Is it possible to partially homeschool?

In my state it is. In this state a parent may send in a homeschooling child for any class(es) they wish and keep them out of others.

There are many excellent homeschooling sites on the Net. Do a search and you’ll find information specific to your state and its laws regarding homeschoolers.

That’s the key bit of information.

Also realize that there are *many* other social avenues (including homeschooling groups) that you can develop that are more constructive than the ones offered to LD kids in school.

Also, if possible, I would like to continue to send my son for PE, Foods— the “fun” classes and take the onerous ones for myself. I would probably have him tutored for Alegbra, basically since I hate it not to mention don’t remember most of it. About how many hours do you think we would have to spend each day on, for instance, Language Arts, Reading, Social Studies, etc. for a now- 7th grader. If we do this, it would be for 8th grade.

Thanks!

In our area which is the Sierra Foothills a home schooled child is not allowed to particpate in public school classes or PE. I have tried and they are very adamant about this. However, there are charter schools in CA that offer quite a bit of extra curricular activities and classes. You coudl probably find a algebra class for your ds. The charter I am in is www.hiscs.org if you are interested.

Also since your son is older he will probably be pretty self sufficient in most areas. Once you get him going and then be avaible for help he may be able to work independently somewhat. The amount of time spent depends on the type of home schooling you choose. It sounds like you will be following a pretty traditional method so I would guess 3-4 hours a day.
Annette

In our area which is the Sierra Foothills a home schooled child is not allowed to particpate in public school classes or PE. I have tried and they are very adamant about this. However, there are charter schools in CA that offer quite a bit of extra curricular activities and classes. You coudl probably find a algebra class for your ds. The charter I am in is www.hiscs.org if you are interested.

Also since your son is older he will probably be pretty self sufficient in most areas. Once you get him going and then be avaible for help he may be able to work independently somewhat. The amount of time spent depends on the type of home schooling you choose. It sounds like you will be following a pretty traditional method so I would guess 3-4 hours a day.
Annette

Hi Annette, we are in the Bay Area. I had a feeling we wouldn’t be able to do middle school partime, but I think my son would happily give up PE and so forth just to cut his school day from 6 to 3-4 hours. There are probably enough programs out there to satisfy him in that regard. We actually tried a charter school for 6th grade, but my son missed his friends from elementary school so much, that he just gave up. This was a Waldorf-based school, and some of their activities and routines were just too alien to my son after five years of conventional school. I will check into that Web site…thanks!
Adrienne

AC, I answered you in depth about homeschooling hours in another thread but I did want to tell you about taking extra cirriculars at school. Our school, who would not help us in the slightest inside the school walls, said they were proud of the fact that they allowed homeschoolers to participate in extra cirriculars! So I think it completely depends on the particular school district. The woman who talked to me as I pulled her out of school said it’s a great idea to involve my daughter in drama, to keep her involved with kids in her district. So make sure you ask. But I was where you were about partial homeschooling about a month ago…worrying about science labs, home-ec, PE etc and then realized there were many other ways to handle all that stuff without it completely crushing us. What convinced me was when the woman at the cyber school told me they supply dead frogs and a complete science lab for your home! All that stuff is available online, but doesn’t come with mean, unruly kids, bad teachers and ridiculous homework!

Of course you could always hunt your own frogs …

Thank you…although I don’t think my daughter will like that any better than coming in the mail. Since I told her that the science lab would even include dead frogs, she is uncomfortable every time we get a homeschool package in the mailbox!

Well, I was being half serious, half joking.

You know, I went all through school and a science degree and never once dissected a frog or anything else. Biology was not my subject at the time (got into first aid much later) and my schools didn’t go much into labs before high school.

On the other hand, my cabin-mates at camp went crazy over frog-hunting one summer. I wish I had released the frogs — they drove us nuts trying to escape and I realize now this was very cruel to them.

Each to his/her own, I guess.

I was half serious in that you can generally find or make or replace 90% of school materials yourself; it doesn’t need to be a big deal. I was half joking in that it would be a bit extreme to go out on a frog hunt if you’re city dwellers and might offend some people’s sensibilities (oh, gross, mom!) — but of course if you *wanted* to, it would be a lot more educational to see the pond environment than sitting in a room memorizing trivia about it.

Actually, as a child, I *grew* frogs…toads to be more precise. I lived on a large ranch in South Dakota, and one very wet spring we captured toad eggs and watched them develop tails, legs and then hop away. We had to provide the right environment as they matured so it was very educational and I don’t think our parents appreciated our dedication. Toads are alot more fun for kids because they aren’t as slimy, and sit more quietly and comfortably in your hand. My poor citified daughter would probably not consent to this type of hands on science!