We don't home school our children, as we have a great charter school nearby, but I can attest to the benefits of free play. We let the two of them (boys 5 and 7) roam the neighborhood on their own until dark, and they have great adventures with all the other kids in the area. At any given time there will be 3 to 15 kids running around together.
Puntastic! And speaking of charges, Lenore Skenazy often covers stories of parents getting charged with crimes for letting their kids go to the park alone. Microschooling is another option you might look into.
Geography likely plays a big role. We're in Texas, and people tend to let one another be. When we were in California people seemed a bit quicker to butt into other people's business.
Also worth noting-- in California there was only one other child (18 and under) on the entire block we lived in. In Texas there are (doing math in head) 19 kids aged 10 and under on our block, and a lot more one street over in either direction.
As a Boomer, I can attest to the benefits of a high concentration of kids in the neighborhood! During the summer and on weekends, there was usually a kid-organized kickball game going on in the street (as our block was on a hill, catcher was the most important position!) or some other kid organized game. If a parent needed us, they leaned out the front window and yelled, inspiring a chorus of “Hey, (name), your mom is calling you!”
Thanks for the encouragement. We’re in the gulf coast of Florida and in an area where there are a lot of children as well. I’ll dig into microschooling and check out Lenore’s content.
Our family is on the quest to living life well with a steward’s heart
People also worry about the expense of homeschooling, but I can find used textbooks for as little as $6 online. For some subjects you are better off using nonfiction books than textbooks. If I’m not happy with one book or resource I find another.
My daughter is starting 10th grade and the most distressing aspect of her Geometry course last year was my realization of how very little of it I have ever needed to know. I enjoy carpentry as a hobby and was disgusted to recognize that I use more algebra than geometry, and a year of my teenage math education was devoted to geometry! I was wracked with guilt over her inability to retain geometry detail until this epiphany.
So much of my professional education was either prerequisites (to keep PhDs employed as much as to prepare me for higher level courses) or graduation requirements (to keep PhDs employed) and has had little relevance to anything I actually do professionally or personally.
Some minutiae is needed for standardized testing, but the big picture is what is most useful in adulthood. Your kid doesn’t have to be memorizing as much, which is the focus in most schools, and instead can be learning how to apply information. My parents instilled in me the importance of thinking rather than just coasting on a wave of detail. This has served me well.
Very well said: "So much of my professional education was either prerequisites (to keep PhDs employed as much as to prepare me for higher level courses) or graduation requirements (to keep PhDs employed) and has had little relevance to anything I actually do professionally or personally." I go through the same math worries with our son in terms of what to focus on. A while ago there was a Freakonomics episode that investigated what kind of math people are most likely to use in adulthood and the top one was data analytics.
We don't home school our children, as we have a great charter school nearby, but I can attest to the benefits of free play. We let the two of them (boys 5 and 7) roam the neighborhood on their own until dark, and they have great adventures with all the other kids in the area. At any given time there will be 3 to 15 kids running around together.
Aw, that's so great. Unfortunately, scenes like that aren't as common as they used to be.
Especially with the current climate as it relates to children, it’s tricky for roaming without charges (pardon the pun).
Definitely looking into all the different iterations for potential adaptations for two boys as well under 7.
Puntastic! And speaking of charges, Lenore Skenazy often covers stories of parents getting charged with crimes for letting their kids go to the park alone. Microschooling is another option you might look into.
Geography likely plays a big role. We're in Texas, and people tend to let one another be. When we were in California people seemed a bit quicker to butt into other people's business.
Also worth noting-- in California there was only one other child (18 and under) on the entire block we lived in. In Texas there are (doing math in head) 19 kids aged 10 and under on our block, and a lot more one street over in either direction.
That's wonderful when you get that high concentration of kids. We live in California and it's about as sparse as you experienced.
As a Boomer, I can attest to the benefits of a high concentration of kids in the neighborhood! During the summer and on weekends, there was usually a kid-organized kickball game going on in the street (as our block was on a hill, catcher was the most important position!) or some other kid organized game. If a parent needed us, they leaned out the front window and yelled, inspiring a chorus of “Hey, (name), your mom is calling you!”
Great anecdote. Made me smile, and not just because I have experience with chasing balls down steep hills!
Thanks for the encouragement. We’re in the gulf coast of Florida and in an area where there are a lot of children as well. I’ll dig into microschooling and check out Lenore’s content.
Our family is on the quest to living life well with a steward’s heart
Best of luck to you! Sounds like you're in a good situation.
People also worry about the expense of homeschooling, but I can find used textbooks for as little as $6 online. For some subjects you are better off using nonfiction books than textbooks. If I’m not happy with one book or resource I find another.
My daughter is starting 10th grade and the most distressing aspect of her Geometry course last year was my realization of how very little of it I have ever needed to know. I enjoy carpentry as a hobby and was disgusted to recognize that I use more algebra than geometry, and a year of my teenage math education was devoted to geometry! I was wracked with guilt over her inability to retain geometry detail until this epiphany.
So much of my professional education was either prerequisites (to keep PhDs employed as much as to prepare me for higher level courses) or graduation requirements (to keep PhDs employed) and has had little relevance to anything I actually do professionally or personally.
Some minutiae is needed for standardized testing, but the big picture is what is most useful in adulthood. Your kid doesn’t have to be memorizing as much, which is the focus in most schools, and instead can be learning how to apply information. My parents instilled in me the importance of thinking rather than just coasting on a wave of detail. This has served me well.
Very well said: "So much of my professional education was either prerequisites (to keep PhDs employed as much as to prepare me for higher level courses) or graduation requirements (to keep PhDs employed) and has had little relevance to anything I actually do professionally or personally." I go through the same math worries with our son in terms of what to focus on. A while ago there was a Freakonomics episode that investigated what kind of math people are most likely to use in adulthood and the top one was data analytics.
This is so timely! Thanks for sharing your insights.
My pleasure! I was trying to slip it in just before the back to school season.
Heading into my first year, with a 16 and 14 year old, plus a friend’s 14yo! We are both nervous and excited. 💙
Good for you, Maggie! You'll do great and you might find this somewhat helpful: https://shinyherd.substack.com/p/back-to-home-school-5-lessons-ive