Oh, Dearest Mother, Sweetest Virgin of Altagracia, our Patroness. You are our Advocate and to you we recommend our needs. You are our Teacher and like disciples we come to learn from the example of your holy life. You are our Mother, and like children, we come to offer you all of the love of our hearts. Receive, dearest Mother, our offerings and listen attentively to our supplications. Amen.



Active Topics || Favorites || Member List || Search || About Us || Help || Register || Login
Planning and Ordering our Days
 4Real Forums : Planning and Ordering our Days
Subject Topic: PLanning for a surprise visit Post ReplyPost New Topic
Author
Message << Prev Topic | Next Topic >>
SeaStar
Forum Moderator
Forum Moderator
Avatar

Joined: Sept 16 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 9068
Posted: May 19 2014 at 5:52am | IP Logged Quote SeaStar

I hope and pray it will never happen to any of us, but if you did get a surprise
visit from the police or CPS related to homeschooling, would you know what to do?

I had a vague notion of "Don't let them in", but until I read the guidelines from HSDLA I had no idea that:

1. You might get a phone call, not a visit
2. It might be the police or CPS or *BOTH* who show up at your door.

There are different ways to handle each situation. I don't think I would be thinking too clearly if it happened, especially with kids jumping all around .

I have decided to print out and post a list of the HSDLA's recommendations in a place that is discreet but available for easy reference. In six years of homeschooling I have not had any problems,
but it is good to prepared.



__________________
Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)


SQUILT Music Appreciation
Back to Top View SeaStar's Profile Search for other posts by SeaStar
 
CrunchyMom
Forum Moderator
Forum Moderator
Avatar

Joined: Sept 03 2007
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 6385
Posted: May 19 2014 at 7:32am | IP Logged Quote CrunchyMom

I have been thinking of this, too. Someone just this week shared their current (still ongoing) experience on the Facebook Unschooling group, and it is so scary to hear about it and to hear others sharing theirs. I had always sort of rested in knowing we have good neighbors, but this person's experience is from a strange car driving by and randomly seeing the toddler "alone."

AND, they have inspected her house, giving them lists of fire hazards to change (like the stuff piled near the currently OFF and not being used furnace). It is just a whole 'nother layer of my stress in keeping our house presentable It is all so invasive and seems to have nothing to do with the initial incident!!

__________________
Lindsay
Five Boys(6/04) (6/06) (9/08)(3/11),(7/13), and 1 girl (5/16)
My Symphony

[URL=http://mysymphonygarden.blogspot.com/]Lost in the Cosmos[/UR
Back to Top View CrunchyMom's Profile Search for other posts by CrunchyMom
 
SallyT
Forum All-Star
Forum All-Star
Avatar

Joined: Aug 08 2007
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 2489
Posted: May 19 2014 at 8:14am | IP Logged Quote SallyT

Oh, that's awful! I have to confess that we have been pretty blase . . . maybe it's just having homeschooled so uneventfully for so long. But we shouldn't be too blase, really.

Because we declined to participate in our state's mail-in program -- you can *opt* to mail your test scores, attendance, and immunization records to the state Department of Non-Public Education yearly, but you can also legally *opt* not to do that -- I have made sure that we were at the ready should a phone call come from the state. So far it hasn't, but we are in compliance with the law: we keep the aforementioned records and scores on file, so I could pull them out at a moment's notice, if asked. Nothing more than that, however, is legally required, and I would volunteer nothing more.

Otherwise, I have thought through my strategy of

1. not letting anyone into my house.
and
2. Calling my lawyer (HSLDA) immediately, before I did anything else.

What, beyond that?

Sally



__________________
Castle in the Sea
Abandon Hopefully
Back to Top View SallyT's Profile Search for other posts by SallyT Visit SallyT's Homepage
 
SeaStar
Forum Moderator
Forum Moderator
Avatar

Joined: Sept 16 2006
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 9068
Posted: May 19 2014 at 11:47am | IP Logged Quote SeaStar

It is sad that we are not really free, and a total stranger has the ability to make life very difficult for us. The post we had recently about fences and neighbors had me pulling out my HSDLA stuff to review. And LIndsay's comment about a random drive-by observation only makes me more . There just seems still to be so much anti-HSing sentiment out there.

Sally, evidently there is a scenario like this:
A police officer *and* a CPS worker come to your door together. They request entry. They cannot enter without a search warrant. In this case you can refuse them entry, or you can tell them that you are closing your door and leaving it unlocked. If they choose to enter, it is without your permission.

You are not obstructing justice but you are also not giving them permission to do this.

The little HSDLA booklet gives you all the right words to say for any occasion. I am glad I have it.


__________________
Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)


SQUILT Music Appreciation
Back to Top View SeaStar's Profile Search for other posts by SeaStar
 
JodieLyn
Forum Moderator
Forum Moderator
Avatar

Joined: Sept 06 2006
Location: Oregon
Online Status: Offline
Posts: 12234
Posted: May 19 2014 at 1:42pm | IP Logged Quote JodieLyn

Remember also that you usually hear about the horror stories.

I have had contact with them once (I've had a couple of escape artists) And I stepped out on my porch to speak with them. The only thing they asked was to be able to see the children (not speak with them or anything). And were just as careful as they could be to check on the children without trampling on our rights.

So while there are those horror stories out there. There are also careful workers who are just as careful about being respectful as some are at trampling all over everyone's rights.

__________________
Jodie, wife to Dave
G-18, B-17, G-15, G-14, B-13, B-11, G-9, B-7, B-5, B-4

All men who have turned out worth anything have had the chief hand in their own education.
-Sir Walter Scott
Back to Top View JodieLyn's Profile Search for other posts by JodieLyn
 

If you wish to post a reply to this topic you must first login
If you are not already registered you must first register

  [Add this topic to My Favorites] Post ReplyPost New Topic
Printable version Printable version

Forum Jump
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot create polls in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum

Hosting and Support provided by theNetSmith.com