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North Carolina
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It’s not cemented yet, but it looks like we will be getting orders for North Carolina. I was looking at the laws and they seem easy enough to follow, but had questions about them. The laws say “regular schedule” “nine months” do I have to follow the school year or is this just another way of saying 180 days? We school year round. It also says to administer yearly tests. Do I have to submit them to the state or just do the tests and keep the records myself? I have looked at several web sites that state the laws, I’m just not seeing the answers to these questions. I am also worried since we haven’t done any testing yet I know my son is behind in reading and math. He just wasn’t ready for those subjects until he turned 7 (this past June) and I want him to really understant what he is learning so it has been slow going. I am fine with that since I can se he is improving, but am worried about what happens if he tests really badly. I would appreciate any first hand knowlege. TIA
Hi! I used to live in NC but moved before my kid got to be 7 (which is the age I believe that is required over there). You do have to test them, I dont think you have to send the test, just to have them…but I might be wrong. You might want to write to the North Carolinians for home education (http://nche.com/). They have a fb page as well, and are a very good group. They have a big conference each year in Winston Salem. I got to attend to one when my child was like 4, and I loved it…I got spoiled thinking every state had such a great homeschooling conference and then I moved and…yeah…reality hit 🙂
Hi and welcome to North Carolina ! 🙂 We live in Winston-Salem and it’s true, we do have the blessing of state laws that are easily met. The state does not require but rather “highly recommends” that you follow a school similar to the public school, and that it includes a 180 day year. They do require you to keep attendance records, current immunization records on hand, and yearly testing.
I will try to take it ponit by point to keep it simple 🙂
The state does require that you register your homeschool….you can check the NC Dept of Non-Public Education website for that. As for the school year, we all keep attendance that shows the 180 days, but we chose
Yikes, I just realized the rest of my post is missing!?!
As I was trying to say, you choose which 180 days to schedule. We also follow a year round schedule and easily go that long, so it hasn’t been an issue to get those days in. You do need to test each year, starting the school year in which your child is first 7 years old. For example, my oldest has a March birthday, so we tested at the end of her 1st grade year. It is usually best to test at the same approx time each year, we do so at the end of April, for consistency. You get to choose the style of test to be administered, and once you receive the results, you simply file them away. No repoting is necessary. Do not worry about his test results! It sounds like you have done an excellent job teaching him as you feel he has been ready! It is a resource the schools would use if you needed to place him in public school at some point, and a great way to see that you are teaching him. In other words, it shows your accountability for his education, but most importantly, remember, these tests are formality. I like to compare tests from one year to the next to determine where she may need a little more help. There is an ebb and flow in the results…for example, one year she may show above average comprehension in most subjects but lacking in math. So I know we need to focus more time on that, etc….the next year it will be spelling. Does that make sense? 🙂 Honestly, you are only ones to ever see them, so it’s no biggie.
Now on to the conference! It is sponsored by the NCHE and their website is another great resource for homeschooling in NC. It is held each year on Memorial Day weekend. It begins on the Thursday beforehand and ends Saturday night. There is an abundance of speakers and classes to take,the vendor halls are FULL of fantastic booths (hopefully Sonya will not be too busy elsewhere again this year! I missed them last year, it wasn’t the same without them!….hint…hint…. 🙂 ) and there is always a high school graduation as well. Honestly, it is one of the highlights of my year. Maybe you will be here in time for that and I can bump into you somewhere along the way and say hi 🙂
I hope this was helpful and not confusing…..our pc is down at the moment and I am excitedly typing away on my Nook….hope there aren’t too many typos lol! I always get excited when I get a chance to help, when talking about homeschooling, and esp. the conference haha! If you have any other questions, feel free to send me a message, I am happy to help! Good luck with your move 🙂
Thank you both. When I was trying to do a search to see if this had already been discussed I did see some mention of the homeschool convention, but hadn’t looked into it yet to see if it was yearly or not. I will definatly be looking forward to that. Thank you Monika for the info on the testing. I thought that that’s what it had ment but wanted to double check with someone currently living in NC. I was only really worried about his test score if I had to turn them in. I had planned on having him start testing around 4th anyway to get him used to testing and use it to see where were some weaknesses that need working on. It just looks like we will be starting a year earlier. Good to know the results are only for placement in public school.
I was just wondering…. Pondering actually. If your child is behind in something couldn’t you just put him/her in a grade behind? I am not sure how that works but I was curious since I have heard things from others whom also have these concerns. I am not sure how it all works but I would think if your child is doing better in a grade level and poor in another grade level. Wouldn’t putting him/her in a lower grade just make him look great instead of lacking in a higher one? Or does it go by age and grade level of state? Please let me know because I have been pondered this for a while and this subject really interests me.
blessings!
