Times are changing fast and so are the words being used. I currently have two girls in college and none of these keywords in the below video became an issue for us, but maybe they will as my girls proceed towards their higher college degrees. So I'm posting this video for those of you who may actually come across these keywords and would like to know what they mean for your future college student. Enjoy!

Recently, a new homeschooler asked these questions. Here are my answers:

1.? How many days and hours per week do you spend preparing materials for the week?

That will depend on how you choose to homeschool.

a) School-in-box will take the least as the plans are already laid out.
b) Preparing your own material will take more time unless you use the tons of online ideas and lessons someone else has gathered and posted.

I've used both of the above before we moved into Unschooling =) Unschooling goes about education in a completely different way so it would be extremely hard to calculate the hours spent. My spouse and I are always looking for interesting things that we think our son will like. My son is greatly into Biology (focusing mainly on cats and dogs) so I've found all types of great books, documentaries, and hands on exposure for him. He gets to explore the topic as deep as he likes which has lead to him exploring way beyond the age/grade level normally designed for a child his age.

Prior to moving into unschooling, homeschooling took approximately 1/4 of the time to accomplish the daily work then the amount of time the school had required. Looking back, it became apparent that there was a lot of wasted time in the schools of lining kids up and taking turns for things like bathroom breaks and water fountain breaks.

With Unschooling, learning happens all the time. It's more of an ebb and flow of information and discovery. If something is intriguing, there's no reason to stop because it's time to switch topics or subjects. (This also applies to homeschooling, too.)

This has more to do with what is happening locally and within driving distance. I signed up for all types of alerts so we get notification when the museams are having special events, when the parks are having special events, when the county is hosting interesting classes we may want to explore, etc...

This is so open ended. You can buy a membership to the local Science Center and that usually gains you entry to all the museums. A membership to your local Zoo is also a good investment. Other trips can vary.

As one mom stated, the cost per tuition far exceeds the cost of homeschooling material. Tons of great material is free from the Library and internet. For us, our main expense is books, books, and more books. I have readers who LOVE books so I'm always looking to keep the house stocked.

There are tons of ways to save money or you can buy new and spend more. One of the best investments I've made is the complete Life of Fred Series. As your child is still young, you can sign up for the Scholastic Book Fair and save lots of money on attending one of their warehouse sales. I've known families that spend a fortune and families that don't.

Yahoo Groups has been an excellent resource and is free. There are also tons of homeschooling parents who blog and post tons of lesson plans, ideas and free links. One of the first I was told about is the www.homeschoolblogger.com site. I found so much great information there when I first started this journey.

When I first started homeschooling, I started wondering how it would all end.  Would my son one day wish to return to the system? Would I homeschool him right through high school?  Would he choose Early College?  As I had older girls, I was already aware of the Bright Futures Scholarship Program but I wasn't sure how it worked for homeschoolers.

It's been four years now since I pulled my son home and I have learned a bunch.  The local colleges are growing and the state of homeschooling is growing, too.  I have searched the local college's website many, many, times, as I myself use to be one of their students, so between my spouse's education, my education, and now my children's education, we have been giving them some business over the years. =)  It is nice to see that they have now created and updated their site with information just for homeschoolers.

For those that are curious what my local State College requires for Early College, please click here.

Oh my goodness! Many of my friends know the story of how we came to become Unschoolers. Many have read the stories of my children and shed tears for them. And along with the tears, they have shared the joys with them that homeschooling/unschooling/escape from the system has brought with it. When we realized that the standard route wasn't going to work, I was frantic on what we were going to do. I will admit to wondering just what was wrong with us that we were so different that the standard route that seemed to work for so many, failed so miserably for us. I thought we were alone in this,too. Well, thanks to many connections online, I have since learned that this is a nation wide problem. Children all over this country are suffering. Many have loving parents who like me, have chosen to rescue their children from this torture we call school. To this day, I'm in awe of the parents I've met who had the wisdom to spare their children from this experience. Currently, two blogs are gathering more information. If you would like to contribute, The Stone Age Techie is doing a survey on 'Why do you homeschool'. Click on this button to take the survey:

 Then head on over to A Chance to Shine.  I love that they are taking their story and sharing it so that maybe, another parent will find it and save their child from the suffering. I know it would have been a huge comfort to me a few years back. Make sure to read their Stupid Discipline section. They are accepting stories so if you have one, please contribute.

