And so begins our homeschooling journey….
February 23, 2007
Mark and I have decided to start homeschooling Easton and Elijah. There are many determining factors in the decision, but more than anything I really feel like it is what the Lord is calling me to do, and my husband fully supports the decision. I may be a bit scarce for a bit, while we find our groove, but I covet your prayers and your support…
I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I am scared to death. I have limited my work schedule tremendously and will not be taking near as many orders as before. My children are my number one priority, and this decision was not made lightly.
We just had a family meeting, and they are both excited about the decision. Again, there were many determining factors, which caused us to start sooner than next year, so this has relieved a huge stress for them.
Any tips, suggestions, links, etc would be greatly appreciated- Did I mention I am scared to death :)
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In other words: Play Nice
22 Responses to “And so begins our homeschooling journey….”
I would love to hear from you!
You’re fine. And it will be fine. And you’re about to learn a lot - homeschooling is fun! I’ve added huge amounts of bits of useless knowledge to my brain - like did you know that all zebras have a different pattern of stripes, but when they stand together in a herd, predators can’t tell where one zebra ends and another one begins?
Praying for wisdom and joy for all of you!
I have not doubt you can handle this. I have been reading your blog for awhile now and not only are you an eloquent writer, you have a heart for God. I don’t know if you need anything else…ok…maybe a few other things but I just got this website from another blog I read. http://www.history.com/minisites/diggingforthetruth/
It looked pretty neat? You can do it, I will pray for your strengths to be strengths and your weaknesses to be turned into strengths.
WOohoo!! I know He will help you. Be strong and courageous, do not be afraid, do not be terrfired for He is with you, wherever you may go (paraphrase, Joshua 1:9). He will bless this. If you should need resources I have a ton in the “great links” page on my sidebar. There are so many awesome resources available it can be overwhelming but it is so wonderful to know that He is guiding you in training your children and that He is in complete control. Go you! Your kids will love the time with you as well. :)
I remember when we started home schooling. I was so scared! We home schooled from K-12. You learn as you go.
One of the main things we learned was - don’t run it like a school. You can be more relaxed. Find the hours that work best for you and your children. Find the area of the house that works best for you and your children. And remember, it’s not all book work. They learn new things everyday, in the kitchen, helping you clean, yard work, etc.
We also found the more they read or were read to, the more they learned. When we would go to the library we had biography, science topic, etc. for them to choose books from and then they were able to pick out some just for fun books.
Oh yea, one of the most important things for me was to have my quiet time-prayer time with my Father God before beginning. I could always tell the difference when I missed this special time.
God bless you and your family. It truly is a wonderful adventure.
Awesome news Heather! We homeschool too and it’s been such a blessing for our family. No school politics with either kids or other parents and boy do we all learn!
I’m really happy for you guys~!
Yay! I’ve been lurking here long enough to feel I know you, and I am thrilled for you and for your family. I think you have a home schooler’s heart. I am so thankful that God led us to home school, which we started in 1988 and continue until today! What blessings are in store for your family. It won’t be easy, and you won’t do it perfectly, but I pray it will be as wonderful for you as it has been for us.
Thank you all so much for your kind words! I was expecting “YOURE DOING WHAT?? DONT YOU KNOW HOW MUCH WORK THAT IS! WHAT ABOUT EMMA’S SITUATION!”
I was pleasantly blessed :)
I am concerned about Emma’s hospitalizations (which sometimes can be lengthy- but I also know that we have commited to living our lives as normally as possible for our other children- “what ifs” will be dealt with when they become “what nows”.
We had already decided to start homeschooling next year, but with the FCAT coming, and some thing that happend last week with each child, we decided there really was no reason to wait.
Thank you all again for the support! :)
I hope you share your journey. I’m “scared to death” too with starting Rach on a homeschooling program this Fall. :)
I promise you, you won’t be disappointed. As with any journey, you will find yourself with a major learning curve…at least I did. I have learned more about myself as a person and grown more in so many areas as a result of hsing our kids. I’ll be honest, some days you will love it…your lessons will go just right, your children will have wonderful attitudes and all will be right with the world. Other days you will honestly want to crawl back into bed and wonder why you ever started this crazy journey. The good news is that the good days far outweigh the bad…I promise!
Blessings to you and your family!
Wonderful news for all of you. Here are some good resource links… :)
http://www.webmath.com/
http://www.funbrain.com/
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi
http://www.tapestryofgrace.com/tog_fast/
http://www.hslda.org/Default.asp?bhcp=1
What wonderful news for all of you! Here are some good resource links.
http://www.funbrain.com/
http://www.hsida.org
http://www.tapestryofgrace.com
http://www.webmath.com
http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi
Wow! That’s a big decision. Good luck!
Good for you! This is something I’ve been praying and thinking about for quite sometime myself. I hope I just feel sure about whatever decision I make when the time comes! Do you mind if I ask what made you come to your final decision? I’m always interested in hearing peoples opinions and reasons for home-schooling.
Good luck to you. Remember, all things are possible with God. Let Him lead you.
You can do this! You are their mom for goodness sake :) I know we’ve been programmed since we were in school to think we can’t possibly train our own children in school matters, that’s bunk LOL. Homeschooling is so flexible. If you have a child that needs extra help, no one else needs to know that but you. ( not even the child needs too) That is so cool. In the same respect, a child who can really excel is not held back. You can focus more on their gifts then school could. The best part is you can teach them your values! There are so many types of materials also. Just relax and enjoy yourself. Its not as hard as you think. Colleen ( homeschooled daughter for six years, she’s ten)
I want to cheer you on also in this adventure! You can do it! try not to panic! enjoy your kids and just spend time reading together while you find your feet and figure out what course of study you want to pursue. I love having my kids home with me and learning together. Tho honestly their are lots of hard days too. Lately I have been really inspired by Melissa Wiley’s blogs, Here in the bonny glen and the lilting house. She really has homeschooling as a lifestyle. Go over and visit, she has some really good posts on what she calls “tidal homeschooling”.
Enjoy your kids, I will be thinking of you in the coming weeks.
Will be praying for you, especially that the fear will be taken over by shear joy! Have a blast!
Wow, that’s huge. Good for you. I’m sure you will do great and will find it to be a huge blessing. And if not, it doesn’t have to be forever, you know? I know a lot of people who do it a while, and then do something else, and come back to it, or not. I can’t wait to hear how it goes for you.
Good for you Heather! You are a brave woman, and I know you can do this! When are you starting? Love you, glad we have been chatting more.
Good for you. Homeschooling isn’t for cowards and it is clear you are up to the challenge. I am sure that you will find these to be some of the most cherished days. Enjoy it all!
I was home schooled through grade 8 and then went to public school for high school. Although I personally have decided Public School is right for our family I am a supporter of home schooling. I do want to just make one suggestion. Make sure your kids are involved in activities in the community so they can know children they would be going to public school with. Yes, they will spend much of their time explaining to other kids that they don’t get to do math in their p.j.’s and that there really is no T.V. during class time. But should you ever change your mind and decide, for any reason, that they will be back in the public school system, without a basis of friends they will have a much harder time adjusting and feeling accepted. I do speak from experience here. Also, find a home school club within a distance you are willing to travel. Some of my best friends and best memories growing up came from our home school club meetings and field trips. Good luck and have fun!
I totally didn’t know you were doing this!!!! good for you!