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My Vision for Our Homeschooling Journey by Michele Hastings |
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Being a person who feels most comfortable within some sort of meaningful framework, I take time now and again, to evaluate where we've been and try to determine where we're going. As the homeschooling parent of two young boys, my journey has consisted of a vast amount of reading and research. From my perspective, our adventure in home-based education seems to be falling into three basic phases or stages. The first phase began to unfold at the time when our kids would have normally entered elementary school, and continued until about age 7or 8. Phase two, which is where we are now , I can see lasting until the boys are about 12. The third phase, beginning at age 12 or 13, will continue until our kids are ready to leave home.
In the beginning, our homeschooling consisted of going places, seeing new things, creating with our hands, and learning mostly through play. We read from many sources, following our boys' interests and imaginations. Tymon had a hunger for animals and nature and Asher was engrossed in studying the Romans, Greeks, Vikings, Knights, Indians etc. I had begun with the assumption it would be school at home. However, very quickly, my kids made it all too clear how not interested they were in learning their numbers and letters! Instead of continuing on in what would have been a major, daily power struggle, I set out trying to discover whether my kids were highly unusual, or whether there were other ways to do this thing called homeschooling. After reading books by the grandparents of home-education, Dr. Raymond and Dorothy Moore, such as School Can Wait and Better Late Than Early, I began to realize that many kids weren't ready to do academics at an early age. My kids definately seemed to fit into that category, so I backed off on the schoolwork and we spent many enjoyable hours doing that which seemed to just be a continuation of what we'd done while they were preschoolers. My kids quickly developed a wide base of knowledge and an incredible vocabulary. My parents have always been amazed with how well they express themselves and how they get along with a variety of people of all ages. Most people comment on how interesting and confident our kids are. I guess all of those hours filled with real books about things they were interested in, and all of those conversations as we went about our day, did achieve something! The boys didn't read much yet...nor were they writing much more than the odd word...and although they understood math concepts, they had nothing memorized. However, the many games we'd played and all the practical ways they'd used math, like in the kitchen and spending their allowance, had established a foundation that could be built on in the next phase. Now that we're in the second phase, I see it as a time to build basic academic skills and to develop crucial lifeskills. Throughout the entire first stage, I'd encouraged my boys to attempt to read and write. We tried various reading programs, and I saw some progress, but it was extremely slow and very limited. As Asher, my now 8 year old, passed his eighth birthday, he began to take notice of words. He would read the backs of toy packages and signs as we drove around or shopped. When we sat down to have our table time, as Marilyn Howshall calls it in her book Wisdoms Way of Learning, his progress became fast and furious. Although he needs work in smoothness, clarity of pronunciation and endurance, I am quite confident that he could read anything he put his mind to! Tymon too, at age nine, has made progress this year. Although he still finds reading to be quite an effort, the walls don't go up as they did before when he was younger. He can push the envelope a little further and sound out words that don't just come to him immmediately. As well, both kids have shown considerable progress in their writing capabilities! Their spelling, punctuation, capitalization and grammar have taken an incredible leap this year. Writing still isn't their favorite thing to do by any means, but they are becoming better equipped to put their thoughts down on paper. Asher enjoys taking pictures off of the internet of favorite football players and using Microsoft Word, writing the players' names, positions and teams under each picture. As well, gains have been made in the area of memorizing math facts. A favorite has been to play Math War using playing cards to memorize Addition, Subtraction and Multiplication facts. The kids even gave this game an original twist by using football trading cards and relying on the players' jersey numbers. By the time my kids are 12 or so, my goal is to have equipped them to be capable of reading anything they pick up; communicate efficiently through verbal and written means; have a solid grasp of basic math and have many lifeskills under their belts...such as cleaning the house, doing laundry, planning, shopping for and cooking meals etc. Although I'm always on the look-out for new opportunities for both kids, I don't feel comfortable at this point in allowing them to be mentored by people we don't know without us being present. To date, Asher has both taken informal drum lessons from my brother and hung out with members of our church's worship team, playing the bongoes during practice and even at church. Tymon, my nature nut, has accompanied his other uncle on a Snowshoe Adventure,( run by the Science Center), and also tracking animals by their footprints in the snow. He has also assisted his Grampa in the building of a cat house for my sister's pets. They are also recent members of The Flatlanders Fishing Club where they're learning and improving their fly tieing skills amongst many older fishing fans. By the age of 12 though, my aim is to see the kids actively involved in volunteer positions, apprenticeships and perhaps even developing their own businesses. I have been inspired by a local homeschooling family I know of, who are teased about having a business for every kid or...a kid for every business! As well, they will continue to hone their skills, gifts and abilities, further preparing them for life outside of the nest. I try not to look too far into the future, although one always has to think in terms of keeping options open. Of course people always ask about whether homeschooling will make it difficult for our kids to go to university should they want to pursue it. Although I haven't spent much time reading about it, I have heard many stories about homeschoolers having no trouble going that direction, have they wanted to. Personally, I'm hoping that my kids pick up a trade, but as far as I'm concerned, I truely believe that it was God who called us into homeschooling and that He has a perfect plan for each of our kids. Our job is to trust Him to guide us as we travel and be sensitive to turns in the road along the way. Looking back from a place where my kids are considered to be halfway to adulthood, things are beginning to make more sense. I am confident that the rest of our journey will continue to be a challenging adventure, not without troubles, but certainly fulfilling. After all...I have the exquisite pleasure of having taught my very own children to read. © 2000 Michele Hastings. All rights reserved. Re-printed with permission. |
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Michele and her husband Ted, are the homeschooling parents of two bright, creative boys, ages 8 and 9. They live in Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada and have been leading a "lifestyle of learning" since the children were born. Ted is a Developmental Assistant and also works part-time as a Sanitation Porter. Michele works part-time as a Hairstylist. | ||
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