Because the movement of unschooling is still creeping into the mainstream and some folks feel unschooling is just an excuse to not do anything (despite that it actually the opposite) there is a need to conform to the state and local educational policies regarding homeschooling. Because I live in PA, the laws are fairly straightforward and not difficult to follow. Many areas in PA are traditionally farmland and farmers needed to keep their children home from school during harvest so homeschooling was the acceptable way to allow families to maintain income and education. PA has maintained an effortless process for homeschoolers. Thank goodness, we live in PA (despite the multiple pleas, to my mother, to move to a warmer climate when I was younger). So this blog is to show the method to our madness and how I was able to combine the traditional requirements with our very creative and relaxed style of learning.
1.
THE AFFIDAVIT: Before you get started, you should access your state
department of education and determine what the laws are. My resource
is the PA Dept of Education's Home Education Program Statute (24 P.S.§ 13-1327.1 Home education program - sections "a-e"
are my guide). You
need to contact your local school district and inform them of your
intention to homeschool. Some states are different which is why I
refer you to your state dept first. I learned that some school
districts are not too savvy about homeschooling (which
might work in your favor lol). So you obtain their packet and get
their letter of intention notarized. Our is called an Affidavit.
It asks the educator to swear that they do not fit
the criteria of a hard criminal and that they themselves are
educationally sound to teach their own children.
2. HEALTH
FORMS: For some reason you might need to make sure your child has a
physical and immunizations, which in my opinion is ludicrous
because if you want to be sick in your own home and are not communing
with other school children then what is the harm however...when in
Rome:)
3.
THE OUTLINE OF PROPOSED STUDY: The statute should tell you which
subjects and the hours of instruction, required to educate your
child, based on their grade level. This is where the creativity
happens. PA does not allow the superintendent of the school district
to use this outline to determine compliance as noted "The
required outline of proposed education objectives shall not be
utilized by the superintendent in determining if the home education
program is out of compliance with this section and section 1327."
One might want to look for a clause like this in their own state's
documentation. What this says to me is that I can provide them an
overview of what we intend to do but can deviate as needed. I
have learned over the years to keep it simple. One of the ways which
I keep it simple is to include a resource provided by the PA Dept of
Ed called Standards of Aligned System (http://www.pdesas.org/), which
has multiple resources according to grade level and subjects
including a rubric for each. I feel that since it is a provision
provided by the state I can't be challenged. I included examples of
the curriculum which I wrote for Milan and Qwyn for this year. (Sorry
the files are so large...I am not computer savvy) If it is hard for
you to see, email me and I can send you a copy.
4. THE PORTFOLIO: This is your proof that "SOMETHING" was done all year. When trying to identify methods to implement your lessons, if you want to go the formal homeschooling route, then find as many free resources as possible. Don't go spending loads of money on resources. Unless you have 6 kids like me and can save books and reuse them, don't do it. In 2014, all you have to Google is "free worksheets for (inject your subject here)" and poof, there are multitudes of resources. I have found cool science packets and booklets on various things which I can print. YouTube, Scholastic, History Channel, Bio Channel, A&E Channel, Brainpop, Cool Math etc. are great resources for teaching. (in a future blog I will post some cool resources). You can make your own worksheets as well by just coming up with follow up questions. (Below are worksheets I came up with for Qwyn's 50 state and President lessons). For math, just get a workbook with removable pages and you have instant proof of work. As an unschooler, when going to an event, see what you can find as a supplemental resource to correlate with the experience. If you can't find one take some pics of the child at the event and have them write a quick essay about their experience and there is another page in the portfolio. Beware, I have found it difficult to determine which subject to put some items under. For example, we went to an outdoor Opera (Will post about that later too) and that experience could go under music but we did some prep about the composer, which could be history and if I have Qwyn write about her experience (shhh, she doesn't know yet), then it might go into English. You should see me at the end of the year trying to put things in piles. I drive myself crazy (or crazier) Oy Vey!. Wow, just writing about this and the world of possibilities made me get excited about the world of creativity. Oh, btw before going to a museum or national park, print out their student prep guides and have your child fill them out and that can go into the portfolio as well (I'll leave the decision of which subject to put it under up to you, for practice purposes lol). I also include awards, playbills from theatrical productions the kids were in or went to, newspaper write ups etc...I have even included links of my kids' YouTube videos, which I recorded of them playing and singing their original songs (hmmm, it could go under music, art or English....see how this can get complicated).
