Is there a place....

[Pamela H in Texas]

I'm hoping not to offend anyone (and I've been *really* good at offending people since Wednesday night...I'll blame the pain meds:glare:).

 

Is there a place (a social group, another message board, a y@hoo group, etc) where people are less relaxed and that is okay, even encouraged? Where people can be striving to be quite...ummm...educational in focus?

[eternalknot]

Maybe it's relative?

 

For me, that place is here LOL.

 

Hopefully someone more helpful will come along, though :)

 

Signed,

Unoffended

[Lovedtodeath]

 

Maybe you could start this group back up: Uncategorized Draconian Homeschoolers

Started in the high school thread by those of us who, compared to some home schoolers who educate only the basics and are done by lunchtime, seem positively draconian in our homeschool styles.

[swellmomma]

Maybe it's relative?

 

For me, that place is here LOL.

 

Hopefully someone more helpful will come along, though :)

 

Signed,

Unoffended

 

:iagree:I usually feel so out of place because the people here are so educationally focused, much more than me. I think it is a perspective thing for sure.

[LeslieAnneLevine]

Maybe it's relative?

 

For me, that place is here LOL.

 

Hopefully someone more helpful will come along, though :)

 

Signed,

Unoffended

 

I was thinking the same thing, there are quite a few rigorous homeschoolers here (did you read the thread where people shared how many hours they spend homeschooling each day?). I'm not one, but maybe someone could start a weekly support thread where you all could have a place to discuss things and no one would tell you to :chillpill:.

[Mommy22alyns]

Maybe it's relative?

 

For me, that place is here LOL.

 

Hopefully someone more helpful will come along, though :)

 

Signed,

Unoffended

 

 

Yes, though this does get asked with regularity. :)

[elegantlion]

This board is more educationally focused than any other I've visited. Are you looking specifically at younger grades?

 

I've also tried to find a few posters that match my educational goals, and I have PM'd them with more specific questions.

[FLDebbie]

I like the educational focus of this blog and like reading about all the wonderful ideas people have. Sometimes, however, I think my kids are way behind others of the same age and get discouraged. I then remind myself that all kids and families are different and not to compare.

 

For a different perspective, I read the forums on secularhomeschool.com, which seems to have more people openly discussing a variety of homeschooling methods.

[Word Nerd]

This board is more educationally focused than any other I've visited.

 

:iagree:—by far

[gardening momma]

I'd be interested to hear also. It's not that these forums are not very educationally minded, but it's easy to get caught up in and distracted by all the non-educational threads.

[Jean in Newcastle]

This board is more educationally focused than any other I've visited. Are you looking specifically at younger grades?

 

I've also tried to find a few posters that match my educational goals, and I have PM'd them with more specific questions.

 

:iagree:

[KidsHappen]

I think that you will find a more educational focus by sticking to the curriculum boards.

[swellmomma]

I think that you will find a more educational focus by sticking to the curriculum boards.

 

:iagree: The general is more for fun stuff imo, if you want the nitty gritty focused on education stuff the curriculum boards are better for that. I have never found a board that was as good as this one.

[Pamela H in Texas]

Thanks y'all....

 

I keep hearing things about "all those kids" and yet I'm feeling more and more that I want to be more structured with these than I was with my first two. Well, actually, I'm already more structured with them than with my first two. And yet I feel like we drop the ball. And I don't want the answer to be "with all those kids" or "with those kids issues" or ....I want encouragement to do better the next day, week, month.

 

And I guess I'm a little worried about how comfy I've felt here over the years when we *were* so much more laid back in some ways. And that the atmosphere has become even more laid back in general. And here I want to raise the bar despite the circumstances....well, and maybe because of it. They need a bit more structure than my kids did and in order to do well with a larger family and other issues going on, we'll need more structure, imo.

 

Anyway, but I'm probably just overly worried because I can (or have to?) sit here and not DO as much right this second. And though I am perfectly FINE with that today because this is what I need TODAY, it gives me more time to think about doing in the future.

 

See, medication makes me nuts! LOL But honestly, this little thinking is so much better than getting sucked into my grumpy-ness. I'm SO grumpy since the surgery. Is it the pain? the medication? the hormones? the lack of organs? So I'd rather worry about pushing myself a little in the future than dwell on my grumpyness :)

 

Kids home from swim lessons. Gonna play mama for a few minutes :)

[laundrycrisis]

Is there a place (a social group, another message board, a y@hoo group, etc) where people are less relaxed and that is okay, even encouraged? Where people can be striving to be quite...ummm...educational in focus?

 

For me, WTM is that place.

 

Have I missed a good rigor thread lately ? :tongue_smilie:

 

Last time I went asking for rigor, someone recommended I read Marva Collins. So I am reading Marva Collins, and our homeschool is feeling the Marva love ! Her influence here has definitely kicked up things up a notch or two ! My new mantras are "heaping doses of phonics", and "every child can learn". And it's coming back at me - this morning 8 yo DS1 said to me, "well, if you can't make a mistake, you can't make anything !" Seriously, she was exactly the encouragement I was looking for. With this encouragement, I am getting past the behavioral challenges, and no longer seeing them as valid excuses, because now I understand that it's my responsibility to get through to these children, no excuses, and now I also have an idea of how to do it. You might enjoy her books if that is what you are looking for.

