record-keeping Archives - Page 2 of 10 - Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau

May 28 2015

Schools that handle the homeschooling for you

{This post is one in a series called, “Top 10 Fears”, in which I speak to the most common fears parents express about homeschooling the high school years. To see all of the topics, or start at the beginning, click HERE.}

Top Fear #4

Not having a school to do the schooling for you

So, you want to bring your kids home. But secretly, you’re scared to be person totally in charge of their education.

Will you ruin the kids? Probably not. But, what if you have no idea what you’re doing?

For anyone dreaming of homeschooling, but afraid to be left completely in charge, this is the post for you.

Homeschooling is a little bit different from state to state. But, luckily, there is one thing all states have in common — being able to enroll in a program that does the work for you. Or most of it.

In some states, this service can come from a private school. These are schools specifically designed for this purpose. By enrolling in these schools, families can keep their kids home, but still get oversight and guidance from a school that knows what they’re doing. There are many such schools from coast to coast. Selecting the right one means families can receive exactly the support they need — from guidance to curriculum selection to courses to having books shipped to the home – for an annual fee.

In other states, this might look like hiring a teacher or private tutor. In these cases, children meet with the tutor/teacher and complete the work at home (or somewhere else). Payment varies with the number of classes and services received. This, too, is a way for schooling to be parent-directed, yet almost entirely handled by someone else.

A third way is to select an all-in-one curriculum publisher/product, in which all lessons, tests (assessments), and materials are provided for a fee. These self-study programs are designed for children able to work independently, or with only a small amount of help. In some cases, these products come with automatic grading, too, so even grading papers becomes a completely hands-off process.

Many families feel they can benefit from these kinds of services. If yours is one of them, check the laws of your state first, then consult a homeschool advisor to find schools/products that fit your situation.

Other articles of interest:

Independent homeschooling vs. private schools

Chemistry & Calculus: 5 solutions for teaching the tougher classes

How to teach labs, when you don’t have a lab

Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau is a college professor who traded in her tenure to become a homeschool mom 20+ years ago. The founder of many homeschool groups and organizations, she works to advance home education, and is an outspoken supporter of education reform coast to coast. Her book, Suddenly Homeschooling: A Quick Start Guide to Legally Homeschool in Two Weeks, is industry-acclaimed as it illustrates how homeschooling can rescue children and families from the system, and how anyone can begin homeschooling within a limited time-frame, or with no educational background whatsoever. A liaison for regional school-to-home organizations and a homeschool leader in Florida, Marie-Claire also mentors homeschool families nationwide. A conference speaker, she has appeared at FPEA, H.E.R.I., Home Education Council of America, and many other events. She currently writes for audiences at Quick Start Homeschool, which she founded in 2010, and as a guest writer on other sites as often as she can. Her articles have appeared in CONNECT magazine, on Homefires, atCircle of Moms, and she has contributed to hundreds of other blogs nationwide. Dr. Moreau can be reached at contactmarieclaire@gmail.com.

May 07 2015

Making it measurable

Everyone knows homeschooling is personal. It’s our business. With few restrictions, we get to choose what we do. And that’s the way we like it.

On the other hand, this is real life. Despite the freedom, the reality is that after graduation (usually slightly before) someone, somewhere is going to start asking questions. Certain people are going to want to know what we did all those years.

Don’t kid yourself, parent. No matter how fervently independent you may have been to this point, there will come a time — when nearing completion or right after graduation – when you’ll have to start sharing, disclosing and proving. Your student will be asked produce evidence of high school completion. Whether it’s for college admissions, scholarship committees, employers, or somewhere else — it’s going to happen at one time or another.

That’s where quantifying high school comes in. You need to make sure everything is measurable.

Let me be clear. I don’t want to dictate your homeschool style. And I never suggest withholding from a child what he or she really wants to study in whatever way he or she wants to study it.

What I’m saying is, there will be someone on the other end, hand held out, waiting for a transcript, a list of completed courses, a final credit count, a diploma, a test score, or some other measurement of your child’s high school years. And it’s your job to provide it.

In high school, remembering to record what your student does, how he did it, where he did it, the number of hours he did it, or how well he did it, becomes crucial. Only by carefully tracking experiences can you count them, measure them, label them, and put them on a transcript.

