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Tuesday Talks!
Join me for weekly discussions about ALL things education...from preschool through high school! As a mom, Speech Language Pathologist, and educator, I share my personal experiences related to each week's topic in relatable and informative ways.
My message about education is powerful: Reflecting on what is and making waves to cause change!
Tuesday Talks!
Breaking Free: One Mom's Journey to Homeschooling
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What drives a parent to make such a significant change? For Danita, a mother who made the bold decision to withdraw her eight-year-old daughter from a public charter school in favor of homeschooling, it wasn't one dramatic incident but a pattern of concerning observations. The charter school's focus on behavioral compliance seemed to overshadow actual learning.
The homeschool journey hasn't been without challenges. Three weeks into their homeschooling adventure, Danita candidly shares her daughter's need redirection and motivation strategies at home. This required creative solutions: dedicated learning spaces, visual to-do lists, reward systems, and working ahead to prevent falling behind.
Yet amidst these adjustments, beautiful transformations are emerging. "Emotionally, she is more herself," Danita observes, noting how her daughter's spirit and love of learning are rekindling after being dimmed in the traditional setting. Perhaps most refreshing is Danita's honesty about the future. "I don't know that we will continue homeschool," she admits. Her approach reminds us that educational choices needn't be permanent—they can evolve as we learn what works best for our unique children.
Listen as we explore the challenges, unexpected benefits, and practical considerations of stepping outside the traditional educational system to prioritize a child's individual needs.
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Tuesday Talks—Real conversations sparking real change in education.
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Tuesday Talks is hosted by Dr. Tiffany. She has been a Speech/Language Pathologist for 20 years. She's also a speaker and educational consultant. Dr. Tiffany hosts webinars and in-person workshops for teachers and parents.
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Welcome to Tuesday Talks, your educational podcast. Helping parents become strong advocates for their kids and teachers to make big impacts in the classroom. Here we go, talks. Thanks so much for joining. If you are watching or listening, please be sure to do all the social media things Download, like, follow, subscribe, share. If there are any that I'm missing, do those too, so that you can share this with friends, family, colleagues, because we have a really great show for you.
Speaker 1:Today, with so many parents feeling like public schools are not meeting the needs of their child either academically, socially, emotionally parents are really seeking alternate schooling options and with so much school choice going on, with vouchers being given out to parents to tap into other forms of education outside of your district or your zone, I have a really special mom and friend on tonight who made that very choice for herself and her daughter, and I thought it was such an important topic to discuss because not everybody has the know-how or, in my very blunt opinion, the balls to be like I'm pulling my kid out of public school and I'm going to either homeschool or find an alternate way to get them the education that I feel like they need, and so with that, I'm going to bring to the stage my good friend Danita Bird. Thanks for joining me.
Speaker 2:Thank you. I have a lot to say, so I'm so glad that you invited me for Tuesday today. I feel like this conversation needs to happen more and, yeah, I'm just excited to share what's going on.
Speaker 1:I love it. So first tell us a little bit. I of course we're friends, so I know everything, but share with those watching and listening. Just a little bit about your child and kind of what prompted you to seek out this alternate method of schooling, and what method of schooling that was.
Speaker 2:Yes, I am married. We have one child, one daughter. She's eight years old. In elementary school she was in second now in third grade and she was attending a public charter. So this was a unique school already. So we always look for unique opportunities. She's even done Montessori style learning in pre-K and kindergarten when we lived in another state. So alternative schooling, something different, not your traditional, is what we usually look for, so this school seemed like a good fit in the beginning.
Speaker 1:So the charter school seemed like a good fit. So she did Montessori for kindergarten and first Is that right? Yes, okay. And then second grade was a public charter school.
Speaker 2:Yes, so first and second grade she was with this public charter.
Speaker 1:Okay, and then third grade.
Speaker 2:you all decided to do what grade you all decided to do what Third grade we are homeschooling. We have picked what is called a public home. Well, private homeschool meaning it has a tuition, there is a teacher and parents are more like the coach. We assist and she gets her feedback from her teacher. She has a live class with her teacher. She'll have some interaction with other students and this is kind of all over the United States, so she's meeting kids from different states too who are participating in this program. So this is where we are today in this private homeschool program.
