GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 37

“I had known a family who had homeschooled, and the boys were wonderful, but they didn’t get to be around kids their own age. They were so restricted. And it really showed. I didn’t want that for my grandchildren.” Misfits. Dorky. Awkward. Even if you’re too polite to say it, come clean: These are the labels ricocheting through a grandparent’s mind when you imagine a homeschooled kid. The sort-of good news? You’re not alone. Homeschooling, while not quite what you’d call mainstream, is no longer the province of folks who pull their kids from public school for religious or fringe reasons. In 2007 the Department of Education’s National Center for Education did their yearly head count and found a whopping 1.5 million kids being educated at home, up 74 percent from ’99, when they first started tallying—1.5 million kids: Imagine the number of irritated grandparents that number created. Almost seven years later, Look has done a one-eighty. She raves about Carolyn and the children, Rachel, 12, and Gabriel, 8. “Everything Carolyn does is exceptional,” says Look. “She has exposed the kids to so many things that ordinary kids wouldn’t have the chance to do. I had four kids of my own and, while we were a very loving and close family, I couldn’t have homeschooled,” she laughs. “It takes a special kind of person to homeschool. Carolyn is extroverted, so she keeps the kids busy— she even had them raising a guide dog— she’s really impressed me.” A brief glimpse into the Ricchiuto’s home in Gold River, a suburb on the hem of the American River outside of Sacramento, California, corroborates Lillian’s change of heart. While the warm, modest home doesn’t appear to house a single pale misfit, it does provide boundaries for Gabriel, 8 years old going on 35, and his sister, Rachel, an almost-teen. Todd, a black Labrador puppy, jiggles in the corner waiting politely for a snuggle. “After our guide dog, Merlin, left for guidedog school, we began pet-sitting for other families who raise guide dogs so they’d get Seasoned homeschooling parents discount the notion that disasters are common. THE BUZZ Hold on—the tables have turned . More and more grandparents who are full-time caregivers for their grandchildren are choosing to homeschool . APRIL Click and connect to more resources instantly where you see this symbol:  2009 GRAND 37

GRAND Magazine - April 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of GRAND Magazine - April 2009

GRAND Magazine - April 2009
GRAND View
Contents
GRAND Central
Editor's Podcast
Lettuce Love You
Bewitched, Betwixt and Tween
Ask Grand: The Toxic Mom
The Breakfast Club
Sibling Boosters
Will They Be Misfits?
A Return to Elegance
What Makes Us Sick? A Quiz
Resources
GRAND Finale
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Intro
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - GRAND Magazine - April 2009
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Cover2
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 3
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - GRAND View
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 5
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Contents
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 7
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 8
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 9
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 10
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 11
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 12
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - GRAND Central
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 14
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Editor's Podcast
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 16
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 17
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 18
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 19
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Lettuce Love You
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 21
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 22
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 23
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 24
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 25
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Bewitched, Betwixt and Tween
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 27
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 28
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 29
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Ask Grand: The Toxic Mom
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 31
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - The Breakfast Club
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 33
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Sibling Boosters
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 35
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Will They Be Misfits?
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 37
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 38
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 39
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - A Return to Elegance
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 41
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - What Makes Us Sick? A Quiz
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 43
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 44
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 45
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 46
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Resources
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 48
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - 49
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - GRAND Finale
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Cover3
GRAND Magazine - April 2009 - Cover4
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