Welcome to My Ivy Education!
Flipping the system isn't easy. When we started out on our homeschooling journey over a decade ago, we had no idea what a crazy, unique, and fulfilling process it would turn out to be. Twelve years later and with acceptances to Columbia University and Haverford College under our belts, we finally have some idea.
Still, it's been quite the trek to get to this point. Scouring the web for courseware that matches your personal and academic values while making sure the kids still have a happy and healthy social life is a balancing act any homeschooler knows all too well. Add to that a job, a spouse, other children, and all the other realities of adult life, and it becomes clear soon enough that there's no manual on how to best take charge of your children's education. But someone needs to do it, and the ability to customize the curriculum and totally subvert the bureaucracies of traditional schooling can't be beat.
A 2012 study by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development found that U.S. 15-year-olds are routinely outperformed on tests of math, reading, and science by their peers from Europe and Asia. Meanwhile, another report based on data collected from 20,352 U.S. homeschoolers found that by 8th grade, the average homeschooler is performing four grade levels ahead when compared to both public- and private-schooled students. Four!
It was pretty clear to us which option we preferred when we started homeschooling back in 2006. But we've seen firsthand the limitations. We've watched parents shake their heads ruefully while talking about how they wished they could homeschool, but they had to work. Or they would kill their kid. Or they were worried about social interaction. We've seen the kids' eyes light up when they heard about how we were reading at a college level in fifth grade and supplementing our study of animal life cycles by breeding hamsters.
That's why we started this blog. We believe that an education that ignites and inspires should be within reach for any family. Here, you can find:
• Insider information on what we tried, what worked, and what didn't
• Cultivating grit, fortitude, and a growth mindset - in both students and parents
• Detailed breakdowns of opportunities for students in any and all academic spheres, from art history to zoology
• Anecdotes from our personal journey, from first fumbling steps to Ivy League acceptance
We are so excited to bring this information to our readers and subscribers. It's what we wished we had when we decided to take education into our own hands. We believe all families, homeschooling and not, can benefit from what we've learned, often through making mistakes and learning from them!
However, as much as we are incredibly happy to announce our blog, we can't possibly include absolutely all the knowledge we've gained. That would take much longer, which is why we have created My Ivy Education. My Ivy Education takes all the best elements of homeschooling, from deep personalization to allowing and encouraging students to follow their passions, and improves on the formula.
We are a brick-and-mortar school located in Summit, NJ, where students reap the benefits of individualization and world-class curricula and educators, and do so in the collaborative company of one another. From our personal journey, we have created My Ivy Education to be a one-of-a-kind learning experience. There is nothing else out there like it, and every part of it is intentionally curated to meet the needs that we have seen and experienced ourselves. Through our years of experience, we define and deliver fully individualized and personalized learning plans for each student in our care so you don't have to.
Now that we've had our turn to speak, we'd love to hear from you! What do you, in your heart of hearts, most want to learn? Long-form educational content? Bulleted tips and tricks? Let us know down in the comments, and why not give us a Like on Facebook while you're at it?