Speaker 1:OK. So I just want to back up just a little bit, because I homeschooled my son during kindergarten because it was COVID, so nobody was going to school in person, and those were the longest nine months of my life because he did this. You know, he met with a teacher online. It was Montessori, but it was all at home. So he met with a teacher online for 90 minutes a day, but it was all at home. So he met with the teacher online for 90 minutes a day.
Speaker 1:He had his class kids from across the country who would meet for their 90 minute session with the teacher. They had their special, so they might have a cooking class or whatever, but I was also working full time, so I was setting up his work the night before, making sure he was online night before, making sure he was online, peeking in in between my work to make sure he was on task. It was a lot, and I just hats off, bow down to any parent who has chosen to homeschool for the long-term, because I vowed to never do it again, because it was just that challenging. So tell me, in your choice for homeschool, why did you choose that versus maybe just a private school that she would go to daily?
Speaker 2:Okay. So homeschool was our second choice and I agree with everything you just said. Very similar setup. We're doing the same thing. But homeschool was our second choice.
Speaker 2:I tried to get her into a school through the school choice program. So DeKalb County, most of Georgia, has school choice as an option. School choice is an application you can do online that allows your kids to attend another school in their district, but not locked into your zip code, so she doesn't have to go to the school she's zoned for. And there were a few schools I was interested in in our district or in our county that felt like a better fit for her and I applied through school choice and then you go on to a wait list. If you're lucky. It is an automated lottery system. So it's like the lottery you have to get lucky. So I did that application, fingers crossed that she could get into that, because I'm not against traditional schooling or the building and having her interact with other kids. So this school another one that seemed like a good fit she didn't get in.
Speaker 2:So homeschooling was the second choice and this program with the teacher as an aid or assistant seemed like a good choice again. So second option, not my first, if I'm being honest. Hmm, yeah, it's a lot of work. It's still a lot of work for the parents. Yes, we do have a teacher and she does the grading and she gives feedback and she's interacting with my daughter, but we're sitting with her, we're taking turns throughout the week and I think that's part of the challenge is figuring out the scheduling. How do we help her and keep our job Right?
Speaker 1:That's very important. Yes, tuition based homeschool, so the job is important. Because this is tuition-based homeschool, so the job is important. So describe that turning point or if there was a specific event that happened at the public charter school that kind of pushed you all to seriously consider homeschooling, did you feel like she was a different type of learner than maybe what was being offered at the charter school? What kind of prompted this thought initially to start seeking out this alternate?
Speaker 2:schooling. How did we get here? So I feel like it was a combination of things that were happening at her school, so a lot of behavioral concerns. She would come home and tell me well, all of this happened at school and everybody gets in trouble. It's not one person, it's everybody. Okay, that's the system they're using. When I would ask her about her day. You know the dreaded question kids hate to hear how was your day?
Speaker 2:What'd you learn? And even when we turned the tables on that and tried to ask different ways, we'd still get a similar response. I don't know, I don't remember it was two hours ago, how do you not remember but she could tell me at least four different ways to raise her hand for going to the restroom or asking a question. So it seemed very structural in the behavior and how the school operated. Less about education and curriculum for me, because she didn't know the difference between a short and a long vowel Not that it's going to be important long term, but if that's the thing you're working on and you don't know it. But you can tell me all these hand gestures of how to move through the building.
Speaker 2:That's concerning so, that it was, like I said, a combination of things. So behavioral issues, lacking in curriculum or not sticking the things that are sticking are the things that have action with it. So, yeah, you remember how to raise your hand because you need to use the restroom. Yeah, it was like a necessity, so things like that. Of course, the climate in the united states when it comes to safety in our schools, that's adding to it. If I'm seeing these things, the climate in the United States when it comes to safety in our schools, that's adding to it. If I'm seeing these things on television, in the news, another school shooting, another school shooting it started to add up. So I can't say it was one thing, it was a lot of things that kind of led us to where we are today.
