Welcome to the next issue of Keep on Track

Our Focus in this e-zine is the new homeschooling family - discussing the Joys and Challenges of a new homeschooling family.

Each Keep on Track Issue endeavours to provide the reader with practical advice and food for thought.

• Greetings from Marianne
• NEW!!! Thoughts from a Homeschool Dad
• News
• Joys of the new Homeschooling Family
• Challenges facing the new Homeschooling Family
• Organizational Tips
• Coming soon

Greetings from Marianne

For some of you the new year has begun and you've settled into a routine (of sorts??) and for others, in Australia, the year is winding down with one short term to go.

Wherever you are from, I hope you are enjoying your homeschooling experience at whatever stage you are in.

Each part of the homeschooling journey has its joys and rewards, and also its difficulties and challenges. As I said in my last ezine, when we begin homeschooling (and especially if we take our children out of a school environment) we can easily list the benefits of homeschooling. However as the years go on, we can easily lose sight of the homeschooling benefits. We just forget. We get into a pattern of doing things and perhaps get stuck in an approach which doesn't excite us anymore. Then we wonder, "What really is the benefit of homeschooling?"

That was my last ezine and in this ezine, I will be discussing the Joys and Challenges of a new homeschooling family; and then the Joys and Challenges of a veteran homeschooing family in the next Keep-on-Track ezine.

What about the Homeschool Dad?
I am happy to announce a new regular contribution in the "Keep-on-Track" ezine by my husband, Gerald. Read more below for his perspective as a Homeschool Dad.

Thoughts from a Homeschool Dad

Looking back over many years I have to say that this journey has been interesting. At the start I have to admit that I wasn't sure what to think. I could remember my Mum saying that you had to matriculate from High School and that is what she wanted for all her children. In those days there was "leaving" which most people did and meant that school concluded around 15 years of age and then there was "matriculation" which meant that school concluded around 17 years of age. I had this matriculation thing in my head and wondered if we would home school right through or send them to school for the last couple of years. Much of our life is driven by fear and peer group pressure and I was no exception.

Yet, as I look back over the years my fears are distilled and I started to feel and experience the joys and benefits of home schooling. Not only could we have holidays outside the busier times of the year but you see the children excited about what they learn. Home schooling gave them the freedom to explore their interests and to develop at their own pace - with a bit of prodding from mum and dad. Just as you can enjoy watching your small children enjoying a swing in a park as you push them, so you can experience the joy of watching them explore new areas of life and learning. I started to pick up books that seemed to be every where I turn. My learning is a bit more inductive as I read about a Pharoah or heard about Napoleon.

I personally like history so that is what I tend to gravitate towards. Still sitting there reading aloud to the kids or listening to a story as the whole family enjoys it, is something to look at with thankfulness.

Home schooling is a real family journey, a bit more hands on. You watch your children grow, learn and eventually use their gifts in the world and in the church. There are costs and many challenges and I see it as part of my calling to encourage my wife and to acknowledge her efforts in the day to day teaching of our children.

Gerald

News - Monthly Giveaway!

Here are some other recent pages that have been added:

There's has been a great deal of activity on my site regarding Read Aloud Books. Thanks to all those who added their favourite read aloud and added their entry to the Homeschool Freebie Competition.

Read more at the Homeschool Freebie page.

Some Favourite Read Alouds:

- Bambi
- Lord of the Rings
- It Could Always Be Worse
- The Slant Book
- Love You Forever
- Little House on the Prairie Series
- The Witch of Blackbird Pond
- The Wizard of Oz
- The Lord is My Shepherd
- The Magic Garden
- Red Sails to Capri
- Never Talk to Strangers
- Dr Doolittle
- Jonah from Alice in Bibleland
- The Terrestria Series
- Summer of the Monkeys

You will find out the winner to the Homeschool Freebie Giveaway in a few days and then the new Homeschool Freebie will be announced!

