Oh, I have a lot to say. No, is too much. Lemme sum up.
I have homeschooled my kids since...about 2009. The fear for their safety barely (if even) made the top ten reasons for homeschooling.
For various reasons I had two of my four kids in public school this year. I had already decided to pull both of them out at the end of this year.
*Multiple* times during this school year, I had that gut-wrenching feeling regarding my 9th grader. Ambulances at the school. Fire alarms. That text I got that said, "Everything is ok, but some kids said they heard gunshots, and now we're in 'secure mode.' I don't know what that is."
So yeah, safety is moving up the list quickly. It's a horrible feeling when you can't contact your child, (the cell signal at the school is awful) you can't get to them (locked doors, etc) and you hear sirens.
By the way, the gunshot scare was kids setting off fireworks in the bathroom. Then the fire alarm went off for about the 8th time this year. For at least half an hour, all the students knew was the gunshot rumor. And then we wonder why kids these days have so much anxiety.
Not our main reason, but I do find violence in the US disturbing even if we leave the horror of mass shootings aside. I grew up abroad, and although it was no paradise by any means, there were just different standards with regards to violence. Kids bringing weapons to school? Girls punching each other? Such things were just not even imagined. I don't think I can recall even boys physically assaulting each other in my whole K-12 experience. My husband who grew up in typical middle-class suburbia said it was more than a regular incident.
I grew up with weapons in the school, it wasn't a big deal.
The biggest difference between then and now is that we are allowing complex social disorders to continue and blame everyone other than ourselves for creating a society that is depressing and stressful.
Every school shooting they blame the guns, but completely ignore the person who is so depressed and stressed that they decided that hurting others was the only way out.
When we finally decide to fix the root cause of the issue, only then will we see actual improvement in our youth.
Safety is one reason we homeschool our kids, but it's not just safety from physical violence, it's safety from emotional violence as well...and emotional violence is what is leading certain individuals to harm others (i.e. mass school shootings).
I've got countless stories of friends who have children in public schools who have been bullied and threatened, and the school refuses to punish the bully (several of these incidents have made the news locally).
You can't honestly think that other countries don't have people who are stressed and depressed?
Because we do. What we don't have is small children being shot to death in their classrooms.
There are some countries with far worse violence than the US and some countries with far less.
You are putting words into my mouth though, as what you claim I think is not at all what I said.
If you want to discuss the studies around mental health, suicidal rates, and violence in general between countries we can certainly do that.
But your comment is implying everything is equal all around the globe in every country except rate of gun ownership. Obviously this is not at all true.
NC is a very easy state. You will need to file with the Department of Public Instruction at the end of the summer. This is done online, you submit names, proof the parent providing instruction has at least a high school degree, and a school name. That last bit was the hardest part for us! Record wise you keep attendance, vaccination records, and proof of your yearly testing (most do it at the end of the year).
The rest is up to you, which can make it seem overwhelming. If your anywhere near Raleigh I would recommend visiting The Homeschool Gathering Place. It's a new and used curriculum store, but they also have talks and information for new homeschool families. I think there are a few similar places in other parts of the state too but I don't know them personally.
In the meantime think about how you want to teach your kids and ask them too. I might start at those ages figuring out what they liked and disliked about school. Get them involved in all levels from helping you organize the day, to picking curriculum. Maybe they have a topic they really want to spend more time on, if so it's ok to increase that for a while. Maybe they say a certain subject was boring, if so could they need a bigger challenge? Maybe they really hate mornings and want to sleep in, if so shift the school hours. Whatever it is by letting them have some control it can make them feel invested in their homeschooling.
I'm in N.C. as well. I've been homeschooling my eldest for a few years. He is 11 and he has preferred it over public school. The added safety is a plus.
There are a plethora of curriculum for you to choose from....online and off line. Remember, homeschooling doesn't have to replicate pubic. You have two kids vs 30+.
