Day 4 of 5 Real Life Homeschool

Welcome to Day 4 of Real Life Home school.  I had so many good intentions of taking my camera along and showing you our typical home school day but this week is turning out to be anything but our normal typical week.

Today I've decided to share about some common conversations I have when people find out I am a SAHM and I home school my children.

So many myths and misconceptions surround homeschooling and it's day to day reality.  Every time the conversations about home educating start there are normally one of four question / statements:

1. Wow you must be patient! or I could NEVER homeschool I'm not patient enough ...
2. Are you going to send them to high school?
3. What about socialization?
4. Are you a qualified teacher?

I don't know when homeschool mothers became super women but I sure do know that it takes a lot of determination some days to keep on keeping on and part of the secret formula is know why you are doing what you are doing.  Today I would like to share a few thoughts on each of these common statements made to home school families.

1. Wow you must be patient! 
Let's look at the definition of the word: Patient - {adjective}being able to accept or tolerate delays, problems, or suffering without becoming annoyed or anxious.

Firstly let me tell you ALL homeschool mothers are human like you and we all have days where we are able to be as patient as Job and other days where you had better hand over the chocolate in order to remain safe.

When your children were babies and they were learning to sit, crawl or walk did you get angry and impatient with your child for not getting it the first time? For most of us the answer to this is an out right NO.  It's much the same most days with homeschooling, it's about coaching and supporting your children on their learning journey.

Patience is not the ability to wait, but the ability to keep a good attitude while waiting. - Joyce Meyer

Patience is all about my attitude towards my family and has nothing to do with my ability or that or my children either.  Yes I have days when I'm impatient (ask my children or my husband!) and I have learned that I need determination more than I need patience to home school.

For more encouragement read

•  5 Common Myths About Homeschooling: Myth #1~ The Patience of Job
• I Can't Homeschool Because I Don't Have the Patience!
• I Can't Homeschool! My Kids Would Drive Me Nuts!
• I’m Not Patient Enough to Homeschool
• “I Can’t Homeschool Because I’m Not Patient Enough”
• I Can’t Homeschool, Because I Don’t Have the Patience

2. Are you going to send them to high school?
No, we will keep homeschooling.  I'm by no means an expert in every field but I do know where to get the information if we need it. If I can't teach it and together we can't figure it out then I will find someone who can teach it and help us.  The high school years are a great opportunity to learn along side my students and show them that learning never ends and that you can learn anything you want to.

Here are a few of the posts I've written about homeschooling in high school:

• Nurturing Independence in High School
• HELP! How am I going to teach ... ?
• The Art of Language in High School
• A little Word on Homeschool Record Keeping
• Science in High School
• Writing and Composition in High School 

3. What about socialization?
This is the one question that often is asked of home school families.  It's one that gets a lot of attention and one that people become very heated over. I have written a more in-depth post about it before but here are a few key things to consider.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

• Why is it important to me that my child learn the social culture of school ?
• What is the social culture that school is dominated by ? 
• Is this something I want for my child ? If so then why ?
• What does the word of God have to say about this?

Three scriptures that come to mind are:

• Bad company corrupts good character (1 Corinthians 15:33)
• Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm. (Proverbs 13:20)
• Make no friendships with a man given to anger, and with a wrathful man do not associate, Lest you learn his ways and get yourself into a snare.(Proverbs 22: 24-25)

I highly recommend Sally and Clay Clarkson's book: Educating the WholeHearted child.  Clay has a fantastic comparison chart of socialization in the school setting versus socialization in the home school environment.  This chart is ultimately the thing that settled my nerves and made me happy and comfortable with the whole home school and socialization issue.

Articles of interest:

• Socialization: Homeschooling vs. Schools
• Homeschooling and the Myth of Socialisation 
• What About Socialization? by Homeschool.com
• Socialization and Homeschooling
• Addressing Home school Socialization
• Paula's Archive's on Socialisation 9 great articles for you.