I was wondering the same thing. My only concerns are that my ds knows he is in second grade right now (I was going off age) and if I say we are going to change his grade level lower I am not sure how he would take it. I was also wondering what would happen later if he should catch up and be on higher level, do I just change his grade level back? I don’t know if I have to report what grade he is in to the state when I register and what I would have to do if his grade level changed. I have been thinking that this year was more on par with a first grade level. I think I will just talk with my ds and explain that nothing is changing and your work will be the same but we are just going to say you are in second grade next year.
I am not sure how to answer your question exactly, but here are a few thoughts I had to share……..there are many children we know who attend a public preschool program and then for one reason or another, delay the start of K’garten by one year. For example, some kids may be ready academically but socially are very immature and not ready to move on, and vice versa. In NC, kindergarten is not mandatory, and technically, the kids just need to be enrolled by age 7. That said, if a child wasn’t “ready” for K at age 5-6 and delayed a year with a pre-k/readiness program, that would have the child ready for K at ages 6-7 and 1st grade at ages 7-8. So if I am understanding you correctly, that is basically what you did within your homeschool with your son 🙂 It would work out perfectly then, to claim a start to 2nd grade next year. Did that just make sense? 🙂
I have been saying that my son was in second grade this year, but I did not have to report a grade to the state. If I have to report what grade he is in where ever we move next, then yes I will report him in second grade and just have a talk with my son about why we are doing this and how nothing we are doing at home has changed just what grade we are calling it. I was wondering though, should some years from now he has caught up and is working on a higher grade level than I have reported to the state, how to change it then?
Some changes have occurred and everything is up in the air now. Hopefully we will get news soon and hopefully still be headed to NC, its our top choice and we really want to get stationed there.
As a former teacher, I don’t worry too much about the grade level. In any given classroom there will be some kids who could academically handle the work a few grades higher, a few who would be more comfortable a few grades lower, some who read several levels above their math abilities, some who read several levels below their math abilities, and some kids who can read anything but can’t compose a complete and correct sentence. Then there are the kids that were ‘behind’ last year, but things finally clicked, so that this year they are ahead, and the kids that were ‘ahead’ last year, but they were sick or had some other issues, and now they are behind. Almost no one in school is in the ‘proper’ grade for them, mostly because most kids don’t develop in all areas at the same pace.
Also, in things like science or history, the curriculum varies enough between schools, and especially between states/provinces, that in moving from one school to another there will always be things that you miss and things that you end up repeating. Grades aren’t nearly as cut and dried as most people think. Add to that the fact that CM is so different from public school, so you won’t really be doing anything much that lines up with the school’s program, and it matters even less what grade you call it.
Pick the grade that make sense for your child’s age. Sometimes it makes a difference if your state/province provides funding or something like that, but again, I’d pick the grade that makes sense, and then just go with it.
Joanne
Thank you Joanne for your words of wisdom. I am fine with were my son is but just not sure how the state will take it. If this is pretty normal than I can relax about it all and just enjoy our move and a new year of learning togeather. I might just keep on with the grade level we are already using. There are other things to consider like his Religious Education at our church for First Communion and Confirmation. I’d hate to really mix everthing up.
Ruth~hopefully nothing I was trying to explain has confused the issue! 🙂 I was really just trying to point out that it won’t matter in the long run, it is yOUr homeschool. In NC, they basically leave it up to you. Joanne stated it pERfectly, so following her advice is a good idea. Again, I hope I didn’t confuse or worry you unnecessarily 🙂 Hope your next move works out the way you were hoping!!
Oh no, not at all. I completly understood what you were saying. I was thinking about changing his grade level if I had to report it to the state, but after reading what Joanne wrote I don’t think I will. My only concerns in all of this has been reporting all this stuff to the state. I am good with what I am doing in our homeschool, I just don’t know what to do or what the state wants for all the reporting info. I am sure I am thinking too much and making it harder than it is. I think I have my head wrapped around it now and will just have to wait untill we actually move and do all the paperwork to get it really worked out.
Thank you all for your help!
Hi!
I am new to CM and will be starting 1st grade with my 6 year old this year. We live in Winston salem nc and I was hoping to find some support or group near me. Anyone in my area? My name is Kristina and would love to get together and talk homeschool with someone….I feel a bit like a fish out of water.
Thanks!
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