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Articles
Inspiration for Homeschooling Families
Homeschool Beginnings (C) Marie Greene, 2004 I had tossed around the idea of homeschooling my children from the time they were babies. The very thought of sending my little ones off to the harsh realities of public school... Well, it made me shudder. I did my best to read about homeschooling, and I bought a stack of resources. By the time my oldest son was 4.5 years old, I felt competely prepared. As the deadline drew near for kindergarten registration, something happened inside of me. I wasn't sure if it was a prompting, letting me know that I was incapable of educating my own child, or just a bad case of the jitters. I called the public school and asked about the teachers, and even went so far as to schedule a visit and see the school. I was tempting fate. What began as a mere weak moment, became a head-first dive into the world of public school. I felt unprepared to home-educate, and was so afraid I would ruin my children's lives that I just plain chickened out. I enrolled my oldest son in public school, and continued the tradition with my younger boys. I went on over-drive, becoming the world's most selfless volunteer mom. I became PTA president and spear-headed every possible activity I could get my hands on. I figured if I wasn't going to be actually teaching my children, at least I could be part of the education process. I devoted many hours at the school each day, planning fundraisers, luncheons, Red Ribbon Week and more. I got all wrapped up in the giant package of public school, and it wasn't as neat and tidy as I expected. For all of my devoted service, I realized that my children were still getting a second-rate education. My donated hours really had nothing to do with the learning process. I was just decorating everything. It was an awakening to discover that my noble efforts had been nothing more than mere catering and party planning. Was that all I was hoping to achieve? Not even close. The transition from PTA mom to homeschool mom was abrupt. I had never lost the urge to homeschool, it had merely gotten lost in the trappings of mainstream education. Once I finally slowed down long enough to realize where we were headed, it didn't take me long to acknowledge that we had changes to make. Being heavily involved in my children's school had an unforseen benefit. It gave me an up close view of the educational system and it was frightening. All of the fears and myths of homeschool weigh heavily on the new homeschool parent. Which curriculum do I choose? How do I set up our school? How do I get my kids to listen to me? What if we fail? What will everyone think? Sure, there are things to be considered, but there's really no way to figure it all out until you actually take the leap. I knew exactly how I was going to do everything until we actually started homeschooling, and then all my well-meaning plans were re-written. I'm still writing them, in fact.
Involving Extended Family in Your Home School
(C) Marie Greene, 2004
One of my newest, favorite ideas for our homeschool is involving extended family. We have decided to create a monthly calendar based on our studies, and send it to family members each month, along with a newsletter about things we have accomplished over the past month. This not only encourages the children's writing skills (as they each have an 'article' to submit to the newsletter), but gives extended family the 'heads up' regarding what the kids are learning.
Including extended family is helpful for two reasons. First of all, those members of the family who are critical of your decision to homeschool are more likely to take your efforts seriously when they see that you actually are teaching your children (or at least you have a plan). This, alone, would not be a good enough reason to involve them, but it is a fringe benefit. The second reason is that often times family members want to participate by sending educational materials or news articles. Well-meaning grandparents love to send 'school stuff', but it's much more helpful if they are able to send materials that coincide with what the children are learning. Not only that, but when they know you are studying a particular topic, they are more keen to notice articles, magazines, and other resources that relate. (I have been amazed at the extra resources that pour in when a grandparent discovers that we are studying geology!)
We are formulating a school year calendar, and then breaking it down into units. Each extended member of the family will get a year calendar (so they can see the whole year at once), as well as the monthly calendar and newsletter. The monthly calendar is more specific than the yearly calendar and breaks down the lessons by each week. Family members love the chance to be involved and to have tangible access to what the kids are learning. When the family members are encouraged to participate, they are more open and accepting of the concept of home education (perhaps because it is less of a mystery to them when they can see it in print!).
As soon as I have a monthly calendar finished (which will be closer to when we start our new school year in August), I will publish it on this site so you will have an example.
I know what you are thinking... Planning a calendar and a newsletter sounds like too much work, right? Not everyone loves to write, I realize that. However, a little extra planning at the beginning will pay off all year long. You don't have to have every detail figured out, but having a general outline of your studies will only improve your home education experience. It can be as specific or as vague as you like, as long as you have a general course of study that you can use as a guideline. Creating the newsletter each month allows the children to 'brag' a little bit about what they've been learning and to share their favorite experiences. Family members will love to hear these reports! The calendar sets the stage for the learning, and the newsletter is the natural follow-up, which allows family members to see the cycle in action.
In regards to planning the calendar, I am simply taking my resources and dividing them up by how many months we want to have 'school', and then by weeks. That gives me a good idea of what we would have to cover each week in order to get through the whole subject area. I am certainly not a textbook junkie, and I am very eclectic in the materials that we use. I combine a little of this and that, which is even more reason why organization is essential. If you do not set goals, how will you know if you reach them? This is critical, even if you intend on educating in a very relaxed atmosphere. I try to plan in a way that allows room for spontaneous field trips and creative learning. It is important to me that my children's education is more than textbook learning, but I do not believe that learning in a completely unstructured environment is beneficial.
Homeschooling is a family endeavor. As members of the Church, we know that the family is more than just those living under our roof. Extended family has much to offer in the way of knowledge and experience. Your children's education will be better for their involvement!
Our Swiftly Changing Homeschool
(c) Marie Greene, 2004
If I had a nickel for every time I changed our homeschool format, I would be a rich woman. Programs that seem promising fizzle out after just a week. Carefully planned outlines and charts end up being too time-consuming or not user-friendly and are abandoned in a matter of days. I revamp the format. I make new charts. I create new lists, schedules and outlines. And then we start the whole process over again.
I could look at this process in two ways. One perspective could be that I am a total flake because I don't stick with everything I start. Or maybe it's because I'm flighty. I think (hope) there is a bigger issue at work here. It's called trial and error. For most families, trial and error is an essential part of getting it right. If there were one specific formula that worked 100% of the time with every family, then this whole process would be fool proof.
Teaching your children at home requires that you devote a lot of personal energy, knowing in advance that not every brilliant idea will come to fruition. You have to sift through the myriad of choices, trying out a few here and there, until you find the right 'fit'. We cannot expect to find exactly what we are looking for on our first attempt. By experimenting and trying out new ideas we are able to discover the things we do and don't like about what's out there. We may not be able to describe exactly what we're looking for, but we know what's NOT working. Occasionally we strike gold and find something that fits the way we define education- like a missing piece of the puzzle. The frustrating part is that the puzzle changes from time to time, so we must always be on the lookout for the next gold mine.
I don't apologize anymore when I change my outlines, or switch programs, or swap out part of our routine. I have had to make about fifty different charts to keep track of my children's work, and I'm still not even sure I've gotten it right. I've had to adopt the attitude that it's ok to change it if it's not working. That's the beauty of homeschooling. Don't force yourself and your family to continue with a program that is causing tears and frustration, or is boring everyone to death. Don't keep using tedious charts if they are driving you nuts. When you see that things are going from bad to worse, chalk it up to experience and try something else. When you find the ideas that you love, stick with them. Until then, be flexible and willing to make adjustments when they are needed. Just call it trial and error.
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