First Real Step to Homeschooling

I made the first big step in our decision to homeschool yesterday - I ordered curriculum for AJU5 for kindergarten. I plan on starting VERY slowly once it arrives. That way we can do 1-2 lessons a week to get used to a more formal school life and still get kindergarten done by next May.

So, why did we decide to homeschool? My husband was set on it before we got married. I wasn't so sure. I had a great public school experience, and he had a so-so one (he homeschooled for high school). He had seen some things happening in education that I hadn't seen as much, partly because we grew up in two different states. The first year we lived here (and were married) I substitute taught in the local middle schools and high schools. By the end of that experience, I had decided that I didn't want to send my kids to those schools. There were so many things kids get exposed to (mostly from other students whose parents don't have the same values and expectations as us), and I didn't want my kids to be put through that. I still thought private schools would be a great option. Then, as I was teaching at the community college, I saw more and more that even the private schools aren't a great option. First is the price. My salary wouldn't cover the cost of 2 kids in many of these schools. Second is the fact that even the private schools have some of the same peer "teaching" that I didn't want. Third, I saw more and more the options of homeschooling in our area. There are co-ops, athletic teams, bands, and field trips. There is a graduation ceremony each year as well. So, by the time AJU5 was born, I had pretty much agreed that homeschooling was our best option.

Now on to what we are going to use. There are a number of good homeschooling curriculums out there. And you don't even have to use a curriculum if you don't want to. But, since I work part-time from home, having some things already decided for me was a nice option. Also, I had seen already in AJU5 that workbooks tend to work with her. Printed pages from the computer aren't as enticing. So, a little over a year ago I went searching for preschool curriculums. That is when I "stumbled" onto Horizon from Alpha Omega Publishing. They have a great preschool curriculum, but I decided we didn't need one. AJU5 had already mastered many parts of it, so the price tag on it made it not a great buy. Instead, we have been using the workbooks you can get from big box stores to work on writing letters, counting, and other basic skills. But, while I was looking at the PK material, I looked at the K material as well. I like that Horizon has math and reading/phonics as its two main subjects. It actually doesn't have science or history/social studies. But, that was a plus for me. I want to do more of a unit study for those (since we will have 3 kids in 3 grades before too long). With a unit study, all of the kids could learn the same big concepts from experiments, field trips, and literature. I could then expect different levels of learning from there. I looked at some other curriculums, like ABeka, Bob Jones, and single subject ones like Hooked on Phonics and Math U See, but I didn't love how the material was presented. Some were very watered down. others were designed more for a private school setting. I wanted something rigorous but still involved me in some of the teaching. Horizon seemed to have that. Their material goes on sale (as to most of the other companies) in April, so when I saw 20% off and free shipping, I went ahead and ordered the K phonics and reading, math, and health. Next year, if we like it, we will order the same "subjects" in first grade as well as the PK material for AJU6. AJU6 seems to be more "average" in terms of what he knows, and he likes to be like his sister. So, by the time he is 3-4 yo, I bet he will want to sit at the table with her when she is learning.

Hopefully everything will go smoothly. Technically AJU5 wouldn't start K here until the next year (August 2013), so if it takes us more than 1 year to complete K, it isn't the end of the world at all. I like that I won't have any pressure for sure.