Speaker 1:Gotcha. So as you and your husband started to think about it, did you pull your daughter into the conversation to get her input on the potential change?
Speaker 2:Absolutely. So we let her know from the beginning there are two options on the table. We're either going to this other school that may be better for you they have a lot more activities and ways to engage you with learning that may help you learn better or we're going to try this homeschool program. So we told her both. Her initial reaction was fear. Well, what does that mean? And I won't have friends and I'm going to leave my friends. So I think her response was normal, natural, and it worried us too that we had the same concerns.
Speaker 1:Yeah. And so then, once you all three of you got on board you, your husband and your daughter what was that first day like? Because it sounds like you did a lot of research before even getting to the point of choosing this particular homeschool. You did a lot of research to make sure that this would be a really good fit, because nobody wants to change schools in the middle of the school year. That's a lot of headache, it's a big transition for kids, anyway, even if you did it over the summer, so to do it in the middle of the school year.
Speaker 1:So then, how did you all decide to kind of set things up for success, to make sure that this could be as successful as possible with the location of where she's going to do, because this is online, right, like it's virtual, yes. So how did you all set things up so that it could? You know you want it to resemble school. You want it to feel like school. You don't want it to resemble school. You want it to feel like school. You don't want it to feel like home, because then you know you might get too comfortable and start not giving your best. So how did you all set things up so that it had that same academic feel to it.
Speaker 2:Research and we didn't want it to have the exact same feel. There are advantages to being at home, so I wanted her to experience that too. But as far as picking this school, we actually had a cousin who completed high school with this program. Very successful young lady went on to college, has her own business and just well-rounded. So I'm like, wow, if she can complete this program online, maybe it could be a good fit for us. So, speaking with her, she highly recommended this program specifically. So that helped narrow down which homeschool program we picked, because we knew someone who did this. So with her recommendations, we did research into the school, attended their tours and all their informational sessions. So we started to come around to the idea if we don't get get into this other school we're choosing, this is going to work. We can make it work.
Speaker 2:We set up an area in our basement for her. It's kind of like she has a little office that is kid friendly. So she's got a pink chair and fluffy rug and her desk and her printer and all the things. She would need a little snack drawer. So, uh, the restroom is right there. She can use it whenever and she doesn't have to raise her hand so just to make it fun and give her her own space, we have our own space in offices where we're working. So that separation I thought was still important so we can still get work done and she can feel like she has her space for learning. And then when she comes upstairs I'm home again and I can relax and go to my bedroom. So I definitely didn't want it in her bedroom, the space where she would do homeschooling. So luckily we had space where we could separate.
Speaker 1:OK, I love that. So that's a great tip for parents who might be watching and considering it. Okay, I love that, so that's a great tip for parents who might be watching and considering it. First, do your homework, ask around. Like you all have a family member that went through this program, graduated successfully and went on to do for another, so you have to know your child as well. So what were some of your biggest fears or concerns? As this was your first time homeschooling, as you all are going into it, what were some of your biggest fears or concerns?
Speaker 2:Biggest fears concerns how will we do this? How can we manage our time and help her so she doesn't feel abandoned? When she's doing schoolwork or when she needs help she can ask for help. So we wanted it to be her to have that advantage of not having to raise her hand and do the typical things you would do in class. So that was the fear how do we manage our time so that we can help her?
Speaker 2:The social aspect, I think, is a big concern for a lot of people. If you're going to homeschool, then she's with you guys all day, she's with adults. She's missing out with being with friends and how do we still let her have that? She can still be a kid but still learn and be able to move on with her day. So she was already in a lot of activities. She was in dance and gymnastics and piano classes. So she had a lot of engagement with kids outside of her school already. We cut back because we wanted to figure out how we're going to manage homeschool first. So she still does tumbling classes and gymnastics, the other things we've put to the side for now until we get a solid schedule for homeschooling. So that's helping with that fear. How does she still get social interaction. She still does her tumbling classes and she's with other kids Managing time. We are still working on it.