Only by carefully tracking experiences can you count them, measure them, label them, and put them…

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So important is the record-keeping process in high school, that it can make or break the student’s immediate plans after graduation. I’m not trying to scare you. Actually, I guess I am trying to scare you. Just try to imagine recreating the last 8 or 9 years of homeschool completely from memory — that’s the kind of horror you’ll face at the end of your child’s high school years if you haven’t bothered to track and measure. Which really, really stinks for your student, since you may underestimate something crucial — something that’ll cost her something important, like an acceptance letter, a scholarship, a job, or something else. Or, you might omit something entirely, something that really needed to be there, like a requirement for the next stage of your child’s life, making it impossible for him to proceed. Or, you might inadequately describe something, so that even though your child did it, those looking in from the outside aren’t able to tell.

When homeschooling high school, please, please write everything down. Establish some system, no matter what it is, of keeping track of what your teen is up to. If it’s well-organized, all the better. But even a box or bin where you drop random notes throughout the year is better than nothing. These notes will make the difference between a successful finish and a major disappointment for your kid.

…even a box or bin where you drop random notes throughout the year is better than nothing.

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Then, as you record things, make it a habit of measuring them, too:

Measure whether certain requirements have been fulfilled.

Measure whether it is enough of something or requires a little bit more of something.

Measure if the quality was high enough.

Measure if the experience will at least minimally satisfy the criteria of what the student needs for the next stage.

Measure whether someone looking in from the outside would consider what your student did to be worthy of whatever-it-is they have to offer.

One of the things I do is help parents measure high school. Usually, I work with those who haven’t kept detailed records, have no idea of the worth of certain experiences, or don’t really understand what their child has actually done. I help sort through facts, document experiences and put together evidence of completion. I help them measure.

I love doing what I do. But, you can do this yourself, too. Start early and remain consistent throughout the high school years. You’ll get it.

Want ideas for record keeping, measuring experiences and how to award credit? I’ll list some articles for you, below. Don’t forget to read them and follow the links inside, as well.

If you still need help, let me know.

Awarding credit three different ways

Record-keeping made simple

Comprehensive high school binder

Credits explained

Earning credit for life skills

Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau is a college professor who traded in her tenure to become a homeschool mom 20+ years ago. The founder of many homeschool groups and organizations, she works to advance home education, and is an outspoken supporter of education reform coast to coast. Her book, Suddenly Homeschooling: A Quick Start Guide to Legally Homeschool in Two Weeks, is industry-acclaimed as it illustrates how homeschooling can rescue children and families from the system, and how anyone can begin homeschooling within a limited time-frame, or with no educational background whatsoever. A liaison for regional school-to-home organizations and a homeschool leader in Florida, Marie-Claire also mentors homeschool families nationwide. A conference speaker, she has appeared at FPEA, H.E.R.I., Home Education Council of America, and many other events. She currently writes for audiences at Quick Start Homeschool, which she founded in 2010, and as a guest writer on other sites as often as she can. Her articles have appeared in CONNECT magazine, on Homefires, at Circle of Moms, and she has contributed to hundreds of other blogs nationwide. Dr. Moreau can be reached at contactmarieclaire@gmail.com.

Apr 23 2015

Too much or too little? Too easy or too hard?

Ever have the feeling you’re too tough on your kids? If the work you’re assigning is harder than it needs to be? Think there’s too much of it?

Or maybe you worry the work is too easy? That you’re a push-over? That there aren’t enough activities to fill the day?

We all have these thoughts from time to time.

How do we find just the right amount of work for our kids?

How do we know if it’s too hard, too easy, or just right?

Finding the perfect balance for every student takes time. I’ve never met anyone who got it right the first time.

Balance takes months, even years, to get right. And then kids mature, life takes twists and turns, and we start all over again.

Don’t worry. You’ll keep up. Eventually.

This may help.

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If balance is your concern, take a moment to ask the following questions. Ask them for every child in your homeschool, too. The answers will help understand if that elusive balance has been reached. If not, they’ll at least indicate areas you can work on to get there:

#1 First and foremost, is the child learning and happy?

Answering YES to this question is crucial. Homeschooling isn’t about being miserable. It’s about maturing and progressing, while living a good life.

#2 Next, is the child challenged, but not to the point of frustration?

Answering YES to this question is what you’re after. Can the child handle the amount and difficulty of the work you’re assigning — without stress and tears (yours or theirs)? And while feeling good about himself/herself? Refer back to #1 if you aren’t sure.

