Homeschool Connections

As many of you know, I have been a teacher at Homeschool Connections for many years. For the 2015 – 2016 school year I will only be teaching middle school science and not my high school anatomy and physiology. Perhaps I will get that last chapter done some day, the one on the endocrine system and reproduction. Maybe I'll get the e-book done even if I don't teach the class this next school year.

I want to give a personal testimony as a homeschooling mom about Homeschool Connections. Two years ago I sent my oldest son off to high school and last year I sent my second son off to eighth grade, both to a school from the Newman's list of top 100 high schools; next year all three of my boys were to attend. My oldest son was struggling, but the way in which the school had dealt with him made it clear that the school was not only a good fit for him but not a good fit for our family. It was a very sad witness of Catholic education.

We had looked into other schools all of which fell short. While the idea of homeschooling all my children again seemed laughable, I knew after much discernment in prayer that I was called to do that at least for my younger two. My oldest will be attending a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (yes, that foundation) sponsored community college program for students whose schools have refused to work with them, and my son certainly qualified. It's free, he earns college credits, and he will graduate with a high school diploma.

As I prayed daily to God for the grace to homeschool my younger two (my boys are wonderful but they are not easy to homeschool), I knew I wanted to continue teaching them math and science but I really didn't care much to teach them other subjects at this level. Homeschool Connections became my perfect solution. Because it is not a set program, I could pick and choose which subjects I would teach and which subjects my kids could take online. In addition, my kids could choose which classes were most interesting to them in any given subject. I simply made a grid of the Massachusetts high school requirements, sat with my second son and the Homeschool Connections catalog, and filled in the grid. He is hoping to attend a local 11th and 12th grade math and science academy in another two years. The program has a record of accepting homeschoolers and our next two years will give us opportunity and flexibility for unique science and math activities, such as First Lego League.

Next I chose several courses for my youngest, a rising seventh grader, to take. We are considering an excellent local vocational high school that other area homeschoolers have sent their kids to. So perhaps in two more years my children will all be in schools.  Thank you, God, for pouring out Your grace upon me.

If you look at the activity on my blog you'll see that it dropped off about the time I started sending my kids to school. You may notice that my Facebook page has now begun to have a lot more activity posted on it, and new followers are joining weekly. I hope now to get back to more blogging. May this blog bless your homeschooling the way Homeschool Connections has blessed mine.