<p>I'm posting this thread underneath my daughter's account.
Basically, my D is a junior at a public high school and first semester didn't go too well. She got into trouble at school and as a consequence was suspended. She went from a 4.0 student to one that is really struggling. Every morning she dreads going to school. She never wants to go back to the "horrors" of high school.</p>
<p>I'm thinking of withdrawing her from public school as soon as we can and then homeschool for a bit, then letting her take the CHSPE. (We live in California). Then next year , given that she passes the CHSPE, she can "skip" senior year and enroll at our local CCC full time. The plan then is to transfer to a UC after two years.</p>
<p>I'm not sure if this will work though. She's been enrolled in public school all her life, and has already gone through 5 semesters of high school. We're not really on good terms with the school right now... and don't know the process of disenrolling from public school.</p>
<p>Is it too late to start homeschooling? Or should we keep sending our daughter back to school? Help please!</p>
<p>I live in Maryland, so I cannot speak for where you live. Here she would just need to fill out an application. If she has taken SATs, those can be used for placement; otherwise, she will take placement tests. Your local community college probably has a Web site that has what you need or call over there tomorrow and talk to an admissions counselor. Your daughter will not be the first student in her situation. Good luck.</p>
<p>I’m wondering what the real problem is. Why does she dread her HS? Why did she get herself into trouble? Why would it be a horror to go back to the HS? Would homeschooling really solve the underlying issues?</p>
<p>As long as she is old enough to leave school, I don’t imagine that removing her would take any more than a letter. If she is not old enough, then you would have to do something official about homeschooling. I looked into this once in NY, and here you can stop sending a child to school at any time, and you have a fairly long time to notify the school that you are homeschooling. If she is not old enough to leave school (16?), then you should contact a local or state homeschooling association for information.</p>
<p>I am sorry that her situation has deteriorated so much, and so fast! It must be awful for her, and for you. Best of luck, and please keep us posted.</p>
<p>It looks like the requirements are until age 18 and that there are four main options including declaring yourself a private school. I would strongly recommend joining your state homeschooling email list. They will most likely have a related website with information on getting started. You could also join the home-ed email list which has a lot of members in California though the focus is national.</p>
<p>The situation with California is favorable to high-school students taking CC courses. I have a nephew that did this for a specialty course and I think that tuition charges were waived.</p>
<p>I think that you’d be better off asking other California homeschoolers which would be best. You’d probably find people that did make the same decision that you’re contemplating along with the results of homeschooling in the junior year.</p>
<p>Here is how you disenroll your daughter from school: Walk into the office. Tell them she is leaving. Say goodbye. Walk out. </p>
<p>Many students find that high school is in fact horrible; I myself think it’s a ghastly prison. She might be happier at community college (but hurry, classes fill up quickly). Going to community college for two years, then transferring to a UC, is an excellent idea. I know several California homeschoolers who did just that, with (so far) excellent results. Some other California homeschoolers treat the community college like a high school, and eventually apply to four year colleges as freshmen. That also works.</p>
<p>I’d skip the CHSPE. Just send her right to community college. California community colleges have plenty of homeschoolers, so she’d fit right in.</p>
<p>Check out this excellent homeschooling website, by a California mother:</p>
<p>In our area of CA, there are charter schools where the kids attend once a week to discuss their homework and get new assignments for the upcoming week. Seems to work for some kids.</p>
<p>Alas, it can be challenging to home school at the high school level – chances are you are not up to speed on physics or chemistry – or if those are your specialities, maybe you aren’t so strong in calculus or music theory. </p>
<p>I hope you’ll take time to check out other high school alternatives including private schools and “alternative” schools. She only has 1.5 years. Spending money on private tuition might be money well spent – particularly if she blossoms and is well prepared for college. </p>
<p>Our local high school (Washington State) has an option that lets HS kids take classes at the community college with the state paying the fees. One young man said the program saved his life because he was so “done” with high school. </p>
<p>It sounds like she needs out of where she is NOW. I wouldn’t send her back for a single day more. So what if she misses two weeks of school while you sort out the alternatives? She can clean out a closet, paint the pantry, or just chill with a stack of books. Any of those would be preferable to her going, with a short fuse, to where the fuse lighters are hanging out all day. </p>
<p>I would think that homeschooling at the junior/senior high school level is very difficult and is likely to miss the critical classroom interactions that make the higher grades productive. Also, as someone pointed out, the sciences, math, language courses, etc. require considerable knowledge. Even high schools specialize, because no one teacher can possibly have the breadth to cover it all. Then there’s the parent-child interaction that is at best difficult in the adolescent years, now broadened to 24x7. Not a recipe for success.</p>
