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These FAQ's where found at www.thsc.org and do not
necessarily apply to CHSA but to homeschooling in general.
1) Curfew laws, what are
they?
2) What should my children do if
accosted for violating curfew laws during the
day?
3) Curriculum, Where do I find it and what should
I use?
4) What online programs can I use to
school my children?
5) The Bill Bennett K-12
program
6) What about custody and home
schooling?
7) Businesses not
acknowledging Home School diploma.
8) Driver Ed course credit.
9) Can my child get a good student discount with our
car insurance?
10) How do I go about
teaching my child to drive?
11) Can I teach one subject and allow
my child to attend public school for all the
other subjects?
12) How do I contact my elected
representatives?
13) President Bush on home
schooling
14) President Bush on
testing
15) Can home schools participate with
TAPPS?
16) I want to home school a child
enrolled in public school.
17) I want
to home school a child NOT enrolled in public school.
18) Should I enroll my children in an umbrella
school?
19) Where can I find general
information on home schooling?
20) My child is enrolled in public school
and I don't have time to get curriculum.
21) What are the
requirements for graduation?
22) How can I get a Handbook
and what is in it?
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Curfew laws, what are
they?
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The curfew laws in Texas are local city or county ordinances.
They vary by locality.
Generally they apply to all school age children. We
have been unsuccessful in the past legislative sessions getting a change to the
law passed, but we haven't heard if problems being caused by them lately. We
would suggest that you contact your city and ask for a copy of the ordinance to
see what it says exactly. If you are having problems, you should contact your
city councilman or county commissioner and seek his/her help.
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What should my children do if
accosted for violating curfew laws during the day?
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We would encourage you to tell your children that in such a
situation they should ask for identification of the person who is asking such
questions. Rather than answering their questions, they should be referred to
the parents of the child, unless of course it is a uniformed police
officer.
Some cities have a daytime curfew. You should check with your
city officials to determine if there is such a curfew and what it requires.
THSC has begun to offer student ID cards for home school students. These are to
allow home school students to take advantage of discounts for students.
Although they are not designed for such situations, they might be useful in the
event something were to happen.
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Curriculum, Where do
I find it and what should I use?
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In Texas, home schools are private schools, and private
schools in this state are not regulated. A home school may have whatever
curriculum the parents decide upon, provided the curriculum covers the basic
subjects of reading, spelling, grammar, math, and a course in good
citizenship.
There are many sources for curriculum. THSC has a listing in
our Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers. See the store at http://www.thsc.org/store/cats.asp for ordering information.
There are many curriculum suppliers on the Internet.
Another option is
to get in touch with a support group in your area. The people involved in it
could help you get started and find curriculum. There is a list of support
groups in Texas in the Handbook. On our website there is a list of regional
groups in the state. See http://www.thsc.org/support_groups/default.asp. A regional
group can get you in touch with a local support group.
There are many
stores that cater to home schoolers and carry curriculum and we may be able to
help you locate one in your area. We could also help you find a local support
group.
You will also find more helpful information on our website.
Please let us know if we may be of further assistance.
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| What online programs can I use to school my
children? |
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Our internet expert wrote the following answer to your
question:
There are several projects online such as the Jason Project,
and hundreds of lesson plan sites. As parents, you have to decide which ones
are appropriate for your children. Some of the best online lesson plans can be
found at http://home.alaska.net/, from the State of Alaska which allows
people to do public school at home. It is written in "educationeze", so don’t
be intimidated.
If you are looking for online classes, there are several
out there. One needs to ask "What specifically are you looking for?" Do you
want everything to come from the computer, like the Abeka video school? Or do
you just want some extra activities from your computer. One great place to look
is www.homeschooling.about.com But you as parents will have the
final decision if the classes are appropriate for your children.
We hope
this gives you a place to start.
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| What is the Bill Bennett K-12 program? |
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K12 is being called a virtual charter school. Home educators
need to understand that a charter school is a public school that has been
released from some, but not all, of the regulation by the state of Texas. As a
result of this, the state of Texas gives each of these charter schools funding
based on the number of students attending the school.
Parents who enroll
their children in these programs should be aware that they must teach a minimum
of four hours per day for 170 days per year and the students in these schools
must take the state-mandated TAAS test, since they are indeed enrolled in public
schools. The TAAS test is not a nationally normed achievement test like the
Iowa Basic Skills test or the California Achievement Test but rather a test that
is designed to track what a child knows from the specific curriculum that is
used in the Texas public schools. Parents who are considering such a program
would be well advised to ask for written requirements and check them carefully
before they make that choice.
