I’ve recently been contacted by a few parents who are very eager to begin homeschooling, but who understandably are concerned about fulfilling their legal obligations and making the best choices for their children. It is with these families in mind that I decided to lay down some thoughts about beginning the homeschool process in Quebec.
Please keep in mind that I am not a lawyer, and I am very near the beginning of my own homeschool experience. There are bound to be others who will be able to give you more competent legal and practical advice. There are also bound to be those who have done things differently than I, or who would disagree with certain aspects of what I have written. Keep in mind that we all have different needs and approaches. Not to sound too corny, but homeschoolers are as different as the colours of the rainbow! What follows is simply something to think about, and hopefully some signposts for you to follow to more help.
If you are in any doubt about your rights or responsibilities, please consult competent legal counsel. If you have concerns about how to meet your child’s educational needs, try to get help from your school or school board. Failing that, there are educational consultants much better qualified than I to help you choose or adapt curricula.
This work was created by Ruby of Freehold 2, and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.5 Canada License.
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Filed under: Home Education, Resources | Tagged: curriculum, home based education, Home Education, home-schooling, homelearners, homeschooling, legalities, Montreal, Quebec, starting out, why homeschool
Hello Ruby,
I read your wonderful article, and am going to follow thru with all your links as well. I am writing to you in somewhat of a panic state because a small minded self-righteous family member (yes I am angry!) called child protective services. The true reasons he called, are really nothing to do with homeschooling, but rather other more malicious family dynamics, but now I have no choice but to prove myself to “the powers that be”. My son is 11 and we were in the school system for brief periods of time but it simply did not work for his individual needs. He is somewhat “gifted”, easily bored, easily overstimulated and tends to be a magnet for bullies. The schools tended to ignore my concerns until the situation deteriorated and he started becoming aggressive towards teachers and other students. ..then suddenly they wanted to talk! I am actually trained as an art educator, and an art therapist, so my curriculum should really be no problem, but they are very determined and insisting on “requirements” that I believe legally I am not obliged to comply to. But it is hard to say no when Child Protective Services is questioning your competency as a parent! I know you cannot offer legal advice but I am rather isolated as an English homeschooler, newish to the area. I desperately need to hear some reassuring words and connect with some other supportive homeschoolers. Any support, suggestions, or referrals would be gratefully appreciated.
Thanks for the great information. I just suscribed to your blog feed.
Michelle
I would like to get in touch with anonymous with the 11 year old gifted son. I have a 13 year old – very similar story with the school. I am not in touch with Child Protective Services, but the school is behaving in a similar fashion, and I am ready to home/free/un school him at this point since they have not addressed his special needs and he is behaving accordingly – and they tested him in grade 2. Can you help me network with this parent?