saraha Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 I am probably not alone in that I have a standard for homeschooling in my house. What I think makes up a good education for us. Right now though, I feel like we can't realistically keep up with that standard without ruining any of the following: my relationship with my husband, relationship with my kids, my house, my sanity. But doing less, like just the 3 Rs for example, feels like I am letting everyone down also. Like I KNOW how it should be, and am consciously choosing to not do the best. How do you accept a half-*ssed job from yourself and not beat yourself up over that? I like to think that I have a good work ethic, which is probably getting in the way here, but after some advice from here, looking at what we can feasably afford in outside help, and a few experimental weeks, I have come to the conclusion that we just need to back off some things to be picked up at a later date. But now that I have made this decision, I feel incompetant and honestly, lazy. When we are in the middle of a bad day, it seems like a great idea. But, if I end up with a few moments or an hour of relaxation, guilt kicks in. Sorry this is so long! So what do I need to tell myself to make this okay? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danestress Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 If you "do less" what will the kids be doing instead of academic work? I know when I had a phase of doing "less" my kids were busy drawing, reading, folding origami, playing outside, taking care of the neighbor's dog, etc. I was doing less academic, but covering the math, language arts, and history fine. They were fine. I felt a fair amount of anxiety about it, but looking back, they were having a good year. If my children were using the time to play Xbox, that would not be okay. If they watched television or bickered regularly, not okay. I think a question like yours is hard to answer because it's hard to know if the person is really saying, "I wanted to get my 3rd grader into "Crime and Punishment" and that didn't happen," or if she is more from the, "How can I feel okay about my kids watching videos all day" stance. I think as Moms, we just always are going to have a bit too much on our plates. I think that's true for homeschooling moms and for working moms, and both feel a lot of guilt, in my experience. But I think you have to look at the experience of your children apart from your own experience. If they are happy, reading, learning, exploring, etc, then I think you have to cut yourself some slack, especially when they are young. If you have a high schooler who wants to go to college, you may need to think about this differently. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Instead of less, can you do different? So do your 3 rs, then add in documentaries in the evening with popcorn and lemonade? Alternate two science and two history a week and you will be doing great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 My kids would be helping with chores on the farm, decluttering our house (it is getting scary) and we would just be hanging out together. I m iss reading aloud to my little ones. Right now my two older kids do it, but I want to do it. I have 6 kids, and although homeschooling gives me more time with them, I am very busy multitasking and nothing gets my full attention, not the house, not the kids, not the farm work. If we cut some stuff back, I have more time in the day to just have someone sit on my lap, or show me bugs they caught, or for the love of Pete help me reclaim the room we use just for storage. I know in my heart, it is time to slow down a little in my heart, but I feel guilty thinking "This has to be caught up somewhere, and if I am admiting I can't do it now, when will I ever do it?" Will they really learn from watching documentaries, even without a mom made study sheet or follow up activity? I know people say they do, but do they really? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Did you say how old your children are? Cut yourself some slack, especially if they are younger. Your homeschool/marriage/home/laundry room doesn't have to run like someone else's or like something that you read in a book or saw on a blog. During the elementary years my balance has been hitting the math and language arts daily; history and science are 1-2x per week. Logic is for fun, done during quiet time, and does not require my assistance. I do not do a foreign language. Geography, nature studies, and fine arts are built into our main subjects, not done separately. There are many good programs out there. Just because a program is good or even great doesn't mean that I have to use it with my children. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pretty in Pink Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Will they really learn from watching documentaries, even without a mom made study sheet or follow up activity? I know people say they do, but do they really? Yes. Yes, they do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 How old are your children? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 My kids are 12, 10 do all subjects together then 8,7,5, almost 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean in Newcastle Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 My kids are 12, 10 do all subjects together then 8,7,5, almost 2 Honestly (and I do mean this gently) doing only the 3R's with a 12 and 10 year old would be letting them down educationally, in my opinion. 8 and younger would be ok to do only the 3Rs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Remudamom Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Honestly (and I do mean this gently) doing only the 3R's with a 12 and 10 year old would be letting them down educationally, in my opinion. 