The Coalition has also had calls from home
school leaders asking how local support groups could be impacted by charter
school families who wish to be a part of these support groups. In the Leeper
case, the court case that clarified the law concerning home schooling in Texas,
the judge said that if a parent or one standing in parental authority had a
curriculum from any source that covered the basic educational goals of reading,
spelling, grammar, math, and course in good citizenship and pursued this
curriculum in a bona fide manner, the students were in a private school and
therefore exempt from the compulsory attendance laws. (Note that the
instruction must be bona fide, that is, not a sham. Some mistakenly say that
the curriculum must be bona fide, which would imply an approval process by some
authority.)
From a legal viewpoint it would seem that the major
difference in the case of the charter school is that the curriculum is provided
by state funds. The students in this school would be in compliance with the
compulsory attendance laws and, since the teaching is at home, it could be
considered a home school. In the Leeper case the judge said that if a parent or
one standing in parental authority had a curriculum from any source that covered
the basic educational goals of reading, spelling, grammar, math and a course in
good citizenship and pursued this curriculum in a bona-fide manner, they were in
a private school and exempt from the compulsory attendance laws.
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| What about custody and home schooling?
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In the matter of custody in a family lawsuit, THSC Association
will provide assistance only if home education is an issue in the suit and only
on the home education aspect of the case. Assistance will consist of providing
information (written and/or verbal) to the member’s attorney in order to educate
him regarding home schooling laws in Texas and the validity of home schooling as
an education option. This service is provided in order to prevent members from
paying attorney’s fees for legal research on home schooling. THSC Association
may also recommend expert witnesses if needed.
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| Businesses not acknowledging Home School
diploma |
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In Texas, home schools have been determined by the courts to be
private schools. {Texas Educ. Agency v. Leeper, 893 S.W.2d 432 (Tex. 1994)}
Therefore, in Texas, a graduate of a home school is a graduate of a private
school and should be treated the same as a graduate from any other unaccredited
private school. (It should be noted that 2/3 of the formal private schools in
Texas are unaccredited.)
Ask to see the company's written policy on
dealing with graduates of unaccredited schools. If the company is following a
policy for home schoolers which discriminates against home schoolers by treating
them differently than graduates of other unaccredited private schools, they
could be setting themselves up for legal action.
If you are unable to get
satisfaction dealing with the employees with whom you are speaking, we would
suggest that you ask to talk to the manager or the owner of the
company.
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| Driver Ed course credit |
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In Texas, home schools are considered private schools. You may issue your
child credit for taking driver education if you choose. If you are concerned
about that credit counting toward college admission, we suggest that you contact
the college/university to which your child wants to apply, since admission
requirements vary from school to school. We have several articles in our
Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers that deal with home schooling your high
schooler, graduation, preparing for college, etc. We encourage you to obtain a
copy if you do not have one. You may purchase the Handbook at our web store
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| Can my child get a good student discount with
our car insurance? |
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We have been told Good Student Discounts are voluntary for
insurance companies to provide. Some do for public school students, and some
don’t. We suggest you check with your insurance company to see if they give
that discount and if they would consider giving it to your home-schooled
child.
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| How do I go about teaching my child to
drive? |
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To teach your child Driver Education, you must first send $20
and the completed "Request for Driver Education Packet" (Form DL-92) to the
Austin address on the form. You may obtain the form from your local DPS or from
the Texas Home School Coalition. Upon receiving these, the Texas DPS will send
paperwork of the student to your local DPS, and they will send you a book,
"Driver Education Instruction Curriculum Model 101." This book has forms that
you will need at different times over the course of teaching your student, as
well as required curricula and instructions on how to proceed. For a more
complete explanation of the process and requirements, refer to the recent
editions of the "Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers," published by the
Texas Home School Coalition. It is available in our web store
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| Can I teach one subject and
allow my child to attend public school for all the other subjects?
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You would need to coordinate that with your public school. Most
will not allow dual enrollment. It is up to their discretion. If we can be of
further assistance , please let us know.
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| President Bush on home
schooling. |
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President Bush has consistently taken the position that private
schools and home schools should not be regulated by the state. In fact, the
Democratic National Committee (DNC) had an article on their website attacking
him because he has refused to regulate home schoolers in Texas.
The president supports accountability of students in public
school. He also supports having students repeat grades when they have not
mastered the material. Therefore, we believe his statements apply to public
schools, not private, and therefore not home schools. He has consistently said
that children must be able to read by the time they are in the third grade, and
we think that is consistent with his comments concerning testing.
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| President Bush on testing
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| President Bush is not technically pushing for national testing. He wants
each state to require testing of the public school students. His administration
is not in favor of a national test for all students like the Clinton
administration was. His plans relate to public education only.
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| Can home schools participate with TAPPS? |
| Our experience with TAPPS has not been positive. The
administration has been trying for several years to change the constitution to
prevent home school students from taking part in extra-curricular activities at
member schools. However, they have not been able to muster the 2/3 vote
required to do so. The only way that we think you will be able to see a change
is to get enough member schools to push for some positive changes.
