Most of you know that I am an accidental homeschooler. It’s true. So when I got into this wild, crazy homeschooling adventure, I honestly had no idea what I was doing. No. Idea. I knew I could do it, I’d seen it done. I just didn’t know what it meant for me.
That was 1999. I’ve learned a few things since then. Most of them the hard way. (Hard to believe? Believe it.) I noticed early on that even though we were new to homeschooling, people still wanted to know what we were doing for our homeschool. My answer: “I’m learning as I go.” Even now, I usually hesitate to tell folks what we do, because frankly, what works for my family may not work for your family.
However—I also keenly remember how I felt when I began our homeschool journey. I devoured every “how to” book I could find on the subject. I would have given just about anything to follow a seasoned homeschool mom around and spy on her just to see how she did it. Trouble was, no one would let me spy on them. Even when I asked! And I did ask. This mom who lived in Mount Vernon, WA and had homeschooled in the “dinosaur age” of homeschooling. I asked her. She looked at me like I had just decided to write an expose on her style of homeschooling. Things got awkward fast. Maybe back in 2000, it was just a creepy request? I don’t know. In any case, I’ve changed my mind about sharing how we “do” school; mostly because of that memory in particular.
In the next few days, you’ll read some (not all) of “how” we do it; because one very important thing I’ve learned is this: You start each year with the same building blocks: but it can, and will, look very different from year to year. Don’t let yourself be taken hostage by someone else’s idea of what your homeschool should look like, either. Make it your own.
Here’s part one of a three part series I’m writing on “How We Homeschool.” I hope it encourages you, because if I can do it, you can too.
5 Essentials to Getting Started in Homeschooling {in short}
So let’s talk about each one of these for just a moment.
1. Think like a teacher.I get a little bit of criticism for this, but I believe it’s essential that I take off my “mom” hat for a few moments and put on my “teacher” hat. And yes, homeschool moms need to be able to wear both “hats” at the same time. It just helps me think better when I can separate the two. Here’s how I do it:
Keep in mind that I change things up every year. This is my schedule from a few years ago. Since then I have changed math programs and added some things that have helped us stay on course in light of our travel schedule.
Truth be told, every homeschooling family should be choosing what works best for them. Since our family travels quite a bit for work, we incorporate a lot of of that into our schooling.
2. Write the core subjects under each child’s name. I’ve put the grade in place of the name for the sake of our kids, but normally, you’d see the name of the student next to the grade at the top.
3. Decide on Curriculum.
This is the part that really frustrates many parents. I ask myself three questions when choosing curriculum:
a. Does it overwhelm me? If my first response is to feel like I’ll never measure up; I’ll usually pass to the next option.
b. Does it fit MY learning style as the teacher? If it doesn’t resonate with me as the teacher, I’ve learned that I will have a hard time using it to teach our children. Not sure of your learning style? Find out. There are many books out there on the subject. “The Way They Learn” by Cynthia Tobias is my fave. You can even take online quizzes!
c. Am I choosing it out of fear? I’ve been surprised at how a sales pitch can make me feel like I’m doing a disservice to my children by not choosing a particular program. After 14 years of homeschooling, I usually decide to go with my instinct. If I like it, and if it feels do-able, I’ll try it. Fancy-schmancy sales pitches don’t impress me much.
4. Come up with a schedule. I wrote about this at length in my book, “The Busy Homeschool Mom’s Guide to Daylight.” I’m a huge fan of scheduling—to a point. When it rules your life, it’s not good for you. The Bible teaches us about moderation and the power of not being “mastered” by anything. Including a schedule. Here’s our schedule from a few years ago. Read the post for more information:
5. Organize your school space. You don’t need a “school room” to homeschool. All you need is a shelf. It’s true! I’ve done it every which way—some years we’ve had more space than others; so I’m here to bust the myth that you can’t homeschool without a schoolroom. Right now, we have a schoolroom; and it’s great. I store our books up there. We use it for study and teaching space. But more often than not, it’s the room that gets all the junk we don’t want to deal with. True story. Use what you have and be happy. It’s enough.
TRY THIS:
Get clear containers for things like scissors and crayons. Label them. (I LOVE these.) Your storage containers don’t always need lids. In fact, I like it better without lids these days. Easier. We just keep them on a shelf for easy access.
Create a space for each child on your bookshelf. It doesn’t have to be the whole shelf! A part of a shelf will do. Be creative. Less, as it turns out, really is more.
CHEAP WHITEBOARD IDEA:
Shower board. Ask your husband to take you on a date and pick out some white shower board. Home Depot, etc. They all have it. Easy cleanup, and you can use whiteboard markers with it. We have used shower boards for years instead of expensive, “official” whiteboards.
Have you read my post about scheduling?
Next time: Notebooking
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