Homefires Article Library

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Homefires: Legal Homeschool News
Get the latest news stories provided by sources other than Homefires to help you stay up-to-date on this important case that challenges the legality of homeschooling in California.

Yes, My Grown Homeschooled Children Are Odd - And Yours Will Be Too!
I'll tell you what I think. The truth is, homeschoolers are not well-socialized. There. I've said it. Someone had to. I say this with the greatest respect and affection for the homeschooled or unschooled. Nevertheless, in my experience, homeschoolers deviate from the norm. They are not well-socialized in the traditional school sense. They are odd ducks swimming in a big, standardized social pool. They stand out from the crowd, and a trained eye can spot them a mile away.

7 Dumb Mistakes Smart People Make When They Homeschool And How to Avoid Them
Diane Flynn Keith - We all make mistakes - especially in homeschooling. In fact one of the most satisfying pastimes is to listen to the tales that homeschool parents tell about the mistakes they have made along the way -- and to realize that they not only survived, but are thriving. Just as they did, you can learn from their mistakes.

Planning Your Vision for Homeschooling (and The Life You Really Want)
Most of us set educational goals at the beginning of the traditional school year in September. Unfortunately, those goals often aren't achieved. Life interrupts our plans and as the kids grow, their needs, skills, and interests change - even in the course of just a few months! Did you set some New Year’s resolutions for homeschooling?

Mind The Gap: Watching For 'Holes' in Your Child's Education
Can following a curriculum guarantee there won't be gaps in a child's schooling? Is a transcript from a public charter school proof that there aren't any cracks in a child's education? No! And if you think so, you're delusional! No one has a complete education. No one ever has, and no one ever will.

THANGSTGIVING | It's Not Just The Pie That's Crusty
Thanksgiving is coming and you know what that means...yes, yes, a Mayflower-themed curriculum with Pilgrims, Native Americans, Plymouth Rock and all that schoolish stuff -- however, I'm referring to something much more indigestible...family gatherings!

Calif. Court of Appeal Upholds Right to Homeschool | In Re Rachel L.
2008-08-08: omeschooling families throughout California can breathe more easily following a major decision released today in the Rachel L. case by California's Second District Court of Appeal.

Vacation Schooling in Sacramento, California
Our state capitol is Sacramento. Sacramento is home of the nexus of two major watersheds, the Pony Express terminus, the railroad, and more. Learn about historic Sacramento by walking through Old Sacramento and Downtown Sacramento.

Permission Granted by California Court to File Brief in the case of In Re Rachel L.
2008-05-27: The three state groups submitted an amicus brief to the court, and it has been accepted! This is great news for all California homeschoolers. A joint press release is being jointly sent today by all three California statewide organizations...

Governor Files Amicus Curiae Brief with 2nd Appeals Court
2008-05-19: Governor Schwarzenegger Files an Amicus Curiae Brief Supporting the Right of California's Parents to Teach Their Children At Home...

Amicus Brief Accepted by 2nd Appeals Court
2008-05-20: The three state groups submitted an amicus brief to the court, and it has been accepted! This is great news for all California homeschoolers. A joint press release is being jointly sent today by all three California statewide organizations...

Pirate Books and Resources
Learn more about pirates. Treat the kids to a pirate party, get in the spirit with these selections and don't forget to Hoist the Jolly Roger!

Be A Homeschool Pirate! Hoist the Jolly Roger!
If homeschooling were suddenly made illegal, what would you do? Would you obey the law, would you move, would you practice civil disobedience, would you go underground? Where does the moral authority to homeschool your children come from?

I Swore I'd Never Say That!
Becoming parents challenges us right down to our bones. Our children evoke deep tenderness and delight and bring out an energy and protectiveness in us that we didn't know we had.

Living and Learning with Teens
Every stage of your child's life brings both joys and challenges. Living and learning with a teenager is no different. There are days with challenges, life has challenges. If you can begin to understand what the world looks and feels like from the perspective of the teen, you can reduce the challenges.

America's Most Overrated Product: Higher Education
College students with weak high school records usually drop out, having learned little, and with devastated self-esteem, a mountain of debt, and a job they could have obtained without college. Amazingly, many good students don't do much better.

What About E-Socialization?
Just a decade ago, homeschooling was hallowed. Pioneers who forged the modern homeschool movement worked hard to project the image of homeschooling as the cradle of autonomy, family values, and educational freedom that resulted in academic and life success. With the confluence of the modern homeschool movement and the Internet boom in the past decade, a social networking generation that does not view homeschooling as sacrosanct. Want proof?

