I suggest that you read the law for yourself, so that you understand what is and what is not required, and so that you can decide how to meet the requirements without compromising the way you homeschool.In each of these summaries, names, places, etc. have been changed/edited somewhat for privacy concerns, and the format has sometimes been altered to make it fit on fewer pages. You do NOT have permission to copy these, distribute them, or post them elsewhere, but you can certainly use them for inspiration if you are writing your own. You may also link to this page from your own web site.
~ T’s unschooling 3rd grade summary/log – A great example of a relaxed/unschooling approach. Mom writes “I’ve always used a subject summary to put our activities into “school jargon”. I don’t turn in a separate list of reading materials, just what is listed in the summary. I don’t turn in an attendance record. My evaluator’s letter attests to the number of days and required progress. So that, the summaries and a few samples are what the school district receives (plus WRAT test scores on the required years). I’ve never had any complaints.”
Some families find that a summary is a convenient way to show that they’ve covered the required subjects without having to include a ton of portfolio fodder. In addition, especially for older kids, summaries/transcripts can come in handy when applying to summer programs, colleges, etc.~ Phys Ed and Safety summaries – Several examples of these from one family, showing how they can be adapted for different children and/or different years.~ A’s 4th grade log – A log of reading materials, by title. Submitted with A’s 4th grade summary. At the Home’s Cool blog. Mom reports “I [start] a wordpad document each year, and as we read a book, I open up the document, add the title, and save. At the end, I have it ready to print out. I do also tend to provide a log of “classes” and “field trips” that we participate in to round things out. Sometimes I include a short list of some educational websites we use.” ~ Geography Class summary (text only) – This is an example of a summary of the activities of a group of homeschooled kids who studied geography together. This kind of group page is handy – a copy can be made for each kid to slip into their portfolio. The actual page included graphics and looked quite fun! I hope this gives you some ideas and encouragement. I wanted to include lots of different examples; keep in mind that your child’s summary will reflect their own interests/activities/abilities – you will have a different mix of things than anyone else. Do NOT get caught up in comparing what your child is doing to what other kids are doing. OK? ~ B’s Kindergarten log – A log of reading materials, by title. (Kindergarten children are usually not of reporting age, but I thought this was interesting to list regardless.) (At the Home’s Cool blog.) You might like to browse these to get an idea of how to write your own log/summary/transcript, or just to get an idea of what a home educated student’s life can look like.~ S.’s summary/log – elementary – This summary includes both the log of reading materials and a summary of work in the required subjects. It was submitted with a cover letter (like this or this) , a summary of the law, an attendance calendar, test scores, and samples of work. Only copies were submitted. Mom writes “I wanted to create a “disposable portfolio”, so I didn’t want to use a binder but I didn’t have a stapler, so, with what I had at hand, I chose a Japanese method of binding. The pages were bound by sewing with heavy thread through five holes made with a needle along the edge of each page.” (See here for Japanese stab binding instructions, and here for some great examples. You could also use an inexpensive binder or folder, staples, binding clips, brads, or a GBC comb binder.)
~ H’s summary – 1st grade – This summary was submited along with a log (an Excel spreadsheet listing the hundreds of library books checked out that year), and samples of work. Mom writes “I did include work samples, an attendance calendar, snippets from the law and test scores (though we weren’t in a testing year) with the summary. This was all only to the evaluator, though, who had never done an evaluation before (and I explained that the test scores were not something that was required). I am fortunate enough to live in a district that only wants the evaluator’s letter, though, so that’s all they saw–the portfolio was not turned in to the district.” (Note – this was before the October 2014 law change, when portfolios were reviewed by the evaluator and then given to the school district for the superintendent to review and then return.)
~ B’s unschooling log/summary – secondary – A log of books, classes, field trips, community activities, etc. for an unschooled young teen. A statement of attendance and samples of work were also included in the portfolio.~ A’s 6th grade unschooling summary, and A’s 7th grade unschooling summary – These were each submitted with a separate resource list including books, periodicals, videos, and software, which served as the log, as well as samples of work.
Can a 17 year old drop out of school in Pennsylvania?
Children are now required to attend school until age 18, or graduation, whichever occurs first (this was previously age 17).
On this page I’ve collected assorted examples of various documents (summaries/transcripts/logs) that Pennsylvania home educators have included in their portfolios. Writing a summary or transcript is not required by law, and some homeschooling families do not need or use them. The law does require a “log … of reading materials”.
I might be wrong! I am not a lawyer! Your circumstances may be different! This page, and others on this site, are not intended as legal advice. School districts vary considerably in their interpretation of the home education law. Please double-check legal information with appropriate sources. In particular, the PA Dept. of Ed. may be helpful.
~ L’s 11th grade summary (includes high school credit hours) – This was submitted with a separate book list (the log). The student’s work is arranged into “courses”, each of which is awarded credit hours. This approach can be used when applying to college.
