I have a confession to make, when I first started homeschooling I had this picture in my head of how our days would go. I’d wake up early in the morning, have time to read my bible and exercise, cook a nutritious breakfast, wake up my happy kids, and the day would begin. Then we would start school, and we’d read books, do experiments, have long discussions over lunch etc. etc. At the end of the day, the boys would help me clean up, and then I would cook dinner and straighten up the house while I waited for my husband to get home from work…sounds nice doesn’t it? Well, I can tell you, my reality is NOTHING like what I pictured in my head, and that’s completely okay!
Most days, I am up by 6:30 and I do get my Bible time in, although I don’t always get to exercise. My goal is to start school by 9:30, but some days we don’t start until 10:00. Breakfast? Some days I make waffles and muffins, others, we all eat Pop-Tarts. Oh, and my happy, smiling children? Well, some days they ARE happy, but some days, they just aren’t. The truth is, I think my kids may have a general school allergy, but they still like homeschooling better than regular school (although this may be because at home, they don’t have to get out of their pajamas!)
Some days, we have long, incredible discussions about history or science, so much so that other subjects may get pushed back to another day. That’s fine, because I am all about a teachable moment, and the beauty of homeschool is, you can adjust your schedule to fit YOUR needs right at that moment!! Some days we also do amazing experiments, but other days the experiments don’t work the way they’re supposed to. That’s alright though, we look at it as an opportunity to try and figure out what went wrong, which can often be as big a learning opportunity as the original experiment! As for the clean house, and dinner on the table, well let’s just say, that’s a topic for another blog post!
The one thing I have learned, which I think is most important, is that FLEXIBLITY is key to a successful day. Things may not always go as planned, but that’s not the end of the world! Learning to “roll with the punches” is an important life skill after all, isn’t it?? What does a day in your homeschool life look like?
By Brandy Brockhausen, FPEA Relationship Ambassador. Brandy has been a homeschooling mom of two boys for three years now. Her boys are currently in 5th and 8th grades. Prior to homeschooling she taught middle school for 11 years.
I just started homeschooling my 12 yr old son, and I really could use some support. I work and my husband is disabled, so its gonna be challenging, so far he is doing good, but It just dont feel right to me, but it was either this or alternative school, the school was really uncompassionate about what was going on with my son so he was suspended recommending expulsion, so we withdrew him. I am looking for some parents to hook up with and to get some support, we feel pretty alone in all this,
sincerely Rhonda Carpenter