2nd Appeals Court to Reconsider
2008-03-26: The Second District Court of Appeal in Los Angeles had decided to grant a rehearing of the case that reverberated through the homeschooling community. In a surprise decision the court has hinted that it may re-evaluate the entire February 28th ruling.

CA State Homeschool Organizations Retain Legal Counsel
2008-03-08: The non-sectarian state homeschool organizations, CHN and HSC, announced that they have retained legal counsel. The law firms will represent and defend homeschoolers in light of the 2nd Appellate Court ruling that rendered the opinion that independent homeschooling is illegal except through the credentialed teacher/tutor exemption.

Pacific Justice Institute Joins Legal Battle
2008-03-05: Pacific Justice Institute Will Represent Sunland Christian School before the California Supreme Court in an attempt to overturn the appellate courts decision.

Is Homeschooling Still Legal in California?
2008-03-03: On February 28th, 2008, a 2nd Appellate Court in Los Angeles handed down a decision that effectively reinterpreted the exemptions to compulsory education in California making homeschooling through all avenues except the tutoring/teaching credential option illegal.

College Track: Homeschooling Works - Just Ask Colleges
The Standardized Assessment Test (SAT) is proving to be the vehicle that gives accreditation to the homeschooling lifestyle. The SAT is a college entrance exam that puts all students on an equal playing field. It is the test most used by colleges to evaluate both admissions and scholarship decisions...

College Track: Spring Is College Crunch Time For Seniors
It's spring and if you are one of those procrastinators who have run out of time when it comes to college prep, take heart. There is hope for seniors and their families who have waited until the last minute to start thinking about higher education...

College Track: Free College Can Happen To You
Full Scholarship - two words that could change your life. Getting free college can be like winning the lottery. Here are five successful secrets to scholarships and free college that even many public and private schools students are not aware of...

College Track: Takes More Than A Good SAT Score
The good test score is just the beginning of this prestigious college's criteria. So what exactly does that mean to those of us who hope our kids will qualify for scholarships to go to a good school-maybe even Harvard?...

College Track: Is College Around The Corner?
Is college knocking at your door? If you are the parent of a high school age student don't wait until your child is a senior to start thinking about preparing for college. Here are some steps to help you right now...

College Track: Taming the SAT Test Monster
Taking the SAT and PSAT/NMSQT tests can be a very scary experience. Preparation and knowledge can help alleviate the test anxiety that many students face. Here are some important steps to help relieve the fear...

Selecting The Right Online High School for Your Homeschooler
Online high schools have been growing at an astounding rate. Selecting an online high school is not very different from selecting an online college. You need to look at many of the same features...

Alternatives for Homeschooling Teens: Self-Direction, Engagement, and Success
A child's inclinations and talents have to be seen as a built-in part of who they individually are, and that their educations have to be designed accordingly.

St. Patty's Day Activities: Rainbows, Shamrocks and Leprechauns
St. Patty's Day is full of fantasy and fun. It is said that if you follow a rainbow to its end, you'll find a leprechaun's pot of gold! Your child is sure to find the pot of gold at the end of this rainbow!

Top 10 Reasons To Homeschool -- Move Over, David Letterman!
I gave this matter some thought, and came up with my own 'Top 10' list that includes links to articles and research that support my claims...

A Valentine's Day Chocolate Curriculum
Valentine's Day is synonymous with chocolate. Did you know that chocolate has been around for over 2000 years? It didn't start out as a candy bar -- it started out as a drink! What follows are some great links to websites where you can learn about the origins of chocolate, how it was used, when and where the first chocolate factory started and much more

Classical Education: Reading, Writing, Grammar and Phonics
Classical education depends on a three-part process of training the mind. The early years of school are spent in absorbing facts, systematically laying the foundations for advanced study. In the middle grades, students learn to think through arguments. In the high school years, they learn to express themselves. This classical pattern is called the trivium.

Grandma and the Oil Geyser
A lesson on where plastics come from and what they can do. Once upon a time Jack and Jill were at home completely bored with television shows and their computer games so they went outside to see what they could find to do...

Snakes and Diamonds
A lesson on different forms of energy and why it's always worth the effort to rescue your pet bowling ball. I like energy because you can't put pure energy in a box but, without it, we would all die instantly.

