Fall/Winter 2019/2020 2019-2020 Guide to Homeschool Friendly Colleges & Services Homeschooling Marketplace INSIDE THIS ISSUE: The Growth of Homeschooling · Understanding Homeschool Styles Supporting Each Other · Paying Allowance to Kids And MORE….. BE CHALLENGED. BE VALUED. BE TRANSFORMED. One of the things that appealed to me was the academic rigor “ of Union. I was looking for a Christian school that would push and challenge me. Union does that. Plus, coming from the personalized education of homeschooling was a really smooth transition. Union really does value each student.” LEAH BUSLER Public relations major Chandler, Arizona BEGIN YOUR JOURNEY AT uu.edu/homeschool BE TRANSFORMED Table of Contents Publisher: HSP Publishing [email protected] Advertising: [email protected] Web Design: Keith Graham Graphic Design: Minuteman Press Northwest Contact Information: Homeschooling Parent PO Box 2566, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 760-496-8450 YOUR FUTURE STARTS TODAY In This Issue…. PG 4 The Times They Are A Changin’ PG 6 Line Up Your Resources Before You Need Them PG 11 What’s Your Homeschooling Style? HOMESCHOOL GRADES 70+ ONLINE FRIENDLY 9-12 COURSES PG 17 Why Is It Important For Your Home Educational Child To Have An International Outlook? PG 20 Whether Or Not To Give Kids An Allowance Can Be A Polarizing Topic APPLY TODAY dualenrollment.erau.edu And more…. ROEI noun 1. Return on educational investment 2. Walsh PREPARING STUDENTS FOR SUCCESS IS WHAT WALSH IS ALL ABOUT. It’s where academic excellence, career building and an outstanding employment rate come together. A bachelor’s degree in business from Walsh bridges real-world understanding with a nationally-ranked business curriculum. Whether you attend online or on-ground, you’ll receive personal attention in a small class setting. walshcollege.edu According to Kyle Greenwalt, associate profes- sor in the department of teacher education at Michigan State University, and author of Home/Schooling: Creating Schools that Work for Kids, Parents, and Teachers, the home- schooling landscape in the United States has changed since the 1980s. The move- ment emerged as an organized public movement, primarily led by evangelical Christians. As the number of homeschooling families has grown over the years, it has also diversified. Today, homeschoolers are as diverse as the population, and the growth is attributable to the plethora of choices for online instruction and the opportunity to participate in some public school classes and activities. Sociologists Philip Yang and Nihan Kayaadi assert that it’s impossible to assume anything about the religious beliefs, political affiliations, or financial status of homeschooling families anymore. Data from the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) provide further corroboration. In 2008, the NCES found that only 36 percent of the homeschooling families in their survey chose “the desire for religious or moral instruction” as their primary reason for their decision to homeschool. At the same time, other reasons, such as a concern about the school environment, were just as important to many homeschooling families. Why Expansion? Greenwalt contends the expansion of homeschooling has been driven, at least in part, by changes in the public school system. For example, changes in technology have brought about the rise of online charter schools, which utilize remote online instruction to serve students. In other words, students can now be educated in their homes at public expense. In some states, homeschoolers can attend school for part of the day, and take Advanced Placement (AP) courses in any range of subjects. AP courses are popular with many families because they allow students to earn college credit while still in high school. While some educators are critical about the increasing number of homeschoolers, others view it in a more positive light, says Greenwalt. Many educators believe that homeschooling can be more respon- sive to a child’s individual needs and interests while taking advantage of learning experiences that naturally arise at home and in the community. In 2008, the NCES found that only 36 percent of the homeschooling families in their survey chose “the desire for religious or moral instruction” as their primary reason for their decision to homeschool. At the same time, other reasons, such as a concern about the school environment, were just as important to many homeschool families. 4 In addition, homeschoolers in many states have access to public school interscholastic sports. That’s not all. They can, in addition, opt to take certain public school offerings. If you have questions on what the regulations are in your state, The Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) publishes, “Laws Concerning Participation of Homeschool Students in Public School Activities.” (https://hslda.org/con- tent/docs/nche/Issues/E/Equal_Access.pdf) But What About Socialization? If you’ve ever discussed homeschooling for more than three minutes, you’ve undoubtedly heard the “socialization” question. For whatever reason, people who haven’t seriously considered homeschooling seem to picture children in windowless rooms toiling away all day on an abacus. Academics have studied homeschooling for decades, and research shows that homeschooled children are generally significantly better “socialized” than their institutionally-schooled counterparts. According to the Pea- body Journal of Education, research has shown that parents of homeschoolers “provide their children with a variety of social opportunities outside the family.” As a result, “compared to children attending conventional schools … [homeschoolers] have higher quality friendships and better relationships with their parents and other adults.” (The Changing Face of Homeschoolers - Learning Liftoff. https://www. learningliftoff.com/the-changing-face-of-homeschoolers/) That’s not to say that homeschooling isn’t challenging; it doesn’t work for everyone. But if you think it’s a direction you’d like to take, you’re likely to find support groups in your area who will help navigate your path. HOME AWAY FROM HOME #1 ranked housing in KS Approximately 60+ areas of study 100% of traditional undergraduates receive institutional scholarships Schedule a visit with us! (316) 295-5100 | [email protected] friends.edu/homeschool Accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and a member of the North Central Association, 230 S. LaSalle Street, Suite 7-500, Chicago, IL 60604; www.ncahlc.org; 1-800-621-7440. 5 Is tutoring the right choice for your child and your family? When your child struggles to master academic concepts it leads to frustration for the student and the parents. This disconnect is concerning on many levels. The students often lack confidence when they are unable to make the needed connections to the material that they are learning. Students also have an inability to communicate their frustrations. Parents feel like they are unable to help their children to succeed. This situation generally will get progressively more and more serious if it is not addressed promptly. Many families find that having the student meet with a professional tutor helps to put their children back on track. Development of foundational academic skills - regardless of the subject - is critical at every stage of learning. Deficiencies in math or reading or organizational skills at an early stages of education, for example, will invariably lead to greater challenges in the academic process. It is important to learn and master these skills at the time they are first presented to the student. Unfortunately it is difficult for a child to know when they are skill deficient and it is also difficult for the parent to recognize and assess the appropriate levels of competency. This is why professional support, like tutoring, or a consultation with an educational professional is so important at all levels of your child’s education. A simple evaluation can determine areas of need and enable the tutor to make recommendations for remediation. Further, in reality, and often because they want to please us as parents, children are reluctant to communicate their struggles and their frustrations. An educational professional, like a tutor, can create a ’safe place’ for the student to candidly discuss their issues and how these issues are affecting their ability to learn and to succeed with their academics. More importantly, the tutor is capable of doing a proper evaluation of the student’s strengths and weaknesses. Fortunately, with the beginning of a new academic school year, there is a fresh start and this is the typically a great time to introduce new ideas, new concepts and tutoring to your homeschooler. The time with the tutor may be spent reinforcing areas in which they might need some help academically (math, reading, science, writing, etc) which will enable them to keep them moving forward academically and the time may also provide structure for 6 time management, or information management for course material and also to help them maintain their confidence throughout the school year. And finally, If your child has been diagnosed with a learning issue (ADHD, dyslexia, etc), they often have to work harder to stay on track and they require a structure that is very important for their success. A tutor experienced in working with and teaching children with learning disabilities is skilled in teaching children and in presenting information with strategies that are more effective and that are easier for your child