A Tale of Two Home Schools

Picture it.

It’s 8:30 a.m. The sun is shining in a cloudless sky. The birds are singing. The house is spotless and dinner is already started. Breakfast dishes are put away and you are dressed and perfectly made up. The children have already started their school work – on their own of course – and you begin the first lesson with the first child. It’s effortless as usual and your perfect student has no questions or problems. He/she skips away with excitement to finish his/her school work independently. As the day progresses the scenery stays the same. Every child understands every lesson perfectly. School is peaceful and happy and satisfying – especially for the students. Quite often you overhear your home schooled children discussing how fortunate they are to have you, their very own saintly mother, as their teacher. The children excel academically and in every other way. All of your high school offspring routinely blow the lid off the ACT’s and SAT’s. Colleges are knocking down your door, begging your high schoolers to take their many offers of scholarships. Your in-laws brag about your teaching savvy and your beautiful, perfect, genius children. Your husband walks in at the end of the day with roses – just because. Later that evening, the children suggest that you relax and put your feet up while they clear the dinner dishes and then study in their rooms. And of course, the birds are still singing.

Anybody buyin‘ this hooey? Didn’t think so. Now, all together, let’s chunk the rose colored glasses and get real. Try this on for size. . .

A crying baby woke you 106 times last night so you’ve already hit the snooze button 9 times. At some point, you manage to rise and feed the bad-hair-day army gathered at the breakfast table. As your mental fog begins to lift, you remember that today will be the 5oth time you’ll attempt to teach your second grader about place value. You’re really just not sure if you can take that blank stare one more time. You’ll begin to think about the spelling test that you have to re-do today for your fifth grader – a child who has memorized the entire NBA roster, but who has NEVER been able to correctly spell more than two words in a row in his life. Then there’s your high school student who dry-heaves every time you reach for the Algebra book and swears that she (still) doesn’t know how to isolate the variables on one side of the equation and anyway “variables are stupid”, she declares. And, no matter how hard you try, you can not hear a single bird singing – anywhere!

The truth is that there are few perfect students. At some point, many will struggle just a little – at one time or another – academically. The causes of the problems are as varied as the students themselves and quite often parents find themselves at a loss when trying to figure out how to remedy these issues. In “Fill in the Blanks”, we will attempt to address some of the most common academic problems that students experience. Here is just a short list of some of the issues we will cover in the coming months:

* chronic inability to progress in reading skills
* comprehension issues
* spelling difficulties
* wide range of math related concerns
* written expression
* attention problems
* academic “readiness”
* memory related limitations

Again, the root causes, as well as the symptoms of learning difficulties are widely varied and run the gambit from visual processing issues to auditory processing to focus and attention problems. And the causes of those situations can seem limitless as well when we realize that any one single learning difficulty can be caused by physical, emotional, cognitive, maturation or dietary reasons. In upcoming months, after we’ve investigated enough of these issues, I’m sure you’ll relax and agree with me that homeschool is often the very best place for a struggling learner to be. Who knows them, understands them, loves them, and is more dedicated to their success that a parent? Who will move heaven and earth, and not give up until her baby succeeds? It’s you!

Over the years, I have found that though many academic “struggles” seem to be complicated in nature, they are very often just a symptom of some missing piece of the puzzle. When you find the missing piece, the puzzle makes sense. When you “fill in the blanks”, math, reading and everything else begin to make sense. When you discover the small problems and missing skills and then correct them, learning can cease being a painful uphill battle and instead becomes a joy. You might even begin to hear birds singing!

I invite you to comment and let us know what kind of struggles your students are having. We’d love to help you walk through this valley and come out on the other side – where the birds sing! (Though I can’t guarantee that the kids will ever do the dishes!)

Remember, God’s plan for our children is “. . . to give them a future and a hope!” You are a part of making that plan happen and He’s already equipped you to do it! Be Blessed!

Darnelle is a wife and a mother to 5 children: 4 home schoolers currently in 3rd, 7th, 9th, and 11th grades and one college sophomore. All 5 children have been home schooled from preschool. She has experience teaching in public, private, parochial and special schools but her favorite . . . is home school! Her certification is in the areas of special education and remediation. In her column, “Fill in the Blanks“, Darnelle aims at assisting parents in finding and then correcting trouble spots that often cause academic problems and struggles. Children – and their parents – who are free from the burden of academic struggles, can begin to love learning again, just like God intended! Visit her blog, All Things Work Together.