If you had asked my dad twenty-five or so years ago if he intended to be the head of a homeschooling family, he would have responded in a now familiar Dad-ism, "that's nowhere on my radar." Then again, I think twenty-five years ago homeschooling hadn't really taken root just yet. My parents didn't exactly belong to the pioneers of home education in our state, but I think my mom definitely qualifies as "second generation" in the movement.
Though I wasn't really aware of it as I was growing up, I think Mom did a lot of experimenting to find out what worked for teaching me... and then had to start all over again when it came to my younger brother. I've never spent a day in public school and have loved the experience of having Mom one on one. We started before I was around three or four, playing word and thinking games.
I remember most clearly all the hands on sessions of science, exploring, field trips, and all the reading aloud she did for both me and my brother, John. There are few things more exciting than learning about the civil war by taking a weekend trip to a reenactment or reading Across Five Aprils in between "classes" on the living room floor. Math and home economics were setting up a grocery store in the school room and playing cashier while Mom was customer.
As an alumni homeschool student, I'd like encourage any homeschool moms who are in that deep mid-winter slump this week. Your kids will look back and remember. The little things you do and silly games you play that help them remember times tables or grammatical rules do matter. I know, because my mother invested in me, and her love has made an eternal impact on my life.
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