The Fire Breathing Bunny
A lesson on magnetics and why you put a swimming pool at the bottom of this mountain.

Math Q & A with Cafi Cohen
Cafi Cohen discusses teaching math. She advises... Saxon is not the best program for everyone. Make sure that you and your daughter choose a program together. This makes the audience much more receptive! Don't be afraid to take a 'math break' for a month or two. Play math games, read about the history of ancient numbering systems, do some logic puzzles instead for a while.

Fun, Ingenious, and Unusual Math Resources & Ideas
The following list of math resources may fall under the traditional math radar but often work better for teaching math concepts than more familiar textbooks and workbooks. These resources can be used with a variety of age and grade ranges.

Math Q & A for Math Phobics
Believe it or not, among all her other educational and directorial duties, Marnie specializes in tutoring students who have an aversion to math. Here, she offers a humorous helping of very non-traditional curriculum methods for anything from adding to calculus.

Teaching Mathematics: How Early Can I Start?
You start teaching as soon as your baby is born. When you feed her, change her diaper, and hold her, your newborn learns she is loved. But when does a baby begin to learn math?

Teaching Mathematics: Where do I begin? Will it ever end?
When homeschooling parents express concern about teaching a particular subject, often that subject is mathematics. Parents wonder where to begin. They are anxious about how to proceed. Parents worry if they'll be able to advance with their kids. But there's lots of hope! Here is some information to help you relieve these anxieties.

Raise children with a wild streak
A new report from the American Academy of Pediatrics stresses the importance of childhood playtime. It reinforces my own belief that many young adults have been cheated by years of excessive schoolwork and teamwork, too many extracurricular activities.

The Reiner Initiative and Preschool Pressures
What might be the problem with universal preschool? Where can conscientious parents and educators find common ground? In this interview, Diane Flynn Keith shares her views with Jo Scott-Coe about California's 'First Five' advertisements, Rob Reiner, standardized testing, John Taylor Gatto, Bill Gates, Oprah--and much more.

Linda Dobson: Oz Never Did Give Nothing to the Children They Didn't Already Have
What caused the original Wizard of Oz to put up as large a smoke screen as possible? Why, fear, of course, fear that folks would find out he wasn't nearly as all-powerful as he wanted them to think he was.

Homeschool Reflections: What Happens When You're Homeschooling Five Children!
Connie Colten presents excerpts from the book Home Schooling Reflections. - Neither Shawn nor Chris attended preschool. I never felt it was necessary for the scholastics. When Shawn's best friend went, Shawn decided he wanted to go too. When I asked him why, he said he wanted to have papers with stars on them...

Not Homeschooling? What's Your Excuse?
Tricia Smith Vaughan - Most of us grew up with the government's feeding us lunch, teaching us knowledge and values, and suggesting what careers we should have, all under the guise of educating us. Is it any wonder that we allow this seemingly benevolent entity to provide an education to our children?

A Recovery Program for Homeschool Split Personality Disorder
Diane Flynn Keith - Do you vacillate between child-led, developmentally appropriate, interest-initiated unschooling on one hand, and traditional, structured, academic-based education on the other? These mood-altering swings in methodology creep up unexpectedly on homeschooling parents and are often exacerbated by events beyond their control. I know. I am a recovering homeschooling paranoid schizophrenic.

Examples of Homespun Curriculum
Barbara Phillips is a CA certified teacher and reading specialist who has homeschooled her daughter for 11 years. I spent the summer of 1989 getting ready for homeschooling. I did not understand what that meant but Rachel would, in time, teach me.

Reading - The Easiest and Best Homeschool Curriculum
Diane Flynn Keith - I am often asked 'What is the best piece of advice you have for new homeschoolers?' My answer is, 'Read to your children'

The Benefits of Acting and Performing and How To Break Into this Kid Biz
Judy Berlin, Founder of Kids On Camera - Over the last 20+ years that I've been in business, not a day has gone by when I haven't had a well-meaning parent ask me how to get their kids into show biz. Indeed, it's a fun adventure that can prove to be quite lucrative, even if your own child isn't airing in a family sitcom once a week.

Comparing U.S. History Books
Mary Lydon Phoenix is a writer who homeschools her children, Sarah (12) and Antonio (4). In this column Mary compares fiction and non-fiction works covering the last hundred years of U.S. History.

