The question of whether or not you should homeschool your special needs child is an important one. After all, depending upon the child’s disabilities/special needs, keeping up in school can sometimes seem impossible. But when do you know you should homeschool? And what are some of the benefits of homeschooling a special needs child?
Why homeschool a special needs child?
There are numerous reasons parents choose to homeschool children with disabilities; a few include:
– Homeschooling allows for less interruptions — Distraction can be disastrous when a child with a disability is in the process of learning. As you know, interruptions in the classroom are common. But with homeschooling, these interruptions can be minimized or eliminated, creating an ease of learning that may not be present in a mainstream classroom.
– Homeschooling calls for teaching that is “one-on-one” – Nowhere else but in a homeschool setting will your child have the opportunity to receive one-on-one teaching all the time. Some children with disabilities may absolutely require this type of teaching to better grasp the subjects they are being taught.
– Homeschooling gives you the opportunity to teach values – You are pretty much guaranteed that in a public school setting, all the values that your family holds will probably not be taught to students. Some of these values may include “politeness and morals.” With homeschooling, you can ensure these messages are relayed to your child.
– Homeschooling gives you the freedom of focus — When you as a teacher have freedom of focus, you can choose to focus on subjects that your son or daughter excels in, thus increasing his or her self-confidence.
The above ideas were adapted from http://thehomeschoolmagazine.com/articles/specialneeds/ten-reasons-to-homeschool-your-child-with-special-needs/; visit this link to learn more.
What are some other reasons a child with disabilities should be homeschooled?
An author named Thomas Armstrong wrote a book, The Myth of the A.D.D. Child, to “explore the idea that the traditional classroom actually contributes to kids’ learning disabilities.” While this is a new idea to most, it is one that is worth considering. By homeschooling a child, a parent can see whether or not his or her A.D.D. behaviours continue in the home setting. If not, perhaps the A.D.D. was misdiagnosed because the child simply could not tolerate a mainstream school setting.
Read more about Armstrong’s book by visiting http://school.familyeducation.com/learning-disabilities/treatments/37778.html.
Do you homeschool your special needs child?
If so, let us know what drove you to make the decision to homeschool and what positive and negative reactions your son or daughter is having toward the new school situation.
Sources:
http://school.familyeducation.com/learning-disabilities/treatments/37778.html
Image made available by stevendepolo on Flickr through Creative Commons License.
*Please note: All research for this article is compiled from direct and third party sources. Mention of programs, organizations and companies does not imply support of The National Benefit Authority. Pictures are for creative purposes only; they are not intended to sell or promote products for the NBA and belong to the accredited individual, organization or company.
Let’s Talk About It
What are some benefits that you see come with homeschooling a special needs child?
What is the number one reason you would want to remove your child with disabilities from the traditional classroom? On the flip side, why would you hesitate to remove him or her?
