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Martha
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Where do you consider to be the most catholic friendly and or the most home school friendly in general to home school?
I know HSLDA has a map thing, but that doesn't tell what it is like int he trenches there, kwim?
So where would you never move bc of home schooling there and where do you think hs-ing is great/easy for whatever reason?
I'll plug Oklahoma! My dh is getting annoyed at me for not being wiling to move to any state that isn't "green" ont eh HSLDA map. He needs a job within the next couple months and so far nada. He wants to expand his search.
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Martha
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JodieLyn
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It just depends.. for instance here where I am in OR, there isn't any real pressure.. sure you have to test at the end of 3rd, 5th and 8th and 10th grades. But there's very few other requirements. And the law is written in such a way that it's pretty clear when and what the Eduational Service District can do. Objective not subjective.
And yet because of the degree that HSLDA attribute to those it's an orange state.. vs a state that tells you that you have to take attendance and teach particular subjects and have particular teacher requirements etc will get a "better" color from HSLDA. IT really depends on what you feel are the harder to meet/more invasive requirements.
Also how often do you read about harrassment in a particular state. I would NOT want to be in CA (lived there a long time) CPS there tends to be rather overboard, while the requirements get a good color from HSLDA, they're more subjective and more harrassment than you tend to hear about in OR.
I certainly find that HSLDA's standards don't always agree with mine.
I would look at where the best, most likely places for your dh to get a job are. And then read over the requirements carefully at HSLDA regardless of the color that they give the state. Do a search and see what sort of harrassment cases come up for that state and how often.
And make your decision from there. You may find like I have that the color HSLDA gives a state is not always the best pictures of homeschooling in that state.
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rose gardens
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I live in Minnesota. As it stands right now, we need file an annual report and take standardized tests annually (edit--the state also has a list of "required subjects"--the types of subjects we'd do anyway.) Parents without bachelor degrees have more loops than that. This year the state legislature considered in some budeget legislation measures that would have reduced the paper-work for homeschooling. Unfortunately for other reasons it didn't pass.
Generally speaking I'd say it's a fairly Catholic homeschool friendly place. I don't know anyone personally who has ever had any problems with their local school districts and I know several homeschoolers who receive various services from them such as speach therapy. High school aged homeschoolers often enroll in classes at community colleges their jr. and sr year to supplement homeschooling, (paid for coutesy of the taxpayesrs.)
There are a number of larger Catholic homeschool groups and some smaller ones in or near the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St.Paul) Every year there's a fairly large Catholic homeschooling conference, usually with nationally known Catholic speakers. There are alot of Catholics here--solid orthodox Catholics and others. Many people have nice things to say about my homeschooling our large family--(and we're not the only large family around here who homeschools.) Cost of living in the metro region is not cheap, but housing prices are coming down. Plus, it's a great place to raise a family--if you can take the winters.
Previously we lived in California. Much better climate regarding the weather but not for homeschooling. (And from what I understand of their unemployment rate, not an easy place to find a job right now.)
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folklaur
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Martha wrote:
So where would you never move bc of home schooling there and where do you think hs-ing is great/easy for whatever reason?
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i am replying before reading responses.
places where i would NOT want to hs: PA, NY
places i know, personally, that it is NOT hard: NV, AZ, TX
And - not only is AZ not hard to homeschool, they also have oodles of stuff that caters TO homeschoolers.
so, like, it is just as easy to actually comply with the law here in NV, but they have no where near the resources that we did in AZ.
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anitamarie
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I have to plug where I am St. Louis, MO. It is an extremely Catholic and homeschool friendly area. The next county west has one of the largest homeschooling populations in the country. We have loads of homeschool activities at the zoo, science center, even the Dept. of Conservation. The Archdiocese of St. Louis itself recently established a homeschool support group under the auspices of the Archdiocese. I just got back from a silent retreat for homeschooling Moms sponsored by them. (AAHHHH.) The area has affordable housing and has not been as badly affected by the recession as far as jobs go. I don't find the hs requirements burdensome at all. Basically, I just have to keep a log of hours and activities and school 1,000 hours per year (calendar year.) Others might find it intrusive. Good luck. PM me if you have questions.
