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How to Make Your Homeschoolers Good Citizens

Yesterday I addressed the assumption that homeschoolers may turn out to be poor citizens. Realizing that this accusation is just another way to make homeschooling appear inferior, just like the socialization issue, it is still important for homeschoolers to work to invalidate such statements. Helping your homeschooled children become good citizens is actually quite simple. The most important thing you can do is model good citizenship. Here are some steps you can take. Teach students history of their country, state, and locality. Also, teach them history according to their heritage. This of course can happen in the course of homeschooling. … Continue reading →

Can Homeschoolers Be Good Citizens?

I recently came across a conversation on one of my homeschooling email lists about homeschooling and citizenship. One woman stated that in her response letter from the school district regarding her intent to homeschool, she got a message back that essentially said that the school would no longer be held responsible for the child’s education nor the type of citizen they would become. Such a statement assumes that without the help of public schools, a child would surely be in danger of becoming a poor citizen. That seems like a large pill to swallow, doesn’t it. What many of us … Continue reading →

What Your Second Grader Should Know in Social Studies

* Holidays and festivals Look for an upcoming blog in the Homeschoolers’ Advent Calendar regarding great ideas for celebrating a multi-ethnic Christmas season. * Patriotic celebrations While it’s a little young to teach all of the history surrounding Independence Day, I suggest reading several related books: –The Story of America’s Birthday by Patricia A. Pingry –Hooray for the 4th of July by Wendy Watson –Apple Pie for 4th of July by Janet S. Wong –Anything related that was written by Jean Fritz * Communities in other lands: past and present * Family and family history * Families around the world … Continue reading →

Do you think homeschooling parents are strange

My husband and I don’t discuss homeschooling much. We just have an understanding about it. It is something we do, and we live our lives around it. It is good; and that is that. A recent rare discussion however enlightened me on some of the things people think about homeschooling that I hadn’t even realized. Apparently he discusses homeschooling often with co-workers and clients, and they say the darndest things to him. One thing that these corporate type people have said to my husband is that that homeschool parents are strange. Basically, they just find us creepy. The reason we … Continue reading →

Will President Obama have a Negative Effect on Homeschooling?

As a homeschooler in a Bible belt state, I know that Presidential Elect Barack Obama had no bigger opposition than the homeschooling community. I have the email inbox to prove it. Sure, I ran into a few homeschoolers here and there who were for Obama, but the vast majority felt that he would be bad for the institution of homeschooling. Reasons homeschoolers gave for voting against Presidential Elect Barack Obama are that he is for early childhood education, sex education in schools, and was not the candidate that a good Christian would vote for. (Yes, people said this to my … Continue reading →

Mommy, Can I Be the President Some Day?

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I remember wondering what I’d say if my daughter asked me whether she could become the President of the United States when she grew up. I hoped she wouldn’t. It’s not really that important, of course. Who in their right mind would want to be President, with all the criticism, loss of privacy, danger of being assassinated, responsibility for so many lives? Well, okay, I used to want to be. It just seemed like the fastest way to save the world, like I wanted to when I was an idealistic teenager. But I soon realized that I didn’t have the … Continue reading →

Fourth Grade Social Studies Curriculum

As I have mentioned before, you have many options when teaching social studies to homeschoolers. You may prefer a chronological approach that is popular among classical homeschoolers (I like it too), or you can teach according to what is taught in schools nationwide. This list of lesson topics comes from world book encyclopedia, but suggestions are added by me. Types of community life: To learn about community life, spend time in the community. Participate in volunteer opportunities. Go to local political meetings and rallies. Spend time in local recreation areas talking to people. History and development of the local state: … Continue reading →

But What am I Supposed to Teach?

This is one of the first questions new homeschoolers ask. How are we supposed to know what to teach? Some homeschoolers will turn to the public school system and some systems are very happy to lend texts and materials. Other districts are not so accommodating to homeschoolers, but I have to posit that if what the public school was doing, was working, then perhaps one wouldn’t be homeschooling. In any case, there are several places to look for information on standards and what you should be teaching. Remember that in the younger grades, it is better to look at the … Continue reading →

Homeschooling in New York

This is not legal advice. As someone who lives in a state that is highly regulated, I cannot emphasize enough the need for you to advocate for yourself and make a point to know your state laws. While the school district will most likely provide you with a printed copy of the laws and regulations for home schooling, a local home schooling group can be a valuable asset when it comes to navigating your way through the system. As you likely know if you’ve read my blogs, this is where we are from. New York state has quite extensive regulations … Continue reading →