The First Week Is In The Can

The Home Schooling Mothers Mantra

I am a home schooling mom of 3 little girls, and thank God the first week of school is over! And everyone is still alive and well! Hooray!

I love being my kids' teacher; it’s rewarding to see the light go on in those eager eyes when they work through a problem, wonderful to see their reading improve, and a relief as I watch them  progress in math. But I tell ya what, there were days in this shortened school week that left me in a semi-comatose state, with a “Do Not Resuscitate” sign pinned to my forehead. 

It was hard to get the ‘ol mojo going before the first day of class. Seemed like summer was only two weeks long and by Labor Day I felt like I had already been teaching for months. I can’t be burned out in week one? But who am I kidding, this really isn’t burn out, it’s the same dilemma I incur each and every year since husband and I decided to homeschool -doubt.
I wonder if I’m doing right by my kids, I question my ability to teach them, wonder if they are on par with other students their ages. Dear husband has no doubts that I’m doing a good job (he’s a keeper), I on the other hand am full of immense misgivings in an atmosphere that says teaching is done by trained professionals, not parents.

But who knows my kids better than I do? We are practically joined at the hip, where I go they go; and I can tell when they need to be pushed, or when I need to back off. We’ve grown so accustomed to handing our kids off for 8 hours a day, that when a parent comes along and says, “Hey, I’m going to do this myself,” there is instant recoil by some who have it engrained in their minds that only those with degrees can be good teachers. But that isn’t the way things were always done. Parents have schooled their kids at home for centuries, or sent them to tiny one room school houses with teachers approved and paid for by the community. These teachers worked for the parents, who chose what kind of curriculum they wanted for their children.

Today, curriculum is decided by faceless bureaucrats in the far off land of Washington D.C., where a “one size fits all” approach is how things are done today; regardless of how effective it is for the kids. “Get those test scores up,” they say “And daddy’ll send you lots of money.” It’s like being a kept woman, as long as you put out, your sugar daddy will keep paying the bills.

But not every kid responds the same way to the same teaching techniques. I’ve learned this with my very own kids. While one child reads without fear, the other one continually frets about the tiniest error. With her I have to push a bit, encourage her a little more, and let her know that she has come leaps and bounds since that first day of phonics. The other one will read until she falls asleep, and fearlessly goes after words she has never even read before. Both are smart and funny, with their own styles of learning, and if I were to treat them the same one would thrive while the other one would shrivel into a ball and retreat within herself, never to be seen again.

But don’t get me wrong, I don’t believe that public schools are horrible gulags that churn out mind numbed zombies. I know there are plenty of good ones with good teachers to go along with them. But wouldn’t it be nice if each teacher could design his or her class to fit the students in them, and not be limited by state or federal regulations? Wouldn’t he or she know what was best for the kids in their class? Aren’t the people who are in direct contact with the students far more knowledgeable about what kinds of books would benefit their class, far more than bureaucrat #228 in the Department of Education hundreds of miles away?

Parents aren’t encouraged to, if it is at all possible, to take educational matters into their own hands; in fact we are discouraged. We are laughed at by some, who think we belong to some kooky Christian cult; looked at suspiciously by others who wonder if our children will be weirdoes, unable to talk to their peers. It’s understandable why a parent would be filled with doubt and anxiety when some believe their choice to home school could be detrimental to their children.

If you put your kids in public school, I’ve got no beef with that. I think matters of education should be up to each and every parent, families shouldn’t be locked into a school district simply because they live in a certain neighborhood. The choices should be wide opened so that parents can decide to send their little munchkins to the public school in their area, or one several miles away; or if you are inclined, make the choice to do it right in your own living room. Maybe a voucher system is the way to go, so we can take our tax dollars and use them in ways that best suit our own children’s needs. Why not?

I will get through this usual period of doubt that accompanies each and every school year. I’ll watch other kids get on and off the school bus, sometimes thinking, “Boy, I could have all this time to myself if I sent my kiddos to school.” But I would miss this too much; miss the frustration, the work, but especially the frequent joy I feel when we’re curled up on the couch reading about the kings and queens of Europe. I love my 3 little girlies; love how close we have become, even though school sometimes gets frustrating. I love learning right along with them, but more importantly I love learning about them, and getting a glimpse of the women they will eventually become.

Alice from The Block