Nest Learning Home Educator

Different parenting resources present disagreeing data about whether or not holding a child back another grade in school after failing standardized tests helps improve academic performance. While some argue that giving a child another year to “catch up” is a positive alternative, many specialists and parents claim retention can do more damage to their child’s learning and social development.

According to Karl Alexander, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, grade retention “at any age raises the risk of dropping out of school later,” and has a negative impact on all areas of a child’s academic achievement and socio-emotional adjustment. Another study conducted by the University of California also found that students who have been held back another year attribute being retained for their “poor peer relationships, poor self-esteem and their continuing struggles at school.” This is why it is imperative that you consider the following alternatives before deciding to hold your child back another year:

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I'm A Graduate Now What? College Preparation Resources!

College is a big step for any teen, homeschooled or not.  And while skeptics argue that homeschoolers and college don’t go together, research shows that on average, homeschooled teens can “match and often excel beyond their traditionally schooled counterparts in terms of grades” (Sorey and Duggan, Journal of College Admission, 2008).

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Buy Homeschool Resource Books

The kids are about to start homeschool and everything is ready!  You and your husband have bought homeschool resource books, spoken to a few homeschooling families, and even selected the most appropriate homeschool curriculum for your children . . . Everything is in place and you’re eager to move on to the next challenge: informing your family and close friends.

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Find Homeschool Resources Here

Homeschool education is perhaps one of the biggest and most monumental reforms in our education system since mass public schooling took effect about a hundred years ago.  As the practice of homeschooling children gains more support from families, many have become increasingly disappointed at the decline in quality of public and private school education in the U.S.  And who can blame them?  Think about it for a second.  Why is it that when our kids take those aptitude tests that measure our rank—in terms of intelligence—in the world, they always score near the bottom?  If our public and private schools systems work, how come our kids never score better than an average Asian or European kid in math, science or literature?

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Homeschool Curriculum

Finding the appropriate homeschool curriculum can be a bit tricky, but once you find one that fits perfectly with your child’s learning style and pace, believe me, it will be absolutely rewarding.  Studies show that homeschooled kids tend to be more academically advanced, mature, confident, and eager to learn than their peers.  An effective homeschool science or homeschool math program, for example, can teach your children to think outside the box, explore what hasn’t even been conceived, and discover new ways to solve problems much earlier than kids who are publicly or privately schooled.

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The Science Chef - 100 Fun Food Experiments & Recipes

There are many kids science experiments you can do with your children at home to hone and develop their skills.  As a matter of fact, you may have already done a few at home science experiments, but you simply didn’t realize it.  When you let your toddler eat ice cream, for example, you allow her to experience its cold, sweet taste; when you explain how plants need water to survive, or how animals have different diets, you give her the opportunity to see and appreciate life.  Science happens all around us, on a daily basis.

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Faith of Our Father's DVD

Independence Day presents the perfect opportunity to think about America’s Godly Heritage and the beliefs that led to the founding of this great nation.  And while there seems to be some confusion about our true roots, the need to understand our history and the elements that contributed to our independence has never been more crucial.  

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As more and more parents become increasingly disappointed and unhappy with local public schools and weak enforcement of state education standards, the need for additional and effective homeschool curriculum continues to grow.  Parents have come to realize that if they want their children to meet and keep up with the state education standards for their appropriate grade level, they’re going to need quality Math curriculum or English curriculum that they can use to teach their children outside of school.

The Common Core State Standards Initiative contains documents that provide what your child should know by a certain grade level. As a parent responsible for your child’s education, you will want to read the standards and evaluate whether or not your child meets the requirements. In addition, here are three things you can do to make sure your children are not lacking in good education:

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Backyardigans

Parents over the recent years have turned to educational DVDs—such as Backyardigans and Dragon Tales —to teach their young children.  And while some experts argue that too much TV time can be counterproductive in educating kids, recent studies show that with proper supervision, educational media can actually help boost learning.

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A few decades ago, financial education for children was taught with the appropriate finance curriculum that when paper money runs out, the shopping must definitely stop.  Without paper money, you simply didn’t have purchasing power.  These days, however, a new school of reason has taken over our children:  when paper money runs out, you can still rely on plastic . . . or in most cases, plastics.  And they come in different tempting forms—credit cards, debit cards, prepaid cards, ATM cards, and, depending on your bank of choice, reward cards.  And before an unsuspecting teenager realizes it, he’s already at the mall, buying something he doesn’t necessarily need, for an amount he really can’t afford.

The recent financial crisis proves there is something we can do to help young people make wise financial decisions.  In the last two years, the number of states requiring students to take personal finance classes has increased.  Parents are beginning to realize how important it is to expose their children to finance training that would teach them the value of both paper money and plastic.

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