Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Homeschool

I have become an official 'Home schooler'.  It has been in the back of my mind for years now. I would cringe at the thought of it until a friend from church told me about how there is a supplemental school in Mesa (Eagleridge) that is for home schooled children.  Kids can either go once or twice a week.  I thought, 'Wow, that would be perfect so that I wouldn't feel overwhelmed! One of my kids (no names mentioned) has been struggling ever since they started school and it has been getting progressively worse.  The teachers tried the best that they could, but what with overcrowded classrooms, and not enough time in the day, they really didn't have any positive solutions.

When my friend told me about Eagleridge I was greatly encouraged!  This is just what my child and I both needed to make learning positive and fun again.  I decided to pull all of my kids and work with all of them.
The school is great and offers great, diverse classes that just are not available at regular elementary schools. My kids love it there.  Do they miss their friends from public school?  Yes.  Do they miss their teachers? Eh, sometimes, not really though.  Do they have a lot of new friends at their new school?  Yes.  Do they like their new school and school at home?  Yes, and honestly, so do I.

I am definitely still working out the kinks and finding out what works and doesn't work.  I am really enjoying spending the extra time with the kiddos.  The kids get much more help on the things that they may have struggled with at public school and are learning at faster and higher rates.

Eagleridge is a part of the Mesa Public School District.  They provide the curriculum and workbooks for you.  You do have to return them at the end of each semester/school year ( We just started in January). You can also free to find your own curriculum if you choose (however, they only provide what the public schools use).  For now I am using what the school has to offer.  It is free and I get some time to find out what is out there.  There is also a mountain of free advice, tools, and materials online. I also love that I can include the scriptures and the gospel in my lessons as well.

When I started this semester I was totally overwhelmed and was not sure what I had gotten myself into.  Now I am much more confident and at peace with my decision.  Thank you to all of the women that I have met through Eagleridge and their advice on how they home school and especially to Melissa Pimental for informing me about Eagleridge and for her encouragement!