~ Alice’s summary/log – 3rd grade – This summary includes both the log of reading materials and a summary of work in the required subjects. It was submitted with an attendance calendar, test scores, and samples of work. ~ C’s 7th grade summary – This student took classes in most of his major subjects at a local co-op. The summary is brief but effective. A log of reading materials, an attendance calendar, and samples of work were also included in the portfolio. ~ I’s 4th grade unschooling log/summary – A log of books, games, sports, classes, field trips, etc. for a 4th grade unschooler. A statement of attendance and samples of work were also included in the portfolio.Many people, including me, will give opinions on the PA homeschooling law. I believe that everyone should read the law for themselves, read a few opinions about it, and decide for themselves what approach makes sense for their family.
Is unschooling legal in PA?
And while there are no official “unschooling laws,” the laws that regulate how you homeschool in each state can affect the way you approach—or at least report—your homeschooling progress. For parents homeschooling in New York and Pennsylvania, detailed recordkeeping that shows what each child is learning is required. Cached
~ K’s 3rd grade summary/log – A very positive, enthusiastic narrative from an eclectic/unschooling family. Sets a great tone for viewing the rest of the portfolio.
~ J’s 6th grade textbook-based summary – This student’s program of study used textbooks for the major subjects, and a homeschool enrichment program for the arts.
For parents homeschooling in New York and Pennsylvania, detailed recordkeeping that shows what each child is learning is required. Your homeschool portfolio should include lots of samples of projects your homeschooler has worked on, and pictures of them actively participating in their educational pursuits. Keep detailed logs of homeschool trips you take, volunteer projects you embark on, books you read, and activities you participate in. Many times, you’ll notice connections between different unschooling paths you’ve taken and can tie those together into a more formal description of a specific subject or theme.Parents homeschooling in Ohio, Michigan, and other states have set requirements for subjects that must be taught within their homeschool. Even though unschoolers don’t necessarily group what they are learning into traditional subjects, the likelihood is that as you follow your child’s natural curiosities, you will touch on most or all of them. Volunteering at an animal shelter, for instance, offers opportunities to learn about anything from canine biology to U.S. government and civics. Watching the Clash of the Titans together certainly counts as history, and building Lego structures integrates many aspects of math. If you are looking for it, subject-centered learning is “hiding” in almost every area of your unschooling pursuits. Unschooling is a style of home education that allows the student’s interests and curiosities to drive the path of learning. Rather than using a defined curriculum, unschoolers trust children to gain knowledge organically. Unschooling is different from deschooling, which refers to the period of time when a student (and family) adjusts after leaving a traditional school setting. Instead, it involves nurturing a child’s natural curiosity, without placing artificial time constraints on them such as the introduction of certain subjects at certain ages, or without structuring their day in the same way a classroom setting might.
Families with an unschooling approach vary greatly with the amount of structured curriculum they use. Some families are vigorously opposed to curriculum in any form, preferring to let their child learn primarily from their natural interactions with the world around them. Other families use formal curriculum for specific subjects that they want to make sure their children have a grasp on, while allowing learning to come more organically in other subjects. Some students actually crave a certain amount of structure—particularly if they are coming from a traditional school background. These students may ask to use curriculum while they are making the transition to unschooling.
Unschooling is a form of homeschooling, and homeschooling is legal in all 50 states. And while there are no official “unschooling laws,” the laws that regulate how you homeschool in each state can affect the way you approach—or at least report—your homeschooling progress.
“Birds fly, fish swim, man thinks and learns. Therefore, we do not need to motivate children into learning by wheedling, bribing or bullying. We do not need to keep picking away at their minds to make sure they are learning. What we need to do, and all we need to do, is bring as much of the world as we can into the school and classroom (in our case, into their lives); give children as much help and guidance as they ask for; listen respectfully when they feel like talking; and then get out of the way. We can trust them to do the rest.”
Contrary to how it sounds, unschooling is an active learning process and not the passive, unstructured method that its terminology would suggest. Unschoolers are homeschoolers who are focused more on the experimental process of learning and becoming educated, than with “doing school.” The focus of unschooling is on the choices made by the individual child, dictated by interests, learning style, and personality type.
Time4Learning can be used by unschoolers as a supplemental program to other experiences, such as regular library use, literature, theater or dance groups, museums, sports, and field trips. Some of the benefits that unschooling families who use Time4Learning as part of their unschooling resources include:
For those who choose to homeschool under certain options available to them in their home state, such as Florida umbrella schools or church schools in Alabama, you will want to research which ones are willing to work with unschoolers. Many times, these schools can even offer advice for unschooling families on state reporting and recordkeeping.
By now, you’ve probably heard the term “unschooling” more than once. So, what does unschooling mean? Families interested in taking their child’s learning into their own hands often hear about a type of education called “unschooling.” On this page, we will look at this specific style of homeschooling, including the legality of the approach. For those families who want to explore unschooling for themselves we will also talk about how to begin, how unschooling and homeschool curriculum fit together, and how Time4Learning can be the ideal complement to an unschooling methodology.
Also, we are members of HSLDA and we always encourage families to join, too. It’s $100/year, and you will have the peace of knowing that you will have lawyers to back you up in case any issues come up.