8 and younger would be ok to do only the 3Rs. Yes, BUT, BUT they are old enough to do something extra on their own together. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Plucky Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Yes, BUT, BUT they are old enough to do something extra on their own together. Exactly. It can be as simple as reading a selected history text and watching a video and then writing a summary. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lisamarie Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 On good weeks I do everything--math, grammar, history, bible, spelling, writing, science, silent reading. On bad weeks I just stick with the 3 Rs and any extra is gravy. Bad weeks are the weeks that we are running too much or someone is sick. So last week was a bad week. They each did 1 lesson of math a day, wrote one page- either a story or copywork, and then read for 1.5 hours from a preselected offering of books. (I revert to the Robinson Curriculum method on bad weeks) I used to feel guilty about even the good weeks since my list of subjects doesn't even begin to compare to those of others on here (no foreign language, only one math program vs 2 or 3, no specialty classes, etc, etc, etc). But then my kids went to PS last semester and took standardized tests and did excellent and far surpassed their peers with their abilities, so even with what I thought was a half-arsed education, they are still doing really well. We pulled the kids over Christmas break and I would like to say that I have matured as a HSer because of that experience. I don't sweat it when we stick with the basics. I don't beat myself up for not teaching my kids Latin, Greek, Spanish, and Mandarin all at the same time. If my kids want to learn about something we don't cover in school, they make weekly trips to the library and can check out books or watch a documentary on netflix. They prefer to self educate anyway. They learn way more through their own reading than from my actually teaching them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Will they really learn from watching documentaries, even without a mom made study sheet or follow up activity? I know people say they do, but do they really? Yes. They will. Just as they will learn from books just by reading them - without anybody giving them a comprehension quiz with 50 multiple choice questions, asking them who the main character is, or giving them worksheets to fill out. Do YOU retain things you have read in a book or seen in a documentary? I do. Without worksheets. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kroe1 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Wow, you are busy! That's a lot of kiddos. What things have you tried so far? Any self-directed learning for the older two? Could the older one start helping teach the younger ones? Do you have a daily schedule and use timers? Do you have a way to minimize distractions? Do the kiddos help with chores? At any rate, it seems like the marriage should take first priority. My DH and I have this motto, "there's plenty of time to sleep when you're dead." :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
readinmom Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Some suggestions: *Do the 3 Rs, let your children pursue one subject independently *Break it up during the week like a block schedule *Planning out the week is a great way to goal set *People on this board have had much success with the workbox method Don't stress...everyone goes through this at one time or another. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Will they really learn from watching documentaries, even without a mom made study sheet or follow up activity? I know people say they do, but do they really? In my experience, there was nothing in school like a work sheet to ensure no one learned anything on a field trip. Conversation, on the other hand, seems to ensure people continue thinking about what they were doing and that is the point of the follow up activity, no? It works all the better if you watch the documentary too while you are all sorting socks, and Dad reads a Wikipedia article during lunch or something. Rosie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 Thanks everybody for reassuring me that I don't have to do a whole packet around a documentary! I guess that is one thing I can let go. I tend to get carried away with all of the wonderful resources there are out there to "enhance" our school day. So how do I quiet that inner voice telling me I am a slacker? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Will they really learn from watching documentaries, even without a mom made study sheet or follow up activity? I know people say they do, but do they really? Of COURSE they will! If you attended a college lecture on something you would learn, right? A documentary is like a lecture, but better, with lots of visual aids. Put it this way...my son has done almost NOTHING for science this year but documentaries and scored in the 99th percentile for science on his standardized testing. He must be retaining something! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosie_0801 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 So how do I quiet that inner voice telling me I am a slacker? With a family your size, if you can get all the washing folded during the post viewing conversation, you've been talking and listening long enough that you don't need to feel like a slacker. :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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