My oldest son, ManBoy (13 years), has been taking a class through a free online virtual school provided by our state. We are doing this as a supplement to his core curriculum, www.time4learning.com. I believe this is one of the best things we've done for our son, coming in a close second to choosing to homeschool him.


What's got me so excited about this virtual school?? First of all, ManBoy is working with another teacher. Woo hoo! Someone ELSE is teaching my child for a change! As homeschool moms, you know what it is like to try to explain to your child why things must be done a specific way, only to have them challenge you on it. The example that first comes to my mind is, attempting to get my son to use correct punctuation and capitals in his written sentences. Kids just seem to naturally listen better to people who are not their parents.


Another thing I love about ManBoy taking this course, is that he is required to stay on pace with his work. This basically means that he needs to do at least 3-4 assignments a week to stay caught up. This is teaching him to take responsibility for his own education. Of course, mom checks in to see how things are going. I can easily see this sort of scenario happening with the Time4Learning curriculum as well. All it would take is for mom to give the children a schedule to follow and then check in to make sure they are doing it. I think this would be especially good for middle school students and would help to prepare them for the rigors of a high school curriculum.


There are certainly more great things that are coming out of ManBoy taking this course, but the last one I will write about is that he is learning how to juggle his schoolwork with his other responsibilities. ManBoy has been invited to join a group of students who receive special training to help mentor other students who also use this virtual school. This is quite a privilege and responsibility for him. There have been lots of online meetings and training sessions that he's had to attend. Yet, he also has his regular chores and schoolwork that need to be done. I feel this is a great training ground for him to learn how to prioritize his responsibilities.


Who knows?? We may just end up with a responsible young man after all!!