#3 Then ask, is there much idle time?

With no clear purpose (sometimes indicated by boredom, clamoring for attention, or mischief)? Answering YES to this question means it’s time for a tweak or two. Many children do fill their hours with worthwhile activities, ones you approve of, which add to their learning and development. But some kids need our help filling those hours for them. Determine how your child uses idle time, then tweak accordingly.

#4 Ask yourself if there’s enough time in the child’s day for play, hobbies, sports, day dreaming, or other things the child likes to do.

Is there enough time for winding down at the end of the day and preparing for a good night’s sleep? Answering NO to this question indicates a child’s day may be too full.

#5 Finally, does the child’s output match what is generally expected at that age/grade/stage of life?

This isn’t an exact science, and varies from child to child. But for those worried about it, it’s helpful to check the quantity & quality of work against what experts, authors, textbooks, publishers, or placement tests say children might be doing at approximately this stage of life. (Read about placement and understanding scope & sequence to learn more.) If there are genuine issues hampering progress, handle them. If you can’t, simply factor them into the equation.

Remember, the perfect balance will change as the years go on, and from child to child, too. What was normal one year will change to match a child’s maturity, habits and developing mind the next.

Keeping asking yourself these questions every six months, or every year, to keep up. You’ll get it!

Joys of high schooling your kids

Recently, I wrote about real life high schooling (HERE). I spared no details when talking about how much work it takes and how many boo boos we parents sometimes make along the way.

I wrote that article so you’d know what high schooling really looks like from the inside. I wrote it because I hate it when homeschoolers are handed some phony tale of hearts and rainbows by some “expert” out to sell an e-book. Those experts only tell you one side of the story, my friends. I doubt the real truth ever comes out during the premium, platinum or gold membership, either.

I hate it when homeschoolers are handed some phony tale of hearts and rainbows by some “expert” out…

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I was willing to tell you the truth.

Just like I’m going to tell you the other part of the truth right now.

I’m going to tell you the part about how high schooling is really fun. I’m going to tell you how much I have loved doing it. And I’m going to make sure you understand what an overwhelming privilege it is to get to prepare your very own kids for life.

There are as many joys to high schooling, as there are joys to living life with your kids. When homeschooling, those things are so intertwined, it’s hard to separate them out. In fact, when I thought about this article, I realized I could write about this forever. So, I decided to simply choose some of my favorite joys to share with you instead.

This isn’t an exhaustive list. Because high schooling is pretty much the most amazing thing a family can do. But, for me, some of the many JOYS of high schooling kids include:

Getting to know your teens, inside and out. And by this I mean their hearts and minds, and everything else that goes along with that. As kids get older and smarter, conversations get easier, more fascinating, and infinitely more rewarding. You’re no longer nodding in agreement over everything they say when they’re little, or answering ten thousand questions an hour as they grow. No, conversations with teens are real, intelligent, heartfelt and revealing. There is raw emotion, true depth, and honesty over everything and nothing. Sometimes, it’s frustrating, too. I love all of that.

The surprise and excitement we get to feel, when we see our kids for who they are, and learn their true calling. I want to make sure not to trivialize this. Because this is huge. Cause no matter how many times our kids say they’d like to be this-or-that when they grow up or do this-or-that when they leave home, we parents know it isn’t real until a certain moment, when we discover it really is real. It’s different for every child, but that amazing moment our kids begin saying things, doing things, and showing us who they really are, and what life has planned for them. That is so powerful. We get to be so proud of them, and we get to feel as though everything is finally so perfectly aligned for that young person. It’s both beautiful and overwhelming to tears. I remember when it happened for each of my kids. In pretty much every case, it wasn’t what I thought. It wasn’t what the child seemed like he would do when he was younger. But, when each of my kids revealed himself, I realized how perfect it was, and they were. I wondered why I didn’t see him that way sooner.

Seeing yourself in them, but not too much. I’ve heard some parents find this threatening — the notion that teens don’t always agree or follow in parents’ footsteps or beliefs. I actually love that. It means they’re learning on their own, and they’ve learned and discovered different things from what I’ve been able to. It means they’re part of a newer generation than I, one in which certain progress has been made, certain discoveries have been found, certain stereotypes have been eliminated, and certain thought patterns have been reprogrammed. My husband and I appreciate when our kids honor our values and respect our beliefs. We try to stay on top of research, trends, and new ideologies. But, we don’t for a minute expect our kids to be like us in all ways, because that isn’t realistic. We’ve raised them well, so they’ll draw from our wisdom when they need it. But we know that we’ve had our time — and this time is for them.

