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What about the things I don't even know I don't know about!
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My husband is tired of listening to me second-guess myself on pulling our rising 2nd grader out of Montessori and homeschooling her next year… so I’m hoping you ladies don’t mind if I second-guess myself here instead. Just when I get super-excited about the idea of having her home next year and the things we’ll study and read together, she’ll say one innocent little thing that makes me doubt it’s the right decision. Tonight she told me that the things she will miss if she doesn’t go back to school are her best friend and two of the teachers. Then she told me how one of the teachers has been working with her to correct how she holds her pencil. I never would have noticed how she holds her pencil — or thought to check that it’s the proper position! What other things that teachers are trained to spot will I miss? And because I went to public school (and greatly enjoyed elementary) I get misty-eyed thinking about her missing her best friend — because I put myself in her shoes and think how I would have felt. She has a good attitude about the whole idea — so why am I the one fretting so much?
What is your husbands opinion? In our house my husband is the leader of the home (as he should be), that means when I decided that I wanted to homeschool and he was not on board I prayed. And prayed. For bout a year got his heart to change.
If you are being called to homeschool then The Lord will equip you to do it. But with out your husband on board I would not pull my kids out.
There are ways to hold a pencil that are less fatiguing. Which can be a real plus with small children. You can purchase pencil grips to help children get in the habit of holding it the right way.
Confesion: I hold my pencil wrong. And, most likely, I’ve taught several of my children to hold their pencil wrong as well. Yet somehow we manage to muddle through life.
I’m sorry. Please don’t be offended by my sarcasm.
Long, long ago when I began homeschooling I think that I can vaguely remember having those thoughts about all the things my kids would miss by being homeschooled. Then it occurred to me. Because we make certain choices, we all miss something. I live in the East, therefore, I ‘miss ‘living in the West. I got married young, therefore I ‘missed’ years of living alone.
We don’t get to have every experience, but what God has given me is what is right for me. No matter what educational path you choose for your dd, she will miss out on something.
I would have to give you the sam encouragement that Kayla offered. And I will add to jeaninpa – what will she miss by being in school? A closer relationship with her mama and papa who love her more and will invest more good in her as the Lord supplies wisdom, than she will get anywhere else in life. If she has siblings, she will miss out on the close, loving, protective relationship with them and her school friends may get that loyalty instead…there are many wonderful things that she will only have (to the same extent) if she stays home with you.
One other things is coming to me now that I’ve been immensely thankful for is the number of second (and third, and…) chances I get when I mess up and begin to lose my children’s hearts, simply because someone else isn’t competing for their loyalty. Those friends at school are nice, but I appreciate that my children can still have friends, without this problem that is so common. I get time to wake up and win their hearts again…which is priceless to me. So, I willing to risk them missing a lot, because I understand the (greater in my opinion) value of the things they are getting at home.
I second what Kayla said about having your husband’s approval and blessing and support!
On to the things you might forget or things you might not notice. How many children are in a traditional (or Montessori) classroom?? How interested (really) is the teacher in them? How long did your daughter hold her pencil incorrectly before the teacher noticed?
You are one mother (who will be distracted by household chores and possibly other children) – but seriously, you can’t help but be better than a teacher at noticing who your daughter IS, and what subjects she’s having trouble with, and what character issues need help, and let’s face it – sooner or later you would notice faulty pencil-holding. You only have a handful (or at most, two handfuls of students!)
There is NO way that a teacher with the demands of 20-some children, the demands of administration, the demands of peers (her fellow teachers), the demands of her own family should cause you to feel inferior in the teaching of your own child. That’s a trick of the devil! *L*
Even if you do miss something big (like you find out your daughter has dyslexia or a learning disability), more than likely, when it does come to your attention, you’ll put so much more energy into seeking help for yourself (As her teacher) and help for your daughter than what a distracted teacher will.
Pray for God’s will and your husband’s support. Or, if you dare, promise God that you’ll obey your husband and then tell your husband that it’s up to him! If you do that, I’d pray plenty before telling your husband.
Best wishes!
OK. About the pencil thing. It might not be such a big deal for girls, or those who do not mind writing. But for my little wiggly boys, it was very important. Writing takes immense effort and small-motor coordination as it is; for boys who are slow to develop this, making writing even MORE laborious and even painful on little fingers can discourage children from writing. It can contribute to the ” I HATE WRITING!!!!” syndrome. If one can make it a little less laborious, why not do it???? It would be like trying to teach little kids to walk en pointe instead of normally. 🙂 No, the world wouldn’t collapse, but at least some kids would HATE to walk!!!!! Some kids can get along just fine holding a pencil in different ways, but if a kid is struggling with writing, then not making it as easy as possible physically just seems dumb.
Thank you, Ladies! My husband supports whatever decision I make. We had originally planned to keep her in Montessori through 3rd grade and begin homeschooling in 4th (that’s where the school stops). But I think the longer she’s in a school environment the harder it will be to make the transition to home. That’s why I thought we should do it now while she’s so young, curious and still very snuggly with me.
Karen, i think you nailed it — I feel inferior to the trained, funny teacher. But JeaninPA and Anniepeter both reminded me of a very true fact — you can’t have it all! She will miss out on something whatever decision I make — and seeing how my oldest daughter (16 and in public high school) has struggled in that hostile environment, I’d rather my children miss out on the social atmosphere of school and instead have a closer relationship with me and our family. Thank you ALL for chiming in and giving me courage to pursue this!
Karen, i think you nailed it — I feel inferior to the trained, funny teacher. But JeaninPA and Anniepeter both reminded me of a very true fact — you can’t have it all! She will miss out on something whatever decision I make — and seeing how my oldest daughter (16 and in public high school) has struggled in that hostile environment, I’d rather my children miss out on the social atmosphere of school and instead have a closer relationship with me and our family. Thank you ALL for chiming in and giving me courage to pursue this!Viewing 10 posts - 1 through 10 (of 10 total)
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