Speaker 2:We are two weeks into the third grade and, yes, we are accepting all well wishes prayers. Please send them my way. You said earlier hats off to anybody who's homeschooling. I'm going to say hats off to teachers. It's not easy. I don't want to be a teacher.
Speaker 1:Here we are Right. Those are really good tips. I like that you all addressed your fears and concerns with the extracurricular activity, paring some things down. But no, you're right, you are turning into teacher. Your kid is meeting with their teacher online. How many hours a week would you say? She gets that face to face with her teacher, or does she get that at all?
Speaker 2:Face to face is once a week. They have live classes once a week.
Speaker 1:OK so.
Speaker 2:Fridays. Anything else is through messaging their messaging board and email and, like I said, constant feedback. Everything she turns in, the teacher has a response to it. Okay, she'll email her back immediately or send her a message in the board about anything she may have missed or some pointers try this next time and sending her links. So she's definitely becoming really computer savvy. This third grader is better than a lot of adults, I know, on a computer and copying and pasting and uploading things and dragging and dropping her assignments into her workbook. So she's definitely becoming an expert at using her computer.
Speaker 1:Okay, so, with only meeting with the teacher once a week, that then leaves you and your husband as definitely teachers, because if there's something that she's not understanding, she can message the teacher, but she also, I'm thinking, is more inclined to come ask you. She comes right after the skip or if there is, you know, a lack of motivation at some point in the day and not really wanting to do the task but maybe do something a little bit more fun, you bring up a really good point when you mentioned the word motivation.
Speaker 2:So we were not concerned, surprisingly, about her motivation for learning, because the student she was at school was telling me oh, she's a straight A student. She is very quiet in class. She's never had a complaint from her teacher. I mean, she's practically the teacher's pet when she's at school, just getting everything done without any problems. That student is not the same student that I have at home she's a very different student at home.
Speaker 1:So in what ways?
Speaker 2:oh, motivation is a big concern. Uh, we give her time in the morning, like, oh, you don't have to get up at 6 am because this is the time we have to get ready and get in the car and get into the car line for drop-off. We, we don't have to do that now, so let's give her more time in the morning. I think we have to change that. So it's a constant learning situation for us as the parents and the teachers to figure out another way to do it so that she can be motivated, not happy I don't know who's happy to go to school but at least motivated to get it done.
Speaker 2:Yeah, she was dragging, even with more time in the morning. She was taking her time. She's eating breakfast, great, um, she may put on a shirt and head downstairs still in pajama pants and I'll go with her for her first hour and just sit with her, make sure she knows everything. So we will write everything out on her chalkboard of what is to do, what's on the to-do list today, so she knows exactly what to do. Even though the system has a to-do list, she's not going to click on every to-do list, so we just put it in front of her. That's another thing we had to learn. Although there is a list, she's not following it. She needs it in front of her. That's another thing we had to learn, although there is a list she's not following it.
Speaker 2:She needs it in front of her Gotcha To kind of cross off each thing that she goes. So the learner at school we figured out is very competitive. She likes to be the straight A student. She wants to beat everybody in the class. She's going to do the best because she wants to win. Essentially she's also very rewards oriented. She got every award you could get in second grade. So again we weren't worried because this is the student she presented as Home. Not so much I'm motivating her and pushing her to finish one assignment, and I think in her first week it was taking us hours to finish one class.
Speaker 1:Wow, have you asked her like? What is it that's making it harder for her to get the work completed in a timely manner?
Speaker 2:Yes, and she's got the answer ready. Well, it's third grade, it's harder.
Speaker 1:Oh well, the answer ready. Well, it's third grade.
Speaker 2:It's harder. Oh well, her immediate response. But I don't think that's true. It's, for the most part, it's very similar to what she's been doing. It's just new information Right. I don't think it's any harder, it's just new, but we are struggling.
