Not Nice Spice
When I started this series I was desperately seeking guidance from seasoned homeschool mamas. I felt as though I was in a foggy haze or an Alice in Wonderland dream—you know, the one where you are falling and wake up with your legs still rapidly moving? I started by loading up our schedule and ended up over compensating out of fear. Fear that my child wouldn’t think I’m enough. Or really, that I wouldn’t think I’m enough. So for roughly two months I slaved over proving how much I was capable of, but all I was really doing was busying myself to look the part. To be one of those moms, ducks in a row, arriving five minutes early, and with cute little thoughtful gifts for dear friends. Now mix all that mom BS with z-e-r-o sleep and you’ve got a dynamite concoction. I don’t know how the mom with eight kids manages. I don’t know how the single working mom copes. I don’t know how the working mom musters up the energy to spend time with her children. But I do know, now, what’s crucial for our family. I love that I don’t have to hurry my children out the door while it’s still dark outside. I love that I can teach my daughter to tie her shoes and zip her sweater. I love that when I show up late, and give that southern smile to all the snarky commenters, it’s because my two-year swore he had to poop. And twenty minutes later he does. And it’s on the potty. And we all celebrate with him! I love that I can witness how many times a day my children hug and kiss and love on each other— because the toxic moments, where he bops her on the head with a LEGO or she warms up her soprano pipes, are always prevalent. I love that I took back me and cleared the calendar. No more activities. No more busyness. No more worrying. Just being. Just living. Completely; right now. And it’s been the most rewarding. With all that I've finally come to the last two pieces of Homeschool How To Series. It's taken four times as long as I wanted, but doesn't every flower bloom in its own time? Does the gardener hurry one flower because others have peaked? Hi! My name is Melaine and I am a homeschooling mom of four kids ages 6, 4, 2, and 7 months. We live out on the prairie next to the organic dairy farm I grew up on. Prior to staying home with my kids, I taught Kindergarten and second grade at a small parish school in Minneapolis. I never thought I’d end up homeschooling my children, but life took a series of interesting turns and here we are!
When I told people we would be homeschooling my Kindergartener, I received a lot of criticism from people who didn’t understand the life we were trying to create for our family. Keeping my children together and allowing them to experience life together just felt natural to us. One of the most unexpected things about our homeschooling adventure so far is how close my daughter and son have become. They are the best of friends and it’s wonderful to watch their relationship blossom. We take an eclectic approach to our homeschooling but it mostly falls in line with the Charlotte Mason method. We value our children as persons and recognize that they are born thinking and wondering and able to know. We don’t believe children are born with the need for someone outside of them (a teacher) to connect everything together for them. Our education isn’t confined by a predetermined set of lessons. Because my children are young, habit training is our main daily focus. A typical day for us begins with breakfast and morning prayer. We do our daily chores and spend time outdoors to burn off some steam. Starting our school time immediately following breakfast didn’t work for us because my kiddos have a ton of energy in the morning. They ride their bikes, make obstacle courses, and jump on the trampoline. Sometimes we go to a park or go on a nature walk. We gather back in the kitchen for our mid-morning snack and our school day begins. We read a passage from the Bible, sing a hymn, and read a series of books that go along with our studies. We are currently using The Kind Kingdom curriculum by the Peaceful Press so we’ve been enjoying The Chronicles of Narnia and studying about knights, kings, and castles. We do a math lesson, a phonics/spelling lesson, and some sort of art or practical life skill (baking, folding laundry, etc.). Then we have lunch and the toddler and baby take a nap. We finish up our geography and history lessons during quiet time. Not having homework is a perk of homeschooling that I hadn’t considered until we started. Because we are able to wrap up our day in the early afternoon we have all evening to spend quality time together as a family when my husband comes home from work. We love playing board games and card games together and it’s the perfect ending to a fun day together. I love that working, playing, and learning are just organically weaved together throughout our day. We don’t have to compartmentalize and separate them from one another. Different seasons of life allow for more or less commitments outside of our home. My main goal is to maintain a peaceful home so when it’s time to discern how many outside activities we want to take on we sit back and ask ourselves if it will disrupt or maintain our peace. My children are currently involved in the Catechesis of the Good Shepherd program one day a week, they participate in a homeschool gym class at our local YMCA, and my son is taking a robotics class at the local elementary school. We have several groups of friends who are homeschooling and we get together frequently for a very casual homeschool co-op. There are several opportunities in our town to meet once or twice a week for a formal co-op, but at this stage in our lives this feels busy and overwhelming for us. We will discern a formal weekly co-op as my children get older. My favorite part of our homeschooling adventure is watching little faces light up when they finally master something they have been working on for a while. All of my children are at different developmental stages and we are here cheering for each other. If I could go back and tell the younger version of myself one thing, it would be that I am enough. I have had so many friends say that they could never homeschool because they don’t have a degree in education. It makes me sad to think that we live with this lie that we will never be as capable as the next person. Very little of what I do with my children at home has anything to do with my master’s degree in Education. God doesn’t call the equipped; he equips the called. We are forming the whole child, not just filling the brain with facts. Character building, habit training, faith formation, and relationship mending are the life skills that our children really need. I am excited for this new school year and for the adventures we will go on together. You can follow our homeschool journey on Instagram @lemongrass.and.sage.
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Kate FrancesWhen you don't know what else to do, then it's time to write. Then write a little while longer for good measure. Archives
February 2020
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