my being here

[Anthony Roman Inga]

It's been almost two years since I've discovered unschooling. I have tried to convince my parents to this day to let me drop out of school. They didn't understand it at first but became more open to it. My high school guidance counselor was sypathetic but insisted to keep me in high school and said to my parents and I that it was definitely "not an option". She transferred me to the "Bellport Academic Center" which is a school run under the BOCES program. I am in Long Island, New York; a student who has been trying for over a year to get unschooled. I came here to find help on dropping out of school here in New York state, but I'm having difficulty trying to, and I'm not exactly sure of what the exact procedures are for leaving school. If there any unschoolers on this site, especially from New York who could give any insight or information regarding to leaving the district, your help is most appreciated, and thank you for reading.

[Meredith]

It occurred to me that more resources may not be what you're looking for - can you clarify a few things for me? It may help. It sounds like your parents are saying something on the order of "okay, you can unschool if you do all the paperwork" - is that right? And you're having trouble even knowing where to get started and looking for help with that? If that's the case, an unschooling teen isn't likely to have the kind of information you need because most unschooling teens have parents who are willing to do the "dirty work" of appeasing the state so that they can go about the more important business of living their lives. What you're looking for then is a mentor - someone who can do those things your parents aren't willing or able to do to help you out. Is that what you need? A mentor?

If that's the case, by all means ask here, ask on those other NY lists, even ask on Unschooling Basics and any other list you can find (are you on Facebook? if so join the unschooling list there and maybe HUG, too) for exactly that, a mentor. I know there are adults who have put themselves "out there" as mentors for teens - that's one of the reasons someone suggested the Autodidact Symposium, there are going to be adults there in person willing to do some mentoring. But if you can't get there, shouting out on the internet is another option.

If you're not looking for a mentor per se, just help figuring out the rather byzantine homeschool laws of your area, you might want to ask for help on home/unschooling lists all over again but without saying that you're a teen - just say you're struggling to figure out the laws and requirements as they pertain to teens, but don't come out and say the teen is you. I know that seems sneaky, but its actually possible you'll get more information that way.

[Anthony Roman Inga]

The sites suggested I've joined before, but am still receiving pending for memmbership of those groups.

[Anthony Roman Inga]

To clarify, I want to become an autodidact, but I need to know the procedure of dropping out of school in NY state. Rhe law states I have to be sixteen with approval from my parents. I just need to know how to approach or contact the district with my parentsto leave school. The last time I told this to the Guidance Counselor about dropping out, she wouldn't let me. Thanks for the response, reply if youu can, and I'll try to see if I got acceptance from those groups yet.

Meredith said:

It occurred to me that more resources may not be what you're looking for - can you clarify a few things for me? It may help. It sounds like your parents are saying something on the order of "okay, you can unschool if you do all the paperwork" - is that right? And you're having trouble even knowing where to get started and looking for help with that? If that's the case, an unschooling teen isn't likely to have the kind of information you need because most unschooling teens have parents who are willing to do the "dirty work" of appeasing the state so that they can go about the more important business of living their lives. What you're looking for then is a mentor - someone who can do those things your parents aren't willing or able to do to help you out. Is that what you need? A mentor?

If that's the case, by all means ask here, ask on those other NY lists, even ask on Unschooling Basics and any other list you can find (are you on Facebook? if so join the unschooling list there and maybe HUG, too) for exactly that, a mentor. I know there are adults who have put themselves "out there" as mentors for teens - that's one of the reasons someone suggested the Autodidact Symposium, there are going to be adults there in person willing to do some mentoring. But if you can't get there, shouting out on the internet is another option.

If you're not looking for a mentor per se, just help figuring out the rather byzantine homeschool laws of your area, you might want to ask for help on home/unschooling lists all over again but without saying that you're a teen - just say you're struggling to figure out the laws and requirements as they pertain to teens, but don't come out and say the teen is you. I know that seems sneaky, but its actually possible you'll get more information that way.

[Meredith]

It looks like you start the process by sending a letter of intent to the local school district. The last link I posted seemed to have a page of addresses for that purpose. Once you get accepted into a group, a good first question would be if anyone has a sample "letter of intent" and sample curricula - or what do they call them in NY... IHIP (Individualized Home Instruction Plan) which seems to include "syllabi, curriculum materials, textbooks, or plan of instruction to be used in each of the required subjects". It looks like you have a couple weeks after actually leaving school to submit a letter of intent and then the school district sends you some kind of form to use for the IHIP, so basically what you need are copies of others' forms to see what kinds of things the school districts like to see.

Having something you can either copy or use as a guide is really helpful and generally local homeschoolers are happy to share exactly that kind of information.

But the really good news is you don't have to have your ducks in a row Before leaving school - you have two weeks grace after you leave to submit your letter and then four weeks to get the IHIP together After the district sends you the form.

[Rachel G]

Join the Yahoo group FamiliesUnschoolinginNewYork. The listowner, Elsa, knows the New York homeschooling regulations inside and out. The files on the group will help you a lot - there are samples that you can work from. The first step is that your parents need to send a Letter of Intent notifying the district of your intentions to homeschool. The district will then send you a copy of the regulations. Then you send in an IHIP. You will also need to submit quarterly reports and take tests annually. I strongly suggest that you make local contacts who are familiar with the paperwork, because New York is not an ideal or easy state for unschooling.

[Anthony Roman Inga]

Yes, now I just need to get accepted by a group. Hopefully, I'll get in.

Meredith said:

Have you looked here:

http://www.nyhen.org/