Speaker 1:So I hear that y'all are making adjustments in real time. You are able to kind of assess what is going on. Like you said, she's not following the list online, so let's make a physical list on a chalkboard so she can see it. So you're making adjustments based on what she's showing you, which I think is great. And another really great point for any parent considering homeschooling or any type of online school you can't just hey, here's your computer, go do your work, because there's an adjustment, especially if they've been going to traditional school or some variation of traditional school prior to doing anything online or any homeschool. There's a huge self-awareness, self-motivation. There's so much internal processing that needs to go on before even the work is produced or completed, so there's no like, just okay, this is what we're doing. Here's your teacher, here's your computer, get your work done. I think if that's the approach, you're going to be frustrated and upset by the week's end or by the end of that term or semester.
Speaker 2:However, you'll get missed because she's still learning the system, I think she's getting literate.
Speaker 2:Every day she can log in and go to where she needs to on her own now, but we still are sitting with her and making our list for her first thing in the morning and going through everything. So we're not missing anything and we're making sure she's staying on task. Right now we have her working a day ahead because she's moving so slow, so that way she's never really behind. But we have to structure it that way. So that was another thing we learned when I mentioned she's rewards driven. She got all of those awards in second grade so we figured, ok, if she can get through a day without crying or just giving up and trying to sit down and watch TV at 11 am when she should be doing her science and reading that assignment, she should be doing her science and reading that assignment. We're working with stars. She gets a star sticker every day that she can complete the full day without those interruptions.
Speaker 1:So is the star chart something the school came up with or something you all came up with? We are doing that.
Speaker 2:Okay, based on what she is showing us, gotcha.
Speaker 1:Because you realize, she's motivated by competition. So now she's competing against herself.
Speaker 2:She's competing against the clock. I also set a timer For each class. I give her about an hour, maybe an hour and a half, for each subject that she's working on for the day and I think this week we're going to try one subject a day. So again still trying things out. We're going into week three to see what's going to be best for her. So maybe jumping around from subject to subject is not best for her and we can make those changes and decisions because she's at home At school. She's going to do every subject in that day. So we're going to keep trying different things to see how it goes. So third grade is really a mashup of trial and error.
Speaker 1:Well, I love how tuned in y'all are, because to see those things and be able to recognize what is causing it and then pivot, that's huge. A lot of people miss the signs and you only see the symptoms and then you don't know, well, what kind of created that. And let's get back to that point and course correct. So hats off, kudos to you all. I know it has not been as smooth of a sailing as maybe in theory you would want it to be, but I know we talked about a lot of the challenges. Have you seen any benefits that you've noticed for your daughter either academically, socially, emotionally, since switching over to homeschool?
Speaker 2:I will say, emotionally, she is more herself. When I would pick her up from school. She's so quiet and drained and kind of sad because all day she's being told be quiet, sit down. And hearing that being told to all her peers be quiet, sit down. No, you can't do this. No, you can't do that, be quiet, sit down. And I get why they have to. Now I really understand why we need you to be quiet so we can get to the next thing. I get it, but it was, I think, kind of diminishing her spirit, her energy, her even love of learning. Because she's an avid reader. She'll grab a book and just start reading on her own own. That was disappearing. So her personality, she's more herself all day. It doesn't take so long for her to it was almost like she had to wake up from school.
Speaker 2:I love it. Yeah, she was in a daze almost when she would leave and she's quiet and to herself and then she starts to wake up and answer questions and so she's just more engaging now. She's funny. She's always been funny, but she's funny, yeah. So she, her personality, is, I can't even say different, she's just more herself all day.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love that and I know being able to choose where your kid goes to school, especially if you're switching from pre-public school, paid private or homeschool. There's a certain level of privilege that comes with that right. That's not available for most people. I know states have these vouchers that you can use to go to different schools. Those are great, but again, that lottery system, it really is about luck. Everybody's not going to get the school of their choice.
Speaker 2:Yeah, to your point, even talking about the privilege of that, talking with family, because we have a lot of family members who have elementary age students and kids and it's unfortunate. We are normalizing the poor education. So we have a cousin who has three kids in the elementary stage and he just says, oh, we just do extra work at home. The school is crap, we just work harder at home and normalizing that is something I don't want to do.