History Through Architecture
Kathryn Murdock, has a B.A. in Ancient Civilizations and Cultures. She conducts history classes & workshops in libraries & museums in the San Francisco Bay Area. Kathryn shares her knowledge of Greek terms describing architectural designs, which are still widely used in and on buildings today and why we still use them.

Poetry Doesn't Have to Be Yawnsome
Mary & Sarah Phoenix - When I mentioned to a few friends that our next column would be about poetry, the response was less than enthusiastic. It seems that poetry has fallen into some disfavor. Don't be deterred if your own experience has been less than pleasant. Once you've found a poet whose voice resonates with your own, it's often easy to find whole collections of his/her work.

Homefires' Virtual Homeschool Conference presents...
Science Question and Answers With Mr. Mack of Rock-It Science - What is the specific relationship between oil and dinosaurs? Can you recommend some good books with electronics experiments in them? I have a 6-year-old that loves robotics. What can I do to encourage his interest? Find the answers to these questions and more...

Storybook Science - The Swimming Pool
John McChesney aka 'Mr. Mack,' is a mechanical engineer who teaches his brand of science wizardry in schools and homeschools throughout Santa Clara County.

What It Costs To Homeschool
This was an informal, voluntary, anonymous survey of homeschooling families in the San Francisco Bay Area conducted in June-July, 1995. The results were compiled by the editor of this publication - not a demographics firm.

Stinging Nettle Teaches Homeschooled Teenager Why People Like to Shop
Kimberly Gallagher, M.Ed. - I had been working with Annika for about three years when I suggested we use our time together to go harvest stinging nettles. Annika is a thirteen-year-old homeschooled young woman, and she was pretty tentative about my idea.

Xtreme Homeschooling
Diane Flynn Keith - You don't need anyone's permission to Xtreme Homeschool. You don't need a teaching credential. You don't need government home school programs. You don't need a 'facilitator' or samples of your kids work, to make suggestions for curriculum, or to test your kid...

Exploring the Ultimate Urban Legend: Homeschooled Teens
Diane Flynn Keith - Suddenly, there are homeschooled teens everywhere! Record numbers attended the California Home=Education Conference in Sacramento this year. Grace Llewellyn's Oregon-based Not Back To School Camp for teens was filled to capacity. Large pockets of teen support groups are flourishing nationwide.

A Homespun Curriculum
Barbara Phillips - I clearly remember the summer of 1989. Our daughter Rachel had turned six years old in March, and she had just figured out how to read. We had also made the huge decision, for many reasons, to homeschool.

Homeschool Advice: BEE Flexible
Diane Flynn Keith reminds homeschoolers to Bee Flexible. - Many homeschool parents have an image in their mind's eye of exactly what methods and materials they'll use and the routine they'll follow to help their children learn. However, often after just a few weeks the reality of day-to-day homeschooling sets in...

Six Lessons from New York's State Teacher of Year
John Taylor Gatto - Mr. Gatto is a former New York State Teacher of the Year and author of Dumbing Us Down - The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling. We chose this particular piece because it discusses the many implications of having the freedom to read real books - an important aspect and benefit of homeschooling.

Carschooling - An Alternative Approach To Homeschooling
As a homeschooling parent I spend inordinate amounts of time on the road, at one point, we were spending so much time in the car we didn't have time for academics! In sheer desperation I thought of books-on-tape - at least we'd hear some good literature and I could relax a little about fulfilling our Language Arts requirement. That was the turning point that took us off the are-we-there-yet interstate and put us on the real information super highway.

Non-Traditional Schooling Offers Options Galore by Tom Nixon
Tom Nixon - Homeschooling is to education what anarchy is to government. Earning a high school diploma nontraditionally can sometimes seem that way. However, not only is it possible to earn a high school diploma nontraditionally, but, as homeschoolers know, it is often preferable.

Answering the Basics for Easier Homeschooling
Win and Bill Sweet share their advice parents on homeschooling issues. - Based on our extensive research into the subjects of development and needs, we would say the best curriculum for preschoolers is PLAY, PLAY, PLAY, independent play where they direct, choose, and most important of all, use their imagination. Learn more...

Spring Festivals and Celebrations
Diane Flynn Keith - Sun Neen Fy Lok! Gung Hay Fat Choy! These cheerful greetings mean 'Happy New Year!' and 'Wishing You Prosperity!' The Chinese Lunar New Year is the most important festival of the Chinese calendar. It is a time of renewed hopes for a happy and prosperous new year.

