-------Better Late Than Early: A New Approach to Your Child's Education
The children do not have a choice to go to school during the early years. They are home until third grade or until they can read reasonably well, which ever comes last. The reasons we do this are these: brain development, reading, and age of accountability.
Some of the books that really influenced our choice to not send the children to school before
the age
of eight were Better late than Early and School can Wait by Raymond Moore.
-------Better Late Than Early: A New Approach to Your Child's Education
I wanted to treat each of our children different according to their own pace of brain growth. I wanted to avoid any problems that we would create by forcing a child to learn something that his brain was not able to do yet. So the plan was to keep each child home until they learn to read.
I am not really in favor of the methods of teaching reading that are used in our school and so I wanted to do it myself. There is alot of pressure and drill and it turns reading into a chore rather than something fun. We didn't use any particular reading curriculum with the first two children, but I found my most favorite tool for teaching reading for the last three. It is a book for teaching reading and it is based in the Book of Mormon. It teaches phonics, and memorizing words in a balanced combination. But to me the most powerful part about it is that its readings are from scripture. I was amazed when we started this, that the Book of Mormon is perfect for learning to read. Words are repeated several times in a few stanzas and it has a certain poetic nature to it and it tells a compelling story. This is all above and beyond the special blessing we get by reading from God's word. So this is my method of teaching reading now, and so far it has been a huge success. I am able to go as fast or slow as I see the child can handle and it is always a positive experience. There is no pressure, no boring drill and no punishment or label if he doesn't get it.
I was just given a little article talking about this particular reading curriculum that we use and I will post the whole article and info about the book HERE
Another reason we wanted our children home until the age of eight is strictly religious. In our church we believe that the age of eight is the age of accountability. This is the age that children should know right from wrong and are given the choice to be baptized and join the church. We believe that before this time, a child is still learning what is right and wrong and his internal moral compass is still forming. When a person is baptized in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day-Saints, they also receive the ordinance called confirmation. This is where the member receives the gift of the Holy Ghost by the laying on of hands. We believe the gift of the Holy Ghost is a big help in knowing what is true and what is false, what is a good choice and what is bad. We wanted our children mostly under the influence of parents before they reached the age of accountability and before they received the Gift of the Holy Ghost for themselves.
Children are like huge sponges soaking up the culture and influences around them and we wanted the influences to be the best during this early time. Some teachers might be a good influence, but with 20 other children, the children become a more powerful influence. We wanted our children copying a courteous, kind, loving adult, not other self-centered, loud, immature six-year olds. By not being pressured by peers during the early formative years, it makes the children more sure in their own self-worth and less influenced by peers as an older child and teen. This lessening of peer influence is a major reason we homeschool.
The second plan covers the children's education from third grade on. We would like them to be in public school for two or three years to experience what public school is like and to have the ability to compare the options. We would like our children to feel the ownership and responsibility of their education and to have the freedom to explore many options available for their education. We would let them choose to remain in public school or homeschool as each year starts.
There is however, some requirements to remain in public school. The children must have reasonable grades, good behavior, participate in some sort of extra-curricular activity, and be respectful and helpful at home and school. If any of these rules are broken, then the child will be pulled out of public school and come home for the rest of the year. We do this so that being in public school is viewed as a priviledge to be earned, and that it is a good, valuable place to be. And that we always have the option for bringing children home at the first sign of difficulty for some one-on-one influence and tutoring by parents who love them, but will not tolerate rebellion. So far, this has been successful, too.
We are happy with this philosophy because we see many parents who are at the end of their rope and beside themselves with grief over bad and deadly behavior of their children and they don't know what to do and seemingly have no options but juvenile correction facilities. We want to be much more pro-active as parents and have options to help our children at any time they need it.
As of schoolyear's beginning 2007, we have had our oldest come home for 6th grade, go back in and then graduate normally with his class with excellent grades. He is currently married and attending college.
Our #2 child checked out of the regular high school and finished at the alternative HS a year yearly. She is now married, graduated from college and is a home ec teacher in HS.
#3 child came home for 7th grade while taking orchestra in the school. Then he went back to public school for 8th. He took an online course for his 9th grade English so he could take both band and orchestra during the school day. That was a success. He graduated HS and is now serving a mission. We are so happy that each child has found lots of alternative methods for getting the education they want. They are exploring these other options and finding doors opening. They have all made very unique and different choices for their education and as long as they get themselves a good education, we will support how they want to do it.
Child #4 came home for 7th grade then went back for 8th and more. He is in HS now. Child #5 has been in public school now for 3 years.
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