Once you have your affidavit done, you need to prepare a list of objectives. Hang with me, here. This. does. not. have. to. be. complicated. You can literally submit the same objectives from Kindergarten all the way through 12th grade.
You must submit the forms by August 1st to your school district. Our Executive Secretary handles this process, and she is very kind. I have certainly heard some horror stories about districts demanding more than necessary, and I encourage you to join Facebook groups for your area regarding homeschooling. A lot of times, there are other parents out there who have faced the same challenges as you and can offer advice or encouragement. You will need to determine who handles homeschool forms for your district, contact that person and drop the forms. Once you do this, you can start the fun part!That being said, you will need to show your 180 days. We do this with a simple paper full of blocks checked of with 180 check marks. It’s as simple as that. I used to do a page for each day, which served as our 180 day chart, but we’ve since simplified that method. Make this step your own! Make it fun – color in the squares, make patterns, use stickers!
When researching homeschool laws across the United States, Pennsylvania tends to fall into the “harder to homeschool in” states. I started researching homeschooling when our oldest son was about 3 or 4 anticipating that I would have to make a Kindergarten decision pretty soon. To my surprise, at the time, the compulsory age was 8.
Check in with your evaluator, as that person may have different things they would like to see at the evaluation. Your evaluation will likely happen in the Spring. We usually do ours in May, but it can happen in June, too.
Again, this likely sounds scarier than the evaluations. It’s not. It literally means nothing. It’s simply to meet the requirement of the law. We do an untimed version that we order online here. You can do the test online or on paper. We do paper, my mom administers it, we send it in, they grade it, send it back and we move on. That’s it.
When we started Kindergarten at age 4/5, we went with a curriculum called My Father’s World. It wasn’t bad, but I knew we wouldn’t continue with it after K. It was a relatively cheap option at under $200, but it was too confining. I quickly knew that we needed more freedom. We had too much bursting creativity to commit to a boxed curriculum.
Do you need a degree to homeschool in PA?
To meet these requirements by homeschooling in Pennsylvania, you must have a high school diploma (or equivalent) and not have been convicted of any major criminal offenses in the previous five years. You must also submit a notarized affidavit yearly to the superintendent’s office of the student’s home school district.
You’re probably wondering why I’m talking about homeschooling and this post is full of pictures of mealworms, apple peeling, painting and foraging. It’s because THIS IS SCHOOL! We live on a homestead of about 3 acres with chickens, gardens, a pool and so much learning at our fingertips. Our oldest son loves driving his tractor, riding his book, metal detecting in the woods, planting new plants, sewing, running his business, learning welding and so much more.
When your evaluation is done, your evaluator will hand you a paper with boxes checked off. That’s it. The form will need dropped to your school office (or wherever you determine is the right drop off spot in your district). Keep in mind, your school district does not need your portfolio or any other paperwork from you to “prove” that you finished the year.
Do we use any books? We do, BUT – we don’t set requirements on books. We don’t force him to read a certain book or finish a book just because he started it.
What famous people were unschooled?
From THE BOOK OF LISTS (by Wallechinsky, Wallace, & Wallace): 15 FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO NEVER GRADUATED FROM GRADE SCHOOL: Andrew Carnegie, Charlie Chaplin, Buffalo Bill Cody, Noel Coward, Charles Dickens, Isadora Duncan, Thomas Edison, Samuel Gompers, Maksim Gorky, Claude Monet, Sean O’Casey, Alfred E.
At that point, I decided to do a combination of books we enjoyed and some online programs, like education.com and abcya.com. This was the beginning of our unschooling journey; I just didn’t know it yet. Growing up in public school – and enjoying being a straight A student – this took some getting used to. I had to reset my mind, and it truly took me a couple years to really give up control and let unschooling lead our days.
You only get so much time to pour into your kids before they are out on their own making their own new life. For us, homeschooling has allowed us so much more time with our kids. Again, I went to public school, I enjoyed what I learned and if that option suits your family, that’s great.
In general, you just need to specify that you will help your child improve in all subjects required by law. You do not need to list specifics, like “Western Civilizations” or “Algebra” – history and math are sufficient, as you will see on the form above. Compulsory age is basically the age your state decides you must register your child for school in some capacity. The compulsory age for PA is now 6. Basically, you need to register your child for school by the time they are 6. There is a little confusion when it comes to birthdays close to the cutoff – as in does the child need to be 6 by September, etc. If you have a “confusing” birthday child, read the law to be sure you interpret as best you can. Our oldest’s birthday is in late fall, so it was a clear answer for us. Our next two have summer birthdays, so again – very clear answer on when to register everyone. Sit down, and do an inventory with your child. What do they enjoy? What subjects excite them? What activities bring them joy? What careers excite them? Make a list, talk about it, research it. This may take a year in itself, especially if you’re transitioning out of public school. This process is called deschooling, and it’s painful and necessary. Deschooling is when you, as a family, relearn how to learn. It’s a beautiful process that may take just a few weeks to several months. Embrace that time. Enjoy learning right along side your child. This is a wonderful time of exploration.He IS reading about the topics he loves. He IS making spreadsheets for business. He IS learning math by filing income tax every year for his business. He IS learning math by investing in the stock market. He IS learning to type by searching for YouTube videos. He IS learning to read by subscribing to his favorite magazines.If your child is interested in being a doctor, then you probably should put more focus on reading, writing and math. You should absolutely guide your child in the direction that pleases them. Our son will likely become a farmer, stay a business owner, contract work of some sort – who knows. But I do know that he’s passionate about almost everything he does. He doesn’t dread school because school is just a natural process in his daily life.
