Homeschool Questions
I got questions!! :) I may have been a bit overzealous in my responses, but, as my "in real life" friends already know, I have something to say about almost anything. (Learning to keep it to myself is a challenge for me, but I am working on it!) Anyway, these are the questions and my rather long winded answers.
Did any of your children desire to go to "real" school?
As my now adult children entered their upper elementary/high school years, they would get this question from their "regular school" friends- "don't you ever get tired of homeschooling?"- the answer was "yes!". (for mom and students) My girls and I discussed the fact that there is not a public school teacher in the world who does not, at times, groan at the thought of facing another day. And, how many public school students fake a tummy ache to stay home? Sometimes the grass looked greener to mom and students alike!! But, at the core of it, I knew that we had solid reasons for homeschooling and that it was the best option for our family.
Having pulled my older children from the public school system, I also have a grounded reality in the alternative. This is not a public school slam. But, our family time while my children were in public school was zilch. By the time "daily envelopes" from each class were unpacked, papers signed, worksheets completed, daily assigned reading time logged, clothes laid out, lunches packed... we had no family time. Add to that travel time, volunteer hours (yes, in public school), ongoing fees (home and school club, field trips, parties, etc...), donations to the classroom (toilet paper, paper, tissue, crayons, glue...), and special evening events at the school, we were just spent!
I do think one of the best "cures" for children wanting to go to "normal" school is to build a support system of homeschool friends. People that you meet with on a regular basis. It can be at library story hour, a park day, bowling, roller skating, at someone's home... anything that gets you in touch with other homeschoolers at least once a month. Building on that, as children get older, that may become every other week or even once a week. I found the activities that my family enjoyed most were those that I did not have to work hard to prep for--- like the activities mentioned above. I know not everyone lives in an area with a large homeschool population, so I understand that this may be more difficult for some than others. I would encourage anyone to try--- my sister-in-law spent her first year homeschooling feeling very isolated, but after getting the word out, she was able to gather a fair number of families to support one another.
Any suggestions for how I can get her excited about being homeschooled?
I think we love homeschooling most when we learn together. When I write blog posts, I often find myself writing "we" instead of my child's name because I feel like "we" really did this together. I don't mean this in the sense that I take over my child's work. I often (usually) allow the child to lead and make the decisions in a project, but I am right there beside him noodling things out. As my students get older, I hope for a more independent learning process, but even children as old as 13 or 14 enjoy working with their parent on occasion.
One of my favorite homeschool stories is about my daughter, Erin. When she was about six years old, my brother-in-law was working on a project at my house. Always anxious to not look bad as homeschoolers, I did my best to keep my day on track. Later in the day, I found out that when Uncle Dave had asked Erin how school was, she answered, "oh, we didn't do school today, we just had fun!". I was mortified at the time!! We had done plenty of school! That day, in particular, we had taken a seed that was in the process of sprouting and dissected it for our plant unit.
The beauty of homeschooling in the first years is that it really is that simple. Choose books to read on a topic that your child is interested in, visit the zoo, hike at a local pond, go to the library, listen to a book on tape, play math games... just being with your child is teaching.
Looking back at homeschooling my adult children, I will tell you right now that I don't regret one single workbook page that we did not get to- my only regret is the time I spent stressing that I wasn't doing enough (or well enough). I wish I had woken up each morning with less expectation and just enjoyed that time with my children.
If you have read this far, thanks for sticking with me! :)
Did any of your children desire to go to "real" school?
As my now adult children entered their upper elementary/high school years, they would get this question from their "regular school" friends- "don't you ever get tired of homeschooling?"- the answer was "yes!". (for mom and students) My girls and I discussed the fact that there is not a public school teacher in the world who does not, at times, groan at the thought of facing another day. And, how many public school students fake a tummy ache to stay home? Sometimes the grass looked greener to mom and students alike!! But, at the core of it, I knew that we had solid reasons for homeschooling and that it was the best option for our family.
