<p>I'm not sure what to do anymore. I was enrolled with Keystone high school and don't like it very much. My dad told me I have to go back to school 3 months ago...he has done no work on it. I went and looked for a private school here that I would like to attend and couldn't find any within what we could afford that had a strong, interesting program. I found several boarding schools I liked, but he doesn't want that either. I was considering finding some kind of school that would oversee my homeschooling or something like that, where I could just do the work and have teachers and stuff review and send it in. Going to my area high school is not an option. If anyone has ideas I would really appreciate them...even if they're not for homeschooling. Any imput on the situation is great.</p>
<p>I'm not sure what you are looking for. Do you want to continue homeschooling, or is this option out of the picture entirely? If you DO want to keep homeschooling, what is the major obstacle you are facing now? There are many options besides Keystone, if you want structured online classes. Is having outside validation of your homeschooling important? If that is the main thing you are looking for, I know people who have been happy using services from NARS (<a href="http://www.narhs.org)%5B/url%5D">www.narhs.org)</a>.</p>
<p>I'm looking for either a school program I can work off of, with teachers that I use, or some kind of other schooling solution. Or just ideas. I don't think he would want to continue with online, and i'm having trouble finding other ideas. Homeschooling to me would be ideal, but i'm not sure how many things he would accept.</p>
<p>Why does your dad insist on your going back to school?
Have you not been doing the work for homeschooling?
What about public schools? What about un-schooling?</p>
<p>My dad and grandparents are really forcing me back. My dad said last night that I "dropped out of school" and he hasn't approved of this for the past couple years. I don't understand why he never just put me back in school, but okay.</p>
<p>I don't think he would approve of unschooling. I have been working on my homeschooling classes, but i'm only in two because I wanted to be done with everything by the fall for when I go back to school (which he said was fine). Right now i'm actually working really hard on the classes and I have As in both.</p>
<p>My public school isn't really an option, it didn't work out for me ever. I really just want to keep homeschooling, but with a different program...i've always been ahead of my class in most subjects (except math) and most schools seem to think that you don't need to be challenged if you pass. I was thinking that if I just stuck to homeschooling, I could work more at my pace in math (like I am) and then I could start taking AP or college courses in English, writing, and possibly biology.</p>
<p>Sorry about the novel...I guess it's a little more insight? I just know I won't get these types of opportunities at my public school or at the private schools i've seen.</p>
<p>Have you looked to Houghton Academy in New York. It is a boarding school that cost less than most and offers a lot of advantages. It is in Western New York not far from Keystone High in PA.</p>
<p>I'll request the info and give it to him, thanks.</p>
<p>Someone was telling me about Clonlara. Does that require a lot of parental involvement with teaching, lessons, etc? Or could that be done by a student and maybe a tutor that sets things up once a week.</p>
<p>I'm not sure why your dad is calling you a "dropout" if you are still doing your schoolwork.
Many older people are not used to the idea of homeschooling (it was illegal when they were young) and they have a feeling that students must be going to sit in a school building in order to be legit. Could this be part of the problem?</p>
<p>What are your college plans? Would starting at a community college now be an option? What "grade" are you going into? (I'm assuming you are finishing 10th or 11th grade?) Many colleges don't require a high school diploma or a GED for admission--if you have a transcript (even if you make it yourself) which includes the college's minimum requirements (4 years of English, 4 years of math, etc.) and excellent standardized test scores, you'll have no problem at most schools. (I'm not talking about Ivies, btw). You can name your homeschool, issue yourself a diploma, and print up your own transcript. If the college you apply to requires a "high school diploma," you've got one. (Some--but not the majority-- require a diploma from an accredited program). </p>
<p>IMO, colleges care most about standardized test scores--that's the easiest way they can compare homeschoolers to other students. If your scores are great, a lot of schools will want you-- so some test prep (get a book and do the practice tests at home) would be a wise investment.</p>
<p>To him, if i'm not in a school, i'm dropped out. It's pretty much what you said. It's also something his family has put in him, that i'm not in school and not getting an education.</p>
<p>Starting at a community college is an option. I wanted to stay homeschooled for another year or two to finish up high school math and other related subjects, and then take community college courses in English, art, and possibly French. I want to graduate in two years, but i'm taking the ACT and SAT this year to sort of see where i'm at and give myself time to improve. I already feel really well prepared...all my English scores have been very high and i'm working on understanding math better. Right now, I would ideally go to art school. That is another thing my grandparents won't allow, though.</p>
<p>Just a question. What kind of things could I do to make a transcript for myself? I had thought for a while about doing my own self directed English classes, as something more challenging. I considered doing something with reading all the Jane Austen books and trying to find some way to analyze them, but i'm not sure if that would be something good to put on a transcript. Then I could also do something with my History classes, like US history or focus on a specific time period or two.</p>
<p>I enroll in a network called Oasis Christian Academy. Similar networks are classified as Private Schools and will provide guidance and paperwork.</p>
<p>Find a network similar to that, pay a few hundred dollars to enroll, and depending on the services you can have other parents teach you, your parents teach others, etc.</p>
<p>So my parents wouldn't be required to teach anyone, right? I don't think they would go for that at all.</p>
<p>Does anyone have experience at all with Clonlara, and could tell me more about it, in regards to parent involvement and quality? Or if anyone has a program similar to Liist's that they could recommend me. I live in Michigan.</p>
<p>IMO, homeschool transcripts should look like any other school transcripts. (Some will disagree).