I hope you learned a lot from this blog post, and I hope that when you sit and wonder how to homeschool in PA, you feel confident that you are doing the right thing for your family.
Once you gather a portfolio together and you have your 180 days sheet ready, you will need to find an evaluator. Our evaluator asks for a book list. This may sound contrary to my entire post, but hear me out – your book list may have regular books, it may have magazines, it may have catalogs, it may have websites your child has read from, it could be a manual – be open minded! A “book list” does not have to look like a research paper with cited sources.However, if you are looking for more time together and a more free flowing day, consider homeschooling or even taking the step to unschooling. If you have questions about how to homeschool in PA, we love to chat about this topic. Email us!Please don’t think that we don’t value books. I personally love reading for information. I have stacks of books on growing vegetables, raising chickens, composting and so much more. Our oldest has tons of books, too. Most of his books are about electrical engineering, biographies, space, computers, chess, history – and others topics that he loves. He does not love writing, reading and math. I know this sounds like he will never succeed, and I would encourage you to change your mindset. How to homeschool in PA: this is not legal advice. I highly encourage you to read the homeschool law for yourself. There is also the option to do a private tutor approach, which you can read about at that link. The last form that you may choose to submit is the Medical Exemption. This form is somewhat disputed. Technically, you do not have to submit it, as your affidavit discusses the medical requirements. However, while I do not agree with over compliance, I do submit this form. It’s simple and quick and really does not disclose any extra info.
Not everything on the askpauline site is still accurate, as it’s not updated regularly anymore, but that form is perfect for what you need to file with the school. There are lots of other examples online, too, if you don’t love that one.You will also need to keep a portfolio of sorts. Again, this has evolved for us over the years. We used to have two huge binders full of worksheets. Now, we keep an album on my phone of pictures from the year, and we keep a 3 ring binder of anything we gather along the way – maybe a brochure, drawings, etc. This will look very different for every family.
Again, our son is not into reading, writing and math, and he’s done fine on the tests. Do I look at the scores? Sure. It’s always interesting to see what it says. Do I measure our son’s value against these scores? Absolutely not. His intelligence level and passions have nothing to do with this test.
When you read words like “affidavit,” your brain says – ok maybe I can’t do this – or what the heck is an affidavit? The affidavit is basically a form attesting that the “supervisor of the homeschool” (aka the parent/guardian) has a high school diploma or equivalent, are the parent/guardian and will uphold the law.Know that you CAN make your objectives specific, but this may make you feel limited. You may feel like you have to stick with a very specific topic when maybe your child isn’t interested or you simply decide to go a different direction.
So just what is unschooling? Unschooling is essentially child-led learning. You follow your child’s interests. You embrace what they enjoy. You embrace your preferred lifestyle. It’s so liberating! Not feeling like you MUST finish a certain textbook, or you MUST finish a box of curriculum because you spent money on it – is so freeing.
This can be a problem if you want to do unschooling — that is, to let your children chart their own educational courses on their own timelines. How do you give your kids authentic freedom if they have to take tests and are required to learn certain subjects by law? In this article we’ll explain what the requirements are, and then explore loopholes that can get you out of them.
This can go the other way too. If your local school district is asking for something that is not required by the state, there are homeschool legal defense associations that will step in and help you maintain your rights.
In Pennsylvania, there are four options to homeschool your children: 1) Homeschooling under the homeschool statute, 2) Homeschooling with a private tutor, 3) Enrolling your child in a satellite of a religious day school, and 4) Enrolling your child in a satellite of an accredited day or boarding school.
If you want your child to be a free learner in Pennsylvania, without being subject to testing or a strict curriculum, a virtual private school may be your best bet. You can read more about our virtual program, or contact us directly, by clicking one of the buttons below.Enter The Open School. We have a virtual program that you can enroll in from anywhere in the world. And as a self-directed school, our program is perfectly aligned with unschooling. We have no required subjects and no tests. Instead, students design virtual activities to do with other students and staff, including art projects, video games, workshops, one-on-one lessons, and anything else you can imagine. It’s a community of self-directed learners, and a great place for unschoolers to make deep, lasting friendships.We’re lucky to be living in a country that allows parents to take their kids out of school and educate them at home. However, there are still often a lot of regulations placed on homeschoolers, especially if you’re living in a stricter state like Pennsylvania.
Is Billie Eilish unschooled?
Billie Eilish’s early life Her parents, Maggie Baird and Patrick O’Connell, homeschooled both her and her older brother Finneas. Early songwriting and recording endeavours by Eilish and her brother contributed to the development of her passion for music.
