Can you relate?
You’re brand new to this whole homeschool idea, and you’re a little bit apprehensive about it, huh? You don’t have huge complaints about public school from when you went to it. It could have been better but it could have been worse. It’s not a terrible option, but you don’t really think it’s the best option. You want the best for your child, and the traditional school methods are a little bit worrisome to you. But on the other hand, you don’t want to make things worse. You don’t really know what you’re doing, never considered yourself ot be a teacher, and wonder if it would end up making things worse. I hear you. Let’s chat about it!
Your thoughts prove that your child won’t be worse off
I love that you're thinking about all of that because it’s proof of the exact opposite thing that you’re worried about! It shows that you want the very best for your child and you don’t make rash decisions. How is it possible to do a disservice to them when you're making decisions based off of what is best for your child? ツ You're willing to do something different and make sacrifices if you know your child will be better off. You're willing to make changes. You pay attention. That is true now and it will be true next year and the year after that. Before you worry that you are going to do a disservice to your child, I need your brain to see how you're never doing a disservice to them by doing what you think is best for them. They are blessed to have you in their corner. Always thinking about them and guiding them with goodness and mercy, just like God does.
Tell me what you’re worried about
What are some things you're worried about? Your child not getting socialized? Do you think you're not going to be able to teach them well? Do you think they will learn more in public school? Let's talk about it!
Fun fact: my husband and I went to high school together. I was in some AP (Advanced Placement) history class, and he was in the regular history class. And we had the same AMAZING teacher. If for some odd reason, you went on a knowledge game show and you had to pick between my husband and I to be your partner, you would 1000% want to pick my husband. He knows SO much more history (and many other things) it’s not even funny. I say this to tell you that, everything doesn’t fall on the teacher being perfect. You could have the best teacher in the world, and there would still be someone bored out of their mind. I find that often times, the things that we think really matter, are a small piece of the puzzle. The perfect teacher or the perfect class IS NOT what makes or breaks your child’s education. Even if you are their primary guide, they will have many teachers throughout their life, each one helping them learn and grow a little bit more.
What if the class size is 25 kids? Just about every class I taught from 1st grade to 7th grade had that or even up to 30. When you do the math for the amount of kids in a classroom dividied by the time they are in the teacher's calssroom, it's like 7 minutes per kid of individual time. Sure there's value with small groups and whole groups, but you can tailor the lessons to fit exactly what your child or children need...and if you do 20 minutes a day, that's double the individual time a child could get in school. ツ And from personal experience....the small group and individual group time was THE MOST valuable. If I could do that most of the day as a teacher, I totally would have.
When you think about public school, what do you picture? The teacher up front and the kids getting a lecture? Yea, me too. Need I say more? If that’s society’s standard on children getting socialized, then the bar’s low. There's so many ways to socialize outside of public school...just ask my 1 year old that somehow got the social bug and forces me out of my shell on the daily. ツ
What else is on your mind that you’re worried about? I want to know!
Maybe they won't be worse off, and instead they'll love you more
I looked up the definition of hinder, and it means to create difficulties for something. This is funny to me because I created difficulties for my students probably every day, LOL. I remember one time, I actually taught a class full of 7th graders the WRONG thing. I mean I don't think I could have created a topic any more difficult or confusing for those poor kids. When they went to take the test they were probably trying to think through answering it the 1st way I taught them or the 2nd way I taught them…..lol. The next day, I apologized and told them how to do it correctly. They forgave me (pretty cool for a class of 7th graders), we had a good laugh over it, and they I actually think they respected and trusted me more. I mean when someone you look up to is willing to admit they are wrong, don’t we just love and respect them more? I loved them more for that, and they loved me more for my humanness. Moral of the story - as a parent, you’re going to create difficulties for your child at times (whether you mean to or not) regardless of the decisions you make. Are you even a parent if you don’t....ツ If you choose to try and homeschool, isn’t it possible that it will be an upgrade for them? Isn't it also possible that if it doesn’t work out, they won't be worse off? And instead they could learn valuable life lessons? It’s possible they will see your good intentions and love you even more for it.
Much love and I'm rooting for you!
Brittany ♡
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