I have an 11 year son who is struggling in a classroom environment behaviorally. His grades are pass plus in almost all subjects and pass in everything else. He has adhd and odd. He is on the verge of being removed from regular class and put in a class with kids with behavior issues. It is a smaller class size and taught by a teacher who can actually help redirect him and work with him better when he gets angry and disruptive. He does show some anger at home with his brother, but for the most part I do not have problems with him at home. My husband and I are now looking at homeschooling for next year, depending on what happens for the remainder of this school year.
My concern is, I don't think I would be very good at it! I was a terrible student myself. I am Afraid I won't be able to teach them, especially as they go into higher grades. My other concern is how do I teach at home two different grade levels? My son with problems is 5th grade, and his sister is too (twins), but they both work at different speeds. My oldest is 6th grade. They all have excellent grades currently. Although my daughter has some language arts difficulty, she is still getting a B-.
Have any of you taken on homeschooling with these concerns?
I did though I didn't know my girl had ADHD at the time. We'd been told she had ADD but I thought that was bogus. Nor did I know she had PTSD. I did know she was depressed and often violent toward me. It's not easy. I highly recommend therapy and medication. I didn't want to try medication for a long time but I wish I had sooner. Watching her fight herself for six years was tough.
I didn't have as many kids as you, just two kids but both were able to go from elementary school through high school and get college scholarships.
Here is the thing, I hated school too and didn't do that well. You don't HAVE to teach them. You can get materials and that teach them or teach them to teach themselves and merely facilitate. You can also get materials that are for more than one grade and which have different requirements based on level for the students.
If the other kids are doing okay and happy you might leave them there while getting used to just homeschooling your son. You might also see how that special classroom works out for him. Regardless you CAN do this. It won't be easy but the more you relax and make it fun for you and the kids, the better it will be.
My boys are 12 (just turned) and 9. One is 3rd grade, the other 6th. I found that my oldest had a lot of gaps because things weren't covered in school - no history, geography, social studies in general. My youngest was going to be the same.
So, there's many subjects where I just teach them both the same stuff - history, geography, etc. In subjects where they are truly at different levels, such as math or reading, I assign work at their individual levels and help them understand it, then make myself available to answer questions. It's rare that I'm caught up with just one of them for an extended period of time, so they can wait a few minutes to ask a question.
As far as you not being a good student, so what? You can buy curricula, you can go online and almost always find a free, reliable resource that can teach you and/or your kids just about any skill, any topic, in any subject. You can enlist friends or family who are strong in your weak areas to help out.
The hardest part, and I know this was for me, will probably be letting go of the "classroom" mentality. It took me a long time to realize my kids learned better if they were allowed to move around a bit, stretch out on the floor, whatever, so we struggled for a bit as I tried to make them sit still, sit up, blah blah blah. But now that we've gotten beyond that, I've even been able to take them off the ADHD meds. Now, that's not always possible, so I'm not trying to imply you should look forward to that or that you're a failure if that doesn't happen. But you will find that the freedom that comes with homeschooling as opposed to sitting in a classroom will help to ease some of his ADHD symptoms, and that will make things easier on everyone.
Routine is also going to be pretty important. Knowing what to expect helps kids with ADHD a lot. We have a pretty set routine, starting at the same time every day and finishing around the same time every day - unless they choose to goof around and take longer. I try to approach things in the same order every day, too - reading, then sign language, then Italian, then math, and so on.
One of the things you will find as you investigate homeshooling, is that there are so many ways to approach it. You can try and duplicate public school (and go crazy) you can buy one curriculum or pick and choose from many, you can find on line courses, you can get curriclum on cds......
We use a cuuriculum that is called Robinson. It focuses on self teaching, and on the basics(reading ,writing ,math)
Blessing,
Jody Check Out The Writing Course
Welcome to the group. I was a terrible student, too. Like Bleached stated, the resources are out there. You have options. You can either learn it along with them, relearn it, or find a tutor, whether it is an IRL one or an online tutor. At these ages, the kids can be responsible to a certain degree for a part of their education. Heck, let them be in on the choice of curriculum. You will do great. Just take a deep breath.
My DD has ADHD/ADD, a mild case of Aspergers, and some sensory issues.
Thank you for all you responses and words of encouragement. I guess the unknown is freaking me out a bit, lol. I am glad this group is here and I can gather more information here and get myself prepared. Depending on how the meeting goes Monday with his school we will go from there. If this program seems to fit well, we will try that route first. Then I will have the summer to research home schooling vs. the program, if they have the program in middle school that is, since he will be going into 6th grade next year. He is on meds for his adhd currently and we are starting behavior therapy next week. So maybe all of it together will help bring him up to his potential, which I know he has. Thanks ladies!
He does not have a behavior issue. He is who he is and his classroom is only for a certain type of child. School can only accomadate those who are able to sit, shut up, and follow. Children who are thinkers, risk takers, movers and shakers do not fit into that mold they want to fill. There is nothing wrong with that. The schools refuse to bend to accomidate our kids who are "different" so they try to bend our kids instead.
Home educating in today's world is wonderful. You have the internet. You have things like Khan academy and online live curriculum to help you teach. I am a high school drop out with a GED and my kids are learning just fine beacuse if I cannot teach them something I find someone who can. I google a lot and research a ton. The library is your friend. Join a co-op. My son is currently taking a class in Economics through one of our co-ops. I cannot teach him that but there is someone out there who can.
Good Luck!
Thank you. I have thought that before. Guess with the school constantly telling me what he is or isn't doing, I had let myself loose sight of the fact that my son is an individual. An amazingly creative kid, who is full of life. Thanks so much for reminding me of that! :)
Quoting TinasTribe:He does not have a behavior issue. He is who he is and his classroom is only for a certain type of child. School can only accomadate those who are able to sit, shut up, and follow. Children who are thinkers, risk takers, movers and shakers do not fit into that mold they want to fill. There is nothing wrong with that. The schools refuse to bend to accomidate our kids who are "different" so they try to bend our kids instead.
Home educating in today's world is wonderful. You have the internet. You have things like Khan academy and online live curriculum to help you teach. I am a high school drop out with a GED and my kids are learning just fine beacuse if I cannot teach them something I find someone who can. I google a lot and research a ton. The library is your friend. Join a co-op. My son is currently taking a class in Economics through one of our co-ops. I cannot teach him that but there is someone out there who can.
Good Luck!
My 7 year old had many of the same issues you have concerning your 11 yr old. Even the smaller classes were not good enough. Homeschooling has been a blessing for my ADHD daughters. I teach two different grades and at the same time. I schedule what order they do which subjects so I can have one work independently while I support the other. Example handwriting and spelling can often be done independently while religion and math usually require more supervision and instruction. I assign timed reading for any book on their highest reading level while I work with another child. My toddler colors the whole 2-3 hours, or snacks or watches a movie, or play dough. Homeschooling is easier than it sounds, esp. if you follow a program. I use Seton Home Study (Catholic) but I know there are other programs out there. The best thing is, if I need help as teacher, I have someone I can call and get support! A paid professional in that subject!
New homeschool
- Threescoops
on Mar. 1, 2013 at 8:22 AM