If you are a homeschooler in Pennsylvania, you are required by law to abide by the above regulations. However, these regulations may or may not be enforced at the local level. If you are interested in unschooling, you can give your local school district a call to find out what guidelines they actually enforce.Art/Create: paint, colour, draw, cut & paste, sew, costumes, birdhouses, plays & skits, one-person-bands, forts, stories, obstacles courses, play instruments, etc. Because all life is connected, it became really clear by the end of the first week of my recordkeeping that recording activities under traditional “school subjects” like maths, english, social studies, etc., was not easy, nor did it make sense, since practically everything we did could be listed under each subject. Life is never easily cut up and stuck into defining boxes. So, I had to come up with a better way to organise or record our happenings. What I came up with and refined over the years still shares some of the same aspects of utilising school subject headings, such as activities overlapping multiple lists, but it does eliminate the desire to categorise happenings and even prioritising them based on “school-think”.For the people who listen to me, they are fantastic unschoolers by the time they are required to answer to the state. This only works if both/all parents/caregivers are on board or willing to go along for the ride. For families with one or more parents/caregivers who are not on board and feel like a curriculum is necessary or that proof of learning if necessary, it may be impossible for the other adult(s) to provide space for unschooling if they are always worried about “having proof” or making sure things “look structured”. This does not mean, however, that they can not still offer an incredibly relaxed & eclectic homeschooling experience for their children. But what about those parents and caregivers who are new to homeschooling and just can not wrap their heads around not using a curriculum, a guide, or framework for homeschooling? To them I say: *I do want to point out that despite the usage of “log” several times, for those of us in PA, I am in no way wanting to encourage folks to record everything that happens on every day and then provide that information as their “log… which designates by title the reading materials used” -24 P.S. §1327.1(e)(1), as required by the PA Home Education Law. That would be a gross overcompliance with the law and if there is one thing that is universally bad for homeschooling everywhere, it is when families over comply with the law. It sets a precedent and then school districts and superintendents begin believing that the overcompliance is the correct way to do things and this then leads to minimally complying families getting harassed. To be sure, the required log in PA is a simple list of reading materials or if little to no books are used in any year, a list of other resources used has sufficed during evaluations.* One of things I actually like about this list is how many of the suggestions overlap and are twofers, threefers, and more! I recommend for very anxious parents that they make a checklist with each category on it. If 3 or more of these categories are accomplished in a day, most days, then it is a pretty safe bet that you and your children are doing things, learning stuff, and living life. My advice for parents of very young children who come to me for advice regarding how to replace preschool or kindergarten with homeschooling or unschooling is always the same:remember when your child was a baby or young toddler; did you have a curriculum that told you how to love them and how to interact with them on a daily basis? You might have had a basic routine or rhythm to your day, which is absolutely fine and helpful for lots of people and families, but a rhythm is not a playbook. Rhythm is something that helps maintain harmony and can easily adapt to changing needs, whereas a curriculum begs for adherence and often creates discord.
Write: grocery lists, get well & thank you cards, journals, wish lists, bucket lists, poems, affirmations, stories, etc. (dictation when & where necessary)
Visit: libraries, parks, museums, lakes/rivers, pools, observatories, college campuses, playdates, playgroups, festivals, open markets, farmer’s markets, antique stores, thrift stores, art shows, concerts, coffee shops, grocery stores, hobby shops, green ways, bike trails, other cities/states/countries, grandma’s house, etc.live life as though school did not exist. Ever. It is hard to NOT do school-at-home when you are constantly worrying about whether or not you are presenting the same materials/information as school would, but trust that life will be so much more rich when you forget about school.
remember that the goal of homeschooling is NOT to recreate the classroom and institutional education within the home; the goal is to open as many doors as possible, have first hand & hands on experiences, and to provide your children with the freedom to pursue their passions and interests.
Additionally, this list is easily adaptable for any aged children. Some of the suggested activities can change for older children and teenagers, but there is no age limit on it. It is also quite easy to look back over a month, quarter, or whole year and see patterns and trends in learning, skill building, and interests, which will help in both putting together a portfolio, creating a high school transcript, and in supporting children’s passions. Hopefully, it can also be used to help put other parents/caregivers who are not on board more at ease.Did you know that I offer support and help to homeschooling and unschooling parents/caregivers? I can provide suggestions for how to let go and live more in the moment, how to embrace chaos, and I can assist with putting together an end of year portfolio. I may not have all the answers, but I can help you (and your children) brainstorm ideas for how to make learning more fun and life more conducive for learning.
People will have anxiety. People will want to keep some kind of records, either for themselves or to fulfil their state’s requirements for homeschooling. The more someone is able to lean into their anxiety and examine where their fears are coming from, the more they will be able to release those fears and trust the the process and trust that their children will shine brightly (in a world that needs as much light as possible).