Anita
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CrunchyMom
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In Delaware, all you have to report is attendance.
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mom2mpr
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I enjoyed my homeschooling journey in Virginia. There seemed to be a lot more going on for homeschoolers, people seemed more open to it, the museums in DC and Richmond were fun, and the weather was great  .
Ohio has been OK. There just doesn't seem to be as much going on and it has been hard to find our resources and groups.
Law wise. They are both about the same. But where we were in VA the school's did your end of year reviews, here we have to pay an Ohio certified teacher. That may have changed with budget cuts and all.
I also wouldn't go to NY or PA. I have heard so many stories about how it can be done but it is so difficult.
My dh is also job hunting and homeschooling in whatever state is one of the first things I look at too! That and Catholic churches.
Anne
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Angie Mc
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cactus mouse wrote:
i am replying before reading responses.
places where i would NOT want to hs: PA, NY
places i know, personally, that it is NOT hard: NV, AZ, TX
And - not only is AZ not hard to homeschool, they also have oodles of stuff that caters TO homeschoolers.
so, like, it is just as easy to actually comply with the law here in NV, but they have no where near the resources that we did in AZ. |
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Exactly! From personal experience - NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO to PA. Yes to NV & CA. Big YESSSSSSSSSSSS to AZ.
Love,
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Angie Mc
Maimeo to Henry! Dave's wife, mom to Mrs. Devin+Michael Pope, Aiden 20,Ian 17,John Paul 11,Catherine (heaven 6/07)
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Lisbet
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I am in Ohio. We are required to submit our intent to homeschool at the beginning of each year, which includes resources, subjects, and hours. Then we wait for our 'excuse from compulsory attendance for the purpose of home schooling'. Bleh. I hate doing that. I get seriously worked up each year because of it. Along with that we have to do either standardized tests or a portfolio assessment from a certified teacher. There are many homeschooling parents that are certified teachers that will do assessments to make extra $. I don't begrudge them that at all, but when you have a large family, that can be expensive and very time consuming. A very good friend of ours, godfather to two of our children, is a high school principal, and he just signs off for us each year.
All that said, we live very very close to the MI border and we are searching for a new home there. There is a pretty active group of Catholic homeschoolers there and here, but the laws in MI are easy peasy - no notification, no assessments, no standardized tests - you just homeschool along your merry way. I really want that...
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Kathryn
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I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex so I'll plug our area. Loads to do, I've felt pretty welcomed into the homeschool fray per se and I don't get complete ARE YOU CRAZY?!?! looks from non-homeschoolers. Also, Texas has minimal laws. I do no reporting to anyone for anything at this point.
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8kids4me
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I'm in NY, which isn't as difficult as it seems to homeschool. I send in a letter of intent each year, and an IHIP(Individualized Home Instruction Plan) which I keep as vague as possible, while still following the letter of the law. Between 4th and 8th grades children need to be tested twice. High schoolers every year. I also have to send in quarterly reports(I do everything by email).
That said, I would love to be in a more friendly homeschool state, and one with better weather  !
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Red Cardigan
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Chiming in for Texas, too! (Also in DFW area.)
In NC, where dh and I used to live, the unfriendliness of the laws to homeschooling worried us; the unfriendliness (back then) of the people to it too. Once when my parents came to visit, they stayed in a hotel near us, and my youngest sister (then a young teen) was stopped in the hotel lobby by a total stranger and asked sternly why she wasn't in school. My sister answered, "Ummmm, because it's Sunday..." and the stranger got embarrassed and left her alone.
