff's question about what we would do if it were not a financial decision was possibly the one I should have been asking all along however I asked my husband it and our answers differ - I would homeschool. He said he would send the children to school.

Yes, I do think it was a minimum assessment though here they do not seem to test children - they all just learn the same thing and I know this because I have a friend whose child was reading before school and he was given no extra help or teaching at this same school.

I am not worried about throwing away a career - I prefer being home with the children and grew up in a household of teachers so teaching comes naturally, however I do have to work some to pay for certain essentials here and also because I need to earn continuing education points to remain registered so that I can work and that information is very difficult to get hold of if I am not working some. The hours of my work make it extremely difficult to work full time and still have to fetch children from school anyway and we do not have family help so I would need a halfday job anyway - the after care options at our schools only run til about 17:00 or 17:30 and I am often working til 19:00 in a full day job. If I had to go back full time just to pay for private school I would resent it because it would mean I would not see my children enough - I'd basically be seeing them late evenings and not even all weekend.

The more I write about this the more I realise I do want to homeschool. I am just not sure if it right for my children and my family. I also worry that for my husband this is a financial decision because for me spending money on education is a top priority - I feel their education will influence most of their decisions later in life and I do not want their opportunities decreased because of a money issue. So for me if homeschooling is cheaper has nothing to do with it - I want my children to get the best education and the best opportunities and I do not want homeschool to limit what they can do anymore than private/public school would.

[Mandabplus3]

I am reading this and feel you swaying towards home schooling. You have said their education is a priority and that the school isn't going to give them the advanced education they need.
Just to rock the boat would it be possible to hire a registered/recognized teacher/tutor to have your children on the day or days you are at work? That is bound to look in your favor when you eventually apply to high school. That way your kids were privately tutored rather than home schooled.
It's a long road, hubby needs to be OK with your choice for this one. Mine is against it that's why my kids go to school.

[Tanikit]

My husband is actually not anti me homeschooling them - its just that I think he is more pro it because he thinks it will save money and also because DD has been doing well with my tuition up til now. He was actually not sure whether to send DD for the grade R assessment at all as he thought we would probably homeschool, but I would prefer his reasoning to be more than money - maybe it is, but men do often think in terms of finances first.

Will look into having a tutor though they are hard to find around here especially for the early grades. I may also consider an au pair who can at least supervise school work when I can get them more independent (probably by middle school) 

[Dr Miles R Jones]

Tanikit my heart goes out to you.  It is often a difficult decision to go the homeschooling route.  My input would be that schools, even many private schools although they are better, fall prey to the Social Suggestive Norm.  That means what they figure your child should learn at each stage of the game.  Normally the only thing lower than their objectives is the actual achievement resulting from their low expectations.  If you have 3 or 4 days a week you can do a much better job assuming you don't go by their methods, materials and objectives. 

We set up a non-profit institute for homeschoolers (jonesgeniuses.com) so they would have a transcript from a certified teacher the next time they have to go back into the system.  It helps.

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