The California High School Proficiency Exam (CHSPE)
Rachel Phillips - I'm fifteen, and the editor of Homefires asked me to write about my experience taking the CHSPE. CHSPE is an acronym for California High School Proficiency Exam. This test is the legal equivalent of a high school diploma, and can be taken at age 16...

Book Overview - Discover Your Child's Learning Style
Mariaemma Willis and Victoria Kindle Hodson - Children begin life as successful learners! They are born with incredible eagerness and ability to learn. After 50 years of combined experience working with students, we are convinced that parents are the most important teachers in a child's life.

Homeschool Wisdom
HomeFires

What is an 'Accidental Homeschooler'?
While some families know from the start that they want to homeschool, others arrive somewhat 'accidentally'. These are families who had initially put their children in traditional schools.

Public-School Prisons --- What Crimes Have Our Children Committed?
Why have we put our children into educational prisons called public schools? What crimes have they committed? Why do we condemn almost 45 million innocent children to this punishment?

'Time-Traveling' Son in Photo History for Kids
Author and photographer Michael S. Class has used digital composite photography to place his twelve year-old son, Anthony, in the cockpit of the Spirit of St. Louis with Charles Lindbergh, on the moon with Neil Armstrong, and on Normandy beach on D-Day.

How Creative 'Unit Study' is Being Implemented in Homeschooling
Tina Fermin is the mom of one very busy 12-year-old boy and has been homeschooling since 1999. Tina says, 'My trip into the unit study realm began in the summer of 2000 when my son and I studied Egypt and decided it would be great to have other kids to explore our topics with, thus the Unit Study Adventures Co-op was born over a break room table, with Shannon Hawkins and I as the initial two families.'

What Mothers Need to Develop to Homeschool
Marty Layne is a homeschool mom from British Columbia and the author of Learning At Home: A Mother's Guide To Homeschooling. This is a book filled with the wisdom of a mother who has children's best interests for education, growth and development at heart. I think it may well be the best book on parenting I have ever read.

Kids in Business: Creating an Imaginative Toy Tree House
This interview is with George Lockwood who with the help of his sons, Galen and Cameron, and wife, Juliana, designs, makes and sells toy tree houses.

Grandparents' Perspective
Win and Bill Sweet - America is a superpower in the world and yet a great majority of parents in our country feel burdened, impotent, and helpless. Parenting is one of the most natural functions in our lives. The other mammals don't seem to be worried about it. Why are we? Why is it so foreign and so scary? We feel this phenomenon is one of the causes of troubled and stressed families.

Homeschooling a Reader: It's All About Making Connections
Jennie Nash - One of the joys of being literate - of being able to read, and making the choice to read - is the ability to make connections between books, ideas, stories, and experiences. As a homeschool parent, you have the opportunity to develop these kinds of connections with your child, and run with them as far as you possibly can...

It Does NOT Take A Village To Raise A Child
It does not take a village to raise a child. It takes a nurturing family. Period. I am distressed by this latest rhetoric that implies that a family is incapable of taking care of its own. Who thinks this stuff up - the village idiot?

To Homeschool Or Not to Homeschool - Now THAT is A Question
Chris Bradshaw - Most homeschoolers I know readily admit that homeschooling is not for everyone. But is it for your family? If you are trying to decide whether homeschooling is right for you, read on.

Trusting Your Children To Determine Curriculum
Diane Flynn Keith - I want to invite you into the dark, suffocating recesses of my school mind. I want you to see that in spite of the fact that I have homeschooled my children for 6 or 7 years now, I still suffer the consequences of having been schooled -- and that my indoctrination to school thought is so complete, my mind still plays school tapes even as I try to embrace the unschool mantra of 'Trust the Children.'

How to Achieve Homeschool Success
Rebecca Kochenderfer, co-author of, 'Homeschooling for Success: How Parents Can Create A Superior Education For Their Child,' shares with our readers, the meaning of success. What is success? We all want our children to be successful, but what exactly does it mean to be successful?

What Is It With Homeschoolers & Money?
Diane Flynn Keith - I have organized many events for my local homeschooling community - some for free, some for a fee. I have had lots of interaction with homeschoolers from every socio-economic background imaginable and I have yet to understand what seems to be a collective thought about money - that homeschoolers don't have any.

