When you started considering homeschooling did you wonder about how you would teach those difficult subjects that are not your strong subject, or that you failed at yourself at school? Were you afraid that your child would miss out because you couldn’t teach him?
Homeschooling doesn’t mean that your child needs to miss out on what you can’t teach him. You can still cover subjects that you don’t know much about yourself. There are ways to do this. For example:
• You can get others to teach those subjects for you. For example, you decide to pay for organised swimming lessons or games. If high-school math is not your strong point then you can pay for a math tutor or an on-line course for your child. 
• Another way to do things is to trade lessons and skills. So if you are good at math and your friend is strong in a second language or science then you could arrange to teach each other’s children at a given time each week.
It is important to remember that your child doesn’t have to do everything during his childhood. I took up pottery at evening class when I was twenty. I started learning piano when I was thirty-five. I paid for my own horse riding lessons when I thirty-seven. Your child isn’t going to stop learning when she is 16 or 18 or even 21. You and your children have a lifetime for learning ahead of you. What a wonderful thought!
It’s also very helpful to keep in mind that no matter what you do there will always be gaps in any child’s education. This isn’t to discourage you but rather to encourage you. Any time you realise that a certain topic isn’t being covered just remember that it’s okay. If the subject is really important you can make a space for it, and if not, then rest in the knowledge that you would never be able to cover everything. But you are working at doing the best job of educating your child that you can.
Please scroll down and leave a comment below, I love to hear your feedback.
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A lifetime of learning – that’s worth putting up on a wall … right next to my planner!! Thank you for the gentle reminder – it’s a marathon not a sprint, a journey not a destination …
Thank you so much for this encouraging article. I have been having difficulty with this topic as school is starting up again. I could easily spend so much money on enrolling my children in side subjects like piano, sports or P.E., foreign languages taught be fluent speakers, specific art courses, etc. that we would not have enough food on the table. My husband has wisely closed the checkbook. We are not enrolling them in any outside courses. It is such a relief to be reminded by your words that my children have a lifetime of learning ahead of them! They do not need to learn everything there is to learn this year, or even in the next several years. Thank you again for your words of wisdom. May God bless you as you bless others.
Hi Fiona,
Yes, it’s a marathon, not a sprint. 🙂 I say that a lot. One of the wonderful things I see in home educating circles is the learning that the *mothers* are engaged in. We are living examples of a lifetime of learning.
Stephanie 🙂
Hi Khara,
Thank you for your encouragement to me. I appreciate it. Yes, you are so right, your children don’t need to learn everything this year or in the next few years. You provide a rich learning environment and the children will flourish there.
Happy homeschooling,
Stephanie 🙂
Hi there you wise wonderful lady.
You have again lightened our load with your words of wisdom. I love the fact that there will be gaps in the children’s education, it makes me feel good about the things that are just impossible to fit in and easier to put priority on the areas that are important.
Hope all is well on your side of town.
Michelle xx
Hi Michelle,
Thanks for your comment. Yes, it’s a great relief to realise that not only do you not have to, but you won’t be able to ‘do it all’, isn’t it?
Keep on enjoying your little ones.
Stephanie 🙂