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| I want to home school a child enrolled in public
school |
The first thing you need to do is obtain a curriculum. In
order to be a legitimate home school, you must have a curriculum which teaches
reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and a study of good citizenship.
Additionally, you must pursue that curriculum in a bona fide (not a sham)
manner. Your curriculum may be obtained from any source and may consist of
books, workbooks, and other written materials, or materials on an electronic
monitor including computer or video screens, or any combination thereof.
Although you are not legally required to contact the school district, chances
are very high that you will receive a visit from an attendance officer if you
simply remove your child. Therefore, once you have a curriculum in hand, write
the principal of the school your child attends and tell him that you are
withdrawing your child to teach him at home. If the school contacts you and
says that you must do more (come to the central office, fill out a form, or
something else along those lines), do not go to the school. Your reply should
be that if they will provide their request to you in writing, you will be glad
to respond. If you receive a request of any kind, you are only required to give
them a simple letter of assurance. We advise you to send this letter as
certified mail and to keep the receipt. Keep copies of all
correspondence.
The Texas Education Agency has told the school districts
in Texas that such a letter meets the guidelines of cooperation with the school
district in compliance with the compulsory attendance laws. Unless the school
district has evidence that your letter of assurance is not true, this should be
the end of your contact with the school district over withdrawal.
It is
wise to find a local support group to help you set up your school. To find a
local support group, contact THSC or one of the regional groups listed at
support groups. There are also extensive listings in the Handbook for Texas Home
Schoolers, available for purchase here: Purchase the
Handbook along with a great deal of
great information.
Also, we encourage you to go to our getting started
section of our website, www.thsc.org/getting_started/default.asp,
for more information. You will probably especially want to look at this page: Dealing with the School District (acrobat
document)
We have many resources for home
schoolers in our Store: click
here to enter).
If you will send us your postal address, we will be
glad to put you on our list to receive our free quarterly magazine or to sign up
online, click here
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| My child is not enrolled in public
school |
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There is no need to contact the school district if your child is
not enrolled in the public schools. Simply obtain curriculum and get started.
In order to be a legitimate home school, you must have a curriculum which
teaches reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and a study of good citizenship,
and you must pursue that curriculum in a bona fide (not a sham) manner. This
curriculum may be obtained from any source and can consist of books, workbooks,
other written materials, or materials on an electronic monitor including
computer or video screens, or any combination thereof.
It is wise to find
a local support group to help you set up your school. To find a local support
group, contact THSC or one of the regional groups listed here. There are also listings in the
Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers, also available on the Store.
On the website
there is a section called Getting Started, and you will probably especially want
to look at this page: Dealing with the School District (acrobat
document)
We also sell the
Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers which has much more helpful information
(see the Store).
If you will send us your postal address, we will be glad to put you on our list
to receive our free quarterly magazine or to sign up online, click here
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| Should I enroll my children in an umbrella
school? |
A number of beginning home schoolers enroll their children in
an umbrella school. Umbrella schools usually provide a fully prepared curriculum
along with teacher support services, testing, and record keeping. Some umbrella
schools also provide their complete curriculum without the additional umbrella
services at a lower cost than the full program. An umbrella school can be very
helpful for beginners who may be intimidated by the details of setting up and
operating their home school. Different umbrella schools offer different
services such as record keeping, grading, correspondence, testing, transcripts,
diploma, and different curriculum options. As you can see by the list of
possible services, these are the types of things that are offered by different
schools. Some offer most or all of these options; some offer only a few.
Many of the umbrella schools listed in our handbook have campuses where they
have private schools on site. There are no requirements to join an umbrella
school because they are not formally recognized or regulated by the state.
Parents are free to choose whether or not and which umbrella school to use,
depending on what they perceive their needs to be. "A number of beginning home
schoolers enroll their children in an umbrella school. Umbrella schools usually
provide a fully prepared curriculum along with teacher support services,
testing, and record keeping. Some umbrella schools also provide their complete
curriculum without the additional umbrella services at a lower cost than the
full program. An umbrella school can be very helpful for beginners who may be
intimidated by the details of setting up and operating their home school.
Different umbrella schools offer different services such as record keeping,
grading, correspondence, testing, transcripts, diploma, and different curriculum
options. Many of the umbrella schools listed in our handbook have campuses where
they have private schools on site. There are really no requirements to become
an umbrella school because they are not formally recognized or regulated by the
state. Parents are free to choose whether or not and which umbrella school to
use depending on what they perceive their needs to be.
You will find a
list of many umbrella schools listed in the Handbook for Texas Home
Schoolers.
