As a new homeschooling parent, it is really easy to get overwhelmed by all the information available. There are so many different types of curriculum and opportunities for you and your kids. How do you choose?
It would help if you answered a few questions:
Imagine yourself working on a project. You are really getting into it, and the ideas are coming fast and furious. You are making connections and are really getting excited about what you are learning and what you will be able to share.
And then the bell rings.
I took two years to embrace the idea of homeschooling. It was absolutely not something I saw myself doing, but I felt like I needed to do in the circumstances I was put in. It was scary, and it was taking on a HUGE responsibility! If I screwed up my kids, it was ALL my fault! And it wasn’t just their academics. It was their self-esteem and socialization. It was a tough decision and one of the best ones I made in my life.
This weekend my family and I were able to getaway. We went somewhere where we were able to take long walks and get outside. It was something our thirteen-year-old son needed.
I’m writing this while our nation is starting to open up after the global lockdown due to the virus called COVID 19. We shut down most of our economy for over two months because we were afraid that millions of people would die. We didn’t know much about this virus when we first got into it, except that it targeted mostly older people. So we shut down the entire community, even our schools.
A cartoon and quote that really represent why I do what I do. Click on the picture and see a PREZI I created. NOTE: Do you have a child/student that doesn’t like to write? Prezi is a great resource to inspire a reluctant writer to organize their thoughts. It also allows them to include lots … Read more
My youngest son was not his usual happy, carefree self. I knew something was troubling him. He usually is up early each day and often showered and dressed by 7 am. He was sleeping in until almost noon and had worn the same thing for two days in a row. It was time to talk.
When I started homeschooling almost two decades ago, I did school at home. What I mean by that is I had this nice table that we all sat at and we did a certain subject at a certain time and I had a TON of subjects. I taught my kindergarten sons cursive and Latin, besides all the other subjects… at least for the first month. And then I realized that if I kept up the pace, I was going to totally burn out and my kids were going to hate me and, more importantly, hate learning. I’m hoping that every one that is able to homeschool their kids for the next few weeks doesn’t have as steep a learning curve as I did. I’d like to offer a few suggestions that might make it easier for you and your kids.
When I was working on my teaching credential, I had an assignment in one of the classes that I liked. While I’m sure my colleagues were stumped, I knew what to write. The prompt was, “What would you do if you no longer could give grades? How would you motivate your students?” I had been doing that for years!
Several months ago a friend shared THIS video with me. In it, Megan Macedo shares her story. It inspired me to write and tell my own story. Here is the first installment.
Hi Everyone, Are you looking for ways to help the children in your life build persistence? I’ve been following Big Life Journal for a while and love what they are doing. They have some great resources that can help you introduce the idea of grit to your kids either in your home or classroom. This … Read more