Homeschool Without Tears

Michaelmas Peg Warrior

I admit it: I often wonder if we are mutants.  I spend some time on online homeschool forums and boards, and often see a similarly-themed post: "I'm about to throw in the towel, I can't get my kids to do any work, it's a constant battle each day, etc."

Now, I'm not suggesting that parenting is easy. It clearly is *NOT* easy. I will say, however, that when you finally find a groove, it gets so much easier. The gentle approach, which is what our adventures into Waldorf education have been advocating, really does WORK.  All too often I read about families who try to imitate school at home and discover that both parents and children alike are burnt out, discouraged, overwhelmed, and just plain frustrated.  

Don't get me wrong: I used to hold similar beliefs about schooling. I went to college to become a teacher, after all. I took all those pedagogy classes that were chased down with a good dose of rhetoric about why the state regents exams (and curriculum that prepares for them) are the perfect answer to better education and will churn out better kids. I never felt comfortable with the idea of teaching to a test, and having been from Maine, my time in college in New York was an eye-opener when I discovered what results/standards-based education looks like.

Apparently more and more school districts here in Maine are climbing on board with the results/standards-based curriculum, paving the way for an introduction of Common Core - the soul-crushing Mack Daddy of all standards-based systems. I was a bit saddened when I read about this recent development.  I pray for a day when children will not be seen only as a number, but will be seen for the whole person that they are. I am holding the intention that more and more people will begin to focus on the children's strengths and interests rather than a score on a standardized test.

I do not believe these tests are an accurate way of evaluating the potential of a human being. 

How does the focus solely on a standardized test score create lifelong learners?? How does this help children learn *how* to learn? How does it spark their creativity? When are children allowed to be children and play?? I'd suggest they haven't given much thought to what this will do to their students on an individual level. 

As I sat and digested the news about our local Maine school districts, I watched my children playing in the toy room together. They were acting out a story I had read them earlier - spontaneously without me ever suggesting it. They were enjoying the open-ended play that their toys provide. They were laughing together and clearly had learned some interesting lessons from our daily story time.

My kids look forward to circle time, main lesson time, and stories every single day. Our daily rhythm is comfortable to them now, as they anticipate the familiar transitions of a typical day.  They know, for example, that there is play time in between lessons and stories. They know that there will be outside time after the stories and again after lunch...and again in the afternoon. They know that lunch will likely occur around noon time, and will be eaten together at the table.  They know that we'll have painting likely on Mondays, and that baking now means everyone participates.

This is not to say that there are never protests when I limit screen time in the afternoon. Screen time is something that we are transitioning through right now. Where we used to have more of a free-flowing atmosphere about screen time, now I limit it to 30 minute bursts only twice a day on most days. This has been an adjustment that my kids (my son in particular) have not always been thrilled about, but they are learning to adjust. 

One thing that I have noticed is that the inclusion of play time each day - specifically set-aside time for imaginative play - has meant they are more prone to avoid the screen altogether for many hours at a time lately, which has both shocked and delighted me. I think the limits on screen time and the emphasis on play time has really given my kids something incredibly special. They have bonded *SO* much just in the past month alone. 

It is sometimes a challenge to go from our old way of doing things to this new way - a way that is more in tune with the Waldorf educational model. I have to say, I couldn't be happier with the way my kids are taking to it!

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In other news, it is autumn now here in Maine, which has meant chores around the house have certainly increased. I'm in the process of getting ready to shut down the garden and get it ready for winter. We are taking air conditioners out of the windows, and I'll be winterizing those within the next 30 days. I'm harvesting my delicious fruits of my labor as well, including this amazing lamb's quarters below:

I've been enjoying its nutty flavor all summer, and now I'm in the process of cutting off the seed pods and getting ready to harvest the rest of the leaves to freeze for winter eating. It won't be the same as a delicious fresh leaf, however. I'm going to attempt to grow some indoors to see if I can keep snacking all winter. Finger's crossed that it will work!

 My son enjoys practicing his handwriting on this white board, so I use it for copy work. I write a sentence that summarizes the books we're currently reading, and my son loves that this then becomes yet another activity to do with the stories.  We also are starting to do some similar copy work in his main lesson book. We're still easing in the use of the main lesson book, so during the transition I'm keeping some of our previous homeschool favorites going for the security of the familiar work for now.

We're still finding a balance between adhering to a rhythm and yet not being slaves to it. It's been fun to discover that we are slipping into a natural rhythm already. As I use more intentionality in my planning of our day, I am finding it easier and easier to create a rhythm that is comforting and cyclical in a way that is slowly easing into a fairly reliable rhythm. Yay!

I hope you all are having a gentle and wonderful week!