Have I mentioned the fact that I homeschool (HS) Little I? I think I have, but only in passing. School (more precisely sixth grade) is in full session at our house, so this is the perfect time to explain our decision regarding homeschooling. Hang on this might get a bit bumpy!
When Little I was attending second grade at the private school where Big C was enrolled he became a very unhappy little boy, so unhappy in fact that we began experiencing many tears in our home. Where Little I had once been carefree, exuberant and comical, he became, worried, withdrawn and serious. Teachers, counselors and other educated folks began telling me that it was perfectly normal for a second grader to begin having separation anxiety. “Ignore him and the stage will pass with time. Let him cry and make him stay at school. He will be fine,” they all said. Let me just say that those kind words of advice went against every maternal instinct that had been created within me! Now I ask you, what good can come from leaving a little seven-year-old boy standing in his classroom crying? How could it not hurt him and cause him not to grow up to be a serial killer? While I appreciated all the reassuring words, I had no peace in my heart.
Alert! Alert! I am going to stop here for a moment, gather my emotions, and give you a short back-story, because they do that on TV. I warned you this would get bumpy!
I had known several families who homeschooled. Some were actually extended family and some were friends. They were perfectly normal people who were not in cults. I admired their moxie and self-discipline and it had crossed my mind (very quickly) well before Little I began Kindergarten that I could homeschool him. A tiny spark had been lit but it would take almost four years before it blazed and I realized that God was actually calling me to this task.
Okay, fast-forward to Little I standing in his second grade classroom crying. Picture his depressed and anxiety prone mother weeping in the car. Visualize MDH telling me I am more than capable of homeschooling this unhappy little boy. Hear Big C saying, “Mom do something!” Imagine us as we trudged through the entire second grade year in sheer misery. It was not a Michelangelo portrait. It looked more like Picasso. Get the picture?
This is the thing; God gently whispered to me for four years. He is a gentleman that way. He used everyday experiences to prepare me to homeschool Little I. He knew that Little I was going to go through a tough time emotionally when he was seven years old and He knew that Little I and myself had a very special connection. He knew I did not have a Masters Degree in Education but He had given me the gift of teaching. He knew that being a Mom and teaching Little I would be my priority and He gave me time to adjust to that fact and then He brought our entire family to a point where there was no question about what He wanted me to do. He placed people in my path to answer my questions. I simply trusted and obeyed. I do not believe in happenstance, fate, luck or karma. I believe in purpose and I believe God gives everyone a purpose. Are you listening for yours?
I have more to say on the homeschool topic. This is only Chapter One of Two-Hundred and Twenty-Five Chapters. Just kidding! Almost.
When Little I was attending second grade at the private school where Big C was enrolled he became a very unhappy little boy, so unhappy in fact that we began experiencing many tears in our home. Where Little I had once been carefree, exuberant and comical, he became, worried, withdrawn and serious. Teachers, counselors and other educated folks began telling me that it was perfectly normal for a second grader to begin having separation anxiety. “Ignore him and the stage will pass with time. Let him cry and make him stay at school. He will be fine,” they all said. Let me just say that those kind words of advice went against every maternal instinct that had been created within me! Now I ask you, what good can come from leaving a little seven-year-old boy standing in his classroom crying? How could it not hurt him and cause him not to grow up to be a serial killer? While I appreciated all the reassuring words, I had no peace in my heart.
Alert! Alert! I am going to stop here for a moment, gather my emotions, and give you a short back-story, because they do that on TV. I warned you this would get bumpy!
I had known several families who homeschooled. Some were actually extended family and some were friends. They were perfectly normal people who were not in cults. I admired their moxie and self-discipline and it had crossed my mind (very quickly) well before Little I began Kindergarten that I could homeschool him. A tiny spark had been lit but it would take almost four years before it blazed and I realized that God was actually calling me to this task.
Okay, fast-forward to Little I standing in his second grade classroom crying. Picture his depressed and anxiety prone mother weeping in the car. Visualize MDH telling me I am more than capable of homeschooling this unhappy little boy. Hear Big C saying, “Mom do something!” Imagine us as we trudged through the entire second grade year in sheer misery. It was not a Michelangelo portrait. It looked more like Picasso. Get the picture?
This is the thing; God gently whispered to me for four years. He is a gentleman that way. He used everyday experiences to prepare me to homeschool Little I. He knew that Little I was going to go through a tough time emotionally when he was seven years old and He knew that Little I and myself had a very special connection. He knew I did not have a Masters Degree in Education but He had given me the gift of teaching. He knew that being a Mom and teaching Little I would be my priority and He gave me time to adjust to that fact and then He brought our entire family to a point where there was no question about what He wanted me to do. He placed people in my path to answer my questions. I simply trusted and obeyed. I do not believe in happenstance, fate, luck or karma. I believe in purpose and I believe God gives everyone a purpose. Are you listening for yours?
I have more to say on the homeschool topic. This is only Chapter One of Two-Hundred and Twenty-Five Chapters. Just kidding! Almost.
1 comment:
Hey Rosie, hope you have been doing well. This post reminds me of my own homeschooling experience. And no me and my family were not in a cult either. Even though people looked at us like we were!!! I love Tim Hawkins video of his homeschooling family!!!LOL Anyway, I always loved homeschooling. I to was, and am, VERY close to my mom, and was alway very content to stay at home. I do not have kids yet but I hope that God can give me the strength and knowledge to teach them at home. I get scared just thinking about sending then to "real" school these days. It's like handing your children over to satan himself. And looking back on what I learned during those years of schooling, I am confident that I learned more at home from my mom then alot of kids in public school did. And I also benifited from learning how to be a wife and a mother from the best there is. My mom!! So keep on Rosie, Little I will appreciate it in the end. I did. Justmarried
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