In the early years of unschooling with my (always unschooled) teenager, I used to loosely keep a daily and then weekly “log” of the things we did and it provided me a way to share our lives with grandparents and it helped me recognise patterns and trends in my child’s interests.If you liked this post or found this post informational or useful, please share it. If you want to recognise my labour and support me in creating future posts like this one, please leave me a tip. cash.me/$midwitchery parents and caregivers have a much easier time supporting children’s passions & interests when they are not comparing a child’s knowledge or performance to other children; to demonstrate knowledge or skills gained, a child only needs to be compared to themself in the past. #unschooling #checklist #curriculum #livelaughlearn #liveasthoughschooldoesntexist #portfolio #log #recordkeeping #homeschooling #homeeducation #pennsylvania
In the end, it turned out that their parents’ choice to homeschool Billie and Finneas was one of the best ones they could have made. Homeschooling provided them the freedom and opportunity to explore music, learn vital life skills, and take control of their own education—all of which helped Billie become the pop sensation she is today.
What is an example of unschooled?
not schooled, taught, or trained: Though unschooled, he had a grasp of the subject. not acquired or artificial; natural: an unschooled talent.
In conclusion, Billie Eilish’s homeschooling helped her develop into the pop icon she is today. She has been able to refine her art, investigate novel concepts, and escape the demands of conventional schooling thanks to it. Billie Eilish was homeschooled for this reason, and it has greatly aided her success.Eilish and her brother will be receiving an education tailored to their needs and interests by choosing to be homeschooled. The family was especially concerned about giving their kids enough time to pursue their artistic interests. The family also believed that the traditional educational system was too rigid and lacked the necessary flexibility for the kids to fully develop their creative abilities.
Can a 16 year old drop out of high school in PA?
A: A student may not withdraw before the age of 18, even with a parent signature, unless the student meets one of the exceptions to compulsory attendance found in 24 P.S. §13-1330.
Eilish was also able to explore music more freely and try out many types thanks to homeschooling. In a manner that she might not have been able to do in a regular academic context, this offered her the chance to find her own sound and hone her art.But, the switch to homeschooling wasn’t without its difficulties. Billie and Finneas thrived with the extra time and freedom to pursue music and other hobbies, although many kids find homeschooling is difficult due to the lack of social interaction. Also, their parents made a point of giving them chances to connect with others who shared their interests and hobbies. This setting gave the twins a solid platform on which to grow their musical abilities.
By using this website, you agree to our use of cookies. We use cookies to provide you with a great experience and to help our website run effectively. Thank you! 20 FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO NEVER ATTENDED COLLEGE: Joseph Chamberlain, Grover Cleveland, Joseph Conrad, Aaron Copland, Hart Crane, Eugene Debs, Amelia Earhart, Paul Gauguin, Kahlil Gibran, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling, Abraham Lincoln, H. L. Mencken, John D. Rockefeller, Eleanor Roosevelt, George Bernard Shaw, Dylan Thomas, Harry S. Truman, George Washington, Virginia Woolf. 13 FAMOUS AMERICAN LAWYERS WHO NEVER WENT TO LAW SCHOOL: Patrick Henry, John Jay*, John Marshall*, William Wirt, Roger B. Taney*, Daniel Webster, Salmon P. Chase*, Abraham Lincoln, Stephen Douglas, Clarence Darrow (attended one year), Robert Storey, J. Strom Thurmond, James 0. Eastland. (* – Chief Justice of the US Supreme Court.)
How many homeschoolers are there in Pennsylvania?
The institute’s president, Brian D. Ray, told The Lancaster Patriot that in the 2019-20 school year there were approximately 86,000 to 106,000 homeschoolers in grades K-12 across Pennsylvania, and in the 2021-22 school year the number of homeschoolers had expanded to an estimated 103,000 to 126,000.
15 FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO NEVER GRADUATED FROM GRADE SCHOOL: Andrew Carnegie, Charlie Chaplin, Buffalo Bill Cody, Noel Coward, Charles Dickens, Isadora Duncan, Thomas Edison, Samuel Gompers, Maksim Gorky, Claude Monet, Sean O’Casey, Alfred E. Smith, John Philip Sousa, Henry M. Stanley, Mark Twain.Focusing on the work of teacher/author John Holt\u2014to work with children, not on children to help them learn\u2014and on the growth and support of homeschooling, unschooling, and self-directed education.
20 FAMOUS HIGH-SCHOOL OR SECONDARY-SCHOOL DROPOUTS: Harry Belafonte, Cher, Mary Baker Eddy, Henry Ford, George Gershwin, D. W. Griffith, Adolf Hitler, Jack London, Dean Martin, Bill Mauldin, Rod McKuen, Steve McQueen, Amedeo Modigliani, Al Pacino, Will Rogers, William Saroyan, Frank Sinatra, Marshal Tito, Orville Wright, Wilbur Wright.The good folks at Home Education Magazine—Mary Nix in particular—helped get 25 complete issues of Growing Without Schooling (GWS) uploaded online. The issues were reformatted from text files we stored on floppy disks over the years, with all the ads, directories, and other dated information excluded. I’m currently exploring ways to get the entire archive of 143 GWS issues online exactly as the originals appeared, and am enjoying the process. So I’ve been re-reading issues from my complete set of GWS and am struck by the timelessness of much of the information, as well as many other things I will comment on in coming posts. However, this little extract from GWS 14 should give heart to many who feel their children won’t be prepared for adult work if they don’t follow standard school procedures.This book is a compilation of the experiences of 13 different homeschoolers and how they incorporated an unschooling style of teaching in their homes. This book addresses the question of whether a Catholic can happily and successfully unschool. This home education approach is presented as a sensible way to access the mystery of learning, in which it operates not as an ideology in competition with the Catholic faith, but rather a flexible and individual homeschooling path.
