I’ll be honest. You are about to embark on an exciting journey and it will be full of joy, rewards, and happiness, but it will also have moments of uncertainty, frustration, and fear. We all love our children and want the very best for them. We worry that we aren’t doing enough, or too much. I have been through the whole myriad of emotions on my homeschooling journey, but have been blessed with seeing many amazing homeschool graduates and the successful adults they are becoming. There are many lessons I learned through my own experiences and observing the experiences of others that I wish I knew when I started. Here are just a few.
1--Don’t try to duplicate public school in your home. Your children do not need to be in separate desks with endless worksheets. The traditional schooling model was made to accommodate instructing a large group of children. Almost all the curriculum is spiral
curriculum (covering the same topics over and over every year with small additions) because this is not an effective method for engaging long-term memory. Many of us begin with trying to duplicate the way we were taught only to be exhausted and frustrated because of the amount of time it took, while our children become bored and restless. (For ideas of other methods of homeschooling click here.)
2--Your children CAN always catch up. One of our biggest fears is that our child will get behind and never catch up with their peers. What I found is that when a child wants to learn something, it is amazing how fast they can learn it. Traditional schooling has to go over and over the same topics year after year because they are trying to force students to learn something. If you have ever looked at a brain scan of a child sitting during a lecture (yes, I did that), you will notice that there is almost nonexistent brain activity. If you look at the same brain when they have a desire to learn something, the whole brain lights up in activity. I watched a student with little math education over multiplication and dividing complete enough math education in six months to test into college precalculus. It doesn’t take twelve years to learn something.
3--Every subject does not need to be covered every day. You can do math on Monday and Wednesday, and English on Tuesday and Thursday. You can leave Friday for fun projects only, or to participate in a nature walk or homeschool coop. I was alarmed when my daughter told me she wanted to do all her math on only one day a week. What amazed me is that she did better and moved faster through her math studies when she only concentrated on it that one day a week.
4--Take care of yourself. Schedule in some “you time,” both relaxation and study. I have made an amazing discovery. When I take the time to read a classic, do a logic puzzle, or study, my mind seems to awaken. It feels clearer and anxiety melts away. This time is not just benefitting me; my children see my example and many times begin to emulate my example in their free time. I am teaching them that reading and studying are not just have-tos for school age children, but something that brings enjoyment.
5--Consider joining a homeschool group or coop. This is not a necessity, and there are times and seasons when it might not work, but there can be many benefits to joining a group. As a homeschooling mom you will come across many that think that you are a little, or a lot, crazy for taking this on. It is good to have at least an hour a week where you are with other women who understand and who have decided that this is worth it. For all homeschooling mothers, especially the extroverted ones, this is a chance to get some much needed adult conversation. Although a large percentage of homeschooling moms are introverts, many have been blessed with cute little extroverts. Miraculous changes take place when these extroverts can have an hour or two to run around with friends. My two extroverts are energized and ready to take on anything after an hour or two with the group. Whether your children are extroverted or introverted, this is a safe environment for them to work on the social behaviors you are encouraging at home.
6--Relax, enjoy, and have faith! I spent too much time in the beginning stressing over
whether I was doing enough, staying on a schedule, and multitasking. Looking back I realized that it all works out. Having school derailed for a week or even several months never affected their education in the long run. During a difficult time I was unable to give them the attention to their schooling I wanted. For six months I assigned them tasks I was unable to help them with, practically crying myself to sleep believing that I was failing my children. My children stepped in with extra chores, preparing meals, managing their own assignments, and helping with my increased workload at the time. When this seemingly unfortunate project was finished, my children had gained a strong work ethic and the core values of cooperation, love, responsibility, and self motivation. Everything went smoother with their schooling after this trial. What I believed was destroying my children’s future actually turned out to be a huge blessing. Have faith!
Tip: This book was a wonderful resource to remind me to be present in the moment and to enjoy the journey. It has wonderful tips to help simplify and make things run smoother. Teaching from Rest: A Homeschooler's Guide to Unshakable Peace by Sarah Mackenzie.
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