Dr Phil says....

First, before I get to Dr. Phil. Charlie is still on break. I know I said I would do school with him when we got back, but I had more to do than I realized to get ready for Christmas, and more than I ever thought this week. Since one of the benefits for ME of homeschooling is that I can adjust the schedule the way I want, and Charlie is fine as far as how far along he is with his lessons, we are getting back to school Tuesday. :) We have done a bit of Science about oceans and whatnot since we were at the beach on vacation, but not enough to even finish one lesson, so I'm not counting that. Some of you may get letters from Charlie soon as well, which could be considered Language Arts, if that makes you sleep better at night. :)

On to Dr. Phil. SInce lots of people think Dr. Phil makes sense with most of what he says, and I'm one of them, I figured I would let you know what he had to say about homeschool on Monday's episode. Here it is with my comments in a different color.

To Home School or Not to Home School?

Dr. Phil speaks to his guests, Mike and Jylana, about their debate over whether to home school their 4-year-old son. Jylana believes their son is advanced for his age and doesn’t feel the public school system is equipped to handle his needs. Her husband Mike however, believes that keeping their son out of public school may stunt him socially and won’t prepare him for the real world. What does Dr. Phil think?
Dr. Phil looks to the research:
Children who are home schooled through eighth grade exhibit no disruption in social development and evolution. See? I've been saying that for years. Since before Charlie was born. No one listens to me, but now I have Dr. Phil backing me up. :)
To make home schooling work, parents must make the time commitment, the money commitment, the lifestyle commitment to provide that academic environment for the child at home. Trust me, we have made a money committment. Just ask me if I can afford to: eat the way I want to, buy the things I need for my house, buy the things I WANT for my house, my family, or myself. Same thing with time and lifestyle - I have not had a relaxing hour to myself since we started this thing. Not that I'm complaining - I'd much rather have it the way it is and keep Charlie out of the regular school. :)
In addition, the parents should make the effort to have the child participate in extra-curricular activities of their peer group, such as sports, YMCA activities, the Boys and Girls Clubs of America, church groups and socials, etc. Having made the money committment to home school, we can't afford to join the Y. I have no idea if there is a Boys and Girls club in Pueblo, but it's now on my list to look into. We don't attend church. BUT, Charlie plays t-ball and soccer in season, attends COVA field trips, and plays with a lot of kids in the neighborhood, as well as his sister and various friends, family, and friends of family when we are in Denver. As soon as we move to the Springs (end of May) I'll be rejoining the MOMs club, which is a HUGE social thing for Charlie too. In fact, there are several resources for social interaction for him when we move. Pueblo just sucks. :)
Limited tests have shown that home schooled children have above-average social and psychological development through their exposure to many different age groups and other activities to boost their social development. Yeah, what he said.
However, once kids get to high school age, social development is important. They become more independent and benefit more from being in a public or private school. No one needs to worry about that... at least not yet. Let me get through the first grade before I wonder if he's home schooling for high school.
OK, that's all I've got really. Hope you had a marvelous winter holiday of choice. :)