Notification turned in!

Yesterday (Tuesday August 9) I drove over to the Board of Education and turned in our annual notification. I got a reciept from the woman who took our notification with the date on it, so the school district has 14 days to send us our excusal or to question our notification. So the waiting game begins! It is our first time notifying in our new school district, so I am hoping things go off without a hitch. We have never had problems in the past, so hopefully our streak continues.

Below is a copy of what I attach for each child as their "brief" outline and list of teaching materials. I change it slightly for each child (obviously the boys aren't in girlscouts and don't take dance classes and the girls don't play football and baseball). I believe that minimal complicance with the laws governing home education is in the best interest of the entire homeschooling community. I turn in notification for the kids that are over the age 6....so Jacob, Grant, Emily, Hannah, and Brett.

Information for Hannah Riesenberg
6. BRIEF OUTLINE OF INTENDED CURRICULUM FOR THE 2005-'06 SCHOOL YEAR:
As we embark on our fifth year of homeschooling, we plan to continue with the methods we found work the most efficiently for our family the past four years. We feel that we have made the necessary assurances for sections #5 and #8 that our home education will include the required areas and hours.

We will strive to have a curriculum that is interest driven; that is, based on the interests of our children. With our gentle guidance our children will choose what, when, and in what manner they will learn. We want them to be active participants in their learning, not passive receivers. It is our belief that through this process our children's self-esteem will be preserved, they will value learning, and they will be empowered to make decisions that are best for themselves throughout their lives.
We believe that the most developmentally appropriate curriculum for them is one based on their interests and needs. We feel we need to be flexible enough to change as they change. Because children do not naturally divide the world into subject areas (language, math, art, etc.), our curriculum will be inherently integrated. Our children may pursue their interests as in-depth as they desire and for as long as they remain interested (hours to months). We find that one interest will lead naturally to another or that many cohesive interests may be pursued simultaneously. We will encourage them to set goals and follow them.

Just as we have done in the past, when it is time for us to assess our children at the end of the year, we plan to collect our many journals, scrapbooks, photographs and projects to show all the interesting things we have discovered and the skills we have acquired in the process. We will reflect on what worked well and decide what things we may want to change for the future. This is our course of study. It is an after-the-fact curriculum.

7. LIST OF BASIC TEACHING MATERIALS:
Large personal library
Family video collection
Reference books (encyclopedias, thesaurus, dictionaries, atlases)Reference materials (textbooks, field guides, grammar books, timelines, globe, maps, etc.)
NewspapersMagazine subscriptions for both children and adults
Games (board games, cards, outdoor games, travel games)
Calculating and measuring tools (including rulers, calculators, calendars and watches)
Basic office supplies
Savings accounts
Art and craft supplies
A variety of musical recordings
Audiovisual equipment (VCR, DVD player, cameras, stereo, cassette players, CD players)
Manipulatives (blocks, legos, etc.)
Child and adult sized gardening tools
Home maintenance equipment
Sewing machine, fabric, patterns, thread
Community resources (such as community centers, museums, parks, festivals,stage performances, sports programs)
Parish resources
The extensive collection of the Clermont, Hamilton and Kenton County Libraries via library cards for each child
2 computers and over 20 educational computer programs
On-line services and the vast resources of the Internet
Regular dance classes
Pen pals
Scouting involvement (Girl Scouts Great River Council)
4-H involvement
Granny's Garden School
Travel throughout Ohio and surrounding states.
Family membership to Cincinnati Museum Center, Newport Aquarium, National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, and Cincinnati Zoo and reciprocating establishments
Park Programs sponsered by Clermont, Hamilton and Kenton County Parks
YMCA membership
The community of homeschoolers (support groups, e-mail lists, field trips and other gatherings)
Found items, nature, used book sales, and the knowledge and wisdom of generations past.