Anyone currently or thinking about homeschooling?

acox75 said:

My son was diagnosed at 11 months old with T1. He is 2 in March but I have heard and read that it is likely I will be spending alot of time in school treating him on a daily basis. I'm just thinking if it would be better to homeschool him, following the curriculum of course, as he'll be out of class alot of the time. Has anyone considered this? If so, how are u finding it? The more we think about it the more we feel it's the right thing.

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Although my sons school can be a pain at times in there defence they do his bloodsugars and insulin i dont have to go there they have also looked after him and delt with hypos . Have a google for the local authorites protocol for diabetes i found mine and has helped loads basically the school have to look after him and not exclude him from anything . They must have staff trained to look after him . His 5 and was diagnosed in July last yr x x

I am not currently home schooling as all my children are adults and I have never had a child with Diabetes but I did home school my youngest daughter .She never went to school and we had a great time ! It is not always easy to be with your child 24 hours a day but I have a supportive husband and he was working for himself at the time so 1 day a week he would take her with him I didnt follow a curriculum it is not necesery (she spells better than I do) We spent lots of time outside you dont have to be in a class room to learn to count! We used the library to do projects and found lots of help and interest from the library staff We went swimming and horse riding instead of PE Learning really is about being able to find out things for yourself and if a child is interested in something you can build on this and inncorperate other things so you end up with a rounded out person I was fortunate that Beth met lots of people of all ages through our Christian meetings as Jehovahs Witnesses .Beth is doing voluntary work out in Malawi now and because of her diverse knowledge she does the accounts and drives a digger!! The bottom line really is that during a conversation with a group of young people about home schooling B eth waited until they had all had their say and then told them that she never went to school and it was the best thing that her Mother ever did Hope this helps and my advice would be give it a go the only thing you will lose out on is the swearing and the nits
CAROL

carty said:

I am not currently home schooling as all my children are adults and I have never had a child with Diabetes but I did home school my youngest daughter .She never went to school and we had a great time ! It is not always easy to be with your child 24 hours a day but I have a supportive husband and he was working for himself at the time so 1 day a week he would take her with him I didnt follow a curriculum it is not necesery (she spells better than I do) We spent lots of time outside you dont have to be in a class room to learn to count! We used the library to do projects and found lots of help and interest from the library staff We went swimming and horse riding instead of PE Learning really is about being able to find out things for yourself and if a child is interested in something you can build on this and inncorperate other things so you end up with a rounded out person I was fortunate that Beth met lots of people of all ages through our Christian meetings as Jehovahs Witnesses .Beth is doing voluntary work out in Malawi now and because of her diverse knowledge she does the accounts and drives a digger!! The bottom line really is that during a conversation with a group of young people about home schooling B eth waited until they had all had their say and then told them that she never went to school and it was the best thing that her Mother ever did Hope this helps and my advice would be give it a go the only thing you will lose out on is the swearing and the nits
CAROL

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I'm sure you could arrange them as well <G> IF you REALLY want.!!

I never used private tutors but I did get a friend who was very "arty" to help out with drawing etc (I am rubbish ) I wouldnt worry about what schools are doing at a young age you can always look at .a curriculum later when you decide what exams etc that your little boy wants to do but that is years away remember that in school the children will only get a very short time with a teacher .You are working 1-1 so you will cover in a very short time what school children would take hours to do. A lot of what Beth learned was almost just soaked up rather than "taught".For instance we read the cat in the hat books by Dr Seuss to read her a story and because it was so interesting she started to look at the words and it sort of clicked .We read to her a lot and when she could read for herself she enjoyed just taking herself off to read on her own if a child can read and enjoys it they can learn anything I spoke to Beth tonight and she and her husband are loving their assignment on the shores of lake Malawi and I wish I had known about home schooling when my other children were young .You can PM me if you want to
CAROL

My son is 10 and was only diagnosed a month ago. His school have been fantastic, speak to the schools in your area, see who has the most experience with children with diabetes. I personally wouldn't home school as i don't want my son to think he is different to other children when there is no need, it's hard enough as it is, plus his friends have been a great support network for him. I would also worry that i was encouraging his independence, one day he will leave home and i won't be there to watch every reading so for me it's important that he learns to deal with his diabetes as much as he can at his age, i know your son is very young and wouldn't be so independent. People want different things and it's up to you to make the right choice for your child.

acox75 said:

that it is likely I will be spending alot of time in school treating him on a daily basis. I'm just thinking if it would be better to homeschool him, .

