Homeschooling. It isn't exactly what I expected to be doing with my days, but here I am about to embark on the journey of educating my daughter at home. You are probably thinking the same things I am so before we go any further, let's throw all the questions and judgements out there so we get this part out of the way:
What in the world are you thinking?! You must be crazy! The best place for children is in school. Homeschooling is a weird hippie thing to do. Kids need to be with other kids. How will your daughter ever learn social skills? Do you know enough to teach your daughter at home? You have two other kids to take care of, have you thought of that? How will you keep sane? Won't your daughter be lonely? The school is responsible for meeting your child's needs. Why would you do this?
Have I missed anything? I am sure I have, but this at least gets us started with the thoughts floating through my mind as I have made this decision.
And speaking of making the decision, this decision was not made lightly. It was made along with the love and support of my husband, family, school teachers, counselors and principals (yes, more than 1 was consulted). It was perhaps one of the most difficult decisions I have ever made.
Oh and yes, it was made with my daughter too. In fact, homeschooling is something we have considered for well over a year. And in the past few weeks it is something my daughter has begged us to do. What makes a six year old beg to be taught at home? Doesn't she want to be in school with friends and having fun? For my daughter the answer is both yes and no. Yes, of course she wants to be with friends. But my daughter has a thirst for knowledge which is almost impossible to fill. Just ask her preschool teachers who at 3 years old told me, "You better watch out with this one, she is going to be like Doogie Howser, practicing medicine by the time she is a teenager!" I would laugh at these comments on the surface, but deep down inside I was terrified. They were seeing what I had known for a while. There is something special about my daughter.
Now of course everyone thinks their child is special and everyone is correct. I guess special isn't the best word. Different. Yes, there is something different about my daughter.
My daughter needs and wants to be learning during almost every waking moment of her day. And her waking hours usually start by 4am and end around 9 or 10pm depending on how stimulated she has been during the day. Don't get me wrong. She also loves to play. And like any kid she also loves tv. But her love of learning outweighs any other activity. Give her a math workbook and a pencil and you won't see her for hours.
This year found my girl at six years old in second grade. Emotionally she belongs in second grade. She gets along well with her peers and has common interests. But academically, she has been struggling. Not struggling to learn, struggling with boredom. We have tried many different things. She is involved in after school activities. She plays challenging games on the computer. We play math and science games with her at home. The school counselor started her with the activities the third grade gifted kids were using. Still, not enough. The school's best suggestion was to give her more work. More work? Punish her for being smart? This didn't feel right to me. Research, meetings, discussions, tears.
And here we are. As I write this, my daughter sits next to me happily playing games about division after a full day of school work. School work we did together at home.
In all my research, I learned that homeschooling is a huge task and can be very intimidating. However I also learned that our school district realized that some kids simply have the need to be taught at home. Therefore, they have implemented a public school homeschooling program to make it a lot easier for parents like me. Parents that think homeschooling may be a good option, but are terrified of it. Parents who are organized enough to run a household, but not to figure out a curriculum. Parents with other kids running around that they need to attend to, but that have spent days, weeks and months worrying about their child in school, struggling for what ever reason to have the education they deserve. Parents like me who said they would never home school because of the lack of socialization.
Finding out about this public school homeschooling option became a game changer for our family. Meetings, discussions and finally relief. Everyone agreed this could be a viable option and we have decided to try it out. With this program, my daughter gets to learn at her own level and at her own pace. The school system is providing an online curriculum supplemented by books, manipulatives, science tools and art supplies. Every week she has an hour "virtual class" run by her teacher. Yes, she has a public school teacher supporting her (and us!) every step of the way. And once a week we will go to a community meeting place for live classes with her peers and activities like gym, music and art. Don't forget about the twice a month field trips as well!
This is all still very new and scary. Everything has happened so quickly and the answers to all the questions, judgements and doubts still remain to be found. For now, I know I feel a peace in my heart about my daughter's education that I haven't felt in a long time. Maybe ever. And I see a change in her today as she has sat exploring numbers, reading to her sisters and participating in an online class. She is happy. She is challenged. And so far, she is fulfilled.
I know this won't be an easy road and that is exactly why I have chosen to write about it. I know there will be good days and bad. Successes and struggles. And I am completely open to the possibility that this experiment may not work. But for now, our table is now a desk.
And so the journey begins.
