When our oldest FindingOurWay was in first grade, I took on more work than I should have for a few months. I was busy and while the kids were supervised and the work got done, schooling suffered. I felt sure that I'd failed her. I was amazed at the end of the few months that she seemed to have grown and learned more when I left her to explore what she wanted rather than forcing a curriclum on her.
More recently, something similar happened when I was pregnant with our youngest. The FindingOurWays have access to lots of learning resources but we were in survival mode. I am again amazed at what my kids learned without me directing them through workbook pages. My 5 year old has been pretty much teaching herself to read and my 8 year old became really interested in her history book. They both recently decided they were going to write books. My eight year old wrote a book of poetry for a friend and my 5 year old is writing a story for her sister. These were their ideas and good ones they were!
So, if my kids were doing a great job on their own, why am I so concerned about them being on grade level and pushing them? I guess I worry about what would happen if we were unable to homeschool them in the future. We are fully committed to homeschooling our children. We have agreed that sacrifices will probably have to be made in the future to continue. Most obstacles can be overcome but what would happen if one of us died and the other needed to work outside of them home?
Do you stress about your kids learning at or above grade level? Or do you just let what happens happen? Do you have structure or just go with the child's interests?
Posts
Woo hoo, after 2 weeks, my computer's back online!
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you are blogging again. I know life happens, and blogging isn't always the priority, but it's nice to have you writing again.
When I homeschooled, I didn't worry much about grade level. I agreed with the adage that teaching isn't the filling of a bucket, but rather the lighting of a fire. So I always worried about motivation! If my kids were motivated, they learned with very little actual teaching on my part. If they weren't motivated, then my teaching seemed useless. At times like that I "made" them do their work though, because it seemed a good opportunity for them to learn self-discipline, and that sometimes things have to be done whether we feel like it or not. I think though, homeschooling is always a challenge.
You know, I think that one of the great things about homeschooling is that you don't "have" to worry about grade levels. You can teach at your own pace and at what is appropriate developmentally for your own child (something that sometimes - often? - doesn't happen in public/private schools. And since we share in a profession, you know I can say that with a bit of a grimace and such)
ReplyDeleteThe only thing I would worry about curriculum-wise, is if your state requires homeschooled kids to take state tests. I know my state does and at that point, I would just check to make sure you are meeting those goals so that your girls won't be behind on that level.
Otherwise....take it as it comes. And enjoy the freedom!
Sorry, it's taking me so long to respond. I agreee that the great thing about homeschooling is not worrying about grade level. The only thing I really worry about is their self esteem should we end up having to put them back in school if one of us were no longer able to stay at home.
ReplyDelete