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You have to decide if you want to homeschool for you or your child, is it because of being T1 only? Is it the fear of loosing control a little?
I think it's important for a T1 kid to want to be normal, to want to fit in, to want to be the same as everybody else. Homeschooling can be a little isolating, and sometimes all a T1 wants to do is get stuck in with the crowd and forget about needles, insulin and even mums!

Me and my husband had already decided we would homeschool our kids even before we got married. It was a mutual decision, though his parents didn't favor our decision. I guess they thought we would eventually change our minds once we actually had kids but we held our ground and today it's been almost three and a half years of homeschooling a son and a daughter, and if I may add, three successful years at that. Here's why I think homeschooling is a good option over the traditional way of schooling:
- Freedom of choice to learn how, what and when you want: And for as long as you want, provided the basics are all covered, depending on ability, maturity and levels of interest. Love Maths more? Spend your mornings and evenings on Math. Science fascinates you? Perfect - devote extra time in this area. Up to you.
- Perfect teacher/student ratio: Whether it be the number of students for which a teacher is responsible or the degree of connection present between the teacher and student or even the amount of dedication a teacher has for a particular child, homeschooling excels on all these fronts.
- Plethora of online resources available: Each child has different needs when it comes to learning, the primary reason homeschooling scores over the traditional method of schooling. And there is such a wide variety of resources available online to choose from. With some research you can mix and match from different sources and zero in on what exactly suits your child. For instance, let's look at it this way: suppose you have a pre-schooler and wish to begin homeschooling her from that young age. Get her started on preschool games like these which will be fun to play as well as will make her learn stuff without even realizing it! Or in case you have a fifth grader and he's very interested in science, there are so many sites out there which will offer you ready-made worksheets and printables you can use to aid learning at home.
- Integrated and consistent education: Being managed by the same person over a long period of time, homeschooling can be looked at as a long-term plan in which the parent is intimately involved with the student and depending upon the particular child's capabilities and aptitudes, can decide how to go about teaching him so that he comes out to be a well-rounded and well-balanced individual in all aspects.

I would seriously think about it. I have been homeschooling my son for a few months now. He has type 1 age 8 and the school just don't get it they even suggested he was faking to get out of literacy. He is still in the honeymoon period and isn't feeling good alot of the time. As we are still on there register at the moment they are trying to get him back in. It is so scary for you and the children it is just not a nice experience. Saying all that I do know of other diabetic children who are fine at school and have no problems. I think it depends at what stage your child is if they are stable and do not get many hypos then school will probably be good fun and safe but if your child is very sensitive to insulin and you have frequent problems or in the honeymoon period then I would say don't even bother. You can always put them into school later on when he is older and more confident but if it starts wrong then they will not forget that.

Hope it helps

Goochie

acox75 said:

Kathryn & Goochie - thank you so much for your replies. I'm sorry it's been a while since you replied and I have only just responded! I just don't know where the time has gone!! We have been looking for school nurseries for our son to start next September and will see if he gets the support he needs. If not, then we will reconsider homeschooling. I would love to just do it but I think we should give him a chance to try school first.

thanks again

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Just read this thread and I know it was a long time ago but how did younger on with nursery and staff? Xx

My daughter started nursery last September and was diagnosed in December. I have had to settle her back into nursery as she had so much go on the last few months that she was not stable enough to go back which means having to settle her in again as she was just so overwhelmed going back in which is a shame as she always loved it there.
Home schooling has crossed my mind a few times.
Like you I'm going to see how we get on she's actually due to start back tomorrow but only one morning a week to start off to get us both confident with it!

just so much anxiety about school to be honest but I suppose it's all one step at a time.

I understand your concerns but you should give schools a chance. There are a lot of great teachers out there who will try their best to work with you. Don't forget how frightened you were with all the info in the beginning so imagine what it's like for them. Most schools will bend over backwards.