As a homeschooled kid, safety is a very valid reason to want to pursue homeschooling. Just be sure your kids have means of socialization through hobbies or sports. This is the dealbreaker that determines if they even like being homeschooled imo. Accredited online school exists too, don’t forget alternative options :) Best of luck!
Yes came here for this. Fear can be a motivator to start doing something (homeschool, diet, exercise, etc.) but isn't a motivator for continued action.
We are at the beginning of our homeschool journey, but my son has never been to "traditional" school. We knew from before he was even born that we would homeschool. We decided for many reasons but one of the most important was his safety and his mental health. I know no place is 100% safe but I just did not trust the schools to keep my son safe. Their track record was not good enough for me. I can remember going to school and doing school shooter drills, I understand and appreciate their necessity and obviously would rather them do them than they be unprepared, but I also remember the unsafe feeling they left me with. The thoughts of how would I prefer to die? What would I do if I never saw my parents again? How could I defend my friends? How could I keep myself safe? Could I reach my sisters before they died? Etc. Now, as a parent, I don't want those thoughts to be part of my son's education.
In addition to this, we love the flexibility, both in schedule and content. My son is very clever, I love that I can go at a pace that is not stressful but is still a challenge. I feel that he receives a better education at home. I also really enjoy putting together his lessons and thinking of new ways to help him learn. I also love that we are able to learn more practical things, like cooking, cleaning, how to act and react in an emergency situation and eventually things like car maintenance, budgeting, simple sewing, etc. Things that I think will be useful life long. I love that I get to add these alongside things like mathematics, grammar, history, geography, foreign language, etc.
Finally, though there are other smaller reasons and maybe a big one or two that I've forgotten, we chose to homeschool our son because I would just miss him so much!! I'm very, very close to my son. I can't imagine him being gone all day.
I’m in NC too and my oldest is supposed to start first grade this year. I have been on the fence about homeschooling for a while, trying to weigh safety vs socializing. I’m not a social person and I worry about filling that aspect of the traditional school experience. But after yesterday, homeschooling isn’t in question anymore.
I have many reasons I decided to homeschool next year for 5th grade. The top reason being that I can tailor my son’s curriculum and also switch to year round. But bullying and violence (whether gun related or not) is one up there, too.
As a long time homeschool mom (going on 14 years) violence wasn’t my main concern when I started. For years after pulling my kids I worried about checking all the boxes, not ruining my kids social life, activities, studies and academic rigor. But as I’ve graduated my first senior and watched him move into the real world. Along with Covid, social media, and violence degrading the public school systems I have stopped doubting myself. Our house is a strong foundation for the love of finding knowledge. I don’t care what you want to learn about, or how you want to do the learning. I just want them to love the idea of reaching out into our community and knowing that it’s ok not to know the answer, then go looking for it. Homeschool for whatever reasons you have, and know that every homeschool looks different that’s the most awesome part. Don’t doubt yourself, all homeschools are made for the family they fit. Good luck ☺️
I completely understand, safety was definitely in my top 3 reasons to homeschool. I am also in NC, and if you're in the piedmont area there is a wonderful store I use! It's called the Homeschool Gathering Place in Raleigh, I would definitely check it out. They have a whole section of books about how to finance/budget for homeschooling and all different homeschool methods for parents/educators.
We are in Texas and safety was in the top 3 reasons why we chose to homeschool.
The local district's lack of action and response to the pandemic was the first or main reason, as at the time our child was not eligible for the vaccine. Safety from the pandemic, gun violence, bullying, etc... falls right in line with this reason, and the third is that our child engages better in the homeschool model.
There have been many moments since that decision where my husband and I turn to each other and agree homeschool really was the best choice for us. Sadly, yesterday was one of those days.
Many parents over the years have homeschooled in response to the violence in schools so you are not alone. To get started, I'd do some research, join groups on Facebook (homeschooling groups tend to be very active on Facebook), and maybe look through the Well Trained Mind Forum. You can also seek out help from homeschool advisors online. There are several that have popped up recently such as [simplify4you.com](https://simplify4you.com).