4. Are you a qualified teacher?
 That depends on your point of view.  In essence I'm not a qualified school teacher but I am a homeschooling mother with 17 years of hands on experience including graduating two students.  In practice you do not need to go to a college in order to home educate your children in Australia (different countries/states have different requirements be sure to find out what yours is before you begin).

You do however need a determined attitude and be prepared to research and look for opportunities to educate your children well.

• The Myth of Teacher Qualifications 
• Homeschooling Q & A Part 2: “Am I Qualified to Teach My Child?”
• Are you qualified?
• I Can’t Homeschool Because I don't have a degree!

Homeschooling is one of the most rewarding things I have done.  I have seen most of my children's firsts and enjoyed their triumphs when they succeed.  I have also cried and struggled but it's been worth every minute.  We have many years of memories together and many stories to tell.  Whenever I am in need of a little encouragement I read this beautiful letter written by Erica called: Candid Conversation with God.

May your homeschool journey be one filled with many days of joy.
Blessings
Chareen

Other posts in this series

• Day 1 of our Real Life Homeschool
• Day 2 of Real Life Homeschool and a word about schedules. 
• Day 3 of 5 Real Life Homeschool and a word about Homeschool Support 

Here are 10 new Homeschool bloggers from the Schoolhouse Review Crew to meet.

1. Life at Rossmont
2. A Stable Beginning
3. Happy Little Homemaker
4. Joyful Hearts and Faces
5. Day by Day in Our World
6. Mama's Coffee Shop
7. Delightful Learning
8. Double O Farms
9. Tales of a Homeschool Family
10. Home Sweet Life
11. A Rup Life

Day 3 of 5 Real Life Homeschool and a word about Homeschool Support

It's the middle of the week and already it's feeling like a long one. The weather is changing and each day feels colder than the last.  It's been one of *t*h*o*s*e* weeks where I'd rather be curled up on the couch with a good book, hot cup of tea and a warm blanket than doing life.

To be honest with you I don't think I could have stayed on this journey as a SAHM (Stay At Home Mother) and homes schooler for as long as I have without the blessing of friends who over the years have provided support and encouragement.

The friendship group I'm talking about are the woman who are currently in the season of life of homeschooling their families and those who are older and can mentor me.  These women are vitally important to the success of my journey. They pray for me regularly, have seen the good, the bad, the highs and the lows of my journey.  They are there to lend support in a multitude of ways from babysitting to cooking a meal when I'm not well. We have shed tears together and laughed together and they are the glue God has used to keep me together on the journey. Why ?  They understand because they are currently living the journey with me.

The bible has this to say about support and friendship:

• Ecclesiastes 4:12 says:  And though a man might prevail against him who is alone, two will withstand him. A threefold cord is not quickly broken. This is so true.  When I have come up against negative pressure about homeschooling then it's my friends who have stood by me and strengthened me. On the days when it is just plain hard to keep on keeping on it then that the strength of my friendships have given me the courage to keep going.
• It also says A friend loves at all times, and is born, as is a brother, for adversity. (Proverbs 17:17) Adversity comes in many forms when you home school from the neighbour or family member who disapproves of your educational choices to the child who defies your every instruction and makes schooling an uphill battle from sun up to sun down.  Your friends and family are then your support.
• Iron sharpens iron; so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend [to show rage or worthy purpose]. (Proverbs 27:17) I am so very grateful for this part of home school friendships.  My friends are not afraid to let me know when my choices are not so wise.  They speak the truth in love and keep me accountable and for that I am so grateful. 

Support Groups are different to co-ops in that they are an informal gathering, which can happen weekly, fortnightly or monthly. These  groups can be two homeschool families that connect well or a group of mothers connecting on a regular basis.  Most meet together with their children and some meet without their children.

