Our child is younger than the age of attendance in the sate of Virginia; however he is already able to meet most of the criteria for beginning kindergarten if not first grade in many cases. We are not required to submit to the school district our intent to home school for a year or so I think (My son’s birthday is 1/27/03). We are doing Pre-K4 and Kindergarten this year. When we report for the first time to the school district and submit his testing at the end of the year, how do we deal with the fight that is obviously going to happen since we will be submitting test results a year or two beyond the level which by age he should be taking? I refuse to test him “down” at the level they expect him to be in as I see these test as not only a way to stay in compliance with the law but also to see where I am lacking in teaching and to ensure that he is advancing and not falling behind.
2006-09-08 05:50:20 · 6 answers · asked by Oh,My, My! 1 in Education & Reference ➔ Home Schooling
Background Information: We are an Active Duty Navy Family and the Navy stationed us in Virginia however our residency remains in Texas. We have decided to home school our child as the public school he would attend due to where we live is unacceptable. My husband will actually be deploying for the next year and we will remain here in Virginia. We plan to operate our home school under option 1 as I have a high school diploma (actually an associates degree as well) and my husband has a bachelor’s degree. We are wanting to ensure that our child will not be “behind” when we move back to Texas and specifically to the school district we own a home in (one of the top districts in Texas and has some of the highest standards).
2006-09-08 05:51:13 · update #1
Our little guy is involved with the other kids his age at church and goes to a play group each week. We are trying to ensure that he gets enough “socialization” but also think that far too much importance is placed on socialization in school/education today. We want him to work well with others, get along with those not like himself, and be able to hold his own in a social situation but we also want him to be able to compete not only in the US job market but also of the world.
2006-09-08 05:51:35 · update #2
While the HSLDA site has been of great help with our decision to home school and learning the law here in Virginia, it does not seem to have any advise on this question!
2006-09-08 05:53:42 · update #3
Are there any home school support groups in your area that might be of help to you? Ours meets at the library once a month so you might want to check there.
Angelsgurl_06: How incredibly rude of you. She posted as much detail as she could in order to get an answer that will help her with her specific question and situation not just a general answer to home schooling as a whole!!! If you don’t have anything worth adding, why not just refrain from posting anything at all!
2006-09-08 06:16:03 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
I am EXTREMELY disappointed that no one has replied to this yet.
Firstly, Family Learning Organization has testing services that you can use to test your child. These are standardized tests that will prove to the district that your child is above the learning curve.
Point blank, if your child is a grade or two above other kids, homeschooling is the best choice. All you need to do is submit your letter of intent to home school, curriculum for the year and possibly some of the objectives that you hope to reach. Outside of that, whatever you decide to teach is YOUR business.
You can look into using a cyber school as a back up to; you can enroll for free and in most cases they will offer you a free computer as well as internet access if you don’t have it already. This is a great way to make sure that you aren't skipping over things and at the end of the year the school will offer you one of their tests or you can go with a company like FLO.
As long as you have your high school diploma or a GED, you are qualified to home school your child. Feel free to contact me via the site if you need or want any more information.
GOOD LUCK!!!!
2006-09-08 06:01:30 · answer #2 · answered by freak369xxx 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋
I live in VA. You don't _have_ to test. You can simply get an evaluation of his work (done by a professional) that certifies progress.
We've done this for 4 years, it's relatively simple, and affordable. It also saves alot of hassles of trying to match what our local elementary school might be experimenting with.
Hook up w/ VA homeschool groups, and they'll have ads for qualified evaluators. Hint: Sign up early, their slots fill up fast.
Quote:Section 22.1-254 of the Code of Virginia provides options for home education which include the general home instruction statute used by most Virginia homeschoolers, as well as the Approved Tutor provision, and a Religious Exemption to compulsory schooling. Under the general provisions, homeschoolers must notify their county superintendent of their intent to homeschool annually. They also must provide a curriculum description and evidence that the parent either has a baccalaureate degree from an accredited institution; or is a teacher of qualifications prescribed by the Board of Education; or has enrolled the child or children in a correspondence course approved by the Superintendent of Public Instruction; or provides a program of study or curriculum which, in the judgment of the division superintendent, includes the standards of learning objectives adopted by the Board of Education for language arts and mathematics and provides evidence that the parent is able to provide an adequate education for the child. ***Evidence of progress (such as independent assessment,*** standardized test scores or a portfolio review) must be submitted to the superintendent by August 1st.
2006-09-08 08:42:30 · answer #3 · answered by Iridium190 5 · 2⤊ 0⤋
If I remember right... you simply submit an intent to homeschool to the school district you live in. You also submit a list of material that you will use that year. Do not give them MORE than they want, I think they want the exact English and Math curriculum you will use and I guess science and social science. What they don't need, don't give. Keep your submission to absolutely the required.
Now: What you teach, how fast you go, etc, is NONE of their business....as long as you have your child tested by an approved proctor (test administrator) in an accepted test (SAT).
If he/she is ahead, it will show only as a high percentile. It will not say that you did wrong!!!
So at the end of the school year...order a proctor to give the Kindergarten test (if there is one), do this each year. Even if your child is ahead. The test is usually done in 2 days (several hours each, depending on grade), it will allow you to follow his progress, and it will give your child test-taking skills! They may even be fun for him/her.
If you do more than what is on the list, again this is none of the state's business. Just prove your intent, prove your qualification, prove your curriculum (approved according to their idea of scope and sequence for example) and review with HSLDA for proper execution prior to going there.
Then go for it, do what you feel appropriate for his/her actual level!
That is not criminal, believe me.
2006-09-08 09:35:04 · answer #4 · answered by schnikey 4 · 2⤊ 1⤋
you don't desire a GED to enroll in community college. Many abode schoolers twin enroll in maximum of their extreme college years and finished extreme college with 2-3 yrs of school below their belts. A GED will harm your probabilities of shifting right into a good 4 year college, jointly as being a twin enrolled homeschooler would be outstanding to faculties.
2016-09-30 11:35:17 · answer #5 · answered by elidia 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If he is testing higher than required there shouldn't be a problem. I'd say since you are military talk to JAG, maybe they can help.
2006-09-08 05:56:48 · answer #6 · answered by leaann2006 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