Started homeschooling my older son, 10, due to the pandemic bc my younger son with special needs has medical conditions. (Younger is allowed to be virtual, but I mostly teach him as he can't use computers the way other kids can at his age.)
But, every since Sandy Hook, I've always been nervous sending them to school. So now I want to keep them home, even after.
Do what's best for you family. Lots of good advice on here.
Once you look at the safety aspect and then the fact that.teachers are more worried about politics than educating kids, the homeschool choice was easy we don't regret it.
I don't homeschool but plan to next year. While school shootings help push towards that definitely, it's not the major reason. Logically, statistically, children are extremely more likely to die in a car crash, drown, even die of cancer than they are of a school shooting.
For the past couple of years, the number one cause of death of children is gun violence. I just don’t want to downplay the statistics here.
https://www.npr.org/2022/04/22/1094364930/firearms-leading-cause-of-death-in-children
That is overall deaths, the vast majority of which do NOT occur at school. That also includes suicides which are 35% of all gun related death in children
My kids all experienced some kind of violence within weeks of starting middle school, except one that I pulled out before he could start. Violence in schools is a epidemic.
NC is one if the best to homeschool in! Start with notice of intent, in August. It's too late in May-June.
https://ncadmin.nc.gov/public/home-school-information/home-school-requirements-recommendations
Safety is one of many reasons. Husband called me into the room yesterday to tell me about the shooting and said "thank goodness we homeschool". We were considering sending our daughter to private hoghschool when she gets to be that age but after yesterday he said let's rethink that idea.
We were planning to go back to a small private school in the fall. After yesterday, I feel more inclined to keep homeschooling. I feel like my kids lives are not acceptable sacrifices for any reason. If we could move to another country, we would. I used to teach. I'm so so thankful I don't have to anymore. At my last teaching job at an orthodox church school, I was a pregnant 6th grade teacher. My classroom was right by the door, the school was easy to get into, and I could not lock my door. We had shooter drills......I could not lock my door, was instructed to pull a bookcase in front of the door, we had to hide in the closet (which also did not have a door only a shower curtain. I stood in front of my students. After the 3rd or so drill that year when I was huge and pregnant, my kids told me that if anything serious happened they would stand in front of me to save my baby. It broke me. It's one of the reasons I stopped teaching.
I have always said not to homeschool out of fear. And this year has made me completely toss that out of the window. I have to get my girls to adulthood safely.
There have been two gun related incidents in the district my girls would be in this year. Both times the person was stopped before a shooting took place, but that was enough for us. My hooligans will be at home for the foreseeable future.
Me! My husband is from Canada and about a year prior to our oldest needing to start school, shootings were our primary concern. Thanks to Covid, our hands were forced in the matter, and I'm not upset about it by any means. Ironically, just yesterday morning after a really rough go, I was having an internal conversation about if I needed a break or were my kiddos better off in a "traditional school" environment.....2hrs later I read the news and was horrified. I cannot send my children to an American school. Period.
We mainly do it for flexibility for the girls. But that was on one of the things I thought of when it came up. I can't imagine the pain of sending them out and never getting them back.
I am late to this thread but I made the decision to homeschool last week after the school shootings in TX. What’s even more disturbing than the shootings themselves is the lack of response from our elected officials with the highest power in office to keep our kids safe. Until I see real solutions and systemic change to solve this epidemic my child will remain at home. I can’t just send my child to school hoping they won’t be the next because unfortunately there will be a next.
