I need some perspective. This is our 3 year homeschooling but our first year not using a “boxed " curriculum so this is uncharted territory for us. We started off well and now at 1/2 time I'm evaluating the progress so far. There has been some interruption I wasn't anticipating and it looks like we won't be taking the traditional 2 months off this summer. I've been looking at the dates I had for completing different books/subjects and the written work I was hoping we would have completed. In a nutshell we are coming up short. I know the boys are learning Because they can teach much of it back and they often are chatting about what they are learning to friends. We back tracked with math this year and I see that as a good thing. Although they aren't all working at grade level this time they are mastering it and their understanding of concepts has increased. Still I can't shake the feeling I'm doing them a disservice. When I look at the suggested lists of what a child should be learning when I get discouraged. My plans for formal art and health lesions have fallen by the wayside. Another thing I should add is we are out of country and not under any State of Provincial laws. So state testing isn't a requirement and I'm not interested at this point at looking into it. My eldest is doing well my middle child is working at a younger level and my youngest is progressing well. I'm trying to work with their learning styles as much as possible, challenging them without overwhelming them too much and if it takes a bit longer for them to complete their education that's fine. I want them to be confident, well adjusted, curious, problem solving leaders, adults with a good grasp of the world in which we live. I sometimes wish there was a home school group nearby that we could be a part of. There isn’t. Thoughts, comments, encouragement anyone?
Okay I think I may have a perspective that will offer some comfort. I taught in a private school for a number of years before I decided to stay home and homeschool my kids. Yes, we breezed through the pages of our curriculum and it looked like a ton was covered. The reality was though that we were pushed by deadlines and I knew the entire time that a lot of what was covered wasn't learned well enough to be retained. It reminded me a checklist. Did we cover it? yes Will they remember it and be able to use it in life? some will, many won't. As homeschoolers we take our time so that our kids will actually know the material we cover. We teach them the skills they will need in life and don't move on until they have mastered them. It may take longer, but in the end their education will be more useful to them.
This is our second year. We don't use a boxed curriculum either. I go by their interests and their learning styles. I'm one who believes that if they are interested in it they will come to learn it easier. BUT there are some things that they have to do that they don't like. Math and Language arts for example. And with those two things I think it's more important to have a strong foundation to build on. you can't always stay on grade level with those subjects. Scope and sequence for grades is good as a guide,but I don't think that all the kids "get" those things at those exact grades. I don't think you are doing them an injustice. As long as you are being as diligent as you possibly can then they are learning as much,if not MORE than the public school kids are. Take a deep breath. You are doing just fine. We aren't on schedule either. Last year was more of an unschooling year for us. We slowly went over things and are just now finishing up on their Math books. We had to backtrack on Math as well. Don't beat yourself up if you have to do that. It's better to make sure they learn it now then to have to go back and reteach it later.
My boys were home schooled using what you call a boxed curriculum, Abeka and Abeka Academy and they did very well. So either way you look at it, your kids can do well. Good luck!
I think it's more a question - are they learning? And from what I read above - YES!! And that is the most important thing I think and to me it sounds like you are doing an excellent job
We school year round and maybe that's something you may want to consider in the future. We go from 8 to 1 everyday but I find the shorter days help us. When it comes to the end of the year, we're not really behind at all. ;-) But with that said, I tend to look at homeschooling as an overall process. There are periods where I fall short and periods where I am ahead or at least on track. It all comes out even. When I find us falling behind in something, I know it's time to rework what I'm doing. But like others have said, if your kids are learning, then you're doing a great job.
Well, my experience prior to homeschooling with teaching horseback riding and training horses has shown me that time spent solidifying basics are so important. You can rush through and get to a more advanced level, but then you hit the wall hard and have to back track. The ones that you have to start slowly and carefully often progress the fastest and furthest later on. If your kids are happy and learning, they are doing great! Also, make sure your expectations from 'what every child should know by age x' books are realistic. Some encompass such a huge number of facts it is ridiculous. Many kids like to learn things deeply and don't like the mile wide, inch deep approach of standard elementary education. They will do better in college and life if they learn to dive deeply rather than covering every little thing. Maybe they will be 'behind' in facts on Renaissance Italy, but they will know how to learn and if they end up majoring in History they'll be so excited to learn something new! Have fun!
We don't go by grades. We use levels. Right now my dd11 is in 6th grade (if she were in school that's what it would be). Here's what she's doing: Math: pre-Algebra (She did a different curric. of Pre-Algebra last year, but didn't feel ready for Algebra this year. So we're staying at this level and strengthening her confidence by making sure she understands the concepts! English: LEVEL 5 Science: Chemistry, no specific level (NOEO Science II) Elementary Logic Bible: Reading the Bible through in a year program--again, no level History/Geography: Variety, again, no level Somebody arbitrarily set those levels, but they're certainly not there for us to gloat about if our kids are "ahead", or be discouraged about if our kids are "behind"! They're just some arbitrary levels that may or may not be about where your kids are. The important things are your children. Period. What is best for them? What do they need to learn? They may be "ahead" in some things, and "behind" in some things, but what they are getting is an education that helps them truly learn and to have a strong base to draw from as they get older and the curriculum or work they do gets harder! And because you work at their level, instead of speeding through to "get the book done", they feel a sense of accomplishment, and learn to appreciate learning more, since it's not always a struggle! What good does it do children to set up goals to have a book finished by the end of the year, and rush them through it, whether they learned or not? NONE! By working with our children at their levels, rather than someone else's levels, we are helping our children to have a strong education, and to succeed! I don't think you're doing your children a disservice at all! Are they learning Spanish? That would be something I'd hope you're doing while you're there!
everybody is pretty much on the same page. Just because it "gets covered" doesn't mean it gets learned. We are only through one quarter of our history book...although we started about a month late. ds is now going pretty in depth with the greek mythology and I am letting him. I hope to get through at least the romans...but if we have to do that "next" year and then swing into the middle ages...oki doki. When he understood the irony of a financial advising company named Cerberus...I knew we were doing something right.
Correct! We experienced this with our older girls who both graduated from public school. We really struggled with our middle daughter academically. She had a difficult time with her lessons and would bring home loads of homework. We attempted to work with her but every night she brought home more work she didn't complete in class. My husband and I realized that she was constantly trying to catch up while more information was being piled on her. How on earth did the teacher expect her to learn what they were currently covering when she couldn't even understand what was already taught?:| We attempted to have her held back a grade so she could redo the grade while we helped at home. Sadly, the school refused. The teacher said that they try not to hold students back unless they absolutely have to do so. So the school moved her on. Yet she never truly moved on academically.
Thank you so much for responding. I’ve been feeling quite swamped since Christmas with home and ministry. The last 2 weeks we have been recovering into ‘normal ‘ again and it’s been a rough ride. My own insecurities have been sneaking out and I needed to be reaffirmed and cheered on. It’s easy to start well but the true test is at the finish line. Was I faithful to my call ? The boys are learning academically and in character. They are well adjusted, and let me tell you we ALL had some adjusting to do when we moved here Someone asked if they are learning Spanish. Yes, we all are. Hubby is not quite bilingual. It’s interesting moving to another culture. It enables you to see your own much more clearly as you adapt and adjust and reevaluate the things that we hold so dear within us. We work hard on math, language arts, Bible study, science, and history/geography, pretty much in that order. We take field trips and excursions and try to read some good books that will expand their thinking beyond their experiences. I want them to love learning and have the tools needed to discover answers Occasionally I need to show them how far they’ve come and put on the cheer leader hat, other times the drill sergeant needs to egg them on ( anyone seen the movie, “Facing the Giants”?) Thank you again !!
