Homeschooling: From a Beginner
We were sort of thrown into the homeschooling world. I was super excited to get started but because of the circumstances I had no chance to research and no chance to even think about what I wanted it to look like.
Fast forward a few months and we were wrapping up my girl's fourth grade year and I started researching curricula for the next school year. It was during that research that I stumbled upon some amazing homeschooling moms on Youtube.
(Can we just pause for a moment and be collectively grateful for Youtube?)
I was looking for reviews on the math curriculum I was leaning towards and found the Homeschoolon channel. She did a pretty thorough flip through of a few different math curricula and it totally changed my mind on the curriculum I decided to purchase for my girl. It also led me down the Charlotte Mason rabbit hole.
I realized in that night (that I stayed up for hours researching, reading articles, and watching Youtube videos) that I had been trying to replicate the public school room in my home. Which is why neither of us "liked" school time. I knew that wasn't what I wanted but I hadn't given myself time to sit down and really think, "How do I want this to happen? What do I want our days to look like?"
Lesson #1 Take the time to think through what you want a day to look like.
Do you want a morning basket? A slow intro into your school time? Do you want to hit the ground running every day? Are workbooks included? Do you want to make sure you spend time in nature? Are your children leading you to subject? Are you leading them to subjects to study?
This brainstorm and visualization will help guide you to curricula that fit into what you want your days to look like. Maybe there are no curricula, maybe you allow your children to show interest and you jump into that subject with both feet. Maybe you use a certain curriculum as a spine and branch out from there.
Lesson #2 Follow your gut.
The math curriculum I ended up with I actually had heard "negative" things about. To be honest I couldn't remember what I had heard (or read) but I knew that there was something of a negative connotation associated with this particular curriculum. Even with that memory of reading "negative" things, I felt incredibly drawn to try it out with my girl. She LOVES it. LOVES IT. Also, morning basket time seemed silly in my mind, but I felt drawn to it so we tried it out. It is the perfect introduction to school time every morning. She gets to listen to me read aloud for a while and it gives her mind the time (and the cues) to get going. Currently we are reading Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, the book of Acts, and a loop of books about the Cherokee Nation and the Trail of Tears (her choice to study that... girl after my heart... all about justice and learning about the injustices to understand how we got here).
Point is, had I followed my head... we wouldn't be using this math curriculum that she loves nor would we be doing a morning basket. Now, listen, use common sense... my heart wants to travel the Continental US with her but that's not happening right now.
Consider your limitations then follow your gut.
Lesson #3 Have fun!
I try to have some time every day that we are having fun. We have started a phenology wheel and she LOVES that it wraps up our school day. I'm lucky that I only have one so I can cater the end of the day to her. What if I had two and one hated watercolor and art in general? I'm finding something that lights that child up and working into the school day. Point is, at some point during the school day, make it about something they LOVE. Something that makes them smile and say, "I love doing this."
I also try to remember all day long: I want these to be fond memories (for the most part). She may not love copywork but I try to keep my attitude upbeat because I realize I'm setting the tone for our day. We all have bad days but I always apologize when I get crabby (her response has become empathy and that is so beautiful to me).
Lesson #4 Don't compare your homeschool to others.
Grab inspiration from others not a feeling of envy. The moment you feel envy or feelings that your homeschool isn't good enough you need to unplug and realign yourself with why you do what you do. Your situation is not theirs, your children are not theirs and you are doing what is best for you and your family. Sure, the idea of a homeschool room seems really nice on some days but honestly... it is another room to clean so no thanks. {Tip: Laugh about it and it makes it easier to shrug off the envy.} We are all doing this thing a little (or a lot) differently and that's perfectly okay.