Do you know what is right or important to you in homeschooling your children? Are you focusing on the right things in your homeschooling and family?
When I started homeschooling in England in 1985 there was not much in the way of homeschool curriculum and there were absolutely no support groups in my area. There was no Internet and very few events and resources. We didn’t have any homeschooling friends. In fact, we didn’t even know anyone who was homeschooling.
But, funnily enough, these things made homeschooling a lot easier than it is today. I was able to focus on the quality of homelife, and the children and I spent time doing what was important to us.
Literature
We will never be able to read all the wonderful books in the world, but we can enjoy a taste of just a few of the best. Because I know there are so many wonderful things to read I get really particular about what I read and what I allow my children to read. There is always space for “fallow time” in terms of light reading, but we also want to concentrate on “the best”, mainly.
Family time
Having time together as a family was important to me. So afternoons of reading, playing, making things and generally keeping busy at home played a large part of our home education.
Developing children’s interests
Encouraging our children to develop their interests has always been important to me. If we instill in our children an attitude and habit of learning then we are giving them a gift of a whole lifetime of learning pleasure.
Homeschooled and now adults
I found that my grown up children still learn and get passions and interests and I love hearing about what interests them. For example, one of my daughters became an expert on keeping seahorses when she wanted to keep some as pets. She learned about them from every source she could. She even made a “field trip” to Napier to see a seahorse farm.
Don’t look at others
To avoid stress and unhappiness, my advice is to keep focused on what you and your children are interested in. Don’t look too much at what others are doing, because it always looks as if others are doing more than you. They are not. It just looks that way. So enjoy your own family. They are what is important to you.
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