…we don’t for a minute expect our kids to be like us in all ways, because that isn’t realistic

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Seeing your kids through the eyes of others. I love watching my kids in real life. I love seeing them speak to others, move around in the world, doing things on their own. I love hearing feedback from other people who have met them, spoken to them and worked with them. There is tremendous validation in watching your children do as you have taught them to do, knowing those lessons weren’t lost, and feeling as though you’ve had a part in making them successful/keeping them safe/advancing their future. Plus, it’s fun to see how they add their own personal flair to all those things, too.

Seeing their eyes turn back to us. I kills me, in a good way, every time one of my boys heads off, then looks back at me. For wisdom, support, or just to know I’m watching them as they head out. This is perhaps the highest level of joy at this stage — to release a child on his/her own, yet know we are still valued, needed, and very much wanted in their lives. My heart breaks open every time one of my kids does this, as I feel so proud they’re independent, yet so grateful I am still an important part of their lives.

I feel so proud they’re independent, yet so grateful I am still an important part of their lives.

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There is more. I could write on and on.

Just know that high schooling is so much more than shuffling papers and completing forms. It’s more than choosing curriculum and correcting papers. It’s more than setting alarm clocks and driving teens everywhere they need to go.

High schooling is about real stuff. Stuff that matters. Stuff that no matter how hard high schooling may seem sometimes, or how many mistakes you think you may have made, it’s the only stuff that really counts once it’s all over.

Truth: Part II.

Dr. Marie-Claire Moreau is a college professor who traded in her tenure to become a homeschool mom 20+ years ago. The founder of many homeschool groups and organizations, she works to advance home education, and is an outspoken supporter of education reform coast to coast. Her book, Suddenly Homeschooling: A Quick Start Guide to Legally Homeschool in Two Weeks, is industry-acclaimed as it illustrates how homeschooling can rescue children and families from the system, and how anyone can begin homeschooling within a limited time-frame, or with no educational background whatsoever. A liaison for regional school-to-home organizations and a homeschool leader in Florida, Marie-Claire also mentors homeschool families nationwide. A conference speaker, she has appeared at FPEA, H.E.R.I., HECOA, FLHES, and many other events. She currently writes for audiences at Quick Start Homeschool, and as a guest on other sites as often as she can. Her articles have appeared in CONNECT, on Homefires, at Circle of Moms and she has contributed to hundreds of other blogs nationwide. Dr. Moreau can be reached at contactmarieclaire@gmail.com.

Mar 28 2015

Graduation Cheat Sheet

I don’t need to tell you — homeschooling makes for a very busy life. Your days are full and your mind is constantly overflowing.

Ever worry you’ll forget something? (Do I even need to ask?)

I worried the first time I graduated a homeschooler. I was afraid to forget to do certain things — things that could impact (even harm) my student later on.

Writing things down was helpful. Making lists helped a lot.

For me, keeping lists right in front of my face was important, too. To this day, I still have a cork board above my desk where I hang the really, really important stuff.

Are you ready to graduate a high schooler?

Do you wish you had a list of important things — so you don’t forget?

I created a high school graduation check-list for you.

On it, you’ll find all of the things you need to do before buttoning up the high school years and graduating your student.

I have included the really important things — like checking curriculum requirements, making up transcripts, making sure your student can write a decent essay, and more.

And because every state is a little different, I also included checking your state’s laws to make sure you’ve met any requirements for your particular area.

FREE PRINTABLE: Get Cheat Sheet

On the Cheat Sheet, I included some optional things, such as ordering a class ring and planning a graduation celebration. Not every family does that stuff, but they’re on there — in case you’d like to enjoy them, too.

I think my Cheat Sheet should help ease the anxiety of forgetting something — after it’s already too late. Take a look, and see if you’d like to hang a copy on your cork board, too!

By the way, if you like this kind of thing, leave me a COMMENT, would you? Your feedback helps me know the kind of things you’re looking for.

See the cheat sheet here. Print a copy for yourself.

To your success,

Top Fear #4

Not having a school to do the schooling for you

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