Tuesday, April 6, 2010

Cover my tail!

Okay, I wanted to come back and say a few more things. There are some women out there Homeschooling who feel very confident about their style and choices for homeschooling. I AM NOT ONE OF THOSE WOMEN. I am constantly learning and changing and God is constantly redefining who I am as a wife and mother. I am pretty sure all four of my children will be different. I know Josiah and Ava Beth (both school age next year) are night and day and teaching them both will create some interesting moments. 


I guess what I am doing in this "follow-up" post is editing some of my words. I said I was going to go all out "Charlotte Mason" but the more I think about ME and that method, the more I know that is not entirely true. I do plan on applying that style of Homeschooling in many ways. I do not see me throwing out curriculum all together because I am someone who likes to KNOW what it is I am going to teach. Maybe someday I will be in a different place in life and plan my own lessons. 


Spending hours at a table with Josiah doing worksheet after worksheet is NOT working. We are both getting bored, irritated and aggravated with each other. He is now doing two subjects on the computer and that has worked really well. Oh and for my Non-Texan readers, in Texas we are not required to do Standardized testing which I love because my kids are not studying to memorize for a test, they study to connect with the subject. My biggest question I get from the non-Homeschooler is "How do you know they are where they are supposed to be?". This question makes me chuckle because I know that Josiah is above and beyond where he is "supposed to be". My children will be ready for the ACT and SAT when the time comes. 


Math is something Josiah does not enjoy but does well in. So this is the area I am making a change. This is why I am considering switching from Horizon's (Alpha Omega) to Saxon. I think Saxon will be a step back in the beginning but I think it could be the curriculum to help him truly master it. I would rather Him master it then just get through it.


I'm pretty insecure talking about Homeschooling. Running, Cooking, Fashion, whatever else, I can chat about all day long and not think twice about how I may sound. But Homeschooling hits a sensitive place for me because I am constantly learning myself. I truly understand WHY people do NOT Homeschool. I hear people say "I could never do it and it would not be good for me or my child." I can see why people say that. But as HARD as it is, there is NOTHING more amazing. It is an HONOR and here is what I love. If I were to make a Positive and Negative list regarding Homeschool, there would be NOTHING, absolutely NOTHING to list under negative because it is ALL positive. 


The biggest battle we face as Homeschoolers is ourselves. I am still learning how to give myself a break but when we have a bad day, I get the chance to go and make it right. My children being with me all day long is a gift and it is the most satisfying feeling to KNOW I am doing exactly what He called me to do. There is NOTHING I would rather do.


So yes we will be doing Homeschool differently next year and I am not sure how that will look but daily I am learning and growing. I have an idea of what it will look like but God has the final say. I do know that Literature is going to be kicked up several notches because the child who loves to read is going to excel in so many ways.


I pray that all of us Homeschool Mamas will feel finish the year strong, enjoy the Summer and come back refreshed for our Children. May we have new ideas, new books to read, new approaches to our teaching and may we fall more in love with Jesus and our families in the mean time. We are in one incredible mission field, that is for sure!


Yes, this post was to cover my tail when I get stuck in a rut again! IT WILL HAPPEN. :) I leave you with this scripture that continues to confirm to me over and over again that Homeschooling is the best choice for our family. 


Deuteronomy 6:4-9


4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. [a] 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts. 7 Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. 8 Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. 9 Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates.


(And when the heck is spell check going to realize HOMESCHOOL is a word, not two?!!)



6 comments:

Christina said...

Hey Amanda, I love it when you talk homeschool because I need all the encouragement I can get! lol

I have just discovered the Charlotte Mason philosophy a few months ago and read the book "Educating the Wholehearted Child" by Sally Clarkson and the Companion book you mentioned. The whole time I read I thought - WHY DIDN'T I READ THESE SOONER??? I love them so much and found them so helpful!

I am also applying some aspects of the books to my homeschool and have noticed a difference.

I struggle too because we have our hard days but like you this is what the Lord has called me to and with His help we can do it!

Thanks for sharing your heart Amanda, the Lord uses you to speak to my heart!

Love yas!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stacey said...

You just made me smile. :)

God is so good. We are cruising right along right now, but I am sure there will be another bump in the road soon.

Love the books you listed in the previous post. I have read the Charlotte Mason one, but not the other.

I like to think that I apply SM's general philosophy to my parenting/schooling although we do not do a CM-based curriculum.

Finish strong - YES!!!

Dee said...

I love you! I love your homeschooling posts. You are living out a dream of mine and I get to live it through your blog. :) I encourage you and am always praying for you. I love that you keep things interesting and believe that your children will appreciate it too!

Be confident in your calling, mama! <3

Kelly said...

You rock, do you know that? I love that you are so passionate, and your enthusiams is contagious. I am praying for you and your homeschooling, and asking God to overwhelm you with ideas and inspiration to carry you through the down days (that occur in every school!). I can't tell you how amazed I am by these posts this morning... I wish you could see my journaling from the time right before I read these. Gd never ceases to amaze me with His answers to prayers!!

(My girls grew up on Saxon, and I know everyone has a different opinion on everything, but I have to say it really was a good foundation. The repetition of lessons each day really helped plant those ideas in them. Even though they sometimes complained that it was boring, I think it was a great system, and would be even better at home than in a classroom since you can choose to repeat what is relevant only to your children and not a whole class; so for what it is worth, those are my thoughts).

Thank you so much for sharing on homeschooling; I think you are such an encouragement to so many moms who think they are the only ones feeling the way they do.

Kate said...

your style sounds like mine. i can promise you that you will change over the course and find things that fit as your children grow. i can't stick to one method or style so i have an eclectic range of books, curric. and styles. i'm too fly by the seat of my pants and spontaneous to be tied down to just one thing! so a little classical, a little charlotte, a little abeka, and this and that and so far so good!

GA we have to test every 3 years. i never prep my kids for the test. just take it so i can see where they are strong and weak and go from there. i just think studying for standardized tests will give false results. ah, what do i know - i may change my mind down the road! haha!

love you!

Paula said...

You have no tail to cover!! No one to answer to except the Lord. It is a learning experience for all of us moms. A beautiful thing I think us moms, at least me and you, can ENCOURAGE one another and NOT compare!! What works for one family or child may not work for another. So if we had a glass of wine in our hands (which we both must wait for) I would say cheers to this up and coming year. And may God use or strengths and mistakes to His GLORY!!!!
Love you Momma!!!!