Page 1 Page 2 Page 4 Page 5 Orsig Home Dear Christine-- In your experiences, have you found ways of coping with frustration with a lack of time to accomplish what you would like to do? For example, my children use math workbooks, which I think is fine as a means of practicing math skills, but I know that there are more creative ways of really learning math. I have the Family Math books and others that have games and challenging questions in more interesting formats, but I can't always manage to actually USE them! With three children (including a preschooler) and a busy schedule, I find it hard to achieve my ideal vision of homeschooling. It takes so much more time and effort to carry out the more innovative methods of learning, to gather the supplies and set up the science experiments and big messy art projects. I would describe our family as eclectic homeschoolers with leanings toward unschooling and I certainly do not feel like I have to initiate everything, but I do feel stress at times when I can't manage to follow through on creative ideas. For the most part, I trust that my children are learning a great deal through their own explorations and activities; But I do hate it when I let good ideas slip by untried. Do you have any thoughts about the struggle to be organized? :) Thanks, Karen Karen and all, You have described my early homeschooling experiences to a �T.� With a brand-new degree in teaching from a college that prides itself on integrated, creative, expressive methods I had ideas galore. Only problem was, I had a houseful of kids who just wanted to do what they wanted to do. It finally dawned on me that they were doing exactly what they needed to be doing�learning about what they were interested in. And what they were interested in varied considerably from child to child as do their learning styles, levels of development and need for my input. The fact of the matter is that I was trying to do all that really creative stuff for me�I thought it was cool and fun and interesting. My kids wanted to do real life stuff that had value for them and for the family. When it comes to math they want �just the facts� or, at the most, a few fun games we can all play to make it more fun or something integrated into their real life experience (budgeting, sewing, grocery shopping, building things, figuring out paint needs, etc...). So, I decided to take my cues from them. We developed a few routines - - I read aloud a couple of time a day (slipping in stuff I thought would intrigue them or which I thought was essential), supported them in their endeavors, and made suggestions for new areas to explore. I became head cheerleader, researcher, chief driver and chef, checkwriter and organizer. I�m a stickler for updating our day planner�it�s my brain most days! My best advice is to look at what you are doing and ask yourself these questions: 1. Who am I trying to do this for? 2. Does that person want to do it in this way? 3. Are they ok doing it their way? 4. Is it a necessary thing for them to learn? 5. Could it be done more simply or not done at all? Then think for a few minutes about that �ideal vision� of homeschooling. Is it realistic for your life? Can you pare it down to a simpler vision? Is it even YOUR vision or did you develop it based on someone else�s idealized writings about their fairly �perfect� homeschooling life? I�m sure you all know there is no perfect way to homeschool. What is best for your family won�t look like anyone else�s best. And you won�t always be at your best. Some days, some weeks, even some years will be better than others. Your kids will learn in fits and starts and, as you go through the years, you will begin to recognize those patterns and to understand that even during the times when it seems as if nothing important is happening, something wonderful is percolating under the surface and just needs a bit of time to come to life. Take care, Christine |
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