Homeschool Part 1

Gosh.  I've wanted to write about homeschooling for so long, but it just seemed so overwhelming! Anyway, since we are a couple months into our homeschool adventure, I figured I would give it a try.

Seriously, WHY??  That is the question I got all of the time as I was preparing to pull Isla out of school.  I really just felt like sending Isla to Kinderarten was comparable to sending her to a daycare. She was in the top reading group, almost meeting her first grade reading goal by Thanksgiving.  There was ZERO differentiation during math time and the class was very moving very slowly through the math cirriculum.  I mean, printing numbers in Kindergarten?!  Ugh.  I know not every child gets a preschool experience, but I just assumed that is something kids came into school knowing.  Counting items?  Again, what?!  They were spending weeks on this.  Isla was constantly complaining of being bored and wondering why they were doing baby work.  It's very frustrating when you know your child wants to learn more, but isn't getting her needs met.  I figured pulling her out certainly couldn't hurt!  I was already working with her during the week on math and reading (at Isla's request), so why not just extend the length of time we worked together??

This sounds like a terrible idea.  She needs socialization!  Oh God.  I seriously want to throw up anytime someone uses that as an excuse against homeschooling.  Yes, socialization is important.  But think about it.  In the real world, you are never going to be surrounded entirely by people your own age.  The classroom is not really setting our kids up for the real world.  I want my kids out in the world exploring.  Working with homeschooling groups with kiddos of all ages.  I want them in the community, volunteering their time and experiencing firsthand what exactly the real world is!  There is only so much you can learn within the walls of your classroom.  Now, being a former teacher, I'm in no way trying to bash teaching and traditional schools...I just don't think they are a good fit for everyone.  Anyway, so while we haven't joined a homeschool group yet, Isla is in dance classes on Monday and Saturday, in a gym glass on Wednesday, we attend open gym on Fridays, and we have a play date usually once a week, if not more.  BUT I'm honestly still worried about Isla developing friendships.  She has friends that we see often, but she hasn't made any new friends in any of the classes she takes.  She does interact with everyone and seems very happy though.  Maybe that is normal for this age?  I don't know.  I have to keep reminding myself that even surrounded by 20 kids in a classroom, you can still feel lonely and make no connections with others.  School doesn't directly teach kids how to socialize.  I didn't make any actual friends until 6th grade, and those friends dumped me by 7th grade anyway.  It wasn't until sophomore year that I actually developed meaningful relationships with friends, and I turned out just fine.  But I know exactly how it feels to be alone while surrounded by so many people.  School never taught me how to socialize, and my anxiety became worse and worse as the years went on, mainly because I hated not knowing how to make friends and I hated always feeling left out.  So just because your child is in school, doesn't mean they are becoming well socialized.

Anyway, so while we certainly aren't isolated here by any means, I worry about Isla connecting with other kids.  I also worry a lot about Brevin.  His pediatrician and speech therapist are both pretty sure he is selectively mute (we are in the process of finding a therapist for an eval).  Homeschool can be both a pro and a con for him.  He is much more confident when he is with Isla, however, if he never leaves his comfort zone, how will he grow?!  It stresses me out thinking about it.


Are you crazy?!  You will never escape your kids!  Ha!  Yes!  I think you sort of have to be a bit insane to decide to homeschool :)  I have no "me" time anymore.  The house gets trashed 10 times as fast as it used to because the kids are ALWAYS home.  I will admit it definitely gets frustrating, but I constantly remind myself how blessed I am to have the opportunity to stay at home with my kids and spend so much time with them!  My homeschooling vision includes teaching my kids real life school (that I would first need to teach myself) such as cooking, gardening, sewing etc.  Sometimes I think school focuses on a lot of things that you really don't NEED to know in the long run. I am hoping that homeschooling my kids will allow them to learn a wider variety of skills, including all of the useful life skills that I wish someone would have taught me!! :)

Currently I'm all over the place with my thoughts on homeschooling.  It's a love/hate relationship.  I love having my kids home with me and being in control of what they learn.  But it's so freaking hard and time consuming.  I feel like I"m half-assing it most days, and I feel like I can barely keep my head above water.  I struggle with the lack of connections my kids are making, however it's partly my fault because I haven't done much research on finding a homeschool group to join.  I love that we have the freedom to plan our days without worrying about traditional school hours. If we miss a day, we can make up the time.  Isla loves homeschool and wants to continue it next year.  My friend Jeannie will be homeschooling her kiddos next fall (her kids are the same ages as mine) so I think having the support of another homeschooling mom will make things easier for me.  However, having an infant at the start of the next school year will be challenging.  I feel like something is holding me back from going full force with homeschooling, but I can't really figure it out.  I'm sure it has something to do with the possibility that I could be ruining my child's education and opportunity to be "normal", but maybe it's just the pregnancy hormones ;)

So as of now, next year is really up in the air.  I've been researching the Catholic and Montessori schools in the area, but financially that would be really tricky to swing.  There are talks about opening an Albert Einstein Academy Charter school in Dupage County, and the current plan is a 2016 start date.  If this happens, I will strongly consider going that route.  I wouldn't be opposed sending her back to public school either.  After all, it is right down the street and that's the reason we bought this house in the first place!  I will have to see how the rest of this year plays out before I make up my mind.

I will post more soon about our schedule, curriculum, and homeschool classroom!