Adventure: Homeschool | A Letter To My Future Self on The Eve of Our First Day of Homeschool8/23/2015 I’m a planner that likes to have even a vague idea of how things are going to transpire. I actually enjoy this process of laying everything out in front of my face and seeing all the pieces come together to form one big picture. But our first day of homeschool is tomorrow and despite my best efforts, I’m already seeing those pieces fall apart. We had planned to begin a very loose, eclectic preschool curriculum with our three (and-a-half) year-old that included a short, focused time of “school” each day, more intentional discussions during “field trips,” and the addition of a few more workbook pages. I created a loosely-structured outline for our year using Unit Themes and got really excited about arts and crafts. But through my planning I started to realize that my daughter already knew most of the things in the curriculum. We’ve had shapes, colors, numbers, letters, and letter sounds down for nearly two years now. What we needed was more Kindergarten curriculum mixed in. Cue scramble. Cue me staying up late at night re-working spread sheets to include more challenging activities. Cue the doubts and fears creeping in… All around me, parents were sending their children off to school, and I was using every last second of my final week of summer with the kids to ensure our new routine would be a success- that I wouldn’t be a complete failure as a homeschool mom on our very first day. And here’s what I’ve realized:
Dear Future Self,
Hey there, tired lady. You’re looking good! But I bet you’re not feeling so great, are you? Tired? Feeling a little tattered and unappreciated and worn thin? Wondering if it’ll ever click for the kids? Afraid that you’re doing more harm than good? As I write this, there’s a sleeping little girl upstairs that wants to read and write so badly. My guess is that someday very soon, she’ll be able to do just that. And that sleepy boy? He’ll learn his alphabet and shapes and colors. Now, I don’t know what you’re facing right now, but I do know this: you chose this lifestyle for very good reasons. You know your kids better than anyone in the world. You know how they learn, you know what sets them up for failure, and you know just how to pick them up again when they fall, and set them back on the right path. No one is more equipped to do this than you. I also want to remind you that even now, at this young age, your kids have caring, free-spirited, loving hearts. They are curious about the world around them and they’ve never met a stranger. They love learning and they love people. It’s a winning combination that requires strong character and integrity. And where do you think they might have learned something so delicately taught? They’re going to be fine… And you’re going to be fine… Just keep going…
1 Comment
8/27/2015 05:21:45 am
Absolutely love this, and excited to see more posts about your homeschooling adventures. Your photos, words and actions really inspire me.
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AuthorMy name is Chelsea. Redeemed. Wife. Mommy. Photographer. Light Chaser. I hope you find light here too. Archives
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