This blog was conceived on the heels of several comments left on a few of my blogs from ‘newbie’ homeschoolers afraid that they will fail in homeschooling. This is almost the same speech I give to new homeschoolers every single year when we are starting out and I see all the new homeschoolers planning out detailed days and contemplating whether or not they’ve picked up the right curriculum. New homeschoolers also tend to fret over days gone wrong. . .and all I can say is we’ve all been there.
But can you really fail at homeschooling? I suppose you can. You can fail at parenting and lack judgment and common sense such that the people around you are wishing that they gave out licenses to parent. So I suppose the same can be true for home schooling. However, I’m going to suggest that if you’re reading this, deeply concerned about whether or not you’re going to fail–you’re not one of those parents. I’m going to assume that you’re deeply invested in your child’s education and as you will see. . .that makes you perfectly qualified to parent.
The Fallacy of School
I had written several articles awhile ago on deschooling your children. But parents need to be deschooled as well. What is deschooling you ask? It’s the process of getting our minds to think outside the box. Learning does not have to happen at a desk. You don’t have to have a classroom. It doesn’t need to look like school to be successful. If you think about it, we often feel like we might fail because we’re comparing ourselves to an ‘ideal’. But the truth is children learn anywhere and everywhere. They don’t even need textbooks to learn!
What a Teacher Really Wants
I say this as a person who has had about a decade of tutoring and teaching under her belt: teachers want involved parents. I have always said that I could take any kid, regardless of behavior and/or ability IF his parents were supportive and on board, involved in his life, and motivated to help educate him. Students who succeed have involved parents–almost every single time. You cannot get much more involved than by home schooling your child.
So can you fail? I would suggest not. Homeschooling by its very nature is designed for students’ success. It is one on one, it has parents who are highly invested in the education of their child.
With that said, will every day be a success? Most likely not. But this is one of those things where you just have to look at the big picture.