So here are a lot of things I have been hearing lately....
"Oh I could never home school - I don't have enough patience."
"You're so brave, I just could not do that."
"I would love to home school but I really need a break from my kids!"
"I am just not capable of doing that."
And then there is the look of total bewilderment that almost makes me want to laugh. One person even had the audacity to tell me to my face that I was completely crazy and proceeded to follow that comment with a huge, dramatic eye-roll. That one made me a little mad but what can you do.
To be honest, I didn't think I was capable or had the patience to home school Brenna. It wasn't until I started reading about public schools vs. homeschooling that I decided that I had to do what I had to do and if that meant mustering up enough patience to home school then so be it. Yes I was looking forward to her going off to Kindergarten and having a "break" and catching up on stuff like scrap booking but there are other ways that I can get "me time" - that's what family is for. HAHA! :) But seriously, to me it is completely selfish to not home school Brenna just because I will not get a lot of time to myself. I will have plenty of that once Brenna grows up and leaves the house and then I will probably wish that she was still here.
I am not some perfect Mom who doesn't yell or get upset - I lose my patience with Brenna just like any other parent. It doesn't take a "Super Mom" to home school and I don't want people thinking I am anything like that. I am just a regular Mom like anybody who wants what's best for their child. It is a personal choice that Brendon and I have made. I don't expect anybody to do what we have chosen to do and I don't look down on people who send their children to school.
I know what we have picked is not the norm in today's society (even though it is becoming more and more acceptable). I have heard from a lot of seasoned home school Moms that the negative comments and weird looks are not going to stop. People are going to scrutinize you when they find out that YOU are teaching your child instead of a "certified teacher". In fact, I got my first taste of it just the other day. I misspelled a word on one of my posts here and somebody left a nasty comment about it and said that they hope my daughter gets a better education then I did. (chuckle) Who in the world has never misspelled a word?! That just baffled me that somebody could judge what kind of teacher I am going to be to my child just from a typo I made. (sigh) I guess I have to learn to just let things roll off my back.
Well I had better get off my soap box now - Brenna and I have a play date! :)
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
You only need to look at Brenna to have all the answers regarding Home Schooling. Other moms will comment because it isn't their choice or pure jealousy, ignore the ignorance. I have many friends who have chosen to remove the distractions to education and the misinformation our public school system is feeding our kids.
Joe & I are very close to our children and require the schools to provide lesson plans for our review. They have gone to a uniform grading system online that we can view anytime. I'm active in the school. This still isn't perfect so I'm very proud you've taken this step to ensure your daughter's future. Not sure what your school system is like but none are Christian enough and most are over indulgent to minorities and alternative lifestyles. Again good for you!
Mom's cousin,
Teri
Personal note: Thank you Teri!! :) Dawn
On another note - to our sweet little munchkin - you have a great mommy & daddy, who want YOU to become the person who will always be generous to others and be the very best that YOU allow YOURSELF to become.
You have a spectacular start in life with all the love that surrounds you. Be strong -
Hugs & Kisses
Grandma Dawn :)
I cannot BELIEVE someone posted that in reference to your misspelled word! I'm a high school Spanish teacher, and one of the first things I teach my kids is that in order to feel comfortable coming out of our shells and speaking in front of eachother in another language, we must be OK with the fact that we're human and WILL make mistakes. I then promise them that I will probably spill something on my shirt several times throughout the year, I will misspell several words (in English), and I might even trip and fall a time or two. However, I promise them that we will all learn from our mistakes, and just because someone isn't perfect doesn't mean we can't learn from them. I also teach them that it is OK to gracefully point out eachother's errors in a KIND and loving manner, without ridicule and criticism, as we are all a family and need to maintain that comfort to build courage to speak in front of crowds...
Perhaps the person who posted that focused a little too much on their spelling and not enough on the lesson in manners!
Post a Comment