well, we might be back to homeschool

[mopinko]

my 16 year old son was all set to drop out of school. turns out that you have to be 17. i said to several people there that he would be dropping out after his 16th birthday, and i guess they don't know that the law has changed. i'm sure raising the drop out age will really help. NOT.
i just cannot make this kid go back to an atmosphere where he is miserable and failing. i laid it out for the attendance officer who was just at my door. take me to court. see if i care.
we have tried since he was a little kid to figure out why such a bright kid did so poorly in school. no one took it seriously. "he's too smart to have a disability!"
:banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

i can sign him out as a homeschooler. they can breathe down my neck all they want.
guess i better start looking for an online school.

[mzteris]

1. hey -

I just sent you a PM but my 'puter went all wonky and closed all my pages so I don't know if it actually went or not....... I wasn't quite done with it anyways....

The rest I was going to say, though, is that you don't have to have an "online school" - though that certainly can make it easier for you in some ways. But if he's having trouble with school - online school is still "school".

Don't just yank him out and "pretend" to homeschool - not that you're going to do that, but - some people do and it really gives the rest of us a bad name, ya know? While he may - probably does - need to "decompress" from "school" - you don't have a lot of time to let him have that down time. Look into your local community college. Let him take dual track classes. There are a lot of options out there.

[GoddessOfGuinness]

2. Maybe he needs unschooling...

It's sad to me, to see so many kids totally turned off to learning.

Remember what Mark Twain said:
"I have never let my schooling interfere with my education."

[mzmolly]

3. Some states are pretty cool about it. And honestly you probably don't need an online school?

But if you want links to some free schools, I bet connections and K12 are paid for in your state?

[qanda]

4. Most of what I have ever learned has been post-school

If I'm interested in something then I pursue knowledge about it. It's amazing that we require kids to learn advanced math, science and history, only for them to grow up and go on "Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader". I agree with another poster that says maybe the kid needs unschooling. Allow him to pursue something that he's interested in and see if that helps him.

[coffeenap]

5. Just saw this, Mopinko. Does he want to learn?

We had great luck with early entry into community college. We used College of Lake County, but others around here are really good too. My son found that he could choose his subjects, and, if you go to the bookstore and look at each prof's reading lists, you can pick people you might gel with. PM if you want to talk about it. (DS is getting his AA in June at age 17-will transfer into 4 year school with junior standing.)

[Maat]

6. Yes, 'unschooling' sounds like something to explore for him.

Maybe he is an 'interacive' learner.

I don't know if this helps, but we have several educational stores in our area, that have alternative curriculums. Then, the parent buys a curriculum, and modifies it. One can file the homeschooling paperwork with the district. My daughter's charter school has programs for highschoolers that utilize the computer and interactive (game-like) programs. That might be available in your area. If not, I'll PM you with the website. Who knows? Maybe they could send you the curriculum and the websites.

I really like the idea of checking out what is available at the local community college - both academic and vocational.

He'll probably find something that he loves.

You and your family are in our positive thoughts and prayers. I know that you will find what's right for him!