So our decision to move here was based in part on Texas' friendly homeschooling laws. No reporting, no mandatory testing, no required interaction between us and the school district at all--it's great! The only problems I've heard people have (besides random CPS stuff which, alas, can happen anywhere) is when they first withdraw their kids from public school. But even then all it usually takes is a letter and the school district backs off.
Because TX is so homeschool friendly, there are lots of homeschoolers here, and groups, activities, etc. are easier to come by. Our best friends at our parish are also homeschool, and I've had people in the grocery store "guess" that we homeschool and then tell us that either they did it or are still doing it, or they know someone who is, and so on. I've fielded some questions before, but most of the time people are curious, not hostile, KWIM?
Now that our oldest is doing high school at home, some people have asked if I worry about the math. I love getting that question--because our homeschooling friends I mentioned above were *both* math majors in college, and the dad is an engineer! So I just explain that my friend and I have a deal--I'll help with any English or literature issues if they get stuck, and they'll help us with any math or science that's over our head.
Seriously, I can't imagine being in a better place for homeschooling--though I hear Cindy B. about the weather--it's not the snow and ice here, which are pretty much nonexistent, but the eight or nine months of "summer" (with three extra-hot months) can get to be a drag. Still, I'll take it! Beats the cold in winter to me, and I wouldn't trade anything for the freedom to homeschool as we want for as long as we want, which is harder to come by in some other states.
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MaryM
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On HSLDA map Colorado is a moderate state - we do have some regulations. I have never felt it to be restrictive though and I know lots of people enroll in umbrella schools and are not suject to some of those regs.
Colorado has tons of homeschool support options/programs if one is interested in those.
That being said, I'll answer the other part of your question, about being Catholic friendly. Colorado is a great place to be a Catholic homeschooler - especailly for a western state. We have a fabulous diocese, with a faithful and orthodox archbishop and auxillary bishop, which is getting better and better all the time. Our diocese (Denver) itself is sort of homeschool indifferent - not overtly supportive but not unsupportive either. Mostly depends on the individual parish/pastor. Colorado Springs diocese enjoys a very close relationship with the diocese itself - though the parish environment is more hit or miss with orthodoxy. That is improving though under the current bishop. Avoid Pueblo diocese.
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stellamaris
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I've had great homeschooling experiences in Missouri, Washington, and Virginia. The requirements were very in in WA and VA, and a little more extensive in MO. However, all three states had large hsing populations, generally acceptance of hslers, and lot so of great opportunities for hsing activities. In Delaware it is also easy to comply with the law, but there doesn't seem to be a very large hs population in the area I'm in right now.
My top choice would be Virginia. Great diocese, wonderful Catholic churches, tons of history and natural resources, extensive hs population. It's not the least expensive place, however. For that, I'd pick Missouri. I lived west of St. Louis for 5 years, and really loved that, too. Fabulous housing prices out there!
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Paula in MN
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rose gardens wrote:
I live in Minnesota. As it stands right now, we need file an annual report and take standardized tests annually (edit--the state also has a list of "required subjects"--the types of subjects we'd do anyway.) Parents without bachelor degrees have more loops than that. This year the state legislature considered in some budeget legislation measures that would have reduced the paper-work for homeschooling. Unfortunately for other reasons it didn't pass.
Generally speaking I'd say it's a fairly Catholic homeschool friendly place. I don't know anyone personally who has ever had any problems with their local school districts and I know several homeschoolers who receive various services from them such as speach therapy. High school aged homeschoolers often enroll in classes at community colleges their jr. and sr year to supplement homeschooling, (paid for coutesy of the taxpayesrs.)
There are a number of larger Catholic homeschool groups and some smaller ones in or near the Twin Cities (Minneapolis/St.Paul) Every year there's a fairly large Catholic homeschooling conference, usually with nationally known Catholic speakers. There are alot of Catholics here--solid orthodox Catholics and others. Many people have nice things to say about my homeschooling our large family--(and we're not the only large family around here who homeschools.) Cost of living in the metro region is not cheap, but housing prices are coming down. Plus, it's a great place to raise a family--if you can take the winters.