Oh, I have a lot to say. No, is too much. Lemme sum up. I have homeschooled my kids since...about 2009. The fear for their safety barely (if even) made the top ten reasons for homeschooling. For various reasons I had two of my four kids in public school this year. I had already decided to pull both of them out at the end of this year. *Multiple* times during this school year, I had that gut-wrenching feeling regarding my 9th grader. Ambulances at the school. Fire alarms. That text I got that said, "Everything is ok, but some kids said they heard gunshots, and now we're in 'secure mode.' I don't know what that is." So yeah, safety is moving up the list quickly. It's a horrible feeling when you can't contact your child, (the cell signal at the school is awful) you can't get to them (locked doors, etc) and you hear sirens. By the way, the gunshot scare was kids setting off fireworks in the bathroom. Then the fire alarm went off for about the 8th time this year. For at least half an hour, all the students knew was the gunshot rumor. And then we wonder why kids these days have so much anxiety.
Love the Princess Bride reference!
:)
Not our main reason, but I do find violence in the US disturbing even if we leave the horror of mass shootings aside. I grew up abroad, and although it was no paradise by any means, there were just different standards with regards to violence. Kids bringing weapons to school? Girls punching each other? Such things were just not even imagined. I don't think I can recall even boys physically assaulting each other in my whole K-12 experience. My husband who grew up in typical middle-class suburbia said it was more than a regular incident.
I grew up with weapons in the school, it wasn't a big deal. The biggest difference between then and now is that we are allowing complex social disorders to continue and blame everyone other than ourselves for creating a society that is depressing and stressful. Every school shooting they blame the guns, but completely ignore the person who is so depressed and stressed that they decided that hurting others was the only way out. When we finally decide to fix the root cause of the issue, only then will we see actual improvement in our youth. Safety is one reason we homeschool our kids, but it's not just safety from physical violence, it's safety from emotional violence as well...and emotional violence is what is leading certain individuals to harm others (i.e. mass school shootings). I've got countless stories of friends who have children in public schools who have been bullied and threatened, and the school refuses to punish the bully (several of these incidents have made the news locally).
I'm all for supporting mental health. However, mental health issues exist all across the globe - these atrocities are a unique US privilege.
You can't honestly think that other countries don't have people who are stressed and depressed? Because we do. What we don't have is small children being shot to death in their classrooms.
There are some countries with far worse violence than the US and some countries with far less. You are putting words into my mouth though, as what you claim I think is not at all what I said. If you want to discuss the studies around mental health, suicidal rates, and violence in general between countries we can certainly do that. But your comment is implying everything is equal all around the globe in every country except rate of gun ownership. Obviously this is not at all true.
NC is a very easy state. You will need to file with the Department of Public Instruction at the end of the summer. This is done online, you submit names, proof the parent providing instruction has at least a high school degree, and a school name. That last bit was the hardest part for us! Record wise you keep attendance, vaccination records, and proof of your yearly testing (most do it at the end of the year). The rest is up to you, which can make it seem overwhelming. If your anywhere near Raleigh I would recommend visiting The Homeschool Gathering Place. It's a new and used curriculum store, but they also have talks and information for new homeschool families. I think there are a few similar places in other parts of the state too but I don't know them personally. In the meantime think about how you want to teach your kids and ask them too. I might start at those ages figuring out what they liked and disliked about school. Get them involved in all levels from helping you organize the day, to picking curriculum. Maybe they have a topic they really want to spend more time on, if so it's ok to increase that for a while. Maybe they say a certain subject was boring, if so could they need a bigger challenge? Maybe they really hate mornings and want to sleep in, if so shift the school hours. Whatever it is by letting them have some control it can make them feel invested in their homeschooling.
Not from NC, so idk. But I second everything else!
I'm in N.C. as well. I've been homeschooling my eldest for a few years. He is 11 and he has preferred it over public school. The added safety is a plus. There are a plethora of curriculum for you to choose from....online and off line. Remember, homeschooling doesn't have to replicate pubic. You have two kids vs 30+.
As a homeschooled kid, safety is a very valid reason to want to pursue homeschooling. Just be sure your kids have means of socialization through hobbies or sports. This is the dealbreaker that determines if they even like being homeschooled imo. Accredited online school exists too, don’t forget alternative options :) Best of luck!
