I can't stand this. I really can't.

[popcornbird]

Zippy, a friend of mine actually does *online homeschooling*. She moved to the Middle East 2 years ago and didn't know Arabic, so going to school there was tough for her. Her parents enrolled her in some online homeschooling program from the US, so that's how she's doing her high school. I don't have a clue of how it works, but she says she likes it, and she too, hated high school here in the US, because of all the druggies and the environment etc. so she was relieved to leave public high school here. She's doing it online because she's out of the country, but personally, I would rather do regular homeschooling if residing in the US. Our country offers some great home schooling programs. I believe it works differently in different states, but here, there's some public schools in most big/medium sized cities that have a home study department. They register the kid with the school district and provide each child with a teacher, who moniters the work, and asks oral questions regarding each subject on teacher/student meetings, to see that the student is studying and learning as he/she should. They also provide books for free for the school year/semester, and those are returned to the school at the end of the year. Basically, they give you the books, science kits, etc. and the parent teaches you. Every week, or every month, depending on the student, the kid has to meet with the teacher to show the assignments/projects/reports, etc. The teacher grades the work and asks the student questions on history, literature, science, etc. to be sure the student did indeed study and learn. The state tests at the end of the year is taken at the school and tests required to graduate from high school are also taken at the school. When you graduate from high school, you get the same diploma, credits, etc. as you would if going to school. Its a pretty neat system and I think its better than having to go through all that pressure at school. I know its like this in many states, but I'm not sure about Florida. I think the programs differ in every area, not sure though. The benefits of homeschooling are tremendous, and the best part is you get to be home with your pets. Its important to remember some tips when homeschooling, like socializing enough and getting enough exercise. If you can do that, its great. You might want to talk to your parents on this. I go to high school *YUCK*, and I homeschooled several years ago, so I have experience with both. I prefer homeschooling 100 times to school. Its a relief from the environment we don't want to be part of. Good luck and try searching on google for *florida homeschooling*. You might find some useful information.