Friday, September 22, 2017

The Decision

For our family the decision to homeschool was the most difficult aspect of the entire process. Once the decision was finally made it was comparatively easy to decide on learning methods and curriculums.

The decision to homeschool is so confusing and difficult that it took me several years to finally decide to do it. All it takes is one "homeschool" search on Pinterest or one cranky kid doing homework to make any parent think, "Oh wait, hell no." This post is about how I finally went beyond all of that and decided to really, actually homeschool.

Our family had overall positive experiences in both a public schools and a charter school. At the same time we often felt distant and frustrated with our children's education. There was a large communication gap between what was happening in class and what my children would tell me. I felt like I had to be Sherlock Holmes (a chubby tired mom Sherlock) to figure out was going on. 

Pressuring my children to do homework after school when they were already tired and busy with other activities was torture. They often would sit in front of their work and stare off into space with zero motivation. My favorite part of the day was reading Harry Potter aloud at bed time and sometimes we didn't even make it to that. We were often too busy or too tired from checking off boxes for the next day. 

A couple of years ago both of my boys told me for several weeks they had no homework. When my husband and I went to the first parent teacher conferences we found out they were lying and were both behind in several subjects. However we had all enjoyed those homework free nights. Thanks boys.

I had started out being very proactive in my children's schools when they first began. At our public schools I volunteered for the classrooms and for the school as a whole. I donated time, money, and materials. I loved being involved and seeing my young children as much as possible during their school day. 

When our boys were in first and third grade we moved mid-school year to a new town. We chose a charter school at this time for the extra skiing opportunities it offered. This choice also meant we faced increased costs and needs from the school. After paying for activity fees and school cleaning fees we were out several hundred dollars. This was before we eve started on school supply lists or back to school clothes. I found myself dreading back to school time because of the financial cost.

The school also asked for and expected a lot of parent volunteer time. I thought I would be okay with this as I came from being active in our previous schools. Instead I found the requests overwhelming. The school needed volunteer crosswalk guides, playground aides, specialty instructors, field trip drivers, and even construction and maintenance workers. I felt a lot of guilt at first and then that guilt turned to apathy.

I really loved the extra outdoor activities and small community of the school but I began to wonder if a different approach to education would work for our family. Our family loves going on road trips to national parks. We are all naturally curious and all fascinated by nature, science, and history. We treasured these times the most and yet these times made up the smallest percentage of our lives. Our daily family life felt strained, stressed, and disjointed. We were always busy and yet we always felt (or at least I always felt) that we weren't doing enough. 

It was in this state of mind that I began to wonder if I could turn the tables and make our Harry Potter read alouds and nature exploring the norm instead of the exception. I ended last school year with these thoughts and I looked forward to the time and space of summer to decide. My kids were getting older and I was tired of wondering "what if." I wanted to be dedicated to their upcoming school year regardless of what path I chose.  

Over the summer the kids decompressed from the school schedule and every night around 7:30 pm I decided not only could I never homeschool, I could also never parent. Not for another day, not for another minute. Luckily we have a house rule that big decisions or conversations can never happen after 6 pm. 

Finally as summer turned to August I decided to go for it. I researched and made a plan and the school year formed in my mind. I felt more excited than scared. Soon the boys started observing my library trips and planning sessions. They had asked for homeschool in frustration in the years before but now that it was the real deal both were nervous. I tried to ease their worries by including them in the planning. They found the planning boring and soon told me homeschool sounded super great and could they please go do something, anything else? We were finally all on the same page!

The decision to homeschool was made purely on bravery. The pros and cons list helped but the overall decision was an emotional leap into the unknown. Once I was committed I was no longer drained by the "should I" or "shouldn't I" and could focus on the creation of our homeschool. By choosing homeschool our family life is changing for the better and I am once again engaged and excited about my children's education. 

Also, it is still September. 



Thursday, September 7, 2017

This Old Homeschool

Hello!

Welcome to "This Old Homeschool." We are a family of five living in small town in the Rocky Mountains. Our house is a wonderful (and crumbling) 1908 prairie bungalow. This past summer we made the BIG decision to homeschool our children.

We are teaching our two sons ages eleven and nine. For the 2017-2018 school year they are respectively in grades sixth and fourth. I also have a four year old daughter who is pre-k age this year. I am not doing formal lessons with her yet because well . . . she refuses to.

I have really appreciated all the insight I have gained from other homeschool parents online. I look forward to adding my voice and our experiences to the homeschool world.

Thank you for stopping by!

Vagabond Mother


The Decision

For our family the decision to homeschool was the most difficult aspect of the entire process. Once the decision was finally made it was com...