Education Next by the Hoover Institution has an interesting article in their Winter 2009 publication.  The article discusses Homeschooling going mainstream.  Considering the current climate around what broadcasting (The View) allows to be said about homeschooling, I felt it was important to point out a sound article that explores the whys and wherefores of homeschooling.

In this article they discuss the many and varied reasons people choose to home school.  Will Smith  and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, homeschool their children.  Jada is quoted as saying that they choose homeschooling “so they can stay with us when we travel, and also because the school system in this country—public and private—is designed for the industrial age. We’re in a technological age. We don’t want our kids to memorize. We want them to learn.”  This reminded me of an interview with Will Smith a long time ago, so I don't remember with who, but Will Smith pointed out that because he can read, he can learn most anything. 

I love the reference to being in a 'technological age'.  I look at all the things my son learns and I compare it to how I learned at his age and I must say he has far more knowledge then I had at his age.   I was a top student and a bookworm.  I did well in school but let's face it, computers took up a whole floor of a college building and remote access was a rare thing so when we learned about computers, it was in drafting an informational flow chart on paper, transfering it to tape or a punch card, to feed into that remote access modem to test it.  Just the idea of explaining this process is so ridiculous!   Research?  When I was young, research required a trip to the library, hoping they had the books you needed, and usually, the information was not up to date unless you happened upon a recent magazine article.  My son has more access to information then I ever dreamed was possible.

So why is it important that good articles are written about homeschooling?  Well, for starters, because there are so many people out there not being respectful of choices different then their own.   Also, because the state of public education in this country is coming under fire at the way it has failed so many.  We need to stay attuned to the laws and lawmakers to make sure that in their attempt to 'fix' the educational system in this country, that they don't take away our rights to educate our children our own way.  Times have changed and children need a much different type of education. 

This morning, when I arrived at work, my phone was ringing off the hook.  It was one of my overseer's from the government checking in to see how well the move of my office is going.  It's been very busy here and the tensions are high as the powers that be are fighting and throwing blame and micromanaging as they try and get some footing.  It hasn't helped that the new company I now work for, who are not involved with the above mentioned issues, have also decided to establish some very strict micromanging that I need to make sure all of my staff comply with.  Then throw in that my staff tends towards behaving as spoiled little boys even though they are grown men!  They don't WANT to be micromanaged...

So, after discussing these issues with the person who called, conversation slid towards a friendlier note and I was asked about something that he had seen on Dr. Phil. ( He begged to not let ANYONE know he watches Dr. Phil, so shhhh....=D )  

He knows that I homeschool.  We have discussed unschooling but I don't think he has really truly grasped that concept.  Most people don't and then when you throw in just where my son sits academically, people just assume unschooling equals excelled. 

So his question to me was what is the true story about socialization and homeschooling?  Dr. Phil left him thinking that homeschoolers lack a great deal of ability being able to function in society.  ( Way to go Dr. Phil! )  I clarified that that was just not true.  Most homeschoolers have very active social lives.  Even more social then their public school peers as in public school, the kids can only socialize between classes and lunch.  Some may choose to socialize during class, but as far as I was aware, that was still frowned upon.

Then we get to the realities of my son.

We didn't start out seeking to homeschool nor unschool.  The school system thrust it upon us after they failed to protect my young child from severe bullying.  They had no problem crushing the joy of life out of him.  Where would that type of socialization be preferable to non-socialization?  Even the Bible states it is better to have a dry morsel alone, in peace, then to feast in a place of great strife.

I do watch how my son interacts with people.  I have not observed any issues.  We bought his new puppy from a public school teacher who's been teaching for thirty years she said.  She asked me what my son's IQ was.  When I looked at her oddly, she stated that he was so smart!  She could tell when he started talking to her that he had to be gifted and she was curious just how gifted.  She also was concerned about the socialization issue which makes no sense to me, as she had just been having an intelligent conversation with him. 

So just what does it take for people to understand 'socialization'?