<p>Skipping the last 1 1/2 years of high school and moving to the community college system in California seems problematic at best. The CCs are very much hands off when it comes to the personal lives of their students, and there is no real student community.</p>
<p>So I would think that either a private or parochial school is the best answer. I would suggest that you have your D re-do her junior year. Perhaps you can find such a school willing to take your D into the sophomore year mid-year. The more selective schools are unlikley to do that, but perhaps a transfer is possible into a school that is less academic. The advantage, at least of the California private schools that come to mind, is that they have small classes and that they have a safety net for their students.</p>
<p>I do not disagree with the different options presented for this girl, especially the community college option, but homeschooling through high school for the most part is a recipe for success. Most students homeschooled in the upper grades aren’t sitting at the kitchen table with mama all day every day. They take cc classes, homeschool classes taught by teachers qualified in the subject area, online AP courses, and various other things. They participate in speech & debate, Civil Air Patrol, sports, orchestras, and many other things in which traditionally schooled students participate.</p>
<p>My kids (and many others I know who were homeschooled) have been smashingly successful. Most universities now are eager to consider homeschooled applicants. That’s what we found, in any case.</p>
<p>My kids were homeschooled and both are doing great in college. Cardinal Fang is right, just walk into the office, say bye-bye, and go. If you don’t want to walk into the office, send a letter.</p>
<p>It’s easy to declare yourself a private school in CA, or else if you want a bit more structure or a more traditional high school curriculum there are online public charters you can enroll in. I do think, though, that skipping all that and going straight to the CC and then transfering after a couple years is the best approach.</p>
<p>I agree, high school truly stinks for a lot of kids. If it’s not working for you, walk away and don’t look back. Freedom.</p>
<p>I don’t mean to come off as sarcastic and bitter, but I’m of the opinion that “productive” and “high school” are things that just don’t go together at all. :)</p>
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<p>Here, I’m a fan of the CHPSE. No mucking about with legalese mandatory attendance requirements or declaring yourself a school. 3 hours + test fee -> CHSPE = wham, bam, high school graduate = free and clear.</p>
<p>I’ve always just thought of home-schooling as a cop-out unless you live in an area where the public schools have a notoriously horrendous reputation for academics and you can’t afford private school. From what I’ve heard, most of the reasons that parents pull their kids out of school and the kids want to be home-schooled are social. Yes, school is hard. Being part of a society is hard, people are not always nice. But you are just teaching your child that instead of dealing with hardships in life you can get out of it and stay in your own protective bubble. They have to learn how to function in society at some point and people are not always going to treat them nicely. I’d understand if something serious was going on that was jeopardizing the child’s safety, but then can’t you just send them to another school and try again? Home-schooling to me seems like a sad refuge for the ultra-religious and those (perhaps well-intentioned but naive) trying to shield their children from the world. Both groups are trying to keep most people out, and that simply doesn’t work when you have to start real life. You have to be disciplined, you can’t wake up whenever you want, wear pajamas to work and expect to be handed things. You will eventually have to learn from people who don’t love you, thats life.</p>
<p>I don’t want to join in the homeschool debate…but I do have something to say about going to community college as a 16-yr old who has only successfully completed her soph year in HS.</p>
<p>Unless your D was on an “accelerated” track in HS, she probably has more learning to do before she could negotiate college courses. I don’t think an <em>average</em> HS junior would be ready. </p>
<p>Of course, if your D is the typical-for-College-Confidential student who already has completed 10 AP courses, taken multivariable calculus over the summer and taught herself Mandarin, she’ll be okay. ;)</p>
<p>I considered homeschooling when Happykid was in 9th grade. The local homeschooling community was very informative, and supportive during our decision-making process. Find someone who is doing this in your area, and figure out if it will work for you. High school is not for everyone.</p>
<p>I agree with Mrsref. I know someone who was an A student and ran into a personal issue in Junior year where she was unhappy in her school. Parents decided a CC would be good, and her high school was supportive. She did not do well at all in CC, she did not have the skills to go to talk to the professors and study on her own yet. She barely made it through her CC year and has not recoverd. Tread carefully and make sure your child is ready for so much freedom of decision and study.</p>
<p>Someone mentioned charter schools in an earlier post and I would encourage you to look around and see if that might be an option for your D. My D attends a great charter. As a senior, she is out of class at 10:00 each day. She takes dual enrollment classes at the local cc and has a part time job.</p>