Speaker 1:Yeah yeah, but a lot of people are stuck with that. Yeah yeah, but a lot of people are stuck with that. And so then you seek extra things to do outside of school to make up for what is lacking in public school. Or maybe the parents go to the school and ask for the kids to be tested into the talented and gifted program, and I know that can vary. I've worked at a lot of different schools and what that looks like in actuality can be very different from school to school. So definitely taking advantage of the privilege that you all have to make this choice, I think, is great. My son has never gone to traditional school. He's always done Montessori and he's starting fifth grade now. So I've always been an advocate for non-public school. No, not to the public school. I've been inside some great ones. Unfortunately, I've been inside more not so great ones, and that is what ultimately led me to make that choice for him. But I know a lot of people get hung up on homeschool. Kids are socially awkward.
Speaker 2:We have heard that for eternity.
Speaker 1:You can always pick out the homeschool kids in a social setting, because they're the ones that are awkward.
Speaker 2:Is that right? I thought that too and I was worried about that too. I think it can be such a mixed bag because we actually just went to their first social event over the weekend. So, even though the school is all over the United States and it's online, they do meetups in your city. So we did a meetup and met with some kids in our area so she could meet other kids that are going to be online and she'll know them because she met them in person and I can't tell the kids who have been online all of their educational career versus we're just starting in it and they are different. Yes, absolutely they are different.
Speaker 2:They don't have to tell me they've been doing this since first grade and now they're in fifth and sixth grade.
Speaker 1:Yeah. So I think that's something, something else really important that if you choose homeschool, if you choose online virtual school, those social interactions with peers are even more important than they are in your traditional in-person schooling.
Speaker 1:So, if the program doesn't have that embedded in it. It is really in your best interest as a parent go join a homeschool Facebook group, meet up with those kids, check out library stuff, whatever you can do so that they can engage with kids physically, not just through a screen. Because the socialization is a huge concern and I love that this program y'all have chosen for your daughter has that embedded in it.
Speaker 2:So how often yeah, how often do they have those social they will do small meetups once a month and then they call them field trips, but they are bigger trips, so you're traveling throughout the United States. I think the first field trip might be to DC to see all of the historic things in the monuments. So still deciding if we're going to do that one, and they call it a field trip, but then kids from all over the US can meet at that one versus your local meetup. So very exciting opportunities and it gives us a chance to travel. You can travel because this school is online. Me and my husband both work from home and as long as we're in the US, we can work kind of anywhere for the most part. So that's a lot of flexibility in all of our schedules, and I think that was part of the reason to start this program, too is to give us more flexibility with our schedule and being able to travel.
Speaker 1:So it's good. So if there are any parents who might be on the fence about unhappy with their public school, the experiences for their kid, maybe responsiveness from the school, whatever it might be, they're not happy with their traditional public school. What advice or tips would you give them as they consider alternate options, whether it be homeschool, online or virtual, or homeschool cohort some choice that's outside of the norm. What advice or tips would you give them?
Speaker 2:Do your research. I don't think homeschool is for everyone. I don't know that we will continue homeschool, if I'm being honest. So do your research. Make sure you have more than one option. See if you can work with your school Now you can't change your curriculum and the structure that they operate in, but having a good relationship with your school Now you can't change your curriculum and the structure that they operate in, but having a good relationship with your teacher can be helpful if you don't want to pull them out entirely.
Speaker 2:So I think her teacher was great. He was excellent. She also had a male teacher. He was doing a great job with what he had to work with in the environment. He was in. The environment was more the situation than the actual teacher. So there are a lot of things out of his control. So it's hard. I know it's hard. I don't know that we will continue this path to be continued. Do your research, that's all I can say. And have a conversation with your kid. How impacted are they by the environment they're in? Are they learning? Can they do the things that are expected of them in their age group?
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think it's so important, of course, to do your research, and almost as equally important, I think, is bringing the kid into the conversation, because ultimately, they are the ones that are going to have to navigate this.
