Recently, many blogs have been highlighting the delight-directed and unschooling aspects of homeschooling. I'm not against these methods and agree that they work well for some families. I love encouraging my own children to find their passions and study things that interest them.
I appreciate wiser-moms-than-me reminding us all to not be enslaved to methods and curriculum and to focus on God first and foremost. Yet, I have also seen firsthand how some homeschool moms give themselves permission to be lazy from too many "give yourself grace" and "embrace unschooling" messages. I've seen the pain in my friend's eyes as she explained how embarrassed she is that she can't spell and has huge gaps in her education and I have heard her husband say he would never let her homeschool their own children after seeing what a poor education she received as a homeschooler. As the oldest of seven kids, she ended up doing a lot of housework and caring for her siblings instead of doing schoolwork or reading.
I've seen kids my children's ages who can't read or who struggle with basic concepts that public schoolers learn at a young age. I know some of my peers are too tired to do school but not too tired to surf Pinterest all day. I've seen parents skip over the subjects they don't like or know how to teach.
It concerns me and causes me to write this post as a reminder that just because we have the grace and freedom to be unstructured in homeschooling doesn't mean we should. Since this blog is about doing Classical Conversations simply, I'm hoping to highlight the best of both worlds: the structure and discipline of doing a challenging program that will prepare our students for excellence alongside the joy of enjoying the simple pleasures of life and learning!
No comments:
Post a Comment