Cleveland Homeschooler

Wherein I Act Like I’m Qualified to Give Someone Advice

I’ve never been very comfortable giving anyone advice. I’ll give my honest opinion if asked for it, but trying to tell someone else what they should or shouldn’t do just doesn’t sit well with me.  I belong to a few different homeschool groups and enjoy reading various questions and responses that circulate.  Such groups are designed  for support and encouragement, after all. But I don’t chime in very often.

Today there was a message from a discouraged homeschooler that really spoke to me for some reason (maybe you saw it, too?). I found that I could relate to so much of her situation and decided to go ahead and let her (and the whole group!) know my thoughts and advice on the matter. And I decided that while I was at it, I’d post about it here because chances are there are others out there who can relate.

The basic gist of the situation is a first year of homeschooling that isn’t going too well.  After a year in public school Kindergarten, the mom and her child are having a hard time getting into their groove with homeschooling and she’s already considering throwing in the towel and putting him in public school next year. Here are the Pearls of Wisdom that I wrote in response to her:

First of all, it is okay to put your son in a traditional school if that’s what you have discerned as the best thing for your child and family. But it sounds like, from reading your email, that it’s something you have conflicted feelings about – and understandably! As parents, we are always capable of doubting our decisions, but if you’re doing what you firmly believe is best for your child, then you need to trust that. Easier said than done, I know.

I started homeschooling after my oldest son spent a year in First Grade at a public school. Like you, it’s what I truly felt called to do. BUT – it was not an easy transition to make. My son didn’t suddenly hop out of bed in the mornings ready to learn with mommy!  We all had to adjust to the new routine and the new role of mommy (and sometimes daddy) as their teacher.

What helped us was consistency.  Like you, I mostly used a boxed curriculum.  I think it makes things easier when starting out with homeschooling, but only as long as it also allows for some flexibility.  You’ll probably find that your son moves along quicker with some subjects more than others and you’ll also want the freedom to explore things that really interest him.

Since you still have quite a bit of school year left I think you might want to give homeschooling a try.  I think it will help to set the expectations for your son about what your school days will be like. You don’t have to stick to a strict schedule, but I’ve found that my boys do so much better when there’s a consistent rhythm to our days.  For instance, they know that when the baby goes down for his morning nap, it’s time to do our school work. They also know that there won’t be any t.v. or video games until their school work is done.  Again, it can be a hard transition to make, but it didn’t take our family long to find a routine that works for everyone.

My husband also has odd days off and we don’t have as many dates as we’d like! Instead, we often have a “date” after the kids are in bed when we eat some favorite snacks, watch a funny show or movie together or just laugh and talk together. We always take advantage of grandparents or other visiting guests and go out for a really nice dinner and leave the kids then.  We do enjoy being able to spend the day together as a family (on a Wednesday, for example) when other people are at work and school.

Until you can find more ways to get out in your area, you might try to find some encouragement online – such as through groups like this! There are a lot of homeschooling moms who are also bloggers and it can be so encouraging to read about what they’re doing in their homes.  If you live near a larger city, then maybe you can find activities to drive into town for even just once a month or every couple of weeks.

I hope some of this helps!

~ Dori

What would you tell someone who’s feeling discouraged with homeschooling? Did you make the transition from a public or private school to homeschooling?