This is our second year homeschooling. Since our move 5 months ago we wanted to be sure Tru connected with other kids who home school too. So we hooked up with a great homeschooling group in our area and what I found was that it wasn't just for Tru. Through different activities and functions I've had the opportunity to get know the other parents. It has been so helpful and encouraging for me. I've got to talk with people who've been home schooling for much longer than us and hearing what has worked for them through the years. I've picked up some new ideas and some fresh perspective on making homeschooling work for our family.
One thing I've struggled with in the past is trying make home schooling like the school I experienced growing up. I was a public school kid. Thankfully, while visiting with another parent at a Valentines Day party, I was reminded of this. Homeschooling is NOT school at home...it's in the car, at the park, in the library, at the grocery store, on the soccer field, at church, and at home. Even at home I've found that our best learning time happens in the living room reading a book or going over a lesson in the play room while the twins are playing. We do spend our focused math time at the table. I'll be honest with you I like the idea of just sitting at the table and plowing through subject after subject, but that hasn't worked for us. Tru is a six year old boy who is very active and he's not meant to sit at our table for hours at time.
Our family is unique. Every family has a differ dynamic to it. I am learning that I can not compare our homeschooling journey to other families journeys. I especially have to be careful not to compare everything with the "typical " school stuff. From what curriculum we use to how and when we school we differ from others, especially "typical" school, and that's okay. When it comes to the way we home school we are definitely more on the eclectic side of schooling. We use one curriculum for math and a couple different ones for phonics. And as for everything else I pull from our local library, the internet, and hand me down stuff that I've received along the way. The beauty of homeschooling is that I'm not forcing Tru to fit school. I can make school fit to Tru. If something isn't working we can find something that does. We can slow down or speed up according to how he's learning. We move at his pace.
Lastly, it's not always easy. We have hard days for sure. Just last week Tru and I were butting heads. We usually have reading lessons to start our school time off, but lately it's been like pulling teeth to get him to sit down for a lesson. So we switched the subjects around and started with his math first, something he enjoys, and it seemed to get him in the whole "work" ready mode. We had a few frustrating days until we switched some things around, but homeschooling gives us the opportunity to find what works for Tru and make it happen.
But what makes the not so easy days more bearable are the good days in between. It encourages me and stirs my passion for teaching our children at home when I see Tru catch onto something that he's been working on. Those are our small rewards and much appreciated blessings!
~"Train up a child in the way he should go [and in keeping with his individual gift or bent], and when he is old he will not depart from it." (Proverbs 22:6 Amplified Bible)
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