Question for elementary school teachers- stay enrolled or not

[Anonymous]

Wondering how teachers feel about this- my DC is in 4th grade; doesn’t enjoy DL; but I can’t figure out why exactly, maybe it’s just hard to focus on a screen all day; says teacher is great but asking to be homeschooled. I’m hesitant to pull DC out of school, which has always been fine. DC is doing well in school and is in AAP. We had planned on doing hybrid (if that even happens during the winter surge), but now DC doesn’t want to go.
My question is, as a teacher, would you prefer a student unenroll all together, vs. logging on for half day only?

I was thinking just having him do LA and Math and supplementing SS and science way from the computer with a homeschooled curriculum.
Thanks

[Anonymous]

I'm curious about the answer to this. My 4th grader's teacher (LCPS) - contacts us if even the tiniest little assignment isn't completed, or if DD is late or misses a segment of the day. I definitely can't see her just being fine with DD missing half of the subjects, although I can see why you'd want to do what you are proposing.

If you do full homeschool, just remember you have to have to have your DC take some kind of online test at the end of the year to prove "progress." I don't think its hard, but it is a formal step you have to do, as I understand it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Wondering how teachers feel about this- my DC is in 4th grade; doesn’t enjoy DL; but I can’t figure out why exactly, maybe it’s just hard to focus on a screen all day; says teacher is great but asking to be homeschooled. I’m hesitant to pull DC out of school, which has always been fine. DC is doing well in school and is in AAP. We had planned on doing hybrid (if that even happens during the winter surge), but now DC doesn’t want to go.
My question is, as a teacher, would you prefer a student unenroll all together, vs. logging on for half day only?

I was thinking just having him do LA and Math and supplementing SS and science way from the computer with a homeschooled curriculum.
Thanks

School refusal is a real problem. I wouldn't be inclined to encourage it. There may come a time when homeschooling because of school refusal becomes the only option but that's the last resort.

When (If) upper elementary grades go back in the building, my kids are going. Yours should too.

[Anonymous]

I am in a really similar situation (4th grade AAP child) and he also does not like to participate. And the teacher is very strict about being present and completing all of the assignments (which is understandable). It causes me a lot of stress to constantly have to fight with DC about staying online and paying attention.

[Anonymous]

^ He will definitely be going back in person ASAP.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wondering how teachers feel about this- my DC is in 4th grade; doesn’t enjoy DL; but I can’t figure out why exactly, maybe it’s just hard to focus on a screen all day; says teacher is great but asking to be homeschooled. I’m hesitant to pull DC out of school, which has always been fine. DC is doing well in school and is in AAP. We had planned on doing hybrid (if that even happens during the winter surge), but now DC doesn’t want to go.
My question is, as a teacher, would you prefer a student unenroll all together, vs. logging on for half day only?

I was thinking just having him do LA and Math and supplementing SS and science way from the computer with a homeschooled curriculum.
Thanks

School refusal is a real problem. I wouldn't be inclined to encourage it. There may come a time when homeschooling because of school refusal becomes the only option but that's the last resort.

When (If) upper elementary grades go back in the building, my kids are going. Yours should too.

School refusal is a real problem, but I think it’s a stretch to go from “nine year old hates zoom” to “refuses to go to real school.” I know that zoom meetings are dumb - why wouldn’t my kid have figured it out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Wondering how teachers feel about this- my DC is in 4th grade; doesn’t enjoy DL; but I can’t figure out why exactly, maybe it’s just hard to focus on a screen all day; says teacher is great but asking to be homeschooled. I’m hesitant to pull DC out of school, which has always been fine. DC is doing well in school and is in AAP. We had planned on doing hybrid (if that even happens during the winter surge), but now DC doesn’t want to go.
My question is, as a teacher, would you prefer a student unenroll all together, vs. logging on for half day only?

I was thinking just having him do LA and Math and supplementing SS and science way from the computer with a homeschooled curriculum.
Thanks

School refusal is a real problem. I wouldn't be inclined to encourage it. There may come a time when homeschooling because of school refusal becomes the only option but that's the last resort.

When (If) upper elementary grades go back in the building, my kids are going. Yours should too.

OP here, I’m a physician and so I think DC concern is related to COVID, rather than school refusal. My children are acutely aware that I’m at risk given my work, but I try to minimize these as much as possible. I think they think the last thing they want is to bring COVID home from school when their mom has been working hard to keep the family healthy.
DC likes learning generally and I have always supplement at home over the summer, so I think that is why DC asked about homeschooling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am in a really similar situation (4th grade AAP child) and he also does not like to participate. And the teacher is very strict about being present and completing all of the assignments (which is understandable). It causes me a lot of stress to constantly have to fight with DC about staying online and paying attention.

Is there any reason you can't e-mail the teacher and say stop bothering us, we're fine with DC getting bad grades for one year?

[Anonymous]

If you can, I would homeschool for the rest of the year. Get off the computer all day, get rid of uncertainty in your child’s mind about the rest of the year, and focus on required curriculum and projects that interest your kid.

[Anonymous]

It doesn’t matter what teachers prefer. It isn’t our kid or their future that is our problem. You have to do what’s best for this kid. We don’t know the whole kid from this post. I would not make rash decisions right now though.