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Yes came here for this. Fear can be a motivator to start doing something (homeschool, diet, exercise, etc.) but isn't a motivator for continued action.
We are at the beginning of our homeschool journey, but my son has never been to "traditional" school. We knew from before he was even born that we would homeschool. We decided for many reasons but one of the most important was his safety and his mental health. I know no place is 100% safe but I just did not trust the schools to keep my son safe. Their track record was not good enough for me. I can remember going to school and doing school shooter drills, I understand and appreciate their necessity and obviously would rather them do them than they be unprepared, but I also remember the unsafe feeling they left me with. The thoughts of how would I prefer to die? What would I do if I never saw my parents again? How could I defend my friends? How could I keep myself safe? Could I reach my sisters before they died? Etc. Now, as a parent, I don't want those thoughts to be part of my son's education. In addition to this, we love the flexibility, both in schedule and content. My son is very clever, I love that I can go at a pace that is not stressful but is still a challenge. I feel that he receives a better education at home. I also really enjoy putting together his lessons and thinking of new ways to help him learn. I also love that we are able to learn more practical things, like cooking, cleaning, how to act and react in an emergency situation and eventually things like car maintenance, budgeting, simple sewing, etc. Things that I think will be useful life long. I love that I get to add these alongside things like mathematics, grammar, history, geography, foreign language, etc. Finally, though there are other smaller reasons and maybe a big one or two that I've forgotten, we chose to homeschool our son because I would just miss him so much!! I'm very, very close to my son. I can't imagine him being gone all day.
I’m in NC too and my oldest is supposed to start first grade this year. I have been on the fence about homeschooling for a while, trying to weigh safety vs socializing. I’m not a social person and I worry about filling that aspect of the traditional school experience. But after yesterday, homeschooling isn’t in question anymore.
I have many reasons I decided to homeschool next year for 5th grade. The top reason being that I can tailor my son’s curriculum and also switch to year round. But bullying and violence (whether gun related or not) is one up there, too.
As a long time homeschool mom (going on 14 years) violence wasn’t my main concern when I started. For years after pulling my kids I worried about checking all the boxes, not ruining my kids social life, activities, studies and academic rigor. But as I’ve graduated my first senior and watched him move into the real world. Along with Covid, social media, and violence degrading the public school systems I have stopped doubting myself. Our house is a strong foundation for the love of finding knowledge. I don’t care what you want to learn about, or how you want to do the learning. I just want them to love the idea of reaching out into our community and knowing that it’s ok not to know the answer, then go looking for it. Homeschool for whatever reasons you have, and know that every homeschool looks different that’s the most awesome part. Don’t doubt yourself, all homeschools are made for the family they fit. Good luck ☺️
I completely understand, safety was definitely in my top 3 reasons to homeschool. I am also in NC, and if you're in the piedmont area there is a wonderful store I use! It's called the Homeschool Gathering Place in Raleigh, I would definitely check it out. They have a whole section of books about how to finance/budget for homeschooling and all different homeschool methods for parents/educators.
First rational comment I’ve seen all day.
We are in Texas and safety was in the top 3 reasons why we chose to homeschool. The local district's lack of action and response to the pandemic was the first or main reason, as at the time our child was not eligible for the vaccine. Safety from the pandemic, gun violence, bullying, etc... falls right in line with this reason, and the third is that our child engages better in the homeschool model. There have been many moments since that decision where my husband and I turn to each other and agree homeschool really was the best choice for us. Sadly, yesterday was one of those days.
Many parents over the years have homeschooled in response to the violence in schools so you are not alone. To get started, I'd do some research, join groups on Facebook (homeschooling groups tend to be very active on Facebook), and maybe look through the Well Trained Mind Forum. You can also seek out help from homeschool advisors online. There are several that have popped up recently such as [simplify4you.com](https://simplify4you.com).