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| Where can I find general information on home
schooling? |
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Apart from the great amount of information
available on this website, we would encourage you to consider purchasing a
Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers; it has more legal information for home
schooling in Texas than any other resource. The Handbook also has articles on
dealing with the school district, a visit from the social worker, how to get
started, avoiding burnout, home schooling with pre-schoolers, teenagers, or a
special needs child, obtaining a driver’s license, graduation, college,
apprenticeship, etc. It also has a listing of different curriculum suppliers and
is available for $20 ($16 for the Handbook and $4 for the shipping and
handling).
We also have a membership that is available for $85 per year
(with a $15 dollar discount if you are a member of a local support group). We
are now offering legal assistance in regard to home education issues as a
benefit to our membership. THSC Association has retained Shelby Sharpe, the Ft.
Worth attorney who represented home school families in the landmark Leeper v.
Arlington ISD case which clarified that home education is legal in Texas.
You would also receive our ALERT Newsletter, teacher and student
ID cards, as well as various discounts, such as with the Creation Illustrated,
Dell Computers, and others. If you are interested in more information on how to
order the Handbook or become a member of THSC Association, see
www.thsc.org, or be sure to let us know.
If you would like a free
subscription to our Texas Home School REVIEW magazine, please send us your
mailing address. You will probably want to get in touch with other home
schoolers in your area. They would be able to let you know about the activities
in your region, as well as give you advice about curriculum and what is
available locally.
Please add yourself to our free email network by
entering your email address in the sign-up box here. If you would prefer to not get emails from us, you may
unsubscribe at staff@thsc.org.
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| My child is enrolled in public
school and I don't have time to get curriculum |
|
The first thing you need to do is obtain a curriculum. In order
to be a legitimate home school, you must have a curriculum which teaches
reading, spelling, grammar, mathematics and a study of good citizenship.
Additionally, you must pursue that curriculum in a bona fide (not a sham)
manner. Your curriculum may be obtained from any source and may consist of
books, workbooks, and other written materials, or materials on an electronic
monitor including computer or video screens, or any combination thereof.
You question seems to be about withdrawing your child immediately, even before
you get your curriculum. If you need to do so, go ahead and withdraw him. Get
books from the library or educational store and get him started on something.
By the time you hear from the school district, you should have your curriculum
in. If you do not, you have still been schooling him anyway. The school
district does not have the right to approve the curriculum you are using, only
to ascertain that you have one and that you are pursuing it in a bona fide
manner.
Although you are not legally required to contact the school
district, chances are very high that you will receive a visit from an attendance
officer if you simply remove your child. Therefore, once you have a curriculum
in hand, write the principal of the school your child attends and tell him that
you are withdrawing your child to teach him at home. If the school contacts you
and says that you must do more (come to the central office, fill out a form, or
something else along those lines), do not go to the school. Your reply should
be that if they will provide their request to you in writing, you will be glad
to respond. If you receive a request of any kind, you are only required to give
them a simple letter of assurance. We advise you to send this letter as
certified mail and to keep the receipt. Keep copies of all
correspondence.
The Texas Education Agency has told the school districts
in Texas that such a letter meets the guidelines of cooperation with the school
district in compliance with the compulsory attendance laws. Unless the school
district has evidence that your letter of assurance is not true, this should be
the end of your contact with the school district over withdrawal.
It is
wise to find a local support group to help you set up your school. To find a
local support group, contact THSC or one of the regional groups listed at here. There are also listings in the
Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers, also available at the THSC Association store.
Also, we would
encourage you to go to the getting started section of our website, for more
information especially this
page.
If you will send us your postal address, we will be glad to
put you on our list to receive our free quarterly magazine or you can register
online here.
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| What are the requirements for graduation |
| In Texas, home schools are private schools, and private schools
in this state are not regulated. Just like other private schools, home-school
administrators determine what is necessary for graduation. The one thing you
might want to be aware of as you are determining what is necessary for
graduation is the credits that would be required for admission into the
college(s) of your choice. For that information, you should check with the
colleges/universities in which you are interested.
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| How
can I get a Handbook and what is in it? |
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We would encourage
you to consider purchasing a Handbook for Texas Home Schoolers; it has
more legal information for home schooling in Texas than any other resource. The
Handbook also has articles on dealing with the school district, a visit from the
social worker, how to get started, avoiding burnout, home schooling with
pre-schoolers, teenagers, or a special needs child, obtaining a driver’s
license, graduation, college, apprenticeship, etc. It also has a listing of
different curriculum suppliers and is available for $22 ($18 for the Handbook
and $4 for shipping and handling). You can simply send a check or money order
for $22 ($18 for the Handbook, $4 shipping and handling)
to:
THSC
PO Box
6747
Lubbock,
TX 79493
You can also order it through the store on our website. click
here
We accept MasterCard, Visa, American Express, and Discover if you
would prefer to call (888) 200-4903 -- orders only -- or email us with your
order
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Copyright (c) 2004 Coppell Homeschool Association. All rights reserved.
samuel@coppellhomeschoolassociation.com
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