Is unschooling incompatible with Christianity? Elissa Wahl and Teri Brown argue that they are not incompatible, but complementary. Unschooling offers a different path to learning. This book explains what unschooling is (and isn’t) and offers support for your unschooling journey. Includes information and support, along with essays on how they unschool guided by the Lord.Does unschooling mean that your children just hate school? Not at all! Some children learn best in a classroom, but not all do. For those who don’t, unschooling might just be the best approach. Children who are unschooled grow to be independent learners and thinkers and enjoy the perspective of being their own best teacher. Rather than asking, “Why unschool?” perhaps the better question is, “Why school?”
If you’ve ever felt that your child wasn’t flourishing in school or simply needs something the experts aren’t supplying, you’re ready to become a “guerrilla educator.” this books explains what’s wrong (and what’s useful) about our traditional schools and shows you how to take charge of your family’s education to raise thinking, creative young people despite the constraints of traditional schooling. Filled with fun and exciting exercises and projects to do with children of all ages, this remarkable approach to childhood, education, and life will help you release your child’s innate abilities and empower him or her in the wider world that awaits beyond the school walls.
Unschooling is fueled by curiosity-driven experiences. It is estimated that about 13 percent of homeschooled children learn through unschooling. Unschooling will look different for every family, but it is founded on the idea of following the child’s interests and giving the space and freedom to explore those interests.Wondering why anyone would unschool their children? Well, here are lots of reasons why unschooling is a good choice. From the fun aspect, to the superior learning, to the avoidance of the unpleasant parts of school, this list gives you lots to think about if you are considering the unschooling approach to the education of your children. Entrepreneurs are creative thinkers and experimental innovators. Unschoolers learn in these same ways, so it’s no surprise that lots of unschoolers end up as entrepreneurs. Without the constraints of a classroom, unschoolers nurture their own interests and passions and many figure out how to make a living from these interests and passions. Fueled by their lifetime of curiosity and self-learning, many unschoolers end up very successful in their adult endeavors of self-starting business ownership. Take a look at some unschooling families as this articles examines what unschooling looks like. Although some “experts” worry about how to measure the success of unschooling, those who have embraced this lifestyle know that it is a joyful and successful path to a full and rich education.What does unschooling look like? Why do people unschool? This seasoned unschooler offers the encouragement to simply give unschooling a try, especially if your homeschooling attempts have proven to be unsuccessful or stressful.
Nina Palmo explains the benefits of unschooling by looking at the benefits this model offers. These benefits include better learning, innovative thinking, passion about learning, good preparation for college and the workforce, and even more what the exact point of learning is (hint: it’s not just to go to college or enter the workforce). Unschoolers don’t have all the answers, but they do dig deep to find the best way to help their children find joy and power in learning.Unschooling can seem impossible to understand for many people, but in fact, it is well-reasoned, tested, and has been successfully implemented by families around the world. The evidence shows that unschooling leads to life-long learning, happy successful individuals, better family connections, and a true and joyful love of learning.
Unschooling has gained in popularity in recent years. This look into the lives of unschoolers is a celebration of the unschooling way of life, where children live and learn on their own terms and at their own pace. Offers a look into how unschooling works, and then details some of the successful educations and careers that unschoolers go onto pursue.
How do I withdraw my child from school in PA?
Withdrawing during the school year Immediately file your affidavit/unsworn declaration and other needed documents with the school superintendent. It is recommended that your child miss no more than 3 consecutive days of public/private school before you file to avoid truancy issues.
As more and more families take up unschooling, self-directed education, researchers have pondered whether it is a successful learning model or not. Peter Gray and Gina Riley offer the results of a survey of 232 parents who unschooled their children. The results were overwhelmingly positive about the unschooling experience. In a follow-up survey, Gray asked children who had been unschooled for their feedback. They recounted their experiences and how it affected their lives as adults, with most saying that the advantages outweighed the disadvantages of unschooling.According to John Holt, unschooling allows children the freedom to learn in the world on their own terms. He saw no distinction between learning and living a meaningful life. Learning is a natural process and works best when integrated into the spaces and activities of everyday life. This article takes a look at some of John Holt’s philosophy of education and explains why unschooling is often the very best choice of educational model.
The Office of Children, Youth and Families (OCYF) is sharing this memorandum to provide information regarding recent changes to the compulsory school age in Pennsylvania. Act 16 of 2019 amended the Public School Code to update the definition of compulsory school age to “the period of a child’s life from the time the child’s parent elected to have the child enter school and which shall be no later than 6 years of age until the child reaches 18 years of age.”
