Sunday, August 5, 2012

Dual Enrolling?

One of the things that we have found very helpful here in Pensacola, is that colleges will let highschool students take college classes during their last two years of school for free. This allows the dual-enrolled students to graduate with their AA degree. And if you don't happen to get all your credits by the time you graduate, your record with transfer with you after you graduate.
Not all places and colleges provide this program, and we have been so blessed that our local colleges (Pensacola State, University of West Florida, and Pensacola Christian College) have this program.
Many of my homeschooled friends have graduated with their AA degree, and they can move right along to getting further degrees, or other things in their life, without having to wait two more years.

I started dual enrolling last year, and have really enjoyed it. I am about to start the fall semester, and my younger brother is preparing to start his first semester in the spring.



I am currently dual enrolling at Pensacola State College, and have really liked it there. The professors are really nice, and although the homework can be tough, it is a really great college. Many homeschoolers dual enrol there as well, and it is nice to be able to take classes with friends and people you know.
I am looking forward to this next semester at PSC, and I will keep you updated on the goings-on of my last year dual enrolling. :)

My Homeschooled Life So Far....

Homeschooling has been a big part of my life ever since I was little, and no matter what people may say about teaching kids at home, it was (and still is) the best part of my growing up. I can't say that it has been completely uneventful, and without confusion and mistakes, but it has been an amazing experience, and one that I hope more families will try in the future.

Now, no one normally asks the child how they like being homeschooled, and I think that's a shame. Not all kids will say the same (although most of the ones I know will agree with me), but for me, I love being homeschooled. It has opened up new doors for me and my learning. I have been able to dual enroll at Pensacola State College, and get college credits during highschool. I have also been able to learn many practical activities, like sewing, crocheting, making jam, baking, and numerous other things that wouldn't have been possible stuck up in a stuffy classroom all day. I am not saying that classrooms are bad, but when you have a choice between that and the ability to finish your school at noon every day, and have other learning experiences that most kids can't, I count myself pretty lucky that my parents decided to teach me at home. I have been able to go on all sorts of field trips, and try other new things with my family. We now have our own family business and all of us help with it. We grow Aquaponic lettuce and other vegetables, and now we all not only know how to work the business, we are learning the marketing aspect as well by selling the veggies at our local farmer's market. Being able to learn about this first hand, and not in a classroom with tests and exams helped me to understand it better. We did have "tests", but they were more like: "what would you do in this situation?", and then we would have to come up with an answer as fast as possible, or the customer might get frustrated and leave. Since learning about business at a young age, I have come to love it. I plan to create my own business after I graduate, and I hope to always be my own boss.
My  life has been shaped by my learning, and homeschooling has been the best part of it. I hope that you will read along as I finish my senior year as a homeschooler, relaying the interesting things that I stumble upon, and I will share with you my homeschooling experiences as the "homeschool-ed."

Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Introduction to my life....

I am a simple girl living in sunny Florida, and homeschooling has been a big part of my life.
I have been homeschooled since I was five years old, and I am now about to enter into my senior year. Over the years, I have come to love the way that I have been taught. Homeschooling is a wonderful thing and the more people who know about it, the more other people may try it and come to love it as I do. That is the object of this blog, and I hope you enjoy reading about my life: the life of a "boring" homeschooler and from the student's point of view.