The Packet Arrives

Albeit a few short weeks ago, but still recently enough that my response to the New York City Department of Education's Region Nine offices will be considered "on time."

Briefly, The Packet reads:

"Please complete and submit, for our review, the following:
1. Letter of Intent (must be submitted each year)
2. Home Schooling Information Form
3. IHIP - Individualized Home Instructional Plan (must include end of year instructional program assessment)
4. Quarterly Reports (must contain grades and attendance) - to be submitted at the end of each quarter of instruction."

Right. On reading the cover letter of The Packet I must acknowledge and acquiesce to the not-too-thrilling reality that I am being screened by the Good People of Region Nine. Someone, somewhere, must own a Mary Poppins Response to The Packet and Region Nine:
Region Nine Official: "Ms. Homeschooler, you know that the educational journey into which you have embarked is a very serious one. It involves careful thought and planning. This is not a job to be taken lightly. Now, may I have your completed Packet, please."
Ms. Homeschooler: [sipping tea and coolly looking at watch] "I never do Packets. Don't believe in them."

I am betting that an actual Region Nine response would not be akin to Mr. and Mrs. Banks' in the Disney movie.

There are 14 mandatory subjects listed in The Packet, each requiring 108 hours of instruction per year. The subjects are -
"English Language, Science, Math, Physical Education (Regularly), Visual Arts, Music, Health (Regularly), Reading, Spelling, Writing, Geography, U.S. History, Other, and Bilingual Education."
Our subjects are the above, plus Latin, Logic, French to CM2 (the folks at the fnac are making a fortune off of us), Hebrew school, World Civilizations, Geography, a marine biology internship, and an enrichment program for so-called gifted students sponsored by a well-known university on the West Coast. I suppose our curriculum is a sort of Well-Trained-Mind-for-Secular-Jewish-People-Meets-Jacques Cousteau-and-the-Lycee-Francais.

I will admit that the subject of "Health" so far has been my son's lone act of raiding the condom section of the medicine cabinet with no other motive than his curiosity's fulfillment. We will eventually need to figure out "Health."