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| State Worksheet |
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| President Worksheet |
5. THE EVALUATION: You need to find an evaluator, who you go to by the end of school year. He /She will review and sign off that you have everything you need to give back to the school district. I can't imagine them charging more than 60$. This person will sign off that you met the requirements of the state. This person's word is bond and usually the school does not question their decision. My evaluator is wonderful, easy to access and is a wealth of knowledge. She was the one who reminded me that we were on track and my 17 yo could graduate at 11th grade, which she ended up doing; Julian is now attending the local community college. Prior to meeting with the evaluator make sure you have everything which you are required to hand in to the school district. In PA, we have to submit a log of hours, a list of books the kids read (I have the kids write their own) and the portfolio. That is it. I used to write an synopsis of what the kids did all year and found I was doing too much. Don't Do Too Much!!! In the state of PA, it is pretty simple.
How do I convert unschooling into homeschooling? Unshooling is a process in which you gear the learning around the child's interests. If you child likes cars (you develop some learning experiences around science (how they are made...look at engine function, how gas converts to energy etc), English and History (research, read and writing what was the child learned about a specific make and model or inventor or era of cars) Math: (you are on your own here...lol), Art: (design your own car) Music: ( explore songs about cars)/ This could all be inserted into a portfolio. Of could you can expand on these topics and make them 6 months or a years worth of learning. This is where the creativity happens.
What about testing? In the state of PA, there is a requirements of certain grade levels to be tested HOWEVER, you are not required to send your child to school to be tested...We use Seton Testing Services(http://www.setontesting.com/cat/) and for 25 bucks we (our adult children will do it for us) give the child the test and send it back to them and get the results then send them into the school district. My husband and I, can't administer the test but we use our adult children to do it. Simple process. Beware, sometimes the school district will try to slip in an extra grade level for testing, please know your state law and go by that. For example, our letter from the school district says my 11th grader needed to be tested but the law says differently.
What about socialization? There are many opportunities for your child to interact with other children. We use the local Boy's and Girl's Club for at least 12 years. Here are some other suggestions: girl and boy scouts, 4H clubs, church youth groups, sports, dance classes, dance teams, gymnastics, local choir/children's chorale groups, homeschool events and groups to name a few. Even if your child is ultra shy, the lesson for the child might be about engaging with other kids as a life skills lesson. See there is always a lesson in all that we do.
What if child has a learning disability? Even if the child has a learning disability, the state is obligated to provide services for the child's needs. Write a letter to your school's psychologist requesting that your child be evaluated. In PA, they have 30 days to do it...I believe. It might be 60. I have just sadly learned that if the child is gifted then there is nothing to support them if the child is not attending the brick and mortar school. This just happened to Qwyn. She is no longer able to attend her REACH program (gifted) due to funding issues (my speculation).
What about SAT's? For me, the entire point of unschooling is nonconformity in education. We advise our children to attend the local community college for at least a year (no SAT's required, cheaper and they can catch the child up academically if needed) then transfer with good grade to the school of their choice.
Well this is our process in a nutshell. I apologize for the length but I really wanted to provide an understanding of what we do and how. I would like to begin a consulting business and curriculum writing business within the next year in order to assist others in getting started. No matter which state people live in. It think it would be a good support for parents who feel guilty in the middle of the transition and help them stay focused.
Please share, comment and ask questions.
