Homeschool parents are more civically active than are public school parents.-- Brian D. Ray, Ph.D.
I greatly admire parents who homeschool their children. I, quite honestly, would not have the patience to do so. I think my sons are in better hands at school, with trained teachers. However, I personally know several mom who have taken the homeschooling route and have succeeded. None of these women have ADHD/LD children. That made me wonder... how difficult would it be to homeschool an ADHD/LD child? What would have to be done differently? What additional challenges would the parent face? Is it even a good idea to attempt it? As usual, when I have questions, I research. Below is what I found.
Possible reasons parents decide to homeschool their ADHD/LD children include: frustration with the school system; child is unhappy in their school; the child's IEP is not being properly implements or followed; parent feels they can provide a more positive environment at home; flexibility; solitude which provides less distractions for their child.
There were an estimated 1.7 million to 2.1 million children (grades K-12) home educated during 2002-2003 in the United States.--NHERI
A few of the positive aspects of homeschooling your ADHD/LD child include the ability to: provide individualized instruction; tailor lessons specifically to your child's learning style; use community resources to teach; customize the curriculum to suit your child's needs; create an individualized program that takes full advantage of your child's strengths; and allows the child to work and learn at his own pace.
The homeschooling parent can find support through conferences, support groups, fellow homeschooling parents, and professionals to teach in areas they may feel inadequate in.
A few traits that any homeschooling parent should have are: being patient; helpful; kind; organized; self motivated; and self discipline. Likewise, homeschooling parents should not: be perfectionists; be unorganized or overly organized; or set unattainable standards.
Sources used for this article include...
Stay tuned for a post about support options that are available for parents who homeschool!
Happy blogoversary!
ReplyDelete