We have some big changes going on in our household regarding of the kids' education. I think that these changes will be good for all involved at this point in our lives. As with any change there comes some uncertainty and nervousness, but when I step back and look at what is going to be happening I feel good about most of what will be taking place.
Andy is going to still be homeschooled. He has zero desire to attend public school and I am not going to force the issue with him. For a while he did not think that he was going to go to college, but he is now reevaluating that stance as he has taken an interest in engineering. He did some research on what kind of training/higher education needed to get a job in the engineering field, and he found that the fields that he was most interested in needed at least a Bachelors Degree, but maybe even a Masters. So, we will be working with him to get him as prepared as we possibly can for the next steps in his life while also enjoying the time we have with him this last school year of his at home. I don't know what his final plans will be beyond high school and I am okay with him still deciding. Andy has always been one to take his time with any major life move. (Heck, he was 11 days late beyond his due date, and only came out because he was forced too!)
Joshua is going back to public school for at least this year. Part of this decision is because in Indiana in order to play high school sports you have to attend at least one class at the local high school. Each district can determine if they are going to require more than the state minimum of 1 class. Our district requires full time attendance in order to be able to play sports. The other reason he is going to attend the local high school is because he just wants to try out the public school experience. He has already said that he knows three months into this he is going to hate getting up/going to school - just like every other high school kid - but he wants the experience anyway. Believe it or not, the local school district almost didn't allow Josh to enroll in their school because he will not be eligible to receive a public school diploma and they didn't want that black mark on their record. (I guess federal funding is partially given on high school graduation rates? Josh would have been considered a non-graduate because he will not have earned enough credits by the end of his senior year to graduate with a public school diploma. He WILL be receiving a homeschool diploma which is just as good to gain admittance to most colleges and universities as a public school diploma. Anyway, the deal I made with the local high school - with Josh's permission - was that Josh would attend their public school through fall semester of his senior year and then withdraw from their school, finish out his last semester at home as a homeschool student, and then enroll in college with a homeschool diploma. This way the public school is not going to get a black mark because Josh will have withdrawn instead of not graduated, Josh will be able to play high school soccer his junior and senior year, and he will have been able to experience "real" high school. ) Josh starts school on Tuesday, July 31st. The bus comes at 6:59 am. He is in for a RUDE awakening! He is excited and we are excited for him. It took a little while for me to come around to liking the idea, but this is what he needs, so I will brush aside my trepidation in order for him to have this experience.
Sarah will be attending the Indiana School for the Blind and Visually Impaired on a part time basis. She will still be homeschooled, but will be going up to the school for the blind for portions of the first two weeks of each month to be around other kids like her, receive mobility training, and also technology training. She will be a part of their Short Course program. She is so excited, and Bob and I are so excited for her. We took a tour of the facility yesterday, and both Bob and I told Sarah that the school looks like Hogwarts. It is beautiful. She will be beginning her classes there on August 6th. The only drawback is that school starts at 7:45 am and it is about 45 minutes away, so she too, will be in for quite a shock when she has to get up at 6 am on ISBVI school days.
Finally, my Elizabeth is going to stay home with me for at least another year. I had asked her if she wanted to attend the public school here and she thought about it, but decided that this was not the year for her to do so. I am completely okay with that as I feel that she is not quite ready yet for middle school life. Like my Andy, Elizabeth is a sensitive beautiful soul that needs just a bit more tending to before letting her go out into the world. I am happy to have her here with me. We will reevaluate her educational needs next summer to see if being home is still the best place for her to be.
This is going to be our best year yet. Last year was by far our worst year which was why I was so hesitant to continue to homeschool the kids this year, but Andy convinced me to keep doing it, so I will. I feel better after a couple month break. All of our books have been ordered and are sitting in their respective shelves ready to go. Josh has attended orientation, gotten his school issued lap top, schedule, and is also ready to go.
Andy will be in 12th grade. Josh will be in 11th grade. Sarah will be in 8th grade. Elizabeth is going to be in 6th grade.
Subject wise the three kids who will be home will be studying:
Science
Math
History
Braille/Latin
Great Books
Logic
Language Arts
We will begin homeschooling next Tuesday and will homeschool on the days that Josh has school since Indiana law is pretty lax compared with other states, and only requires that I keep track of the number of days that I homeschool the kids.
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