Having pulled my older children from the public school system, I also have a grounded reality in the alternative. This is not a public school slam. But, our family time while my children were in public school was zilch. By the time "daily envelopes" from each class were unpacked, papers signed, worksheets completed, daily assigned reading time logged, clothes laid out, lunches packed... we had no family time. Add to that travel time, volunteer hours (yes, in public school), ongoing fees (home and school club, field trips, parties, etc...), donations to the classroom (toilet paper, paper, tissue, crayons, glue...), and special evening events at the school, we were just spent!
I do think one of the best "cures" for children wanting to go to "normal" school is to build a support system of homeschool friends. People that you meet with on a regular basis. It can be at library story hour, a park day, bowling, roller skating, at someone's home... anything that gets you in touch with other homeschoolers at least once a month. Building on that, as children get older, that may become every other week or even once a week. I found the activities that my family enjoyed most were those that I did not have to work hard to prep for--- like the activities mentioned above. I know not everyone lives in an area with a large homeschool population, so I understand that this may be more difficult for some than others. I would encourage anyone to try--- my sister-in-law spent her first year homeschooling feeling very isolated, but after getting the word out, she was able to gather a fair number of families to support one another.
Any suggestions for how I can get her excited about being homeschooled?
I think we love homeschooling most when we learn together. When I write blog posts, I often find myself writing "we" instead of my child's name because I feel like "we" really did this together. I don't mean this in the sense that I take over my child's work. I often (usually) allow the child to lead and make the decisions in a project, but I am right there beside him noodling things out. As my students get older, I hope for a more independent learning process, but even children as old as 13 or 14 enjoy working with their parent on occasion.
One of my favorite homeschool stories is about my daughter, Erin. When she was about six years old, my brother-in-law was working on a project at my house. Always anxious to not look bad as homeschoolers, I did my best to keep my day on track. Later in the day, I found out that when Uncle Dave had asked Erin how school was, she answered, "oh, we didn't do school today, we just had fun!". I was mortified at the time!! We had done plenty of school! That day, in particular, we had taken a seed that was in the process of sprouting and dissected it for our plant unit.
The beauty of homeschooling in the first years is that it really is that simple. Choose books to read on a topic that your child is interested in, visit the zoo, hike at a local pond, go to the library, listen to a book on tape, play math games... just being with your child is teaching.
Looking back at homeschooling my adult children, I will tell you right now that I don't regret one single workbook page that we did not get to- my only regret is the time I spent stressing that I wasn't doing enough (or well enough). I wish I had woken up each morning with less expectation and just enjoyed that time with my children.
If you have read this far, thanks for sticking with me! :)
Thank you so much for taking the time to answer my questions. That last paragraph is great and I feel renewed in my conviction to go on with homeschooling. This is what great blogging is about-- helping each other. God bless you. I am going to link to your blog today over at M3RH if that is alright with you.
ReplyDeleteHi Lori, here is the post linking to your blog. If you are dissatisfied with it in any way please let me know and I will either make changes or delete entirely. Thanks again for your help! http://mythreerivershome.blogspot.com/2010/08/answers-and-advice-from-seasoned.html
ReplyDeleteGreat post! I know what you mean about learning together. My public schools were poor to mediocre, and I feel like I'm getting an education along with my kids!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post with great advice!!
ReplyDeleteYour write: ‘I wish I had woken up each morning with less expectation and just enjoyed that time with my children’. I feel the same and I wonder why this is so. I think we have many wishes: as moms we like to enjoy our time with our (young) children, yet, as teachers we long for seeing the effects of home school and as adults we feel more free when our kids show independence. I think it will always stay like that: we look back and think ‘I should have enjoyed their youth more’ and yet, our role is to steer them into adulthood. It is a mix of feelings and because we are both teacher and parents, we feel this deeply. When we outsource education, we might have less mixed emotions.
ReplyDeleteHaving said this, I full agree with you. We should enjoy it fully.