I have also added a page on Homeschooling Blogs.

You can either have your own family blog/ your child's blog right here on my site (a great way for your children to publish their own writings - no charge to you of course!) or you can list your homeschooling blog on this page.

James has just started his mini-site - James' Magnificent Chronicles. Check out James' new pages -

He's added some more pages which will be added soon.

Other new pages are:

We have also had a wonderful time watching the metamorphosis of monarch caterpillars - to - butterflies.

I have never seen it up close and after a number of attempts, we were able to catch it on video.

I have added my U-Tube videos on this page. We also went to the nearby Christian School and gave a short talk and show and tell of our monarch life cycle experiences. Now, other children are watching God's wonderful miracle in nature!

The Homeschooling Journey

Having been homeschooling for a number of years and having two children who have begun and finished their schooling and entered into the workforce and one son beginning a small business, I can understand those who are nearing the end and perhaps feeling a bit worn out, overburdened, perhaps burnt out as well as excited about the different level of interaction you are having with your young adult and exploring options and avenues of further study.

However, as I continue to meet and discuss homeschooling with new homeschoolers, I am encouraged and energized by their enthusiasm. I am still excited each time I sit and make term plans and goals for the four children that we are still teaching at home and enjoying it.

I've just been sitting down over this last week (on holidays) planning and getting organized for the next block of work and it has been good rethinking, scribbling notes, adding to my planner and deciding on what we need to cover.

The Joys of the new Homeschooling Family

(Some of the experiences which I list below will apply more to those families who have chosen to homeschool after their child has been at school, but I'm sure if you have decided to homeschool from when your children are born, you will still understand what we mean.)

Excitement

Teaching Possibilities:

Homeschool Materials:

As you contemplate what books, courses or curriculum you may choose to buy, you will be filled with amazement as to what is out there - but also a certain amount of dread and confusion (what will I choose??)

Your new education in education:

Your new education in learning:

The Challenges of the new Homeschooling Family

Uncertainty:

The initial Math program which I began with suits some of my children, but not all. Studying Latin and Greek may suit some of my children, but not all. Children are creative in different ways, and so time and resources will differ accordingly. One thing is for sure, the way you begin, will not be the same way you continue homeschooling. (At least, not for 99% of families.)

Solution: Remind yourself that your children belong to the Lord and are entrusted to you. Then, ask for guidance and wisdom as to how to nurture each individual child. Remember God knows your children better than you do and He has a plan for their lives. We need to learn how to walk in obedience to God and His plans.

Great Bible reference for uncertainty:

Also spend some time re-thinking education. What is the definition of education? What are your family's homeschooling goals?

Please don't be overwhelmed by this page - but it may provide some help on Homeschool Planning here.

To bring School to Home:

In the back of our minds we have a false sense of security that if it looks like "school" and we can tick the boxes, we are educating our children well. Boys tend to challenge these thoughts because boys especially like reasons for why this or that is necessary to learn. They like to have "real" things to do and teach us to think outside the box more in terms of education. Practical, real life learning, in the community, around the home, through day to day experiences must be valued by us as real education. We don't have to make everything into a "neat project" and we will certainly spoil many natural learning experiences by squashing them into the "school" mould.

Having said that, we should not necessarily throw our textbooks out of the window. All things have their place and some children will work better in a controlled, structured environment and thrive in their education. We just need to think about who we are educating and how we can do that in the best way for our family and children.

Solution: Consider de-schooling your child for a while if you have taken them out of a school environment. That means that for a certain amount of time, you allow them time to rediscover their own interests and take time off.

Then spend some time thinking how you would like to educate your child - what do you think education looks like? How can you encourage this in your home? How can you give your children time to explore, freedom to create in a way which suits your family's goals and understanding of education and your responsibilities. Consider the homeschooling approaches - remembering that your approach will be a unique blend. And remind yourself again of Proverbs 3:5,6

Worry: What to teach, when? how?