Speaker 1:So if they aren't on board with it and completely against it, there needs to be some further conversation, in my opinion, before the final decision is made to make the switch. Maybe they can adjust, maybe they'll push themselves harder outside of school if you feel like they're not being pushed hard enough in school, whatever the thing is. But I feel like having that discussion with your child is going to be very important to make sure everybody is on the same page, and I'm so glad that you all did that with your daughter and then went to those informational sessions. And then also kudos to you all for not being afraid to say, yeah, this will do for this school year, but we need to switch it up. I feel like sometimes we get so on board with an idea and then we feel like we have to stick with it. This is what we chose. So now we have to stick with it until its completion and not pivot when it really seems like it's time maybe past time to pivot.
Speaker 2:Right, I never feel trapped in a decision. Also, don't forget, we're paying a tuition and I never thought I would be paying tuition in elementary school, so I am not afraid to leave that To find another way. It's unfathomable that we are paying tuition in elementary school to me. I just never thought we would have to do that or feel like we needed to do that.
Speaker 1:um yeah we are yeah, saving some coins is always nice, because that is not a easy check to write or automatic bank draft to set up when you now have to pay for schooling and you know, even a larger conversation here is about the need to feel like you have to do that and how only a certain subset of parents can do it and what can change in the public school, like you mentioned, everything was very behavior driven.
Speaker 1:Make sure you raise your hand, make sure you walk a certain way in the hallway, make sure it sounds like they were gearing it more towards creating little soldiers for lack of better words. Then, given that freedom for creative learning and you know experience with different ways to learn as well. But as long as everyone's following the rules and we don't have behavior issues, then all is well in the school building. But maybe not, maybe not. That's definitely a bigger discussion, but I think you've given a lot for parents to think about as they consider maybe making a transition from their child's traditional public school to maybe a different avenue. Homeschool, for me was not the fit. It sounds like for you you're still kind of making that decision.
Speaker 2:We're on the fence Like.
Speaker 2:I said to be continued. We're headed into week three tomorrow or pretty soon, and we'll see. We'll keep working with her. She'll get what she needs for third grade. When it comes to the curriculum, um, we know what is in store and what she's supposed to learn, what she's supposed to have mastered um before she goes into fourth grade. So I think she'll be more than prepared for fourth grade, whatever route we decide. So I'm not worried about that. But I am concerned about us as parents and how we're functioning through the day, managing our personal workloads for our jobs and making sure she's getting her education.
Speaker 1:So yeah, well, I'm going to have to have you back on maybe in the second, like in the spring semester, to see how things are going then, because everything's rocky at the beginning. At the onset I know you said we're heading into week three. Everybody's getting adjusted, so maybe once you find your groove, perhaps you know by the time February comes you're like you know what. We have found our stride, this is perfect. It's going to work for us. So I would love to have you back on to get like a check-in to see how things have gone. But for anybody considering, do your research, talk to your kid, maybe talk to someone who actually goes to that homeschool, virtual, online or cohort, ask the people who put it on.
Speaker 1:I want to talk to another family, if they don't readily offer that, so that you can get some firsthand experience and input from families that have been a part of it as well, because I don't care how great something appears, everything has its pros and cons. My kids' school I love it, but there are pros and cons and they're very upfront with you about it. Hey, this is not a perfect thing. They're going to be good and bad, and I think that's with everything. So if you talk to another family and all they have to say is everything's amazing, it's perfect, it's wonderful.
Speaker 1:I would ask to talk to a second family Now that you're speaking out the negative, but everything has pros and cons, right, yeah? So everything that glitters is not gold, so do your research and don't be afraid to make a pivot. So thank you so much for joining me today, and a pleasure. I want to say to everybody watching or listening, make sure you share this episode. If you're thinking about homeschooling, or maybe you made the transition in the past, leave a comment, send me an email, give some encouragement to others, or you might be like don't do it, don't do it.
Speaker 1:You can give that feedback as well, too. So thank you so much for joining me today. I appreciate you having me having you on as a guest.
Speaker 2:All right, thank you All right Until next week.
Speaker 1:Everybody, thanks for joining. Bye, be sure to share this episode and join me next week for a brand new Tuesday Talks, see ya.