A New Rant

Recently on a message board I am a part of someone posted this article link. It started a big discussion on homeschoolers and foster care. This has had me thinking for the past few days. Pondering even.

Everywhere I turn homeschool families are adopting from other countries. That's great! I have dreams of adopting from China someday. However, many homeschool families are turned off of foster care because in most states you can not homeschool foster children.
I know some people don't think this is a big deal, but after dealing with the foster care system and my children in public school I won't be doing that again. I had no say in their education. My five year old turned into a different child. My 8 year old was humiliated and taught things contrary to our beliefs and values. God willing I will not send any of my children to public school again.
What would it be like to a child who has been shipped around to different homes or ripped out of their home to be sent off to school while the other children of the home stay home with mom all day? It seems like it would be heartbreaking and isolating to that child.

I just heard recently that they are trying to have all foster children sent to daycare or preschool a few days a week whether someone can be home with them or not. These are children in desperate need of some bonding and we are to cart them off. The excuse is so they can be visible. Well, I had workers at my house every week. Not to mention Guardian Ad Litems and case managers. Then there were all the mandatory therapy visits. Not to mention visitations with families. There are children very visible, but they are still being abused. In my time as a foster parent I met foster families who could care less about these kids. They saw it as doing a favor. The children were never part of their families. I asked one worker about it and she sighed and said they had had other reports on this one particular family but nothing substantiated. How did going to school protect these kids?

I am also of the opinion that if you are the soon to be adoptive parents of a child you should be allowed to homeschool. Part of the six month wait is to see how the child acclimates to the home and how the parents do with the child. Well, is it really a true vision if the minute the child is adopted the lifestyle changes? I literally went from the courthouse to the school board on adoption day. There was less than a month left of school but I was at the end of my rope.
What makes me sad is these families have a strong vision of family. They truly believe children are a blessing from the Lord and they want to add to their families through adoption. I think DCF is really missing out on a host of GREAT families because of the homeschool rule. Do I think that only homeschool families love children and would be great families? NO! But I think that homeschool families who love children would be a huge asset to the state.
A lot of these children are behind academically. Wouldn't it be great to have the one on one time a parent at home could offer through homeschool? My 11 year old just finished up her third grade math book, because when she came home two years ago she was so far behind we had to do second grade all over. Part of this is because in her short 8 years of life my child had no less than 5 schools. All that by 2nd grade. She never had a chance to excel. When we brought her home changes started instantly.
I don't know what it would take to have the state see homeschool foster/adopt families as a good thing. I want to foster again. I would love to. We had thought we found a way by only taking in kids 2 and younger, but if they are going to make us put them in day care they can hang that up.

It will be at least 2 years before we go that route again. Maybe things will change for the better.

I would still encourage Christian families to look into foster care and foster/adopt. There is a real need.

Be Blessed!