Drowning On Land: When Homeschooling Is Overwhelming

As a homeschool graduate, I of all people should have felt prepared to homeschool my own spark plugs.  I grew up around other home-schooling families, participated in homeschool co-ops, and watched my parents started their own cover school that still exists today.

So why, at the beginning of my home-schooling journey with my own kids, did I feel as though I were drowning...on land?

Being a homeschooled student is, I'm learning, a lot different from being the homeschooling teacher.  As a child, I was completely oblivious to the behind-the-scenes work my parents did, especially when it came to legal paperwork.   All I knew was that there was something called an affidavit that needed to be filed at some point (I wasn't even sure when it was due or whom to submit it to).  Beyond that, I didn't have a clue what was involved in legally homeschooling!

Making the decision to homeschool was easy for Jon and me since we were both homeschooled and loved it.  But putting it into practice wasn't easy at first.  I'm pretty comfortable with everything now that we're several years into our homeschooling journey, but several years back I was overwhelmed by the the options that had popped up since I'd graduated almost two decades ago.

It also seemed like my first-generation home-schooling friends had a much better handle on things than I did, which made me feel even more overwhelmed.  Most of them seemed to know what curriculum they wanted to use, when to file the paperwork with the state, and what their homeschooling philosophy was.

A philosophy for homeschooling?  I didn't even know that existed and consequently didn't have one for our family.  I wasn't even sure I knew what a homeschooling philosophy was.  I don't know whether or not my parents had a philosophy for their educating efforts.  It may be that this line of thinking became more popular in the years since I've graduated. Whatever the case, this was indeed something very new to me.

Thankfully, with time, I've grown more comfortable with homeschooling.  I no longer feel like I'm drowning, on land or anywhere else.  I now know that California only requires me to fill out an affidavit once a year in October.  We've settled on some great curriculum, like Doorposts, Apologia Science, Mystery of History, Life of Fred math, Classical Conversations memory work (not the weekly group class), and Spelling Power.  Although I haven't completely joined any specific homeschooling philosophy, I see benefits of both a Charlotte Mason approach and a classical education.  We're also involved in a couple of co-ops that have greatly enriched our homeschooling year.

Even though I grew up being homeschooled, I still felt like I was drowning when I started homeschooling.  I had a solid foundation underneath me, but the waters still rushed high.

If you're considering homeschooling or have already started and feel like homeschooling is overwhelming, take heart.  Know that every homeschooler feels apprehension at one point or another.  Pray about your decision; spend time researching; and ask veteran homeschoolers for advice.

Eventually, we'll all learn to swim.  And, Lord willing, none of us will drown in the process!

Your turn:  Are you either homeschooling currently or considering homeschooling in the future?  What aspects of it intimidate you the most?  Are there areas where you feel confident?  I'd love to hear!