A Wahm Trying to Homeschool Also!

As printed on Research in Review website and Reviewed by Dr. Torgesen
"Hooked on Phonics"

Unless you've been residing on another planet during the last decade, the phrase "Get Hooked on Phonics!" should resonate as powerfully as any media mantra a hooked-on-TV nation has ever heard.

The hugely promoted program enjoyed immense popularity during the late 1980s and early 1990s, not coincidentally appearing about the time that the whole-language approach to reading was getting the blame for an entire generation's reading deficits.

Then quicker than a silent "e", the campaign lost its voice, a victim of bad management and bankruptcy.

But as a growing cluster of clones proves (phonics programs now are commonplace) it's hard to keep a marketable idea down. "Hooked on Phonics" is back, its parent company bought out, the program repackaged with only a few changes.

FSU psychologist Dr. Joe Torgesen has this to say about "Hooked" and its ilk:

"Materials like 'Hooked on Phonics,' and 'The Phonics Game' and so forth are more or less sound in terms of many of their basic principles of instruction. That is, they do attempt to provide experiences to children that will draw their attention to the sounds and words and help them learn letter-sound correspondences and how to sound out words. I can't comment specifically on how well 'Hooked on Phonics' provides instruction in each of these areas.

"But I can say that I have first-hand experience with three or four mothers whose children were struggling in school in first grade acquiring basic reading skills. I tested a couple of these kids and found that they were marginally weak in phonemic awareness, and they were clearly not making normal progress in acquiring early reading skills. The mothers worked with them very systematically using 'Hooked on Phonics' and when I tested the kids again six or eight months later they had made good strides in their basic phonological reading skills. It is hard to tell from that kind of data whether these gains were the result of something that happened at school or something that happened at home. The mothers felt strongly that this interaction had been very helpful to their children.

"The claim that 'Hooked on Phonics' and some of these other programs have made that is erroneous is that you can give these materials to a child with a reading disability and have them work through them on their own and this will have a substantial impact on their reading ability.

"I don't believe these materials are powerful enough for that. They are most effective when there is a very concerned adult or older sibling or somebody who is guiding the child through the material, keeping them focused on it and helping them to practice. And even then, it won't be sufficient to seriously alter the reading growth of the child with a severe reading disability. I definitely would not recommend these kinds of programs as the course of treatment for a child who is reading at the bottom fifth percentile of achievement."

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Let's start right from the beginning. Legal Requirements

Parents who home school do not have to have an advanced degree. There are a few qualifications of successful home school parents: love for their children, understanding of their children, desire to keep learning and growing, desire to spend time with their children. Although it may seem awkward at first, especially if your child has been in a public or private school, teaching will eventually become second hand. Parents need to learn flexibility and also organization at the same time. Open communication and a strong bond between parent and child is key to successful home schooling.

Home schooling is legal in every state in the United States. Each state has its own guidelines for home schooling. There are also plenty of support groups for parents who home school. Some private schools offer home school support and/or curriculum. After school group activities, such as sports, or science are also offered by several different programs. Friends and family can also help with home education. Sometimes there are co-op home school groups, where one person teaches math and another parent teaches history.

There are also support groups for parents of home schoolers who feel burned out or frustrated. There is guidance on teaching and teaching classes parents can take. Continued education helps a parent feel confident in their teaching skills. But keep in mind that every parent in a teacher at some point, it is unavoidable when you are a parent.

Parents document the progress of their home schooled children with testing, some are annual, and some are alternative assessments. Keeping records of your child’s daily activities and learning is essential to monitoring the child’s progress. When parents find it difficult to teach a certain subject, they turn to private tutors, online classes, CD tutorials or community college classes to supplement their studies.

Why Home School Your Child

Many parents are nervous about sending their children to school, whether it is public or private. Bringing firearms to school was completely unheard of twenty years ago, but today it is alarmingly probable. Therefore, parents are afraid to send their children to school where there is violence, bullying, teasing, and possible physical abuse taking place. Girls are being raped in school; boys are getting beaten up, and this happens more often than you think. No wonder more children are being educated at home, there is about a 15 percent increase each year.

Another reason parents decide to home school their children is due to religious affiliations. Many parents want to encourage religious beliefs and morals on a daily basis. Other parents want to keep their children from being exposed to inappropriate behaviors, such as kissing, hitting, or even sex. Most parents that home school monitor the types and amount of television and/or movies that their children watch. This ensures that the child is being exposed to only positive, valuable lessons in life.