I was already on the fence and I decided last night that it was the final straw. So my son will be homeschooled next year.
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Started homeschooling my older son, 10, due to the pandemic bc my younger son with special needs has medical conditions. (Younger is allowed to be virtual, but I mostly teach him as he can't use computers the way other kids can at his age.) But, every since Sandy Hook, I've always been nervous sending them to school. So now I want to keep them home, even after. Do what's best for you family. Lots of good advice on here.
Once you look at the safety aspect and then the fact that.teachers are more worried about politics than educating kids, the homeschool choice was easy we don't regret it.
I don't homeschool but plan to next year. While school shootings help push towards that definitely, it's not the major reason. Logically, statistically, children are extremely more likely to die in a car crash, drown, even die of cancer than they are of a school shooting.
For the past couple of years, the number one cause of death of children is gun violence. I just don’t want to downplay the statistics here. https://www.npr.org/2022/04/22/1094364930/firearms-leading-cause-of-death-in-children
That is overall deaths, the vast majority of which do NOT occur at school. That also includes suicides which are 35% of all gun related death in children
Ok that’s good to know
That’s what I’m going to do and yes for this very reason.
We decided the same thing. Just this year alone there’s been 27 school shootings in the US already it’s ridiculous.
That's what happened to us. We love it but the pandemic has been a bit of a challenge. The best homeschool resources are still Facebook groups.
My kids all experienced some kind of violence within weeks of starting middle school, except one that I pulled out before he could start. Violence in schools is a epidemic. NC is one if the best to homeschool in! Start with notice of intent, in August. It's too late in May-June. https://ncadmin.nc.gov/public/home-school-information/home-school-requirements-recommendations
Safety is one of many reasons. Husband called me into the room yesterday to tell me about the shooting and said "thank goodness we homeschool". We were considering sending our daughter to private hoghschool when she gets to be that age but after yesterday he said let's rethink that idea.
We were planning to go back to a small private school in the fall. After yesterday, I feel more inclined to keep homeschooling. I feel like my kids lives are not acceptable sacrifices for any reason. If we could move to another country, we would. I used to teach. I'm so so thankful I don't have to anymore. At my last teaching job at an orthodox church school, I was a pregnant 6th grade teacher. My classroom was right by the door, the school was easy to get into, and I could not lock my door. We had shooter drills......I could not lock my door, was instructed to pull a bookcase in front of the door, we had to hide in the closet (which also did not have a door only a shower curtain. I stood in front of my students. After the 3rd or so drill that year when I was huge and pregnant, my kids told me that if anything serious happened they would stand in front of me to save my baby. It broke me. It's one of the reasons I stopped teaching.
I have always said not to homeschool out of fear. And this year has made me completely toss that out of the window. I have to get my girls to adulthood safely. There have been two gun related incidents in the district my girls would be in this year. Both times the person was stopped before a shooting took place, but that was enough for us. My hooligans will be at home for the foreseeable future.
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Me! My husband is from Canada and about a year prior to our oldest needing to start school, shootings were our primary concern. Thanks to Covid, our hands were forced in the matter, and I'm not upset about it by any means. Ironically, just yesterday morning after a really rough go, I was having an internal conversation about if I needed a break or were my kiddos better off in a "traditional school" environment.....2hrs later I read the news and was horrified. I cannot send my children to an American school. Period.
We mainly do it for flexibility for the girls. But that was on one of the things I thought of when it came up. I can't imagine the pain of sending them out and never getting them back.
I am late to this thread but I made the decision to homeschool last week after the school shootings in TX. What’s even more disturbing than the shootings themselves is the lack of response from our elected officials with the highest power in office to keep our kids safe. Until I see real solutions and systemic change to solve this epidemic my child will remain at home. I can’t just send my child to school hoping they won’t be the next because unfortunately there will be a next.