# Update on Public school alternative learning program we tried



## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

you all may remember that I asked if anybody homeschooled through the public school this time last year because I was considering it. Well, we tried it. It has been a very positive experience. We plan to do it again. 

I still pick my curriculum. If it is sectarian in any way, they won't pay for it, but I can still use it. They pay for my kids music lessons, and they have paid for some online math classes that we have done. I have to give them weekly and monthly reports for the priveledge of using their money, but I don't mind doing it. I have not found the program to be invasive at all. We have to do standardized tests, but we don't have to report the results. 

We have also gotten to do some really neat (and expensive) field trips for free. These have included a Trans Siberian Orchestra concert, Cirque De Sole, a whale watching trip, and the usual zoos, aquariums, camping trips, and art museums. These are scheduled every 2 weeks and are optional. 

I told them that I planned to do block scheduling - one subject at a time for a month to 6 weeks and they were fine with that! They are very flexible.

If you are in WA state, you can register through any school district you want to (if you choose to register at all) in an alternative learning program. Many of the ones around here are not nearly as flexible as this one. If you are in need of some financial help with homeschooling, and you don't want to be in an ALP building 2 or 3 times a week, you should check out the Quilcene School District's Home Education Program. I really couldn't be more pleased. The alotment is higher than most per student too. 

What is more - this school district started the program to supplement the school district's income (because they get money for doing it) since so many people were moving away. We are helping to keep a school system open in an area that serves mostly farmers. It's a good thing. 

OK, that's my report. Hope that helps. 
Cindyc.


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## offthegrid (Aug 11, 2009)

Very interesting!!! It would seem that public schools would offer these types of programs more often; there seems to be no harm and not a huge amount of effort on their parts.

NY is nowhere near as progressive, which is sad. Our schools *can* allow a homeschooled student to participate in extra-curricular programs, but I don't think any of them do. I suppose they might allow your child to be on a sports team if they were olympic caliber, but otherwise they offer nothing to homeschooled families, and we still have to submit detailed plans and reports to them. 

I have heard of a local school that changed its curriculum and one of the teachers was friends with a homeschooled family. She suggested the family call the school about some books because they were just throwing them away. The school actually chose to throw the books away rather than give them copies.  How weird is that?


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Is this part of the Home Link program Cindy? My friends in eastern WA homeschool their kids thru a Home Link program and I'm so envious! I wish Idaho had something similar. Fat chance.:grump:


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> Is this part of the Home Link program Cindy? My friends in eastern WA homeschool their kids thru a Home Link program and I'm so envious! I wish Idaho had something similar. Fat chance.:grump:


Lisa,
I think all the school districts set up their own things and they all have their own name. Plus there are online ones that are across the state. I'm not sure which Home Link is. Also, there are co-ops, support groups, and online programs that are not free. The Island one is called Homeschool Resource Center, the next town over has one called P.A.L.s and the Quilcene one (that I am in) is called H.E.P. 

Cindyc.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

The 2 homelink programs that I'm familiar with (Deer Park and Newport) have brick and mortar buildings that are set aside as places for homeschoolers. You can enroll your child in as many or as few classes at the homelink building as you like, or just use their services for curriculum planning, ordering, etc. 
They have classes offered in everything from the basic 3 "R"s to Irish step dancing.


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> The 2 homelink programs that I'm familiar with (Deer Park and Newport) have brick and mortar buildings that are set aside as places for homeschoolers. You can enroll your child in as many or as few classes at the homelink building as you like, or just use their services for curriculum planning, ordering, etc.
> They have classes offered in everything from the basic 3 "R"s to Irish step dancing.


Yea, then it's pretty much the same thing. the quilcene one though doesn't have any classes at any site. Instead they use their money to help people access classes from other places. It's really cool. But the two that are actually near here are just like you describe only you either sign up for their program or you don't. You can't pick and choose the parts you want. if you could, I might be more interested in them. I find the quilcene program to be the most flexible of all of the ones of which I am aware. 

WA is a really good place to homeschool. It took me a while to realize that it isn't like TN where I came from. They really are open to homeschoolers here.  

Cindyc.


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## Lisa in WA (Oct 11, 2004)

Idaho is easy only because there is no oversight at all. Which was very nice for me...but doesn't work out so well for the many, many so-called homeschooled kids I see whose parents don't actually homeschool them.


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

LisaInN.Idaho said:


> Idaho is easy only because there is no oversight at all. Which was very nice for me...but doesn't work out so well for the many, many so-called homeschooled kids I see whose parents don't actually homeschool them.


It happens here too. People are not required to use the school system to homeschool. Many don't. Some are even afraid of it. They think using the system will cause us to loose our freedoms. I think that the greater threat is those folks who fail to teach their children anything under the guise of "homeschooling" them. They could cause all of this freedom to be legislated right out of existence because eventually there will have to be more regulation to protect kids from educational neglect. It's scary. 

Cindyc.


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## ntjpm (Sep 1, 2008)

Hi Cindy, I am in Snohomish and have decided to pull my 13 yr old out of PS and HS him this coming year. We are doing SOS for the majority of his studies and Abeka for Math. I just came across your post and was trying to find out more info about this program in my area. I Googled the "Quilcene School District's Home Education Program" and could not find anything listed about it. Can you send me in a better direction than the one I seem to be looking. LOL Thank you so much for any help you can give.

