Homeschooling with the Faint of Heart

Our move to Texas got delayed which was disappointing, but the real problem was Little Sir was missing school. I could have enrolled him here, but then he’d have a teacher and classmates to meet and friend and then leave. This seemed a lot to ask of Little Sir’s friendly seven-year-old nature.

So, that brought us to an option that I never thought I’d ever consider. In fact, when it had ever been raised I kind of shuddered.

Homeschool.

I have lots of experience working with kids and in education and teaching. I’m qualified. I have also tutored and helped with enough homework to know that I wanted no part of homeschooling. This isn’t to say it isn’t the exact right option for some, but I knew in my soul it was not the right option for me and I would never do it.

Whelp. So much for that.

We’re in week two.

And?

It’s been great. It hasn’t been perfect and this is definitely not for the long term but it’s been fun to tap into those old memory banks and come up with creative ways to teach parts of speech and science (and math, and reading and…). It’s been fun for Austin and I to connect in a different way than usual.

So, here’s what I know for sure about homeschooling:

My son is brilliant. The kid learns fast. I thought I had two weeks of math lessons. I had three days.

I did not miss my calling as a teacher. There was a time when I wanted to teach and occasionally wondered if I should have pursued it. Oy. No. This is so much work. We’ve got the hours each day of schooling, but all the other hours of planning and finding resources (thank you Internet)…

Teachers are amazing. My sister is a teacher and I admire her even more after these past two weeks (and appreciate her help with my lesson plans). As I said, this is a lot of work. I’m enjoying it, but doing this for 30 years or more? With 30 kids or more? And politics of parents and administration on top of it all? Ack. Double oy. And double no.

And the last thing I know for sure, this is a short-term gig. As fun as it is and as good as it’s been, I’m looking forward to going back to helping with homework. Not creating the homework.