Soror Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 MaggieAnnie- I am probably pretty close to the opposite of you but I loved your post, thanks for sharing :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murphy101 Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 I've been thinking about this... I'm also over hauling my home. Landscaping. Kitchen redo. Painting. Part of this is my effort to be more physically active to lose weight or discover some hobbies. Part of it is that I never had the finance to indulge such things before, so I'm having fun with it now. Maybe it's a midlife crisis? Idk. I don't think so. Either way, I'm enjoying it. And now that I am graduating some kids, I'm reflecting on the good the bad and the ugly over the last 13 years of home schooling. What do I wish I had done or not? How can I meet the need of the rising children? And so forth. Some things I've learned. No matter how good the program, *I* have to be able to use it for it to be any good to my kid. No matter how fun, relax, rigorous or whatever X program is, *I* have to be realistic about our needs or it won't work. Life experience trumps anything offered by X program every. Single. Time. Just like going to mass feeds the soul better than reading about people who to mass. Just like showing love vs speaking about it. That's not to say I don't value academics. I do. Greatly. But the entire purpose of knowledge is to use it or impart it to those who can use it. That my children will be alien to me. And it's okay. The trouble with home schooling, when done right IMO, is it meets the needs of individuals. It a royal pita. LOL So this concept that my home schooling is going to reflect my personality or my house or some such not about the 10 individuals I'm educating thing is a weird concept to me. It's not all about them. I have to figure out how to teach them as best I can with the few resources I have. But it's not all about me either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LucyStoner Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Homeschooling, like parenting, is not all about mom. It goes without saying that there are after all children involved. Children who not infrequently have a totally different learning style than their parents. I have to teach my son how he learns best, not how I learn best. And I have to factor his choices and preferences into the equation. Otherwise even the best intentions and curriculum will be wasted effort. No space or cool school room or organized mom command center or wall color is going to compensate for trying to teach a child in a way they they don't respond to. Kids first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alte Veste Academy Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 Homeschooling, like parenting, is not all about mom. It goes without saying that there are after all children involved. Children who not infrequently have a totally different learning style than their parents. I have to teach my son how he learns best, not how I learn best. And I have to factor his choices and preferences into the equation. Otherwise even the best intentions and curriculum will be wasted effort. No space or cool school room or organized mom command center or wall color is going to compensate for trying to teach a child in a way they they don't respond to. Kids first. I agree. Halfway. Because, likewise, focusing on finding the exact perfect curricula and attempting to perfectly meet the needs of the child to the exclusion or even minimization of mom's needs would be equally ineffective. I think it is disastrous to overlook either side. I really do think it is important to find a path that serves both teacher and child well. And while I teach to strengths and play to learning style, I am also asking them to stretch as they get older, because one day they will have to stretch for someone else, to perform out of their respective comfort zones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Michelle* Posted June 4, 2013 Share Posted June 4, 2013 I agree. Halfway. Because, likewise, focusing on finding the exact perfect curricula and attempting to perfectly meet the needs of the child to the exclusion or even minimization of mom's needs would be equally ineffective. I think it is disastrous to overlook either side. I really do think it is important to find a path that serves both teacher and child well. And while I teach to strengths and play to learning style, I am also asking them to stretch as they get older, because one day they will have to stretch for someone else, to perform out of their respective comfort zones. I think this is why I'm drawn to fairly bare-bones programs. If I like the structure and content and I'm comfortable with it, I know I can fill in the blanks to suit each of my kids' learning styles. Way back in the day, I was once a corporate trainer. Talk about your bland and boring curriculum! I had a ton of leeway in how I ran my class and presented the material, though, so I was able to meet the needs of my trainees. I look at programs that are very specific to certain learning styles and keep moving on because I know I won't get enough use of them to make learning how to teach each single program worthwhile. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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