[Mommy22alyns]

For me, WTM is that place.

 

Have I missed a good rigor thread lately ? :tongue_smilie:

 

Last time I went asking for rigor, someone recommended I read Marva Collins. So I am reading Marva Collins, and our homeschool is feeling the Marva love ! Her influence here has definitely kicked up things up a notch or two ! My new mantras are "heaping doses of phonics", and "every child can learn". And it's coming back at me - this morning 8 yo DS1 said to me, "well, if you can't make a mistake, you can't make anything !" Seriously, she was exactly the encouragement I was looking for. With this encouragement, I am getting past the behavioral challenges, and no longer seeing them as valid excuses, because now I understand that it's my responsibility to get through to these children, no excuses, and now I also have an idea of how to do it. You might enjoy her books if that is what you are looking for.

 

 

Is there a specific book you could recommend? :bigear:

[catz]

:iagree:I usually feel so out of place because the people here are so educationally focused, much more than me. I think it is a perspective thing for sure.

 

 

:iagree:

[laundrycrisis]

Is there a specific book you could recommend? :bigear:

 

So far, I have finished Values: Lighting the Candle of Excellence : A Practical Guide for the Family and Ordinary Children, Extraordinary Teachers and I am currently reading Marva Collins' Way.

 

I did not get that much out of Values, but I have loved the other two. Of the three I like Marva Collins' Way the most.

 

 

 

[regentrude]

This board is more educationally focused than any other I've visited.

 

:iagree:

[Jean in Newcastle]

I think that if you ask specific questions regarding structure, you will get some good advice and tips from those who have benefited from structure in their homeschool.

[In the Rain]

Maybe it's relative?

 

For me, that place is here LOL.

 

Hopefully someone more helpful will come along, though :)

 

Signed,

Unoffended

 

:iagree:

[In the Rain]

Thanks y'all....

 

I keep hearing things about "all those kids" and yet I'm feeling more and more that I want to be more structured with these than I was with my first two. Well, actually, I'm already more structured with them than with my first two. And yet I feel like we drop the ball. And I don't want the answer to be "with all those kids" or "with those kids issues" or ....I want encouragement to do better the next day, week, month.

 

 

Maybe you can add a tagline to those posts: "I want a kick in the pants, not a pat on the back, or a shoulder to cry on." :lol:

[Georgiana Daniels]

Pamela, I can relate to you!

 

Lately we've been lax compared to how we started the year. Maybe it's the springtime thing, wanting to be doing other activities, or maybe it's because I stay up too late and don't look forward to mornings. Whatever it is, I need the challenge of like-minded people who daily strive for excellence.

[Mommy22alyns]

So far, I have finished Values: Lighting the Candle of Excellence : A Practical Guide for the Family and Ordinary Children, Extraordinary Teachers and I am currently reading Marva Collins' Way.

 

I did not get that much out of Values, but I have loved the other two. Of the three I like Marva Collins' Way the most.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks, I just ordered Marva Collins' Way!

[ErinE]

Maybe ignore the responses that don't give you the advice you need. Whenever I see the rigor threads, I tend to skim over posts that don't fit my educational style. I pick and choose the advice I take from board members.

[katilac]

Seriously? This is the place where posters routinely ask if 5th grade is too late to start Latin :lol:

 

Sure, it's a diverse board, but if you look for and post threads specifically addressing rigor, there is plenty of input. And I agree with the posters who say that the academic board is the best place for those discussions, not the general board.

 

Also, don't confuse rigor with method. Logistically, it can be more difficult to teach a larger number of children in a way that doesn't involve seat work. This is particularly true if other issues are at play.

 

I only have two, and it was workable for me to be very flexible and do very little seat work in the early grades while still adhering to high academic standards. If someone has more students, students with learning challenges, or simply less willing students, it can be a lot harder. More structure might be required for the best results, or for mom's sanity ;)

[Jayne J]

Might I also recommend reading the High school/Self-ed and Middle school/Logic stage forums? Even though mine are all young, I find the best advice, inspiration, pants-kickings, and information on the upper level boards. It may be a combination of experience and pure-grit longevity, but the ladies who hang out on those boards always inspire me to keep trying harder, learning more, and pushing through.

 

(The ratings button still works on the Logic stage board, so go press it and start reading all the 5 star posts. Gold.)

[2squared]

Also, don't confuse rigor with method. Logistically, it can be more difficult to teach a larger number of children in a way that doesn't involve seat work. This is particularly true if other issues are at play.

 

I only have two, and it was workable for me to be very flexible and do very little seat work in the early grades while still adhering to high academic standards. If someone has more students, students with learning challenges, or simply less willing students, it can be a lot harder. More structure might be required for the best results, or for mom's sanity ;)

 

This is exactly what I was thinking after I read the OP. Structure is not the same as rigor. I have a handful of younger kids, and there is no way I can cover the materials that some of the rigorous homeschoolers cover. There is no way I can school for upteen hours a day. However, in order to survive, I must have structure. A lot of it. We are intentional and selective in what and how we school.

 

I nearly had a mental breakdown when I was expecting #5. I just couldn't see how we could continue to homeschool with so many little bodies. By focusing our efforts and implementing more structure, things are working out. It's still difficult, but it's working. If you are starting to feel a similar panic looking at the ages and stages of your clan, perhaps you are feeling a need for more structure rather than rigor.