There are a few questions that, if I had been paid a dollar for each time I was asked them, would have made me very rich by now. I’m sure you’ve heard the same: “Are you certified to teach?” “What about socialization?” “What about Physics?” “You’ll send them to real school at some point, right?” and if you have a larger family “Are they ALL yours?”
But the real money-makers for me would be “You must be so organized” and “You must have the patience of a saint”.
Right.
Now, you are welcome to come to my house someday and see my snazzy bookshelves where the books are ordered by subject. You can see my attractive baskets, one holding all things adhesive, one holding all things that cut, and one holding all things that mom isn’t sure what to do with or how to categorize. We live by what we call “a flexible schedule” which means our days have a rhythm and an order, but with the freedom to stop for the diaper changes, the runny noses, and the unexpected friend dropping in for tea.
Sounds pretty organized to me.
Then comes VBS. You know, really, this is my worst nightmare. I have to allow myself to see my kids enjoy being taught by someone way cooler, significantly younger, doing messy paint-water-glitter-glue-sand-and-playdough crafts that, clearly, have no place in my home. To feel the pressure to live up to all that fun and frivolity come September is, in a word or two, painfully humbling. And totally unrealistic, but I digress.
But that ain’t the worst part, sister.
Where my organization skills, or lack thereof, are most evident is in the “please pack a brown bag lunch for your child that does not include any peanut products” department. How do moms of public school kids do this day in and day out for the school year? Man alive. Lunchy type things are not cheap. Plus, if not peanut butter and jam, then what? My kids are only so-so into ham sandwiches, and my idea of bagels and cream cheese have been met with “Well, that was really yummy for the first two days, but…”.
Oh, the pressure to live up to the other lunch bags! Water bottle or juice box? Granola bar or cookie? Homemade or store bought? Is it geeky to have cut veggies and dip? Will they just throw out the apples? Am I feeding them too much and the other kids will stare at their peculiarly large lunches and call them freaks? Am I not giving enough and they will gorge themselves at snack time stirring up questions of my fitness as a mother in the minds of the camp counselors? Arrgh! I can’t handle it.
Plus, when I’m doing four of them at a time, these lunches, and all things “lunch-boxy”, are not terribly fast and easy to prepare. There’s the slicing and spreading and wrapping and hunting for waxed paper, and refrigerating, assuming I can find room in the fridge… Especially complicating is when I realize I’ve forgotten to do it the night before and am setting aside my 5:00am Quiet Time to spread cream cheese on a bagel (or four). Talk about “she rises while it is still dark to prepare food for her household”. Not entirely sure that’s what the Proverbs meant.
And don’t forget, I’m not crafty. No paper bag puppets being made over here, which means, you’ve got it, no paper bags in the house. I have since made another trip to the grocery store to buy bags of both the paper and zippered varieties, hoping to stream-line production for the rest of the week. The first day of VBS this week, I had to send all four girls their lunches in one big reusable grocery shopping bag. It was just slightly smaller than a travel trunk, which mortified my 8 year old; and was heavy enough that only my 10 year old could carry it, which she had to for all the day’s activities until lunchtime. Plus, all the age groups weren’t eating lunch at the same time, which meant that it had to be dragged around to various lunching places holding up several of the groups’ activities. Ah yes. Way to represent, Homeschooling Mom!
Now, assuming that I’ve made their lunches on time, and remembered to set aside money for tuck and sunscreen and bathing suits and towels and “the card I made for my teacher” and an extra change of clothes (“just incase” the paper work suggests) and bug spray (phew) then I still somehow have to get them all out the door and to the church by 8:45am. Which is plausible, until you factor in the three other kids of mine who aren’t attending, one of whom likes to go down for his morning nap at 8:30am. And plausible until you consider the fact that I’d prefer not to drive them to the church and see all my friends and some community folks with my hair in a “I haven’t showered in two days” ponytail, with my glasses, not contacts, on, and yesterday’s mascara on my temples, cheeks, and nose. So, quick grab a shower, maybe find a lipstick, entertain the cranky boy for an extra 30 minutes while making the 3 year old and 5 year old get shoes on and into the car for a trip that, for them, will just end in disappointment, and ensure that we have allotted enough time for the 8 trips in and out of the house to carry all of the day’s needs.
And then do it all again in reverse at 4:00pm.
Come on now! Who is the really organized one? The lady who can do this with her brood to public school every day, year round, rain or shine. And if any one has any allusions of my “saintly patience”, this VBS routine very quickly sets aside any ideas of grandeur for them.
Our family is committed to homeschooling for some pretty valid reasons to be sure. I’m not worried about socialization. I’m not concerned about Physics. I know my children are receiving a high quality of education. My certification to teach comes from the fact that I love these kids more than any teacher could, regardless of educational qualifications. Yes, they are all mine (and yes, even all from the same father, thanks, lady in the grocery store, for asking that in front of my little girls). And yes, I even think I am fairly organized and relatively patient. However, if I needed any humbling in that last area, I sure received it this week from my first foray into VBS land.
I think this fall I will build a little extra flexibility into our 9:00am start time, so that I can take a minute or two to consider all those champion women who can get their kiddos out to school on time. They deserve a round of applause for that.
Or maybe I’ll use that extra time to quick grab a shower, find a lipstick, pour another cup of coffee, and thank the Lord that I get to do this homeschool thing for another year.
Barbara and her husband, as they homeschool their 7 children, are finding out that no two children are alike! Between lessons and lunches, Barbara blogs at Fuel by Barbara.
We chose the New Testament Overview, Level 3, which is recommended for ages 10 – 13. A variety of programs are available for ages 5 – adult, including studies of Esther, the birth of Jesus and Biblical feasts and holy days. Each program consists of a teacher guide and a student workbook. In addition, you will need a Bible (but you already have that, right?) and a small whiteboard with several colors of dry erase markers. (Teachers illustrate the stick figure drawing on the whiteboard. I am only teaching one child, so I have not found this step to be critical, but I can see where it would be a huge help for those working with multiple children.) For older levels, you will also need a concordance and a Bible dictionary.
In part one, Diane doesn’t just tell you WHAT you should be doing, she tells you HOW to do it and do it well. She begins with an overview of not only the history of classical education, but also an overview of the history of the public school system in general. Diane’s historical accounts are very well researched. It was fascinating for me to read about the birth of “Christianized Classical Education” under Emperor Charlemagne in the 9th century. As Diane puts it, “The mainstream pagan education had been redeemed by Christian content.” (page 9).
What You Are Saying