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I was getting my hair done one day, and listening to two moms talk about their children in public school. One of them was describing how her child simply could not get through a Pre-Algebra class, which was too hard for him and how the public school insisted that he move on to Algebra 1; the school wouldn’t let him retake Pre-Algebra because he would fail, and they didn’t want him to be left behind.  She asked her son during the first weeks of school how Algebra was going, and he said that he was lost, had no clue what was going on, and that he was going to fail. Two weeks into the quarter, she discovered that her son had been signed up by accident for a Calculus class. Instead of taking and failing Algebra, he was taking and failing Calculus.

As homeschool parents, we’re not perfect, but there’s no way in homeschooling that we would make this mistake! We know our child and we know what our child is capable of, so there’s no way we’d skip through three levels of math and put them in something that’s way over their head.  The counselors in public schools have an average of 350 students for every high school guidance counselor. That means that those counselors don’t usually know the student at all, and when the student has to go in for advice or for some consulting, the counselor knows little about them. Even if you are half as good as a high school guidance counselor, you will still be a hundred times more effective!  It really is the love for your child that’s going to ensure your success; you care deeply about what is in their best interests, so you’re not going to hurt them.

Homeschool parents know that if we do not do a good job in preparing our children, we might be financially responsible for that child for the rest of our lives! More importantly, we also have a huge emotional investment in their success, because we want them to do well. The high school guidance counselors do these things to the best of their abilities, but they don’t actually know each child.  You don’t need to feel hesitant in your own abilities, or that having an official guidance counselor is what’s needed. What’s needed is you, and you’re the best person for the job.

For more help, I have an online class that might help you: The Best High School Guidance Counselor

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