Every homeschool mom has that story. The story of how she decided to do this homeschooling thing. Most homeschool moms I talk to once thought it was something they would never do. We’re also an extremely eclectic bunch. Since we’re so eclectic, I can make no assumptions about you, my fellow homeschool mom. I can’t assume you are homeschooling because of your religious or moral beliefs, for example. I can’t assume your kids are doing all their work online. I can’t assume you’re in a co-op. The reasons why people homeschool, the way they homeschool, and the community they choose to do it in has never been more varied. We live in a society of influencers eager to give us their advice. For the most part, people eat it up. However, I’ve found myself pausing before I listen to someone. I’ve been let down too many times, you see. I think the problem is we don’t stop and ask, “why should I listen to this person?” Because they have fifteen thousand Instagram followers? Because their YouTube videos went viral? Because they have a blog. I take starting this blog very seriously. As a matter of fact, even though I thought about doing it for years, it’s only now, with almost a decade of homeschooling under my belt, that I feel ready and confident to give any kind of advice. I think “why should I listen to you?” is a valid question, and it’s one I want to answer by telling you my story (briefly, I promise!) I graduated from Asbury University (actually, it was just Asbury College back then) with a BS in English Secondary Education (6th-12th grade) passionate and idealistic about education. It was December when I finished my student teaching and moved back to my hometown. I got hired by a local high school on a Friday and started on a Monday! I was only twenty-two with zero experience, and I was given three different grade levels and about ninety students. Two of the classes had special needs students in them and a special education co-teacher. To say I was tossed into the deep end without a life preserver is an understatement. Fast forward five years, and like the vast majority of public school teachers, I’m burned out and ready to jump ship. It wasn’t just the stress of the job, it was education itself. “There’s got to be more than this,” was my constant thought. By this time, I was married and we were trying to have a baby. I was also thinking, “I want more for my child than this.” During those five years teaching public school, I tried to satisfy that cry within myself by getting certified to teach gifted students. My course work was exciting, and my gifted students were simultaneously a challenge (in a positive way) and a joy. It still wasn’t enough, however. Something was broken at the core of how students were being educated. After much prayer and quite a bit of fear, I took the leap and started looking for a private school job. What most people don’t understand is that private schools in America, contrary to what you see on tv, are not paying their teachers huge salaries. As a matter of fact, teachers take a pay cut to teach at most private schools. They also can’t provide the health insurance the public schools can. Nevertheless, my mental and emotional health was suffering at my current job. Looking back, I think the Lord used this time to prepare me to homeschool my kids. I was offered a job at three different schools. The first taught no differently than my public school and I wondered, "how will this be any different than what I'm already doing?" The other two, however, excited me. One was a Charlotte Mason school. One was a classical school. In applying for the jobs, I was required to read For the Children’s Sake by Susan Schaeffer Macauley and the essay “The Lost Tools of Learning” by Dorothy Sayers. Reading them changed my life. As a teacher, I had wondered if there was more. I now had the answer - there absolutely was! Yet I also realized it was impossible to give in a large classroom setting. It was somewhat easier to give in the classical school where I taught (yes, that’s where I accepted the job!). I taught sixth grade there for two years. The first year, I had only six students. The second year, I had twelve. My fire for learning was reignited as I watched kids thrive in this environment. While there, I also noticed that most of our curriculum was originally created for homeschoolers. Much of it I fell in love with. Sixth grade was also self-contained in this school (as part of the classical grammar stage), so I taught all subjects except for art, music, and Latin to the same kids all day long. Seeing all of the wonderful curriculum and realizing that “huh, I can teach math and science,” made a lightbulb go off. So I said to my husband, “What do you think about homeschooling?” In a way, the rest was history. After only two years at that fantastic, life-giving classical private school, I left to be a stay at home mom to our new baby boy. Over the years, I would also teach at a homeschool hybrid and private tutor homeschoolers, but the most rewarding teaching I have ever done is to three special students named Luke, Haley, and Ian. Nothing has compared to discovering the world by their sides. Nothing has compared to seeing them struggle to sound out letters, then string together words, then read more difficult chapter books, then finally read higher level books smoothly out loud. Their love for the library fills me with joy. When they finally master a word they’ve struggled to spell or a math concept that just wasn’t clicking, we cheer and high five in a way I never would with anyone else. They are getting an education that can only be achieved one on one. I think about the way God orchestrated my life. I went to college never dreaming I would be a teacher. I entered public school teaching never dreaming I would ever leave it. I took a job at a private school never dreaming I would homeschool. Maybe it sounds selfish to say all of that was leading me here: to be a teacher to my own kids, but it’s what I truly believe. So yes, I have a teaching degree. Yes, I am certified to teach gifted students. Yes, I taught at a classical school. Yes, I have received hours upon hours of teacher training. Yes, I now have almost a decade of experience at this homeschool thing. However, none of that means I’m more qualified to teach your children than you are. Why? Because they are not MY kids. It sounds conceited to say, but I do believe I am the best person to teach MY kids. I know them in a way a teacher never could, no matter how dedicated. It’s the same for you and your children, my friend. However, I do want to share what I know with you. I want to encourage you, from someone who has taught in pretty much every scenario, that you CAN do this. I want to give you tips and tools to help you do it better, with confidence. I want to share my mistakes, so you don’t have to make them! I don’t take doing this blog lightly because I know a little of what you’re feeling, mom. You worry, you wonder if you’re doing enough, you compare your kids to everyone else’s, you make mistakes and think you’ve ruined your kids for life. Guess what? I’ve struggled with all that, too. The last thing you need is some supermom with beautiful Instagram pictures feeding you unrealistic expectations. You won’t find that here. Just me, a mom who has always wanted more for her kids. Just like you.
2 Comments
Rachael
7/19/2021 05:05:29 pm
Reading your story reminds me of my own journey...from elementary school teacher to homeschool mom...all because I knew there had to be more to education than what I experienced being in a formal classroom. Here's to your blog! Congrats! I can't wait to read more.
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AuthorHi, I'm Melanie! I'm a homeschooling mom of three kids ages 13, 11, and 9. I have a BS in English Secondary Education from Asbury University plus 30 hours of gifted certification course work. I've taught in just about every situation you can imagine. Public school, private, homeschool hybrid, and private tutoring. The most important thing I've learned? One on one, individualized instruction can't be beat. Archives
July 2022
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