Homeschooling through High School, Planning for College, Alternatives to College

Ten Reasons to Homeschool Through High School
by Cafi Cohen

Frequently Asked Questions About Unschooling High School and College
Alison Mckee addresses questions from unschoolers with older children.

Homeschooling Older Kids
A to Z Home's Cool presents many resources for homeschooling high school and thinking about college.

NHEN Teen Resources
The National Home Education Network provides resources for homeschooling methods, college information, articles by teen homeschoolers, career planning and college alternatives.

Homeschooling Teens
Article by Sandra M. Hurst on teens taking charge of their learning.

Homeschooling Teens
The "whys and the must haves" for homeschooling teens, a guide from FamilyEducation.com.

Cafi Cohen's College for High School Students
Resources for homeschooling ages 11-18.

The Teenage Years and Beyond: High School Years, Life Decisions, College
A nice collection of articles from Home Education Magazine


Thinking About College:

Homeschool Zone's College Information
Discusses diplomas, transcripts, portfolios, scholarships, and financial aid.

Colleges That Admit Homeschoolers
Long list from Learn in Freedom!

Homeschoolers, Today's Colleges Want You!
Discusses the path to college

"Sample College Essay Questions: What Do Colleges Want to Know?"
From CollegeBoard.com

"Home-Schooled Students & Admission: Your Unique Approach to the Process"
From CollegeBoard.com

CollegeBoard.com
Everything you want to know about colleges, testing and applications.

The Homeschooler's Guide to Portfolios and Transcripts
Book by Loretta Heuer

Massachusetts General Educational Development (GED)
Testing for high school credentials


Alternatives to College:

Colleges without Walls
Howard Richman, director of the Pennsylvania Homeschoolers, discusses the idea of homeschooling college.

Alternatives To College
Training programs, internships, apprenticeships and more.

Thoughts on Life Without a Degree
An article by Miles O'Neal.

"Don't Let Credentials Get You Down"
Article by Larry and Susan Kaseman ponders the question of whether homeschoolers need diplomas and conventional credentials.

"How Do We Know When We're Done?"
An article by Cafi Cohen looking at homeschooling through high school and beyond.

Running Through Walls
Cafi Cohen discusses working through the roadblocks that can occur when homeschooling a teen.

Thoughts on College and Alternatives
From UnconventionalIdeas.com. Very unconventional thinking!

Activities for Teens

Worcester Teen Homeschoolers
WTeen was started in May of 2006 as a way for homeschooling teens to easily get together and socialize year round. All of the members run an active forum which encourages meeting ideas and has several boards open for general discussions. Website: http://www.freewebs.com/worcesterteenhomeschoolers/


Teen Book Club
Northboro, MA area
Saturday evenings
Ages: 14 and up (siblings aged 12-13 may attend if there is space)
Contact: Betsy at timbetsyrebeccamax@charter.net

Description:
Monthly meetings planned and facilitated by the hosting member family; meetings take place at various members' homes. Members have come from Northhboro, Shrewsbury, Westboro, Holden, Boylston, Natick, Wellesley, Acton, and Framingham. Generally a list of possible books is presented in August and club members vote on their choices. Books range from classics to more contemporary works. Movies based on these books have also been viewed at times separate from the meetings. Other activities are occasionally suggested, like videotaping an ad for a book. All viewpoints are welcome and are expected to be respected; discussion about varying viewpoints is encouraged. Members try to relate the themes of the books to their personal lives. Time is provided at the end of the meetings to socialize; snacks are served during the meeting.


Family Resource Center (FRC) Teenventures
The Family Resource Center** arranges educational programming specifically designed for homeschooling students ages 13 and up. Since museum education typically does not cater to the junior and high school level students, the FRC often times will work with a museum to develop programs that go beyond an introduction to a topic. In some cases the FRC makes special arrangements for small teen groups to be accommodated during an FRC group visit to a museum site. Students are expected to come prepared to make the most of these classes. There is often times pre-required reading and sometimes follow up projects. Some programs are drop-off programs and students are expcted to behave in a respectdul manner at all times. Misbehavior will result in the termination of future program registrations.

**Since 1994 The Family Resource Center (FRC) has been working with over 2,500 New England museums, zoos, aquariums, historic sites, science centers and theatres in CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, and VT organizing educational programming and group visits for homeschooling families. Yearly Membership Fee: $45. Online registration form available at the website. Membership includes access to an online newsletter which is published 5 times a year and provides hundreds of program options open to all homeschooling families. Check them out online at www.FRC.info or call 978-741-7449 for more information about their program opportunities. Note: Teenventures are open to all homeschoolers, but members receive a discount on scheduled programs.


The Balance Rock Democratic Freeschool and Homeschool Support Center
http://www.balancerockcenter.org
Contact: Gray Harrison
407 Princeton Street
Jefferson, MA 01522
508-573-9093
balancerock@gmail.com
The Balance Rock Center is a democratic freeschool and homeschool support center. Our facility includes a library, computer room, art room, woodworking and shop area, media center, music room, gardens and access to hiking trails, ponds and woods, along with an assortment of workshops in physics, math, art, film, writing and more. The center is centrally located in Jefferson, MA (near Worcester) and is open to young people aged 13-18.