By Janny Jackson
One of the very first things that attracts people to homeschooling is the freedom that is available in it.
You have the freedom to school how you want to. What you want to. Where you want to. With whom you want to. When you want to.
All of these options can lead to homeschooling looking different from one house to the next. For example, one family may take advantage of the local co-op for some subjects. Another family might use some online courses. Another might choose to do a child-led approach. And another might game school. All children are learning, it just looks different in each family.
The danger in flaunting the freedom of homeschool is that parents may misinterpret the freedom available to mean that you don’t have to homeschool if you don’t want to.
Have a headache? Skip a day. Kid have an attitude? We’ll try again tomorrow. Rather go to the playground? Outside play is important too.
There are so many ways one can justify skipping a day of school. But if you hold tight to that mindset, you will continually allow it to happen, and before you know it you’ve only done school a total of seven days out of the month.
The freedom in homeschool is meant to mean that we have the flexibility to tailor our homeschool to our children and our lives.
Homeschool is not just a part of our day. It is meant to be a lifestyle. Homeschool doesn’t just happen at a certain time throughout the day, though there is dedicated time towards specific learning. As homeschool parents we are always looking for opportunities to engage our children’s minds and are able to tailor their education to how they learn.
That being said, life happens, and oftentimes unexpectedly. Doctors appointments pop up, car issues happen, headaches knock us down for a couple hours. With the flexibility of homeschool we have the ability to push our start time for the day back, or omit an elective class for the day and just focus on the main subjects. If we have to leave the house we can take school with us.
If we choose to say “not today” more often than pushing through and sticking with consistency and routine, we are teaching our children these same bad habits that they will carry into their adult lives and jobs. If we show our children that it’s okay not to do something because we don’t feel like it, we are setting them up for failure.
(On a more serious note, not only is there the personal and moral responsibility of having your children’s education in your hands, but also legal duties and ramifications if you live in a state that has mandatory requirements.)
Just like you have to put little children on a schedule, or routine, with meals and naps to maintain security and stability in those early years, we must also do the same in our homeschool. The result? Your children will not push back as much, it is school after all, and they will feel secure in knowing how the day will flow and what is expected of them. We are teaching them responsibility and holding them and ourselves accountable, whether we want to do it or not.
Another aspect of this is over-commitment. Because there are so many opportunities available to homeschoolers a lot of times parents get excited to sign their children up for the next fun class, group or sport, and instead of sitting down with our children and teaching them we end up a chauffeur, always on the go. This can oftentimes lead to burnout and bitterness about having to stick to a certain schedule to be able to cram in all of the things, as well as a lack of connection with our children, which a lot of times is one of the main goals of homeschooling.
Homeschooling is an amazing privilege, but it is not one that should be taken lightly. We are in charge of our children’s education, and we have the ability to shape and lead our children to be successful adults who thrive in an ever changing world. The biggest thing (regarding homeschool) that we should be teaching our children, aside from their studies, is ROUTINE and CONSISTENCY, with flexibility, because life.
This takes years to develop and feel like you have a grip on what works for your family. It doesn’t happen overnight and it isn’t easy to always stick to. But once you’ve found what works for your family you are able to say no easier to things that may disrupt your homeschool, really hone in on the specific way homeschooling works best for your family and dedicate your time, effort, and finances towards that. Then it isn’t overwhelming or a burden, it becomes second nature and routine to your normal daily lives.
Has this happened in your homeschool? I’m guilty! Let me know your thoughts below, and as always, thanks for being here!