Government School and Home Schooling

[XJ]

Just think of all the money we'll be saving when they reduce the education item on our property taxes

[beast556]

we just got the news last night, SUCKS big time. My wife is out of a job now and things are gonna get real tough for us. Pretty sure we will be selling our house and leaving colorado.

[JohnnyDrama]

I've been thinking about this a lot recently as well. I really feel bad for the kids as they will likely be the biggest losers. However, I think children have an opportunity to learn more by working with their parents than they do at a public school. The resources CS1983 put up look really good. "The Good and the Beautiful" looks better than anything I've seen in a public school for language arts. For what it is worth, the Engage New York math curriculum is available on line as well. You can preview the lessons and find one method that works and go with it. You don't have to go through the whole thing. That is what my daughter's teachers did.

These are interesting times. I can see the education system eating itself. Here is a tidbit for y'all.

Effective Sept. 1, 2018, educators endorsed in elementary, English, math, science and/or social studies seeking (or any middle level endorsement) to renew their professional license must complete or demonstrate completion of professional development activities equivalent to 45 clock/contact hours or three (3) semester hours in Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CLD) education that meets or exceeds the standards outlined in section 5.12-5.15 of 1 CCR 301-37. This requirement must only be completed once during the term of the educator's career. To find out more about these requirements, if and how they apply to you and what you'll need to do by when, visit the English Learner PD Requirements Information for Educators page.

This is from the CDE webpage. Much of this is geared toward exposing teachers (especially the new ones) to the disparity of education systems in the U.S. and the foundation of "privilege and oppression" (enculturation) upon which our public education system was built.

[Gman]

[Aloha_Shooter]

I've been on a big kick lately at work telling people to use the principles of effects-based operations or systems engineering. Figure out the effect you want then work backwards to determine what you need to do to get there. In terms of education, what do you want your kids to know at the end of the year? Are you prepping them to go to college? trade school? "find themselves"? Work out the curriculum from that. If said kid isn't a senior in high school then work out the plan for the years to get to the point you want them to be.

I would want a 17-year-old or 18-year-old kid to know the principles of algebra and trigonometry (and I'd really prefer they at least understand the principles behind first year calculus), be well versed in US history and at least familiar with the major events in Europe and Asia that influenced US history, familiar with basic science (biology, chemistry, physics, elementary statistics), and have had exposure to the first principles of art and music. S/he should also be familiar with basic shop tools and how to (safely) use them for projects around the house. Reading and writing using proper grammar at a (1970s) college freshman level. They don't have to like Shakespeare (I never did) but they should know why they like what they do -- what archetypes and the hero's journey are.

[Zundfolge]

I've been on a big kick lately at work telling people to use the principles of effects-based operations or systems engineering. Figure out the effect you want then work backwards to determine what you need to do to get there. In terms of education, what do you want your kids to know at the end of the year? Are you prepping them to go to college? trade school? "find themselves"? Work out the curriculum from that. If said kid isn't a senior in high school then work out the plan for the years to get to the point you want them to be.

I would want a 17-year-old or 18-year-old kid to know the principles of algebra and trigonometry (and I'd really prefer they at least understand the principles behind first year calculus), be well versed in US history and at least familiar with the major events in Europe and Asia that influenced US history, familiar with basic science (biology, chemistry, physics, elementary statistics), and have had exposure to the first principles of art and music. S/he should also be familiar with basic shop tools and how to (safely) use them for projects around the house. Reading and writing using proper grammar at a (1970s) college freshman level. They don't have to like Shakespeare (I never did) but they should know why they like what they do -- what archetypes and the hero's journey are.

In addition to those things (an excellent list BTW) I would want them to have a basic familiarity with Aristotle, St Thomas Aquinas, John Locke, Adam Smith, and a few other philosophical thinkers. I want them to understand critical thinking, logic and basic economics (so add Thomas Sowell here) because those are severely lacking in our current educational paradigms and part of the reason we're flinging headlong into the abyss.

[cstone]

We homeschooled our kids at various times. Our oldest finished his AA at age 18. His Community College tuition was paid for by the Aurora Public Schools system while he homeschooled through high school. My middle has his masters and works at a University. Our youngest is still finding their way but finished the welding and diesel mechanic program at the local VoTech. Still waiting to see where they end up. At least GK talked them out of becoming a tattoo artist.

HSLDA is worth it for the legal representation and their lobby efforts for homeschoolers throughout the country. Good for legal information both nationally and for Colorado specifically.

Based on our experience (which is now more than ten years old) I would avoid the Colorado statewide homeschool group: CHEC https://chec.org/community/homeschool-groups/

For curriculum, two resources:
https://www.rainbowresource.com/
https://www.sonlight.com/

There used to be homeschool curriculum fairs every year. They were normally held at a hotel convention center over a weekend. I have no idea if those are still being held, but I imagine in the era of COVID, probably not.

Much of our experience was pre-Internet ubiquity and much of the community was hosted on sonlight resource boards. Look for a local homeschool co-op. Two of our kids went to the co-op predecessor of JeffCo charter school Two Roads (https://tworoads.jeffcopublicschools.org/) It was funded partially by JeffCo but run by the parents. Now it is a menu driven program where you can treat it like a traditional full-time charter school or a supplementary home school program. Many of the co-ops will be run out of a local church. It may take you a while to find one you are most comfortable in, where your kids will get the type of experience you are looking for. Here is a local group I found in a quick search: https://rockymountaineducationconnection.com/ I know nothing about them, so take it with a grain of salt.

For us, homeschooling was about finding which methods worked best with each of our very different children. Because of the size of any public school system, they are very restricted in how they can tailor education to any one student. As a homeschooler, you will know your kids, how they learn, their limits, when, where, and how to push them, and when to give them a break. Most importantly, you love your kids and care more about their individual futures than any of the best and most dedicated teachers found in any government school. Most government school employees do not care if your kids end up living in your basement till they are 35 years old. You are motivated to have your children succeed in ways that no teacher would even think about.

One of the best things I loved about homeschooing was the ability to take our kids to places where they weren't reading a book or watching a video about something, but being "in the room where it happened." We traveled off season and altered lesson plans in every subject to tie into where we were going and what they were experiencing. Make education work for your kids and it will work for you.

Good luck. Enjoy. Be safe.

[Irving]

Basic personal accounting should be on the list, and higher than most.

[Gman]

Basic personal accounting should be on the list, and higher than most.

Yep. I took "Personal Finance" in either my Sophomore or Junior year of HS.

[Eric P]

Principles of art and music?

The only principle is enjoyment by the beholder.