During the summer Reed and I laid out all the options for Lara's schooling and it was a hard decision to make. There are lots of aspects that went into the making of our choice (We involved Lara in the process too) and I've given it a few months before I have concluded that it was the right decision.
Choice #1- Staying at my school. Lara has loved it there with the teachers, the kids, and the work. She, however, did not like having to stay 1-2.5 extra hours after school while I worked since there were days I worked until 5:30 or later. She also knew that she wasn't going to have her same teachers as the year previously, if she were to return, and most of her friends were going back to district (yay!). There was also the money issue- school costs!
Choice #2- Public school. I am not bragging when I say that Lara is smart. I am merely stating fact. She is very bright and learns things quickly. We had Lara evaluated to see if she could attend first grade instead of Kindergarten since she had done the K work in school already and had met the expectations if not excelled. Even though I was homeschooled, I didn't want to rule out the possibility of her accessing a public education. The school district came back and said that although she was advanced in reading, she was only average in math, and her IQ score was average, therefore she didn't qualify for immediate acceleration. I think I would have been more willing to send her to public school if the district had been willing to work with us at some level. Strike 1: The people who attended our meeting had not even met Lara, they were going on pure test scores and the evaluations of other people who were doing pure evaluations, not even giving their opinions. Strike 2: You want to get on my bad side then try putting words in my mouth. Saying things like "I know you were expecting better news" or "We know you are disappointed" does not bode well for our relationship. Strike 3: Telling me that there are first graders who can't do what Lara can do and yet she still doesn't qualify for acceleration doesn't make sense to me. Reed and I both knew that this was not the best option for her.
Choice #3- Homeschool. There was a time in my life (I don't remember when. College maybe?) when I emphatically said that I would not homeschool my kids. Not because I didn't think it was a great option, only because I felt I couldn't do it. My mom put a lot of time and effort into homeschooling and I just didn't want to go through all that work. I changed my mind at some point, probably when Lara was born, and said that I would try it when I got the chance. When thinking of educational options for Lara, homeschooling was out there but how could we do that when I still needed to work? My mom and my mother-in-law were willing to help out with this but I felt like it was my responsibility to homeschool, if that's the way we went. I had immediately ruled this possibility out until my sister (She gave me a blog nickname so I should probably give her one. Maybe, Ms. Organized? Probably nicer than Ms. Anal :)! Love ya' Suki!) pointed out that either way someone else was doing the education, either a teacher or a family member. I had never thought about that. So the option went back on the table.
Our decision- OHDELA. I love explaining Lara's school to people because the answer is not a straight "She's homeschooled." Technically, she is not homeschooled because OHDELA is on on-line public school and is completely tuition-free. My brother is part of OHDELA and after reading about it and of course talking to my Mom, Reed and I decided that this was great. One of my OTHER sisters (Um, Yoshi?) would come to stay with us during the week and be our live-in Nanny. She is mostly in charge of Lara's school work and keeps things running smoothly. Lara was so excited about getting her own computer, printer, books, etc. OHDELA sent her all of that FREE OF CHARGE! Reed and I get to do schoolwork with her on days off, or in the evenings, and she gets one day of schoolwork with Grandma Piano. She looks forwards to Thursdays also with Grandma Flute for extracurricular field trips.
After a few weeks, I saw a total difference in Lara. Don't get me wrong, she LOVED her school last year. It is tiring for an introvert to be in school all day, especially with how long the days were with my schedule. Thanks to
this book I knew what was going on. She would be so crabby when we got home and now she is happy in the evenings! I even noticed that she can socialize more easily when the time comes. Now that her energy isn't being drained all day she is more willing to talk and participate during music class or social group. There have been a few rough patches, like the last few weeks where she only wanted me to do schoolwork with her and cried every time I left the house. A sticker chart cleared that up immediately (yay behavior training). We all have been happier and know that this was the best thing for all of us. Reed and I are still looking forward to the day when I can stay home but for right now this is all right and has been a blessing in our lives.
