Tuesday, September 7, 2010

The Joys of Homeschooling

Words cannot express how thankful I am to be a homeschool mom.  I realize that we are still in somewhat of the honeymoon stage…we’ve only been going for three weeks.  But, for Grace, there is NO doubt in our minds that we have made the right decision to keep her home with me.

Every morning she wakes up and eagerly asks what we will learn today.  She loves all the attention she is getting during our mornings together. 

Granted, there have been times of stress.  Even tears.  But I use it as a learning opportunity for her.  And me.  When she gets frustrated because she can’t do or understand something, I don’t let her give up.  We just try a different approach and she eventually learns that she CAN learn.  And she learns perseverance.  Then we take a break and do crafts.  Ha!

For Grace, this is a challenging curriculum.  I’m having to read and research different ways to teach some of the phonetic activities.  But, despite the fact that she struggles at times, she really wants to learn and is so excited when things start to connect in her brain. 

Today was so sweet.  When we finished our daily lessons, I went in the kitchen to make lunch.  I heard her in the school room pretending to teach a phonics lesson to another student.  She went through the whole lesson and all the activities we did today, pretending to be the teacher.  She even gave her imaginary student stickers and lots of verbal encouragement, “Great job, sweetie!”, etc.  My heart just melted and I knew today that we made the right decision for her.

I can only pray that she will continue to grow spiritually, emotionally, and intellectually.  Being her teacher is a great responsibility that I take very seriously.  It’s also a great joy!  All those months of agonizing over our decision of the direction we wanted to go with her education have been put to rest. 

5 comments:

cal+claire said...

that sounds amazing! i'm glad that homeschooling has become such a joy! it really encourages me to see it be sweet and successful, i know you are a fabulous teacher

Anonymous said...

I just started homeschooling my 5-year-old son and would love to trade ideas and tips if that is something you would be interested in. My email is meghanbealacocella@gmail.com I hope to hear from you. It's been great so far, but also feels a bit lonely as I watch all my friends send their children off to school and get to enjoy some free time!

In Everything said...

WOW!! So awesome that you've already seen fruit and have enjoyed it b/c those first few weeks of getting into the routine can be tough!!

I giggled at my daughter last week. She was confused why 2nd grade was soo much easier than 1st!! I totally think it was b/c we were all adjusting to our homeschooling routine! She now knows the expectations and requirements and knows she can do it!!

Oh, and to answer your anonymous comment.... I have found that a "local" homeschooling group can be soo encouraging!! I joined one to do field trips with and have been blessed by the friendships made with other homeschooling moms... some have become sweet sisters in Christ and some of the loneliness has passed!!

Anonymous said...

I am so proud of you! I am so impressed everyday when I come home and Grace has learned several new things each day. Thank you for being such a good teacher to our daughter!

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