[Anonymous]

The only reason we are staying is because he has an IEP. Otherwise I would pull him in a heartbeat.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am in a really similar situation (4th grade AAP child) and he also does not like to participate. And the teacher is very strict about being present and completing all of the assignments (which is understandable). It causes me a lot of stress to constantly have to fight with DC about staying online and paying attention.

Is there any reason you can't e-mail the teacher and say stop bothering us, we're fine with DC getting bad grades for one year?

This is what I would do.
You need to do what is best for your own child and family.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am in a really similar situation (4th grade AAP child) and he also does not like to participate. And the teacher is very strict about being present and completing all of the assignments (which is understandable). It causes me a lot of stress to constantly have to fight with DC about staying online and paying attention.

Is there any reason you can't e-mail the teacher and say stop bothering us, we're fine with DC getting bad grades for one year?

This is what I would do.
You need to do what is best for your own child and family.

You could do that but schools cannot just not address chronic truancy and failing grades . It’s part of their duty to serving children and standing in the gap - imagine a parent who was covering abuse or whose child was missing/dead emailed that and the school was like “sure thing sorry for bothering you!” They are legally mandated to follow up on students who are enrolled. Haven’t you seen the stories of principals arrested for NOT following up and reporting on problematic situations with kids? It isn’t an option.

[Anonymous]

I’m not a teacher, but have some input you may find helpful.

*I have seen many posts on DCUM that solely exist to bash teachers. That is not my intent here, and find that behavior inexcusable. Our teachers are one of our nation’s most valuable resources.*

So, moving on - Another Fairfax AAP family here. Distance learning wasn’t working for our child, despite having an amazing teacher. We opted to homeschool for the year, and are now seriously considering it for all of elementary because our child is learning (and retaining) more than ever.

We did a lot of research, and found that all-in-one curricula are all terrible. We don’t homeschool for religious reasons, and we believe in evolution 😉, so we eliminated all non-secular curricula from our search. Here’s what we found:

Math:
- Singapore Math (We use Dimensions, but hear Primary is also good. I’ve been told that some privates, like Potomac, use the Math in Focus version.)
- Eureka Math (Aligns well with schools that use Common Core standards.)
- Beast Academy (Written like comic books, but is actually great for math skills. We use this a little on the side, but it is a full curriculum.)

ELA:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Build Your Library
- The Writer’s Revolution

History and Geography:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Build Your Library

Science:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Real Science Odyssey

Spanish:
- Private tutor (virtual lessons)

While I think our public school experience has been great (thank you, teachers!), we have found this year to be more academically challenging.

The only way homeschooling can be done well (many homeschoolers may disagree):

1. The parent(s) need to be well-educated themselves. Virginia mandates that the instructor must have a high school diploma, but this is not enough).

2. The parent(s) must have adequate time to devote to lesson planning and instruction. I’m not saying that I create the lessons, but do look at them closely enough to create a thoughtful schedule. Since we are combining curricula, I spend time making sure that themes and topics are combined in a way that makes sense. Quality homeschool is VERY time and labor intensive for the parent! You CANNOT work full-time and homeschool well (in the early years at least).

3. The child must (generally) enjoy learning and not resist parent instruction. If your child fights you for hours when you ask them to make their bed, this is probably not a great option for you.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I’m not a teacher, but have some input you may find helpful.

*I have seen many posts on DCUM that solely exist to bash teachers. That is not my intent here, and find that behavior inexcusable. Our teachers are one of our nation’s most valuable resources.*

So, moving on - Another Fairfax AAP family here. Distance learning wasn’t working for our child, despite having an amazing teacher. We opted to homeschool for the year, and are now seriously considering it for all of elementary because our child is learning (and retaining) more than ever.

We did a lot of research, and found that all-in-one curricula are all terrible. We don’t homeschool for religious reasons, and we believe in evolution 😉, so we eliminated all non-secular curricula from our search. Here’s what we found:

Math:
- Singapore Math (We use Dimensions, but hear Primary is also good. I’ve been told that some privates, like Potomac, use the Math in Focus version.)
- Eureka Math (Aligns well with schools that use Common Core standards.)
- Beast Academy (Written like comic books, but is actually great for math skills. We use this a little on the side, but it is a full curriculum.)

ELA:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Build Your Library
- The Writer’s Revolution

History and Geography:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Build Your Library

Science:
- Core Knowledge
- Supplement with Real Science Odyssey

Spanish:
- Private tutor (virtual lessons)

While I think our public school experience has been great (thank you, teachers!), we have found this year to be more academically challenging.

The only way homeschooling can be done well (many homeschoolers may disagree):

1. The parent(s) need to be well-educated themselves. Virginia mandates that the instructor must have a high school diploma, but this is not enough).

2. The parent(s) must have adequate time to devote to lesson planning and instruction. I’m not saying that I create the lessons, but do look at them closely enough to create a thoughtful schedule. Since we are combining curricula, I spend time making sure that themes and topics are combined in a way that makes sense. Quality homeschool is VERY time and labor intensive for the parent! You CANNOT work full-time and homeschool well (in the early years at least).

3. The child must (generally) enjoy learning and not resist parent instruction. If your child fights you for hours when you ask them to make their bed, this is probably not a great option for you.

Good luck!

This seems like a lot. Most homeschoolers I know only spend 2-3 hours on homeschool each day...