Educational Equity · Finding the Right School · homeschooling · NYC high school · NYC middle school · School Choice · student voices · transferring schools

Students Helping Students: Want To Pursue an Alternative Educational Path? I’ll Help You Do It! Ask Me Anything!

From Alina Adams: When my son, Gregory Wickham, convinced me to let him drop out of Stuyvesant High School and homeschool himself, one of my major conditions was that he do all of the work himself. Since then, due to both changes in the NYC public gifted, middle, and high school admissions system, and families’… Continue reading Students Helping Students: Want To Pursue an Alternative Educational Path? I’ll Help You Do It! Ask Me Anything!

Advanced Placement · coronavirus · homeschooling · Parents Helping Parents · School Choice · student voices

Everything You Need To Know About Homeschooling in NYC But Didn’t Know Whom To Ask. Your Cheat Sheet Is Here!

As the mom of a relatively recent homeschooler, Chalkbeat’s February 17, 2022, post entitled, Home schooling nearly doubled in NYC since pandemic’s start, instantly caught my eye. They reported that: This school year, roughly 14,800 children across the five boroughs have opted to learn outside of school walls, according to internal education department data obtained… Continue reading Everything You Need To Know About Homeschooling in NYC But Didn’t Know Whom To Ask. Your Cheat Sheet Is Here!

coronavirus · homeschooling · NYC high school · student voices

Don’t Let Any Lowly Bureaucrat Stop You: NYC Teen’s Guide to Getting Your High School Equivalency Diploma

In October, Gregory Wickham wrote Part #1 of Testing Center Makes Up Rules to Prevent Black Teen From Earning High School Equivalency Diploma, detailing his struggles with New York City bureaucracy. Here’s what happened next: The initial part of my story was much more exciting than the finale. After my first attempt at registration was… Continue reading Don’t Let Any Lowly Bureaucrat Stop You: NYC Teen’s Guide to Getting Your High School Equivalency Diploma

Accountability · Educational Equity · homeschooling · student voices

Testing Center Makes Up Rules to Prevent Black Teen From Earning High School Equivalency Diploma (Part #1)

The TASC is the high school equivalency exam used by New York State. It replaced the GED in 2014. As I have been homeschooling myself, I decided that it was time to take the TASC. Unfortunately, registering to take it was more complicated than registering for any other exam I’ve ever taken, including the Advanced… Continue reading Testing Center Makes Up Rules to Prevent Black Teen From Earning High School Equivalency Diploma (Part #1)

Educational Equity · homeschooling · Hybrid Learning · NYC Schools · NYC Schools Reopening · online learning

Independence Day: How Covid Spurred NYC Families To Explore All Their School Options

“How’s homeschooling going?” I am asked regularly by those who know I allowed my middle child to leave Stuyvesant High School this past November, two months into his Junior year. (I was actually stopped on the street by a woman who pointed at me and told her kid, “That’s the mom who let her son… Continue reading Independence Day: How Covid Spurred NYC Families To Explore All Their School Options

Educational Equity · homeschooling · NYC Schools · student voices

NYC Teen Says: Those Who Benefit Most From the School System Are Those Who Are Lucky Enough Not To Need It

It wasn’t individual willpower or any unique rebellious tendencies that allowed me to escape my junior year at Stuyvesant High School and begin homeschooling myself. Instead, it was that many students were pushed out of my way in order for me to reach this exit. I hope my writing about my experience will offer some… Continue reading NYC Teen Says: Those Who Benefit Most From the School System Are Those Who Are Lucky Enough Not To Need It

Advanced Placement · homeschooling · NYC high school · online learning · remote learning · student voices

So You Want To Homeschool? How To File the Paperwork You Need & Register for AP Exams, Too!

I started homeschooling myself in November, but before I could begin that endeavor, I had to complete two tedious tasks. Firstly, I had to register for AP exams. Secondly, I had to submit an Individualized Home Instruction Plan and Letter of Intent to the NYC Department of Education. Registering for AP exams took the longest… Continue reading So You Want To Homeschool? How To File the Paperwork You Need & Register for AP Exams, Too!

Advanced Placement · Blog · homeschooling · NYC Parent Voices · online learning · transferring schools

Whatever You Do For Your Child, You’ll Be Wrong: Why I Gave My Son Permission To Drop Out Of High School

We see a child in a maple tree We’re watching him climb, You and I. You say, “Come down, You’ll hurt yourself!” I say, “Go up You’re touching the sky!” – “Seeing Things” by John Kander and Fred Ebb Those who’ve been reading me regularly might remember that my middle child has been begging to… Continue reading Whatever You Do For Your Child, You’ll Be Wrong: Why I Gave My Son Permission To Drop Out Of High School

Advanced Placement · Educational Equity · Finding the Right School · homeschooling · NYC high school · online learning · School Choice · student voices

From Stuyvesant HS to Homeschooling in One Marking Period

Two Mondays ago I began to homeschool myself in lieu of completing my tenure as a Stuyvesant High School student. There are many reasons I did this, including greater educational and temporal freedom, but it is important that I share not only why, but also how I homeschool, so that others may find it easier… Continue reading From Stuyvesant HS to Homeschooling in One Marking Period

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Four Ways to Educate Children on Rainy Days

Jenny Wise is a homeschooling mom to four children. She created Special Home Educator as a forum for sharing her adventures in homeschooling and connecting with other homeschooling families. No one wants to be stuck indoors during bad weather, especially kids. And when they are, it can be all too easy to fall back on… Continue reading Four Ways to Educate Children on Rainy Days