I really enjoyed this statement by Renee Gotcher from Next Generation Homeschool: "When you think about it, homeschool support group is a bit of an oxymoron: We choose to homeschool so that we can independently make decisions about our children’s education, and yet we inherently desire the support of others to inform, encourage and assist us."  To read more about the role of support groups in helping you successfully home school your children go to: Homeschool Support

Our Morning

• We're still in school holidays here so our schedule is fairly lite. 
• Logged into A+ Interactive Math and worked on math recovery
• Nathaniel is loving Horrible Histories Series (sample on YouTube) so we have been watching an episode each day of that on our new favourite app: Netflix.  
• We watched a documentary about sharks called: Smart Sharks swimming with Roboshark

Our Afternoon

• Nathaniel had some play time while I did some Social Media work.
• We read The Answers Book for Kids Vol 1 and had some interesting conversations.  I learned a couple of interesting things too.
• We went to a friends house for an hour of fellowship. We have been meeting up weekly for the last eight years and I pray that we will be able to meet up for many more years to come. 

Our Evening

• Paul came home and prepared for his Pilates class.
• Wednesday evenings are family movie night so we watched The Emperor's New Groove.

If you are new to homeschooling or if you are a veteran homeschool Mom I would like to encourage you to sew into your friendships they are worth the time it takes.  Lastly do remember these words of our Lord: Be strong, courageous, and firm; fear not nor be in terror before them, for it is the Lord your God Who goes with you; He will not fail you or forsake you. Deuteronomy 31:6

Blessings until Tomorrow
Chareen
 

Other posts in this series

• Day 1 of our Real Life Homeschool
• Day 2 of Real Life Homeschool and a word about schedules.

Here are 10 new Homeschool bloggers from the Schoolhouse Review Crew to meet.

1. Treasuring Life's Blessings
2. Double O Farms
3. Simple Living Mama
4. Fried Clams and Sweet Tea
5. This Sweet Life
6. A Net In Time
7. Counting Pinecones
8. Some Call It Natural
9. Kingdom Academy Homeschool
10. Debbie's Homeschool Corner

Day 2 of 5 Real Life Homeschool and a word about schedules

Welcome to Day Two of Real Life Homeschooling.

At present our family is adjusting our homeschool schedule and rhythm. Due to a change in our circumstances we are currently seeking a new rhythm that will help us succeed in the years ahead.
This year I have taken on a part time position as an Assistant Social Media Manager, Nathaniel and I are learning to work around a new A.S.D. (Aspergers) diagnoses and to complicate things Paul works on a nine day rotating roster that might soon be changing.

Homeschool rhythms and schedules are unique to every family.  It is determined by many factors including the size of your family, number of children being home schooled, ages of the children and legal requirements of the country and state you live in.  Other factors that influence your chosen rhythm are your personality, learning and teaching styles, extra curricular activities, goals and the specific needs of your family.  It is a foolish thing to try and mimic the methods of other homeschool families.

Remember a schedule needs to grow and change with your family.  Your children are growing, changing and maturing. What is working well today might not work so well in six months time. Take regular time to reevaluate your schedule and tweak it to suit your family.

As mentioned before we are trying to implement a Charlotte Mason approach in our home education model. Charlotte has this to say: "Every lesson must have its own time, and no other time in this world is there for it. The sense of the preciousness of time, of the irreparable loss when a ten minutes' lesson is thrown away must be brought home." - Charlotte Mason Companion page 93

Scripture too has some sage advice about schedules:

• But all things should be done decently and in order. [1 Corinthians 14:40]
• To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven [Ecclesiastes 3:1]

After reading these scriptures I have become more aware of our need for an official schedule. Homeschooling an only child is very different to homeschooling two or more students.  The potential for becoming side tracked is so easy to do. I have been reading through Motivate Your Child and have decided to write up a schedule and then have a meeting with Nathaniel and get his input on it before finalising it. Once it has been finalised I will share our new schedule here on the blog.

Our Morning

Loom bands have reappeared in our home this week and it doesn't matter where I go I'm finding little elastic bands.  This is what the dinning room table looked like this morning

Loom bands have returned.

This morning started at 7:15 am with a lovely cup of tea from Paul followed by dropping him at work.  We're a single car family so whenever I need the car I have to take Paul to work.  We are starting a Unit Study later this week and I want to visit a couple of libraries for resources.

