OT - anyone here homeschool your kids?

I have to agree with you on this. As a former Special Educator, and an admitted critic of homeschooling, the main point that I always seem to have the most trouble conveying to people is being a teacher is more than, as you put it, memorizing the facts or steps. We spend years learning how to educate - and, in my experience, this crucial piece is often missed in homeschooling. 

Kelly -
My educated (no pun intended) opinion - I think it's important to get to the root of the anxiety for your nephew. So many things can create anxiety in a child. I don't believe until it's root is determined is considering homeschooling appropriate. 

I'm actually not a critic of homeschooling.  When done with responsible/engaged parents for younger kids with physical, social, emotional, etc., issues, I think it can work wonderfully.  I  understand parents who want to make sure their child has a strong moral/ethical/religious background and homeschool for those reasons.  I even recognize that public school may not work for all older kids.  My concerns revolve around the notion that anyone can teach everything, especially at the more advanced levels.

I share the same moral and ethical code as my parents, but we do not share the same interests or skill sets.  Kids are not the identical blueprints of their parents and shouldn't have their potential limited because their parents do not see the value in (fill in the subject here).  There is no way I could address deeper-level, critical thinking questions in all subjects, and I have a pretty extensive educational background.  Just yesterday, I was asked questions that compared the Haymarket Riot to the current Occupy movement, how the recession of the 1890s compared to the recent recession, and the history of Libya/death of Qaddafi. If I were asked the same types of questions in Physics, Prob/Stats, or even British Literature, I know I couldn't do it.

Oh, I knew you were not a critic of homeschooling - I just wanted to make it clear that I was :) I am a firm believer in CE for educators, as we are required to do, and I don't necessarily believe that homeschooling parents get that piece. I also agree that not everyone can teach all subjects - in AZ where I live, educators choose an education path for early childhood education, elementary, secondary or special. Each phase has different criteria for educating, and I just don't see homeschoolers as being successful in being able to cover all the phases successfully.

Oh, I realize that teaching is more than just memorizing facts and parroting them to your students.  I guess what I was trying to say was, when the previous poster said in her experience parents often have trouble teaching subjects like math, was that if a parent is able to teach other subjects, the parent should then be able to learn the math and then teach it as well.  If a parent has no idea how to teach any subject, then no, just learning how to solve algebra equations is not going to make them good at teaching math.

How would you suggest going about getting to the root of his anxiety?  I think that school is probably the root of his anxiety.  How would we determine that for certain other than homeschooling him for a while and seeing if the anxiety went away?  And why would it be better to continue putting him in an anxiety-provoking situation every day while trying to determine the root cause?  Wouldn't it make more sense to remove him from the anxiety-provoking situation while trying to figure out the root cause?

Hi Kelly,

I think the suggestion I was trying to make was finding out why school is causing him anxiety if that is what it is. I read your background last night, and it's early so I apologize if you have already answered some of these questions...does he exhibit anxiety around others in groups outside of school? Is his inability to complete a task successfully cause anxiety, and at school it might manifest? I think those are the kinds of things I would explore. 

Some comments were made about socialization needing to be reserved for "outside school" - but that's not realistic. Humans by nature are social beings. It's natural and healthy for us to be exposed to new and challenging situations. I think most kids are anxious at school in the beginning. Some kids take a bit longer to adjust. I think the environment attendance at school provides is a great foundation for children to learn at a young age how to work with others, team build and problem solve. It sounds funny, but if you think about it, we deal with these skills daily as humans throughout our lives - and probably learn a lot of these skills at a very young age. I think the experience of being with others that are not part of our family is very important.

Again, this is all my opinion, but it's built from my education background and experience in the public school system. I hope you find out what is causing the anxiety with your nephew, and think that it's best to have him work with the school psychologist initially, or an external psychologist or counselor. 

Keep us posted on what is decided and how he progresses!

I started homeschooling my youngest child her freshman year in high school.  It was a fantastic experience.  I'm extremely disappointed I didn't realize how exciting and fullfilling it could be for the parent and the child.  There's a big homeschooling community in my area which has been a great resource for me.  In Texas, homeschooling is considered private school and goes by those regulations.  I know a lot of homeschoolers in our area also co-enroll in college courses while in high school because it's free and gets them a headstart.  Others are part of a one-day school that is taught by other parents for areas that they may not feel comfortable teaching (like chemistry or higher math).  I know the rules are different for each state.  For instance, in TN you have to have a degree in order to homeschool and there is regular state testing required.  If she decides to go that route, he can easily be reentered into school when he's older or may find that he's happier with home schooling and have no interest in going back to public school.   A good homeschooling network in her area and a willingness to let the first year be a learning curve for everyone will make it a great experience.

You do have to have a degree in Tennessee?  Wow.  In Ohio, you have to have a high school diiploma or GED, or else prove in some way that have enough knowledge that you could pass the GED test.  I dunno how you would prove that other than taking the test and passing it, but that's what the law is.

It may have changed but that was the law when I looked at it about 4 years ago.  We were considering a move there and I wanted to know the laws.  In Texas there are no real regulations or requirements other than that you are to teach good citizenship.  This link shows the laws in place for each state.

No idea how you'd prove you could pas the GED test either.  Goofy.

I am late to this post but this is a passionate subject for me.  Your nephew may just have a maturity issue, pretty normal at his young age.  I think there is no one size fits all as far as education and I believe people should do what works for them.  I will say as a parent of LD/ADHD/autism spectrum the LAST people who typically notice/act on an LD or difference is the parent, denial is very very powerful.  The last thing people should consider is advice I was given when my oldest was in first grade.  The teacher circled the section of the report card at conference that said "gets along w/others", "shares" etc.  She said they were the skills that determined success in life not the A or S in math etc.  Boy was she right!  A child can be very bright but w/o good social skills those talents and gifts can be overlooked and similarly a child w/learning difference, autism etc can make up for alot of "shortcomings" academically for lack of a better word with good social skills.  My LD children are engaging, compassionate and most importantly self-advocate.  They truly know what they need.  It has been at times a painful journey but has given me alot of insight into honoring each child's individual gifts as well as teaching them how to engage/maneuver around the inevitable bumps life puts in our path.  Resiliency is a very underestimated skill and it can be encouraged in everyone.
We are so busy proving "No one owns the fat, dumb, ugly kid" that we don't really look at the inate gifts the child has.  We are so busy trying to laundry list how bright, athletic, talented our children are we are not seeing gifts that are not measured by a test or a game or a dance recital.   Hopefully your sister will listen to her son and take cues from him and have patience.  It may work out just fine w/time but if it doesn't improve I hope she will work with her pediatrician and teachers to find a good balance for her son to be successful.  All the best.

It might be a maturity thing.  He is one of the youngest kids in his class, as his birthday came right before the cut off.  If he'd been born a week or two later, he would only be in kindergarten, not first grade this year.

He seems to get along well with others and he shares.  A couple months ago I stayed with my sister for a week and one day we made homemade ice cream.  He asked if he could invite the two kids that live next door over to share some ice cream with them.  I also went to the park one day with him and he played nicely with a little girl that was there, that he had never met before.  He doesn't seem particularly shy or awkward in social situations.