Tracy in WA


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

ntjpm said:


> Hi Cindy, I am in Snohomish and have decided to pull my 13 yr old out of PS and HS him this coming year. We are doing SOS for the majority of his studies and Abeka for Math. I just came across your post and was trying to find out more info about this program in my area. I Googled the "Quilcene School District's Home Education Program" and could not find anything listed about it. Can you send me in a better direction than the one I seem to be looking. LOL Thank you so much for any help you can give.
> 
> Tracy in WA


Just go to Quilcene School District 
http://www.quilcene.wednet.edu/se3bin/clientschool.cgi?schoolname=school527
Then go to the pull down menu at the top that says "schools and programs". 
The HEP program is the 3rd from the bottom of that menu. Click on that and it will take you to their program page. 
It really has been a good thing.  Again, they won't pay for curriculum that is religious though. But they will pay for other stuff. 
It has been a really good experience. 
Cindyc.


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## ntjpm (Sep 1, 2008)

Wonderful thank you so much for the quick reply I really appreciate it.

I found this in the district next to us. Would you mind looking at it and telling me if it looks like the same program.
http://www.lkstevens.wednet.edu/homelink/index.html

Or I just found this (finally) is this the same thing as what you are talking about?
http://www.sno.wednet.edu/PPP/

Tracy in WA


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## Tracy Rimmer (May 9, 2002)

It sounds very much like what is done in Alberta. There are homeschooling "boards" that one registers with who "oversee" your program (two meetings per year with an assigned homeschool rep). You get funding for educational materials, etc., and resources were made available to us (photocopying, field trips, phys ed classes, textbooks, etc.)

It worked for us.

Here in Manitoba, all we really have to do is tell the school board we're homeschooling, and then send in two "report cards" each year. No funding, though.


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

ntjpm said:


> Wonderful thank you so much for the quick reply I really appreciate it.
> 
> I found this in the district next to us. Would you mind looking at it and telling me if it looks like the same program.
> http://www.lkstevens.wednet.edu/homelink/index.html
> ...


The first one is classes where you show up and do classes at a school with other homeschoolers. There are several of those around here, and I hear they are good, but I don't choose to use them. 

The second one is very much like the first one. You'd have to call and talk more to them about the field trip option to see if you have the option of just doing the field trips or not. It sort of sounds like the field trip option is connected with the classes that they offer, otherwise, where are the "thematic units" coming from? But it doesn't say specifically, so you'd have to give a call and ask.

The one that I do *just* does field trips, and those are optional, and they still give you money for educational expenses so long as you turn in your reports. I like that flexibility. I don't live anywhere near the school district that I registered through. But I am close enough that I can choose to do field trips with them if I want. A lot of the trips they have taken are in Seattle, which is closer to me than it is to them. 
HTH,
Cindyc.


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

Tracy Rimmer said:


> It sounds very much like what is done in Alberta. There are homeschooling "boards" that one registers with who "oversee" your program (two meetings per year with an assigned homeschool rep). You get funding for educational materials, etc., and resources were made available to us (photocopying, field trips, phys ed classes, textbooks, etc.)
> 
> It worked for us.
> 
> Here in Manitoba, all we really have to do is tell the school board we're homeschooling, and then send in two "report cards" each year. No funding, though.


Yea, Tracy, here, you can choose either of those things. If you sign up for a program through the school, you get funding. But you can homeschool without doing it, and it is perfectly legal, you just don't get any funding. 
Cindyc.


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## ErinP (Aug 23, 2007)

wow. 

I wish Nebraska had such a thing... 
Like off-the-grid, our state _allows_ schools to let homeschoolers participate in extra-curriculars, but our local districts choose not to.


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

ErinP said:


> wow.
> 
> I wish Nebraska had such a thing...
> Like off-the-grid, our state _allows_ schools to let homeschoolers participate in extra-curriculars, but our local districts choose not to.


Honestly, we were from a state that was very unfriendly to hsers. The laws were good, but they didn't want to have anything to do with us, so it took me some time to be able to trust it when I moved here. My daughter was on the math competition team of a local middle school that went to state. That was the only time she has ever even been in the building was working with their coach. They were totally open to her, and it worked out well. 

Cindyc.


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## HomeOnTheFarm (Mar 9, 2004)

We use Columbia Virtual Academy through Washington State. We have a permanent home in Washington, but travel about 3/4 of the year for work. CVA has been a blessing!!!


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## cindy-e (Feb 14, 2008)

I've heard good things about CVA too. 

We went on a whale watching trip today with the quilcene group. Totally free. Really awesome. I really like this program. 

Cindyc.


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## sixfootrabbit (Jul 1, 2009)

Thanks for the info! I am in Snohomish Co. Wa also and my oldest is supposed to start Kindergarten this year and after looking at the schools so called curriculum I felt that sending her would be an injustice to her abilities.

I have been searching the net for home schooling info for a while and didn't think to look on here :hammer:

Now, if I can just figure it all out...maybe I should have my daughter explain it to me...[prophead]

If you have any more info/guidance please feel free to let me know. I can use all the help I can get, I have two more right behind her..ack

Thanks!


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