When we returned home I needed to phone Jane in the USA as she was really unwell last night and I was very worried about her.  Please add her to your prayer lists.

My Mom then rang and we touched base on a few things while Nathaniel ate breakfast.  We then used our new favourite App for school Netflix. 

We watched:
Horrible Histories Series One Episode Two (sample on YouTube) We learned  more horrible history.  Some of the things we learned were:

• The Paroah had extended family executed in order to protect themselves on the throne
• Stoneage Man preserved skulls of relatives
• Francis Bacon established the scientific method and freezing chickens 
• Banana's were first sold in Britain in 1663
• Carrier Pigeon Mary of Exeter was awarded a medal in the second WW
• They used urine to clean clothes in the Middle Ages.

It's quiet interesting just how many historical facts they pack into one half hour episode.

We had also borrowed some DVD's and so we covered history, biography and science

1.  The Jim Elliot Story from The Torchlighters series (YouTube sample).
2.  Wilderness Discoveries DVD Vol 1 Sand, Snakes and Screeching Birds.  I am very impressed with this DVD and their approach to teaching about nature from a biblical perspective.

Our Afternoon

• This afternoon we tackled math.  Nathaniel is currently working on a math recovery program with A+ Interactive Math {Adaptive Placement Test and Individualized Lesson Plan} He is finding this a little bit of a challenge so I will be shifting math to the second thing on our schedule from tomorrow.
• We went to my sisters place for a visit and some help with a recipe for Trim Healthy Mama.  I'm wanting to make Skinny Chocolate and her version tastes divine but mine did not work out.  So she made me a batch.  It was also an opportunity to get some fellowship in with her children as it's currently school holidays in Vic Australia.
• Next stop was the library in order to find resources for a new review product Nathaniel and I are working on: Knights & Nobles {Once a Week Unit Study} We are looking forward to starting this on Friday.
• We squeezed in some shopping and then it was time to collect Paul from the zoo.

 Our Evening

• We rang my parents in law in South Africa.  We so appreciate being able to connect with family in real time.  When we first migrated here 19 years ago all we had was snail mail.  Now we can use the internet and see their faces and talk it's made such a positive difference being able to connect with our family around the world.
• Paul attended a men's dinner at our church.
• I did some social media work from 6:30 to 9:30 pm.
• Timothy cooked dinner and watched Bolt with Nathaniel
• 8:30 Nathaniel went to bed
• 9:30  - 11 pm I spent some time blogging.

The Schoolhouse Review Crew are running an Instagram Challenge and invite you to join in the fun.   Be sure to tag your photographs #TOSReviewCrew.


You can follow our day to day adventures on Instagram via ChareenR


What are your thougths on Homeschool Rhythms ? Remember that once you have structured your plan and have embarked upon your new adventure be aware that you will need to make regular small course corrections to stay on track.  The winds of time, health, seasons, understanding and interruptions will blow. On occasion the storms of life may blow you off track so it is imperative to take some regular time to course correct and refocus and move forward.

Blessings until Tomorrow
Chareen

Other posts in this series

• Day 1 of our Real Life Homeschool

Here are 10 new Homeschool bloggers sharing their journeys of Real Life Homeschool this week

1. For This Season
2. Unexpected Homeschool
3. For Him and My Family
4. As We Walk Along the Road
5. Growing in His Glory
6. Homeschool Coffee Break
7. Daily Life
8. There Will Be A $5 Charge For Whining
9. Proverbial Homemaker
10. ElCloud Homeschool

Day 1 of our Real Life Homeschool

Welcome to day ONE of this weeks show and tell brought to you by the Schoolhouse Review Crew.  Often times when we look at blogs we see the picture perfect homeschool lives that bloggers choose for you to see.  This week however 52 homeschool families have decided to give you a look at our day to day lives.

My goal is to give you a peek into what homeschooling looks like for us.  We are a Christian, eclectic, mostly Sonlight, Charlotte Mason driven homeschool.  I have been homeschooling for  17 years and over time I have discovered that I love the principles of a Charlotte Mason model, along with chronological history and Sonlight Curriculum.

