New here, and needing advice

[HisPreciousJulez]

Hello to all!

I am new here, and also very new to homeschooling. So new infact we just recived our orange card last week. I am only homeschooling my oldest at this point. He's 12. Ever since he started the 3rd grade and began getting grades, he's never been off an honor role. Until this past grading period. I'll try to make the whole story short. But here goes. This past August my husband of 15 years decided he no longer wanted to be married or play daddy. He upped and moved out.(taking all the money with him)
I have always been a stay at home mom & I have 3 wonderful kids 12, 10 and almost 5.
My oldest has always been a great student, and has been in advanced classes since the 4th grade. Even with all the nitemare craziness of loosing our home then moving into a rental that we got kicked out of(because dear husband wouldn't pay for things) my oldest managed to keep his grades up. But this past Novemeber I really started sinking pretty low, and the depression was taking hold, and my folks packed me and my kids up and brought us out to where they live. To a small town in the NC mountains, one very different from the life my kids have always known.
So we got the kids enrolled in the local schools and it was very evident, very quickly that things weren't going to go as well as they have gone before.
For starters this area goes on a 6 week grading period instead of a 9 week one and we moved here at the tail end of their 2nd 6 week period, even though we had just finished our first 9 week one back home.
On top of all this change, my oldest was starting middle school this year, a time that is difficult for even the most stable of situations.
Well for the sake of keeping this short, my son started begging me to home school him. After we got his first full 6 week report card, with D's, I decided that was it, atleast for the rest of this year I was going to home school him. He is very self motivated and extremely intelligent.
So that brings us to last Friday, our first offical day of home school, and it isn't just myself doing the teaching, my mom is helping out as well, shes got the subjects shes good at(she is a retried school teacher) and I am taking the ones I am good at(I was starting college back before I got married, with the intentions of becoming a teacher). I have great faith that this will be very good for my son.
But I now find myself in unchartered waters, not that I don't feel able, I am just not sure what to do in the way of studies.
My biggest question is being ready for the standarized testing at the end of the grade, how do I find out what materials we need to cover for him to be prepared? I know there are many many different choices out there, but is there just one standard test?

Also having my son being such a self starter, and very self disciplined what would be some good recomendations ??

I am hoping to put all 3 of my kids in a private Christain school in the fall, so its unlikely that we will be doing the 7th grade (although ya never know) But for now I need to make sure he passes this end of grade test. Chances are he might already be able to pass it, but seeing as how I don't know, I was hoping some one could point me in the right direction..
I am assuming each state has its own requirements.
Any and all advice/suggestions would be greatly apperciated!!!

I am excited about this chance to explore with my son, but I want to make sure we are covering the tested material.

Thanks for taking the time to read this through to the end...
God Bless!
Julez

[lbeels]

I think it would be a good idea to find out what your state requirements are. I live in CA and there are no requirements by the state so I personally have taken a very personalized approach to my son's studies. I have never had him take the SAT's. Find out what is required by contacting the Board of Education. If you don't plan on continuing your homeschooling then it might also be a good idea to contact the school you are planning on having them attend to see what they are teaching in their specific grade right now so that you can keep up with what the school is teaching. Another strong recommendation would be for you to join Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA). They have a boatload of information and they even have all of the state requirements listed for you. Once you join they have counselors who can guide you and they don't charge extra fees. Also I would strongly recommend you find a local Homeschool support group. They also have well seasoned homeschoolers who can guide you. All of this information is easily found by searching the web.

Many blessings!

[Everlasting Peace]

Hi HisPreciousJulez - Study Island is what I use and recommend. In fact, your son may already be familiar with it since they use the program in schools. Normally, it is free as part of a public education, but it looks like you can buy a license, for private use, for $49.00. I think it's well worth the money because the lessons focus on material that's on state tests. My son completes two lessons, in each subject area, per day (reading and math is the primary focus).

From their website "about" page:

"Since 2000, Study Island has been building and marketing online, state standards-based learning programs that are the most effective and easiest to use of their kind. Our in-house technical development and content teams design and create our programs, which are then sold to schools on a subscription basis through our direct sales force. Used by millions of students in thousands of schools across the United States, all of our programs are built specifically from state standards and are designed to create a very user-friendly experience for both students and teachers alike."

Here is a link to Study Island for your home state.

http://www.studyisland.com/demoAsk.cfm?myState=NC

On the left hand side of the page, you can sample the program if you click on "parents and students."

Good luck and God Bless! :hug

[HisPreciousJulez]

Thanks, good ideas. I did call today about the testing requirements, and was given a list of companies that I can get several different standardized tests from. I also visited our local edu store, and got some really good practice workbooks.

Study Island is actually a program my 3rd grader uses, I'll have to poke around and see if I can use it for the 6th grade also.

Its good sound advice looking for a local homeschooling group, I did ask about it at the Edu store, but the guy there said hes not aware of any large homeschooling groups locally. And thanks for the heads up on the legal side of things. I 've been watching the world around me long enough to know, just when we're minding our own business, doing things the right way, along comes a spider...

Thank you both for the suggestions...It was a good day...

[Sunny]

Hey Julez,

Actually, I'm in the same boat as you with my husband. I moved out here to not to far away from you and in with my parents, from CA 10 years ago after being abandoned with my 4 kids. I remarried him and he just did it again. I'm dealing with that right now.

I have been a stay at home mom that HSes for 25 years. Three of my kids are adults now and I have one 12 year old boy at home still.

I don't have any testing advice for you, as I don't do the tests. But wanted you to know you are not alone in your new life. It was really strange making that adjustment to a whole new place from across the country.

To find HSing groups, I'd call churches to ask around. Also, libraries during the day - if you see a mom with kids, ask her. :) She'll likely know of her own group and others, if they exist.

Don't forget a membership to HSLDA. I never did join until this year, but with the political climate changing so rapidly, I felt it was no longer optional. It's 100 dollars a year and, if you don't know about them, for that 100 dollars you get lawyers who will represent you if ANY Homeschooling issue comes up. No added charges after that. If you ever get hassled by anyone, you simply don't answer or let anyone in your house, you ask them to wait while you call your lawyer - then hand them the phone. 99 times out of a 100 the trouble walks away from your house, never to return. :thumb