Children who home school bond with their parents and siblings and spend plenty of time together. They build strong relationships that carry on through the rest of their lives. Learning together each day is fun when you home school with your parents. There are no bullies and no one who teases just because a math problem is difficult to understand.

There are plenty of real life field trips to the post office, grocery store, or dry cleaners. Life skills are being taught daily through cooking, gardening and possibly balancing checkbooks. Home school children have more time to devote to extra curricular activities because time is saved at home. There is no commute and no waiting for the teacher to answer a question or discipline a misbehaved child.

Most parents would agree that home school provides a strong academic foundation that cannot be achieved in a school, where individualization is not possible. At home, parents can address their child’s specific learning needs, abilities, and pace. An interest driven curriculum can be assigned at home, so that the child has a desire to learn what they want.

In a structured school setting, all children follow the same textbook curriculum at the same pace, even if some children are behind or ahead of the class. The individualized education children receive from their parents allows them to reach their full learning potential with educational achievement and personal fulfillment.

Mom, Here’s How You Can Start a Work at Home Career

Thanks to the rising costs of daycare and transportation and the desire to have a parent home with the children, today many moms choose to work from home. This arrangement is sometimes called “telecommuting”, and it allows parents the opportunity to set up a workspace in their homes to earn a living instead of having to leave the home daily.

They might also choose to start their own businesses, instead of working for another company. Working from home is rising popularity and the Internet is offering many different types of careers and business opportunities to moms. And for proof that the work at home dream is possible, be sure to check out the success tips from moms just like you in the Full Time WAHM eBook.

So how can you start a work at home career? This is a frequently asked question that can lead to a lot of confusion about on where to start. Here are just some of the work from home careers currently available to moms:

• Party Consultant (beauty, health, jewelry, home decor, adult, etc.) We all know about companies like Avon and Tupperware, but there are so many more opportunities for moms and they are still a popular way to earn an income. From home and garden products, to jewelry and makeup and even adult novelties, home party plans are great ways for moms to work from home. Earnings vary by company and commission schedule.

• Virtual Office Service. Are you a people person who likes to do customer service and to provide other office services? Then a client service job might be perfect for you. Many large firms are hiring Mom’s to work from home answering customer calls and providing other office support virtually. These jobs can pay between $8-12+ an hour. You can also start you own business providing customer service directly to clients and increase the amount you charge per hour.

• Selling on Auction Sites or Craft Boards. Many Moms sell their unwanted items on auction sites like eBay.com or sell their crafts on boards like Etsy.com for a source of income. If you are a creative person who enjoys making beautiful things or you want to earn a little extra money for the clothes your kids outgrow, why not sell them!

• Starting on Online Business. The Internet offers the chance for you to create just about any type of business they desire. Whether it’s creating an information-packed website that helps others (and earns money through advertising and selling products for commissions), creating your own products or selling products at wholesale, the choice is yours.

There are any number of opportunities just waiting to be tried by enterprising Moms looking for fulfillment and extra money.

Recommended Additional Resource:

Working from home doesn’t come without it’s challenges. Learn from 21 moms just like you have been there, done that. Full Time WAHM provides practical mom-to-mom advice on who to balance work & home and how to turn into a work at home success.

Walking the WAHM tightrope – balancing work and family

Sometimes, being a work at home mom can feel like walking on a tight-rope! Balancing your work-time and you family-time can almost feel overwhelming, but it can be done. As a WAHM you are ahead of the game. The following are some tips to help keep you balanced – and sane!

You have the ability to set your own hours, so take advantage of that right now. If you can handle some tasks at “odd hours”, you will have more family time during the day. Are you a morning person? If so, try to get up an hour before your family to take advantage of some “quiet time” to focus on your business; night owls can take care of emails and other administrative tasks after they have put their children to bed.

If you pick your children up from school, use the time you spend waiting for them to get out of class to return customer phone calls. A wireless headset for your cell phone will allow you to keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road if you make calls while driving.

During the week, when schedules are busiest, plan speedy dinners. Let your kids help out in the kitchen while you cook – you’ll be spending time together and teaching them skills they will need. There are plenty of cookbooks out there dedicated to “kid friendly recipes” if you need some inspiration on what to make.

Blend family time and work time by getting your children involved in your business. Smaller children can affix the stamps or mailing labels; older children can help hang flyers; and teenagers can take on some administrative tasks such as data entry.

Set aside some time each day to spend with your children with no distractions. You don’t have to go anywhere special; the time can be spent reading a book or playing a game. The point is just to let your children know that they come first, and the business comes second. Remember – you became a work at home mom so you could spend time with your family. Don’t forget to take some time out to enjoy them!