Homeschool to High School?

Question

My son is seventeen years old and he's been homeschooled since he was fourteen, but as of October I'll no longer be able to teach him. I'm thinking about placing him back into our local public school, but I'm worried about what courses he'll have to take. He's well ahead of most kids his age in math and physics, but since he'll be transferring in mid-year, and I've been teaching him only one course at a time, how would his schedule look at a normal high school where kids take seven classes a day? He'd be transferring into courses where others have been studying for a couple of months while he'll just barely be beginning. I can't get him in when schools starts, which is August, the soonest would be late September, so I don't know what to do. HELP!!!!

Answer 1

Transferring to two different environments can  always be a challenge, In this case, getting your child in to an educational institution is the least of his problems as well as adjusting to the courses that others may have been studying for a while.

Honestly speaking, home schooling is one of the best practices that can prepare a young woman or man for anything. Like you said he is ahead of most children his age. The reason for that being is that he was working in the comfort of his own home, and managed his time properly and efficiently. Despite having taught him one course at a time. It doesn't matter, this is just an automatic challenge that he as an individual would have to over come. It would not be difficult for you as a parent have given him this necessary guidance.

The high school schedule is something that he would have to bear with. When he is at home, depending on you study style with him, he mya have taken frequent breaks, in a school all this is allocated with time, bells and occasional chaos. He would however have great discipline in dealing with challenges. If he is a fast learner and is excited about public school, His drive would push him to do the unexpected.

Social issues maybe more of a problem than academics, but you haven't asked this so i wouldn't address it. But i ma bringing it to your attention

Answer 2

Talk to a guidance counselor. They'll know what classes he has to take and if you talk to them at the beginning of the year and say he won't be put in until half the school year, ask them what you should do and they'll give you tips on how to start his year off. And you said he's mostly ahead of everyone so it shouldn't be a bad start if he starts on easier stuff, but make sure guidance knows what he's done so far and they should help with all that. Hope I helped!

Answer 3

it sounds like you put your childs education as a priority, as a high school student let me tell you that unless he takes AP classes he wont be that challenged, even though he is late.  Also teachers are almost always very understanding to individual needs, cause we know they didnt choose their career for money

Answer 4

That is the downside of being home-schooled.  When going back to a regular public school, the student will feel more at loss on some subjects.  Some kids may not be up to his pace on some areas, but he may be past of what some kids are learning.  There will be required courses such as, English, Math, History, and Science, that your son has to take.  Some schools offer block schedules, which is 4 classes a day, 8 classes in total, meaning the classes would be longer.  It's a great thing that your son has a lot of knowledge in math.  As a student myself, math was the subject that I would always struggle with and even if I miss one day, I would feel like I'm behind for a whole week.  Most teachers also offer after school tutoring if your son needs extra help.

Also, most school offer AP and honor classes, and it would look wonderful on your son's college application if he does attempt to take those classes.  AP classes can earn your son college credit if he passes the test at the end of the school year, at the same time, they are weighted in the GPA scale.  They are of course, a lot harder and time consuming than those of regular classes, but are worth taking.  

Good luck with everything; I'm sure your son will do fine.

Answer 5

If he is an advanced student at 17 that has been home schooled, I would strongly advise you to look at something other than traditional high school. Transitioning to a local high school at his age would be a big waste of time for a student in his situation-- he would probably be better off somewhere where he can learn without the distractions that would be caused by the transition to a local high school

You may want to consider having him go ahead and start at a local community college this fall. (don't worry, he won't be alone with a bunch of adults, many advanced h.s. students "dual enroll" to take college and high school courses). You could also choose to have him take cc courses online.   Generally, if your ACT and SAT scores are high enough for admission, 17 year olds can enroll.  He might be required to pass the GED test for admission, but he might not (this is not a big deal, many c.c.'s offer this on campus for a small fee).

You might also want to consider having him enroll at an online high school, where he can continue to learn in a similar situation, but he will be able to interact with teachers via internet, phone, etc.

The worst thing you can do for your son is to buy into the myths that everyone needs to go to a "brick and mortar" high school for four years before they are prepared for college.  There's lots of great options around for bright kids who want to take a less traditional path to learning.  If he's excelled in a non-traditional environment, don't take the risk of putting pressure on him to make a drastic adjustment-- it might do more harm than good.