Subsequently, children who turn six before September 1, 2020 that are not yet enrolled in school must enroll and attend school this school year (2020–21 academic year). Children who turn six after September 1, 2020 that are not yet enrolled must enroll by the start of the following school year.
Additionally, as of July 1, 2020, children may no longer withdraw from school at age 17. Students under the age of 18 who previously withdrew from school, or who have graduated from high school, are not required to re-enroll.
“The term does not include a child who holds a certification of graduation from a regularly accredited, licensed, registered, or approved high school” (24 P.S. §13-1326). The full updated text of the Public School Code can be found here.
All of CHALC’s co-ops describe themselves as Christian organizations. Because Christians have made up a significant percentage of the homeschool community since the movement began in the United States during the 1980s, it is little wonder that there is a broad array of Christian options for homeschooling. Dunlap and Gerlach both said that in their early years of evaluating homeschoolers, the majority of the families they worked with were Christians. Now that homeschooling is on the rise across the country, the demographics of the homeschool population may shift.Dunlap has also witnessed a marked upswing in the number of students leaving the public school system to homeschool, even midway through the school year. Parents tell Dunlap that their kids are behind academically and are struggling to catch up, that their kids have anxiety in the school system, or that they themselves are worried about the safety of the schools.Gerlach is a Pennsylvania-certified teacher, and prior to 2020 she typically evaluated 75 homeschooled students per year, with that number steadily increasing each year until it reached an all-time high of 96 students in 2019. Gerlach said, “In 2020 there was a dip from 96 to 77 students. In the three years since then, I have had between 110 and 120 students, so there was a sudden and significant jump after COVID.”The number of CHALC’s member co-ops has been increasing since 2020, and most of the groups have been operating at full capacity and now often have waiting lists. Gerlach said that the coalition is aware of many co-ops operating independently of an umbrella group in Lancaster County as well. Because of the explosion of growth in Lancaster’s homeschool community and the high demand for co-ops, CHALC has prioritized encouraging and equipping parents to form new co-ops in the county. CHALC lists member groups and co-ops in its newsletter, The Scrawls, which is available digitally and in print for CHALC members.Repercussions from the pandemic have changed the landscape of schooling in Lancaster County. Through lockdowns and other policies that kept children at home, parents have had a chance to see what is being taught in their children’s classrooms — and they have also been able to experience how achievable educating their kids at home can be. Since many parents’ faith in the public school system has been shaken recently, and since other education options — like private schools and charter schools — can be expensive, hard to get into, or unavailable in some areas, homeschooling has become a natural choice for many.
“I have been astounded at the number of students with IEPs homeschooling as well,” Dunlap said, referencing the Individualized Education Program for disabled or gifted students. “In 2021, I did an unprecedented number of approvals for students that have IEPs.”
Gerlach is a Pennsylvania-certified teacher, and prior to 2020 she typically evaluated 75 homeschooled students per year, with that number steadily increasing each year until it reached an all-time high of 96 students in 2019. Gerlach said, \”In 2020 there was a dip from 96 to 77 students. In the three years since then, I have had between 110 and 120 students, so there was a sudden and significant jump after COVID.\”Today’s families can of course choose traditional homeschooling, with curriculum selected and taught by the parents, but families can also hybridize education to suit their needs. There are co-ops staffed by parents, there are co-ops staffed by teachers where children can be dropped off for a day of classes once a week while parents serve more of a tutor’s role at home, and there are hybrid schools that provide several days of in-person group instruction and the rest of the week children complete their assignments at home with the oversight of their parents.
Today’s families can of course choose traditional homeschooling, with curriculum selected and taught by the parents, but families can also hybridize education to suit their needs. There are co-ops staffed by parents, there are co-ops staffed by teachers where children can be dropped off for a day of classes once a week while parents serve more of a tutor’s role at home, and there are hybrid schools that provide several days of in-person group instruction and the rest of the week children complete their assignments at home with the oversight of their parents.
All of CHALC’s co-ops describe themselves as Christian organizations. Because Christians have made up a significant percentage of the homeschool community since the movement began in the United States during the 1980s, it is little wonder that there is a broad array of Christian options for homeschooling. Dunlap and Gerlach both said that in their early years of evaluating homeschoolers, the majority of the families they worked with were Christians. Now that homeschooling is on the rise across the country, the demographics of the homeschool population may shift.
Pennsylvania law requires each homeschooled student to be evaluated annually by a licensed clinical or school psychologist, by a teacher certified by the commonwealth, or by a nonpublic school teacher or administrator who has at least two years of teaching experience in a Pennsylvania public or nonpublic school within the last ten years. Therefore, in order to get a clearer picture of the growth of homeschooling in Lancaster County and the state, The Lancaster Patriot interviewed two homeschool evaluators: Renita Gerlach, who has been serving the Lancaster County community as an evaluator for 21 years, and Courtney Dunlap, who has been evaluating homeschoolers all over Pennsylvania for more than 20 years.
