What I Wish I Knew When We Started Homeschool

Unfortunately, I am stubborn and even if someone told me all of this, I probably wouldn't have listened.  I needed to learn it the hard way.  Don't be like me!  lol.

1.  Be Flexible

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I am not flexible by nature.  All of you who know me know this is true.  If something isn't working - whether it's curriculum, the room we are doing school in, the time of day we are doing school, or anything else - I need to have a flexible state of mind so I can change something.  Fortunately, my heart is open and God has used homeschool to make me more flexible.  I am willing to change curriculum, even if it's halfway through the school year and we lose time.  I am willing to let Kara do school after I have gone to sleep for the night.  I am willing to leave school books all over the house because Kara likes to do certain subjects in certain rooms.  Life is much better this way.  It honestly makes me squirm, but it's not all about me!


2.  No Regrets

Just like anything while parenting, all you can do is go from here.  If you wish you had done things differently, know that it's not too late and you can make good changes now.  I am a person whose brain is full of loud regrets, homeschool included.  Here's the thing I have control over - where we go from here.  Kara and I are both goal oriented, so I set some goals and set up steps to reach them.  As Kara gets older, I involve her in setting up those steps - that always goes over well.


3.  Go at the Child's Pace

It is true we skipped first grade when we first started homeschool, but I feel like we may have been able to move at a faster pace than we did.  It's okay.  Number two is no regrets.  I choose not to look back with disappointment in myself.  Some other subjects were harder for Kara and we really took our time.  Whenever I rush her, it does not go well.  Bottom line, we are not in a race.  Set them up for success.


4.  History and Science Don't Need to be Done Every Year

This may be controversial, but hear me out.  I read somewhere that elementary school and middle school are really just preparing your student for the four years of high school.  That blew my mind.  Because it's absolutely true.  I have to be honest with you, we were very light on History for several years in a row.  We had no interest in it and Kara was extremely interested in Science, so I either didn't make her do History or we read all the American Girl books for American History.  History was light because Science was so heavy for us.  And I am glad I made that decision.  We are bumping up history now as we finish middle school (we are doing two history curriculums this year), and she hasn't missed anything.  I know a family who loves History.  My advice to them is look up fun Science experiments on Pinterest and keep it light.  Spend extra time with History while they love it.


5.  Work Hard To Figure Out How Your Student Learns

If your child is an auditory learner, read aloud a bunch or get audio books.  If your child is a tactile learner, use legos like you've never used them before.  If your child is artistic, let them take notes with pictures instead of words.  This is hard for us to do as parents.  We want to teach them the way WE learn to make sure they get it.  Trust me, this will lead to frustration and wasted time.


6.  Special Circumstances

Of course, special needs requires its own post, but here I am addressing special circumstances.  For example, Kara hates writing.  Especially if it's with a pencil, on paper, at a desk.  I think it has to do with how it feels when the pencil is scratching the paper.  Yes, she can (I'm thinking about the ACT/SAT test), but if she doesn't have to, I don't make her.  She can either do school on the computer, or on white board tablets.  I have found that white board tablets and a fine tipped dry erase marker go over much better in our house.  Each problem in Algebra 2 requires an entire board (or 2 boards!), so we keep several around during our math lesson.  I also don't require her to sit up straight at a desk.  This drives me crazy, but makes all the difference for Kara.


7.  You Can Do It

So many parents say they could never homeschool.  Let me encourage you, no one knows your child like you do.  As parents, we teach our kids from the moment they're born.  Between learning to talk, learning their colors, learning to walk, potty training, learning to clean up, chores, etc, you teach them all the time.  For some perspective, preschool is colors and letters.  I don't know about you, but I taught Kara those when she was 18 months old.  If you just keep going from there, that's school!  Letter sounds turns into diphthongs turns into words.  Teaching your kids numbers and counting when they're little guys turns into addition turns into multiplication turns into fractions.  You can do it.  You already are doing it!

8.  Keep God Involved

Last, but not least, let God lead every step.  I think most parents pray a lot about their children's education, but I have to at least say it.  Keeping God central, with daily Bible studies, is key.  "Train up a child in the way he should go; even when he is old he will not depart from it."  Proverbs 22:6.  Partnering with God in homeschool ensures success.  Because God never sets you up for failure.

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