I have spent some time discussing each subject area (although I have not covered everything yet) and you will find information on Ways to Teach, What to teach - skill charts in many of these areas. Children learn (as we do) in different ways so use a variety of teaching approaches which will suit auditory, visual, hands-on, spatial learners.

Try all sorts of things - here's some ways to create a rich, learning environment for all sorts of learning styles.

We cannot artificially divide children into learning stages which correspond directly to a certain age, but I do believe that learning occurs in stages and that it is helpful for parents to focus on particular aspects of learning in each stage and to use certain methods at that time. Read more here.

Great Bible Reference against Worry:

Homeschool Materials:

Here are some guidelines for choosing homeschool curriculum.

You may also like to ready my ezine article, How to Choose the Best Home School Curriculum for your Family.

Comparison:

However, it isn't long before "comparison" steps in and we begin to doubt if we are giving our child the best education possible. The focus shifts quickly from the relationship building opportunity to "an education", and unfortunately, our society has taught us to measure "education" by scores.

So, driven by our need to see results in order to compare our children, we set them down to a plethora of textbooks, a CD course, another on-line program just in case.... and on it goes.

With our eyes on the next homeschooling family (who fits in so much in their day), we begin early in the morning. We become the task master - the time keeper - the driving force. We stay up late to control programs, we mark their work with a red pen, we become anxious when the book isn't being finished according to our timetable. We push harder, work longer, become more irritated.

Then we notice that there are so many activities that the children from the school down the road are involved in. We need to join a drama group, become a part of the home school choir, take some music, dance and art lessons and be part of a home school network group or co-op if there is one close by. Our children are now being forced out the door, in the car, the baby needs to be woken up and dragged here and there. We keep our eye on our watches.... so that our children won't be the ones missing out!

It is easy to see how burnout can happen and how we can be swayed by peer pressure from our homeschooling circles and from the community around us. But, how can we avoid burnout caused by Comparison?

Bible Reference against comparison:

What about graduating?

Firstly, one must consider if your child needs a University education. I see so many teens leaving school and entering university just because it is "the thing to do." If, however, they need a degree from university, you will need to find out what entrance requirements the university has and work towards it. Does your child need to set a SAT exam or prove credits in subject areas?

Entrance to university differs in each university, state and country and I cannot provide information on that, however, I know that homeschoolers can definitely enter university. They are often more prepared for a university education as they are familiar with setting their own goals and prepared to teach themselves as well as work independently.

The journey of homeschooling is so often about Trust. Who can stop the plans of the Lord for your child? Surely we need to take confidence in our God that He will open and shut doors in accordance with His will.

We can (and should be) proactive and faithful in all our tasks, but rest in the knowledge of

Organizational Tips

Getting organized and making it all work

This may seem an impossibility for you all the moment. At times our lives can feel so out of control! In fact, this is how I felt over the last month in my home! Seriously!

In my home, I recognize that I like to have a certain degree of order in the home before I begin our schooling. I feel frustrated looking at unnecessary messes, so I often just get all the children together and assign them different cleaning tasks (getting a load of washing on the line, vacuuming a mess in the middle of our work area, putting a pile of books back on a shelf, doing the breakfast dishes, making sure all beds are made... you know the things that just stare out at you!) and then I feel I can begin in a more relaxed way. Making sure your day begins with a certain amount of chores being done can make you and the other family members feel happy about their work environment.

Now, of course, that is just me, personally. Some of you, may be able to look right over messes and just get on with teaching and the routine you have set. That's fine - it's more of a personality issue. So much of the homeschooling is about how we (as mothers or parents) deal with irritations, how we handle conflict, how we speak to our children and develop relationships and hold relationships above everything else. It is important to know yourself and recognize what will help you be the best nurturing mother and put personal habits into place to help you.

How do you make it happen? There are some important things to remember when trying to make it all work: