News for March 2010
Trust
You have probably figured out from your reading that there is no “right way” or “wrong way” to homeschool your family. In fact, there are as many styles of homeschooling as there are families who do it! In the beginning of the road to homeschooling, these statements scare the heck out of you! Later, they will comfort, encourage, and sustain you. Promise.
You will find books by many leaders in the homeschooling field who seem to have “answers”…and many things that they have to say are very sound and helpful. Of course, the truth is somewhere in the spaces. Somewhere in there is the space that works for you and your children.
Whether or not you have determined what style of homeschooler you are, there is one thing that we all have in common. We all love our children and are striving to do the right things for them. All of us spend many hours agonizing over this decision and came to this decision due to strong conviction. Trust that. Even if you can’t put it into words immediately when being asked, you have reasons and they are valid.
For this post in the ENCOURAGEMENT department, I have five words for you. Words that I believe with my whole heart. Words you can tape on your refrigerator. Words you can remind yourself anytime the anxiety hits. Words that live at the heart of being a parent:
TRUST YOURSELF. TRUST YOUR CHILDREN.
You CAN trust yourself to do the very best that you can do in any given moment. You will change, improve, add, subtract, move forward, continue to learn, and you will make mistakes! And in each moment, you will do the very best that you know how to do in the moment. And that is OK!
And Trust your children because they will learn. They ARE learning! They learn while they are playing, sitting quietly, riding in the car, or are frustrated with the correct way to hold a pencil. They are learning every moment. This is good. This is as it should be.
You can do this.
You are a very capable adult and you can do this
Edited: March 17th, 2010
WHY DO YOU HOMESCHOOL?
I got to thinking about the usual questions that I get asked about homeschooling. I know that many parents are curious about how we spend our days if we have found we can successfully avoid the public school trap. The “usual” questions are:
Parents who homeschoolers get asked a lot of questions about the process and procedure. Here are a list of the most frequently asked questions of homeschooling families.
* What will your children do for socialization?
* How can you teach your children if you are not certified?
* Will your children be able to get a diploma?
* Will your child be accepted into college?
* Do you not get tired of being around your children all day?
* What is so wrong about the public school system?
* How will your children ever learn about life?
* Do your children get lonely?
* Do your children have friends?
* How do your children play sports?
* Do you have a social life?
* Why do you homeschool?
* Don’t you think your child would like public school?
* Do your children take tests?
* Do you give a grade card?
* Do your children sleep late?
* Do you give an “A” in all subjects?
* How long does it take your child to do their homeschool?
* Will your child be able to go to college?
* Do you have homework?
Listen, I’ll be happy to answer some of these question at some later date…just thinking tonight.
Edited: March 13th, 2010