Just list the general course title (English 9, Geometry, American History, Biology, etc.), your grade (if you give them) and the credit hours. Keep a GPA and running total of credits by semester/year. Make it neat and clear and easy to understand. Keep it to one or two pages. Don't provide extra information like reading lists, portfolios, etc. UNLESS asked to do so. (I think extra stuff just confuses the clerks in the admissions offices and gets in their way--they are just trying to find your GPA and SAT scores. . .) Check the website of any college that interests you and make sure your transcript includes its requirements (3 years of Social Studies? 3 years of Science?) and follow their application instructions. Your Jane Austen project sounds like a good idea, but on your transcript "English 11" would suffice. If an essay is required you might use that as an opportunity to write about some of your unique experiences in homeschooling.</p>
<p>Thank you! I was really unsure of the amount of detail that needed to be put in, so that's sort of why I was creating projects in my head. My dad is still insisting that i've "been out of school for two years" and haven't done anything though. I'm not sure how I can convince him that I have done work, other than the paper stating that I have. I'm behind, but circumstances in the family sort of pushed me back quite a bit. I think i'll self study classes this summer though, in case I have to go back to an actual school.</p>
<p>I disagree with atomom. A homeschooler's transcript could look like a standard school transcript, if the student was a school-at-home type. But there are many other ways of homeschooling, and some might be better described in a different way.</p>
<p>In my opinion, parent-generated grades are useless and should be omitted from any homeschool transcript.</p>
<p>So putting a grade wouldn't be as important? I think it would be a little weird for me to issue myself grades. </p>
<p>Also, is knowing the amount of hours spent really essential or no? Could I just give names to what i've done with a brief description? I didn't really keep hours on some things.</p>
<p>Double post!</p>
<p>I somehow skipped over NARS and i'm really interested. I was considering just making lesson plans for a couple classes and then organizing how I would finish others (for example, I would find somewhere else to take math and see if I can find a French online curriculum, take a CPR or similar class for health, etc.) Do you guys think it would be more convincing to already have a lesson thought up or should I wait?</p>
<p>I think that there is a fairly wide range of ways to present yourself successfully. My kids presented reading lists, sorted by academic courses, without grades. This worked fine for them.
However, there is typically a "school report" that a school guidance counselor files. In the case of home schoolers, this is usually completed by a parent.
I think you need a supportive adult for this purpose. It could be a librarian, relative, church figure or some other adult who knows you well. Maybe a parent from a local home school group. If you can't think of someone to do this at this point, try to develop one soon.</p>
<p>I'm going to present this to my parents this weekend or by Monday of next week. I sort of have things figured out after reading things online. Basically, I have decided I want to take a few college classes combined with some challenging self study work. I plan to make this as rigorous as possible, but not so challenging i'm constantly struggling. I've also planned to try and graduate with more credits than required in core subjects (and it seems like that would happen in electives too).</p>
<p>Hopefully I can explain to them the advantages of this. I'd still be in a structured class, but i'd really be able to excel and take more challenging courses at a fast pace. I've wrote out (very loose) plans for my next couple years, and I really hope they see how much research i've put into this. I'm seeing my grandma on Friday and maybe I can work it into the conversation. We discussed school today and she should be able to see how serious I am about it, and approve.</p>
<p>I will double post again.</p>
<p>I talked to my dad about this today, because he's making us do yardwork/painting all weekend and I doubt i'd be able to talk to him.</p>
<p>He doesn't like the idea and has made it very known. He told me I could send the information to him and he might review it, but I know he won't. I even mentioned my lesson plans for summer vacation but he says i'm incapable of making that myself and I wouldn't learn anything. All he says is that i'm not doing anything besides attending a structured school. I'm sorry, I gave it a chance, and it doesn't work for me. For me, it's not challenging or engaging in most subjects and i'd prefer to work at my own pace (which is quite a bit faster) on something that will do what the public school didn't.</p>
<p>Not really sure what to do at this point. The school he wants me to go to does not offer any advanced courses (everyone takes the same thing), you have to pay for a study hall, they don't have an orchestra and only two very basic art classes. It's also owned by a church and from everything i've read they seem to be more religion oriented than academics. THIS IS SO FRUSTRATING.</p>
<p>Christi,
You can continue to talk to your dad and your grandmother, show them your plans, etc., and you should do that. But in the end, your dad will be the one to decide. </p>
<p>Let's look at the worst case scenario...your dad puts you in the church school. You might not like it, but you are capable of doing the work, doing it well, and graduating. This is not the end of the world. Keep your grades up (should be easy for you) and then in just a couple of years you can be off to a college where you will be challenged. </p>
<p>In the meantime, you can make the best of it. There might actually be some nice people there who you will enjoy getting to know.</p>
<p>However, if you decide to show your dad how wrong he is by sitting back and refusing to do what's required at the school, then you aren't going to be able to get into the kind of college where you will thrive. You will have shown him, but you will be the one who loses in the end.</p>