Traveling to Learn!
Carol Pan - Travel is educational! If you're like me, dreaming of the trip and financing it are two different stories. I've always resented the high cost of hotels -- especially since I just use the hotel room to get a good night's sleep. I was thrilled to discover the following alternatives to hotels and will be trying out a few on my trip to Italy this summer.

Toss Out Standardized Tests for College
Diane Flynn Keith - 'College Board Proposes SAT Overhaul' There is no evidence to indicate that the changes will improve the overall assessment capability of the SAT, which has been shown to be unreliable, prejudiced, and over-rated. In numerous studies, both exams have been shown to be better predictors of parental income than college eligibility.

15 Common Characteristics of Successful Homeschools
Diane Flynn Keith - If there is one thing I want you to know, that you can hold on to when the homeschool road gets bumpy it's this: the magic is in the child. Maria Montessori knew it. Piaget knew it. John Holt figured it out. Glenn Doman demonstrated it over and over with tiny kids at his Institutes for the Achievement of Human Potential in Pennsylvania.

I Am My Kid's Mom: Knowing Your Limitations
Diane Flynn Keith - Dr. Laura's signature greeting is, 'I am my kid's mom.' What is strangely peculiar about her show is that callers don't seem to 'get' what she means by it.

Virtual Homeschool Conference at HomefiresJournal
Karen Taylor shares advice for those who are homeschooling an only child. She discusses current homeschooling political issues, gives advice on time management and much more...

Homeschooling on a Shoestring
Judith Waite Allee and Melissa L. Morgan - Judith Waite Allee and Melissa L. Morgan are two unabashed penny-pinchers who co-authored 'Homeschooling on a Shoestring'. They answered our List members' questions about how to be penny-wise homeschoolers, and suggested many ways to make, borrow, or buy affordable learning and reference materials.

Learning to Read and Spell
Barbara Phillips - This column will focus on a little recognized, but absolutely necessary skill for both reading and writing: the ability to retain letters and numbers in your mind. This skill is called image symbols...

Homeschooling Children with Learning Differences
Delaine Noyer - Sifting Through The 'Expert Advice' To Find Out What Works and What Doesn't Finding out what works for a learning different child is the question of the day for a lot of parent-teachers. Personally, I'm driven toward problem-solving research by the chronic issue that my solutions might work one day, but not the next.

Resources for Homeschooling Gifted and Talented Children
Is your child an accelerated learner? Does he or she have a special talent or ability? Homeschooling provides hope for nurturing your child's remarkable traits and talents so your child can achieve success (however you define it) and live an extraordinary and happy life.

Books: The Difference Between Library and School Editions
John Taylor Gatto - Soon after I began teaching Moby Dick I realized that the school edition wasn't a real book at all but a kind of disguised indoctrination. It provided all the questions, an addition to the original text intended to make the book teacher-proof and student-proof, if you read those questions let alone answered them there would be no chance ever again for a private exchange between you and Melville.

Happy Not Back To School!
Alison McKee - When my children were still living at home and we were active homeschoolers, this was an event that I was glad not to participate in. I didn't have to get involved with the lines at 'back to school' sales or worry about whether or not our kids had the 'right' clothing.

Resources for Homeschooling Gifted and Talented Children
Is your child an accelerated learner? Does he or she have a special talent or ability? Homeschooling provides hope for nurturing your child's remarkable traits and talents so your child can achieve success (however you define it) and live an extraordinary and happy life.

Barbara Phillips Biography
HomeFires

Are You Suffering From Split-Personality Methodology?
Diane Flynn Keith - Do you vacillate between child-led, developmentally appropriate, interest-initiated unschooling on one hand, and traditional, structured, academic-based education on the other? These mood-altering swings in methodology creep up unexpectedly on homeschooling parents and are often exacerbated by events beyond their control. I know. I am a recovering homeschooling paranoid schizophrenic.

High School Distance Learning Programs for the Gifted
Bj Darr - For families of gifted and talented students who may be wondering (panicking) about providing a challenging and enriching curriculum, the programs listed below may offer some help.

Homeschool Reflections: What Happens When You're Homeschooling Five Children!
Connie Colten presents excerpts from the book Home Schooling Reflections. - Neither Shawn nor Chris attended preschool. I never felt it was necessary for the scholastics. When Shawn's best friend went, Shawn decided he wanted to go too. When I asked him why, he said he wanted to have papers with stars on them...