I belong to several homeschool support groups on social media, both local and nation wide. This time of year, about a month after the school year begins, there is always a rash of posts where mothers (sometimes fathers, but especially mothers) confess that they are beside themselves with worry that they are doing everything all wrong. Their curriculum is wrong. Their method is wrong. The number of hours they homeschool in a day is wrong. Surely this was a terrible desicion and they have no idea how we do it – or how they are going to make this school year work, this homeschooling thing work.
If this is you right now, take a deep breath. Homeschooling, especially if you are new to it, can be overwhelming. There are so many things to think about, so much pressure (and for some of us, judgement), so many Pintrest ideas all the perfect people on social media post every day. What you are feeling right now is something we ALL experience from time to time – sometimes once a year, and sometimes many times a week until we find our groove. But it will happen. One day you WILL find your groove, find what works for you, and feel confident in your decision.
Or you won’t, and public school will always be there. But, you very probably will.
This right here – the questioning of if you are doing enough, if you are good enough, if you are going the right thing – THIS is the hardest part of homeschooling IMHO.
What works best for me is this – what does my child NEED to know when he graduates from the elementary grades?
This is the list I have come up with.
He needs to be able to read.
He needs to be able to do simple math.
He needs to be able to write grammatically correct sentences, and to string sentences together to express himself.
He needs an understanding of the world around him – the weather, the seasons, the place where we live, his place in the universe, how things work.
He needs to know to brush his teeth and change his underwear every day.
He needs to be able to make himself a sandwich, pour a drink, and help out with the chores around the house.
He needs to know how to be kind to people.
If he can do that, I am happy. He has a lifetime to learn the rest.
It’s going to be okay.
And now, for what we have been doing today…
Daily/Weekly Rhythm
7:30-8:30: Coffee and yoga/mama time – Woke up late. Coffee. Aidan wasn’t having it – not anything. Turned on cartoons. Oops.
8:30: Get outside! Take a walk/play hard – The kids actually did get in some good play time on the patio this morning between rain showers.
9: Breakfast – Oatmeal and apples.
9:30: Circle Time – All the basics. Everyone is getting better at reading the calendar. We read Aesop’s Fables, two poems from the meadow, another book about birds. At their request, Chase and Eliza finished up circle time by drawing a bird from the book.
10-11: Read together –Chase read me a fun book about heavy machinery throwing a birthday party for a big rig (or something, it was early.) It was his second read through, the first in a week, and he did a great job. Next, I had him read the entire Killer Whale book since it had been a week since the last time he opened it. Except for a few words, he read straight through. Good work! We skipped spelling because he was definitely fatigued after all that reading.
11-12: Workbook loop – Math today. Chase filled in missing numbers on a chart from 1-100, counted by 2s coloring in the squares yellow, then counted by 10s filling in the squares pink. He then filled out another chart counting by threes ( a new skill) and did very well.
We stopped here for the time being since we have company today and everyone is getting over colds.
The Sudderth School for the Education of Free Thinking and Spirited Children 