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I will add that it is important to remember when choosing public, private, or homeschool for your child it that the decision is never permanent. If you try, give it your best shot, and it just doesn't work for your family, you can choose to put them back in school. I wouldn't suggest bouncing them back and forth between school and home, though. If you aren't willing to try for at least a full year, you may not be ready.
I had concerns similar to yours when I started (especially the patience one) and I'm a former public school teacher.
Best wishes!
Statistics: Posted by Jill — Fri Feb 27, 2009 6:49 am
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As for your questions:
1. I feel like I would pass my weaknesses on to my children and not develop their full potential in those areas.
I think working with our children can actually help strengthen our weaknesses. I find that I am learning right along with my children. When I encounter areas I'm not sure about, I come to forums like this or ask others with strengths in those areas for help.
If you think about it, public school teachers have strengths and weaknesses, too and we don't doubt their ability to teach.
I also don't feel it's my responsibility to teach my children everything they'll ever need to know (that would be impossible!) but to teach them how to learn and give them the tools for learning. If I do that well, they'll be able to learn anything they need to know whenever they need to learn it.
2. How would I manage homeschooling and taking care of my younger children.
Different families handle this differently, and after a bit of trial and error you'll figure out what works best for you. I have 3 children and I usually get my oldest (a 2nd grader) started on independent work. Then I teach my kindergartener for 30 minutes to an hour, then I go back and help my oldest while the younger ones play. My 2 year old usually plays independently or sits near me and colors/plays while I teach the older children. I have some toys I bring out especially for school time that I rotate and use on different days.
When he was a baby, I would either hold him during school time or teach while he was asleep. I tried not to teach during naptime too often so I could use that time to rest. I recommend not starting school too quickly after the baby is born. You don't have to stick to a school schedule, so make sure you give yourself time to rest. You can play catch up later, or extend the school year into the summer if you need to.
3. I've looked at the many curriclulum's available-how do you choose?
I think it helps to take time to really think about your wants and needs. What type of teaching style do you prefer? What are your children's learning styles? What subjects do you want to focus on and what do you want to accomplish? How much time do you want to spend on school each day? Do you want work with your child or have your child work primarily independently?
Asking these types of questions will help you narrow down your option, as will learning about different homeschooling methods. Here's some information about choosing curriculum that may be helpful to you.
4. I have no experience in teaching, and don't know if I have the patience for it.
As a mom, you have all the experience you need to teach your child. You have been teaching since the dates your children were born. There are programs on the market with lesson plans that will show you how to handle the academic subjects.
As for patience, I still don't have much, but I have more than I did when I started homeschooling! It's something that develops out of necessity. You'll be just fine!
Statistics: Posted by Jazzy — Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:57 pm
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