Happy New Year! We’ve been homeschooling for six months now and everyone has asked me how it’s going! You may be completely shocked to hear this because I know I am… but I LOVE it. Oh, I love it for so many reasons! We already have a lot homeschool goals for this semester and year!
What Do I Love About Homeschooling?
I thought that surely all of this time with my kids was going to make me lose my mind. Summers off always felt so overwhelming. I constantly listened to everyone fight and complain that they were bored if we weren’t having a three-ring circus. Homeschooling is different, though. Having a purpose makes the idle chaos disappear.
The bonding that happens during lessons feels like something I’ve missed out on for years. I ask a question, occasionally get a silly answer, and a tickle-fight can ensue. You’ll sure remember what six times six is now, haha! It’s just so much more intimate than I imagined and that’s definitely a favorite aspect for me.
I also appreciate the hands-on approach to their learning experience. I know what they’re studying and I can tailor a lesson to their particular learning style. My son is somehow anti-reading and while I can’t relate to that, I can relate to not wanting to read what someone tells me I have to read. So, my husband and I thumbed through different collections of books to try to appeal to his interests and find something that he would be excited to read. Then, we used website like Teachers Pay Teachers to find worksheets to go with it. I appreciate the ability to make customized lesson plans specifically for my children.
My son working on his Geckobot for STEM learning!
Socializing
Public school, in our experience, consists of a lot of socializing. Every day you see and talk to your friends, whether it’s at recess, lunch, lining up for the bus, or in the middle of class when you’re really not supposed to. Since our core lessons are done at home together, it’s true that we are not socializing in person with people outside of your family every single day. Luckily, technology is pretty advanced in this day and age and my kids have texts, phone calls, and play video games with their friends every day.
We are involved in organized sports as well, so several times a week we attend practices where they get to play with their friends. My husband is actually one of the coaches for the homeschool archery team in our area! I will admit that joining sports is way more challenging as a homeschooler. Public school often has a budget for their teams but there are a lot of finicky rules that allow them to turn homeschoolers away in some situations. Some sports for older kids are governed by an athletic association here, which allows homeschoolers to play. Younger children’s sports are left up to the individual school’s discretion and we have already been told “no” here in our new school district. It’s something to work on but until then, county sports will do!
My absolute favorite thing we do to keep social is our local homeschoolers social group! There are many small groups that meet regularly, like the ones for each age group. Teenagers meet and do charity work as well as fun activities, like the beautiful homecoming dance they had. We had a huge homecoming kickball game and party that everyone loved. We have potluck parties full of games and activities for all of the big holidays. We go on field trips, have play dates, teach electives as a group, and so much more. I genuinely feel like we are not missing out on anything, thanks to this group!
My teenager on her way to the homeschool homecoming dance!
Homeschooling Goals for the Year
My son’s illustration for his science project on the Orca whale!
That’s all I can think of for now but I’m sure I’m missing some and I’ll come up with more as time passes. What does homeschooling look like for you? What kind of goals do you have for your family?
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