Previously we lived in California. Much better climate regarding the weather but not for homeschooling. (And from what I understand of their unemployment rate, not an easy place to find a job right now.) |
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Yes, Minnesota is a GREAT place to homeschool!!!
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Paula
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Bookswithtea
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JodieLyn wrote:
| I would NOT want to be in CA (lived there a long time) CPS there tends to be rather overboard, while the requirements get a good color from HSLDA, they're more subjective and more harrassment than you tend to hear about... |
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I hs'ed there for a long time. Its not on the top of my list, in spite of the laws technically being "easy" to work with. The deal there is that you are homeschooling through a law that was not written for homeschoolers. As a result, there are weird things, like its hard to use hsing as an excuse for jury duty. And the librarians look at you funny when you are there with kids at 10am, in spite of the jillions of hsers there. When we moved, I was amazed that there are entire sections of the library devoted to "homeschoolers" and the librarians are so friendly (I'm in a state now with an official homeschool law). Its also harder to find a Catholic homeschool group, and Catholic/Protestant hsing generally don't mix. At least that was my experience in my area of So CA. It might be different in other places. Its a big state.
I wouldn't choose PA, either. Dh has lots of cousins who are teachers, and they always grill sil and I about hsing. They think its really weird, which makes me think that the excessively ridiculous laws there have really discouraged the number of homeschoolers.
And I wouldn't move to Utah, because I think it would be very uncomfortable to be in a state where the Mormon population dominates.
When we were researching, we looked at where we had extended family, where there were good hs laws, and where there was a large Catholic population. I think VA would be a great state to hs in, as a Catholic, but I hear its mighty hard to afford a house in the Arlington Diocese...
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Becky Parker
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MI is definitely "easy peasy" as Lisa mentions above. We don't have to notify anyone, test, send in anything etc. I worry it's not going to last forever, but it's been very easy so far. If you move Lisa, come on up to the "middle of the mitten"!
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Becky Le
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I find it extremely easy to homeschool in VA. There are many options for homeschooling and the requirements for proving progress are very nonrestrictive. Plus it is a pretty easy state to get a religious exemption in. Options for homeschoolers are expanding every year in terms of access to public school services. And, God willing, we will be electing a very pro-homeschooling Governor in November. 
We live in Northern Virginia but south of the more congested areas so we are perfectly situated to take advantage of all that both DC and Richmond have to offer. We also have relatively quick access to both the ocean and the mountains and you can not beat VA for early American history field trip opportunities!
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KC in TX
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Red Cardigan said it well about how great it is to homeschool in Texas. In our little community we have a lot of Catholic homeschoolers. It's wonderful.
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guitarnan
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MD is okay - you have to file an annual notice of intent and go through two portfolio reviews per year, but I've never heard of anyone having problems with them. You can also use an umbrella school and do your reviews with them instead of your county.
We don't have testing requirements. You can sign high schoolers up for the PSAT at your local high school - some counties/schools are more helpful than others on this issue, but it's definitely available for everyone.
Maryland is a pretty Catholic place - very nice! Although our diocese requires homeschoolers to use faith formation materials that are on the USCCB "approved" list, the list includes F&L, Didache series and other favorites, so that is okay.
We also lived in WV - there, we had four options to prove progress, including standardized testing and portfolio reviews by a certified teacher. We had to file a notice of intent with the county - our county decided to publish the list of homeschooled children (with personal info) in the paper and online, but HSLDA helped us fix that and it never happened again. Our county was not too Catholic-friendly but we managed - the only homeschool group in the county fortunately did not have a statement of faith, even though it was church-based.
We started homeschooling overseas (we are military) and that was great - zero requirements.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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4Real Forums : Living Learning
Topic: where would you like or dislike to hs?
