Completing the Homeschool Process and Graduation Day
by Mimi Rothschild
The decision to homeschool is one that is never made lightly. Managing a full life in today’s world can be hectic enough before adding in to the mix having children at home all day, everyday, all year long. Top that with being responsible for developing curriculum’s, teaching, grading, tracking progress, ensuring the right mix of activities and areas of growth, and you have your first year of homeschool. Each year some elements of homeschooling may get easier with repetition and a growing network of resources, but the decision-making can sometimes get tougher. At some point a homeschooling parent has to think, “Will my child do better in public or private school now that they are middle-school aged? How about when they reach high school?” Committing to homeschooling is an ever-renewing process, and preparing for the end, when your child graduates is as important as your first year.
How do you know when you are done? In a traditional school it is very easy to answer that question; you are done when the school system says you are done. When you child reaches a certain age, has completed a certain number of grade levels successfully and, in some states, passed certain tests, then you are certain your child is a graduate. For homeschooling parents, the question becomes a lot more challenging, and the homeschooled child is going to want to know as well.
In most cases the child is learning in an unconventional manner, and often has passed many of his or her friends when it comes to certain benchmarks, such as covering subject matter X by age Y. Using the traditional schools curriculum may therefore be of little help; but benchmarks can still be a useful measure of progress to determine when a child is ready to move on to the next stage in their education and life.
Many homeschool families entered into the practice to avoid what they feel as the route and constipated public school systems in the first place, so imitating the graduation requirements and trappings of the final graduation ceremonies simply don’t make sense. While each state may have specific requirements, such as passing the G.E.D. program and taking the S.A.T.s, each family should decide on what is important to them, what milestones should be reached in order to feel comfortable graduating their children.
Many homeschool parents suggest taking S.A.T.s regardless, to prepare the child for college entrance. Some possible milestones could include: getting acceptance to / applying to certain colleges or trade schools, completing a number of Community College level courses while being homeschooled, reaching a certain number of hours in each subject matter, and demonstrating competency in the those subjects that are important to having a good, overall grasp on life, such as Economics, Math, English Communication skills, etc.
Many families homeschool for religious reasons as well, and benchmarks in understanding their religion and demonstrating character issues are also good ideas. Some homeschooling families have group graduation ceremonies, complete with caps and gowns, photo-shoots and diplomas, while others find personal, home-brewed ceremonies more apropos.
Whatever your decision for the final benchmarks for graduation and how to celebrate it, make it center on what is important to your family, as the final effort of love and commitment to your child’s homeschool education.
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