Whilst I'm debating what to do about schooling for the girls next year, I read yet another article, via JunkYard Blog, about why homeschooling is preferable, and I remember all the bad stuff from when the Scientist was in school. I remember that my daughter's second grade class would get punished as a whole class by taking away recess. Yeah, that's real smart. The kids are acting up, so make sure they don't have a chance to work off their energy. Do I want to deal with all the problems of "regular" school? Do I have a choice?
My biggest problem with the girls right now is that they just are not motivated - to do much of any type of learning. I don't want to and shouldn't have to stand over them making them learn things. I can't handle it, and it certainly wouldn't motivate them to learn. Right now I just don't know how I can motivate them to learn. Sigh. I feel like such an awful parent right now. And I have to deal with the state's regulations in addition to my own expectations.
This whole school thing is just getting to be insane. "'Kindergartners do not have [unstructured] free play,' said Maria McCool, public information officer for Woodland Hills, which has three elementary schools." I thought kindergarten was all about unstructured free play. It was, for the most part, when I went to kindergarten. But then I'm old, I guess.
5 comments:
Well, here's the alternative... would your children be motivated to learn in a classroom environment? You're providing them with the best type of education, small class size. You're not a *bad* parent. You're a concerned parent. Please keep trying! Their lack of motivation could just be a phase. God bless you, my dear!
Stay the course, dear lady. One thing Mrs. Woody and I have done since the girls were bitty was (sneakily, I admit) introduce a constant learning environment into our home.
The kids never had a chance. ;-)
That has made it easier to introduce them to more classic "classroom" situations. However, as former public school teacher Mrs. Woody would be the first to admit, our homeschool looks nothing like a classic classroom.
On days when I work at home (like today) it's not at all unusual to see my Woodyettes draped over either arm of Mrs. Woody's recliner while she reads fables to them (we're studying ancient Greece at the moment).
As they get more used to routine (even "unstructured" homeschools can have routines) they tend to focus a little better.
My elder Woodyette, not yet 10, yesterday asked Mommy if she could please have some homework. So Mrs. Woody obliged by printing up a few worksheets and allowing her to work them after lunch.
Homework. Honestly. Kids these days...
Thanks for the encouragement; I need it!
Liz, I'm not sure if the girls would be more motivated in a classroom environment, but they'd have peer pressure!
Woody, we try to have a constant learning environment too. I guess I'm too stressed looking at what I think they *should* know and what they actually do. That, and as I said, comparing with what the *state* says they should know right now. Some stuff they're a little behind, but I suppose in some stuff they're miles ahead. Thanks for stopping by!
Barb, this is SUCH an interesting question and situation for you. I think motivation is one of the hardest aspects of educating our children - whether they're at home with us or in an outside school.
One assumes that some children do better in school and some do better at home. When my children were school age, the option to homeschool was almost non-existent, practically, but I have often thought about it since then. My daughter was and is very willful, driven and competitive; outside school was good for her in many ways, partly because she seemed to flourish with non-parents reactions. Plus, I think she and I would have argued far too often for homeschooling to be beneficial for her. On the other hand, my son was and is independent and fairly uninterested in what anyone else thinks; he found structure in classes restrictive and would have benefited enormously from the ability to learn in depth and at his own pace.
I don't envy you the decisions you're making but it's fascinating! I admire your patience and ability to teach without injecting opinions.
Do you have other parents that you get together with, with your children? Does that make it easier or harder - or is it irrelevant?
Thank you, Jau!
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