To be honest with you there is NO such thing as a typical homeschool family.  Each and every family has their own unique way of doing things.  Please do not read the posts in this series with the view of copying what we do as that's a sure fire recipe for failure.  It's important in your homeschool journey to find out what works for you and follow that path.

As a family we tend to be fairly flexible in our approach because Paul works a rotating roster which means that each week he is home on different days. This year I started working part time as a Social Media Assistant for the Old Schoolhouse. As a result we are trying to establish a new routine and find a rhythm that will work well for us.

Nathaniel

Nathaniel is currently my only student.  My first two children have graduated.  Timothy is currently looking at tertiary study options and Jane is currently taking a GAP year and traveling around the world.


 Our Morning
Today my day began at 7 am due it being Paul's first day back on his roster.  He left for work at 7:30 am and I looked over The Busy Homeschool Mom's Guide to Daylight. I am feeling really encouraged reading this book. Heidi St John shares some wonderful down to earth encouragement and practical advice.We had breakfast and a slow morning due to it being a public holiday in Australia. Nathaniel had breakfast and then I did a session of Walk Strong by Leslie Sansone.

Jane

Next I rang Jane in America and we had a wonderful time chatting for an hour. Next it was Nathaniel's turn to chat to her.  We've really been enjoying having access to her via Skype, Facebook and land line. This is her first Easter away from home so it was really good to be able to catch up with her about what she's been doing and where she's been going.

Netflix recently launched in Australia and we are currently making use of their introductory offer of one month free viewing. Since it's a public holiday we decided to do some TV schooling.

We watched:

1. Horrible Histories Series One Episode One (sample on YouTube) We learned a lot of horrible history.  Some of the things we learned were: What did the German soldiers eat in the second World War, The Four King Georges, Rules on a Pirate Ship (did you know they had an 8 pm bed time ?), the burial traditions of Ancient Rome and how this became the foundation of the Gladiator Games, the lice problems the troops encountered in WW1 and some points of interest about Vikings.
2.  The Great Ship which is part of The Seven Wonders of the Industrial World series. SS Great Eastern was designed by IK Brunel and built in London.  The ship was revolutionary in that it had a double hull, she was launched in 1858. Due to her size she was eventually used to lay cable across the oceans between continents.
3. Walking with Dinosaurs episode one from the BBC. Neither of us were particularly impressed with this series after episode one.

Our Afternoon
Lunch time was enjoyed in the beautiful autumn sunshine outside. We enjoyed a cuppa together before we came back inside to tackle the house keeping chores.

Once the chores were completed I allowed Nathaniel to watch a children's movie on Netflix whilst I tackled some work I promised a friend help with online.

Jo popped by to give her son a hand with taking his things back home.  It was so good to connect with Jo and find out how things are going with Build Aid.  This amazing family are helping missionaries overseas to build their accommodation and schooling.  They are currently working in Vanuatu.

I wrote a note to Jane.

Paul arrived home from work and had managed to capture some wonderful photographs of a Flame Robin.  If you love wildlife photography I encourage you to follow him on Instagram. His username is servalpaul

Our Evening
I cooked dinner consisting of stir fried mince over fried cauli' rice and cabbage salad. We watched two episodes of Eureka and at 8:15 pm Nathaniel went to bed.

8:00 - 9:30 I spent blogging and then joined Paul to watch the second half of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen

11 PM Bed Time

As I mentioned before not a typical day for us due to it being a public holiday.  I'm looking forward to tomorrow.

Blessings
Chareen

PS some encouragement from Heidi St John: "If you are at the end of your home school rope, tie a knot and hang on."

To get you started on meeting new homeschool bloggers here are 10 of the crew participating this week:

1. Ben and Me
2. Footprints in the Butter
3. Mountain of Grace Homeschooling
4. Raventhreads
5. Counting Our Blessings
6. Homeschooling for His Glory
7. Ozark Ramblings
8. Chestnut Grove Academy
9. Only Passionate Curiosity
10. Farm Fresh Adventures