|
 |
Minute to Minute
Readers Helping
Readers | |
|
| June 30th, 2007 |
|
Last week Liz had a lot of questions for other
homeschooling grandparents. Several of you
answered offering your stories and
experiences.
Homeschooling is a monumental task even for those of us
who are teaching our own children. Reading how these women have committed themselves
to doing what their children cannot during a time in
their lives when others their age are usually finished raising
their children encourages me.
The circumstances that brought these grandmothers to this
point may not always be happy ones, but they are happy to have
such a strong influence in their grandchildren's
lives. They don't look at it as an obligation but as an
opportunity. | |
 |
Something Special
|
| |
|
| Life As a
Homeschooling Grandmother |
Dear Liz,
I'd love to connect with
other grandmas homeschooling grandkids!!!
I'm homeschooling my granddaughter because the idea of
turning her over for 8 hours to people I don't know, in a
prison environment (in order to protect the kids), with maybe
15 min. (if you're lucky) of recess, and then topping it all
off by having no control over what she will be taught just
goes against my grain. I've already lived through that
nightmare once with my daughter.
I did homeschool my daughter for 2 years in high school
and then she finished up with a GED. That was not an
ideal situation but the only alternative. I want more
for my granddaughter.
My granddaughter lives with us. Her parents are
not involved in any way and although I feel everyone is
missing out as a result it is the best situation for
now.
At the moment we are starting on K with a more
structured approach than for preK. However, everything
is pretty much free form. I tend to favor a CM/classical
approach and want her to have lots of wiggle room for
exploration. I want to be able to take all the time
necessary to build a firm foundation for the academic basics
as well as lifelong habits.
In some ways it is easier. I don't have as much
energy so I don't accomplish as much as when younger and
I'm not as much of a perfectionist with myself or my
granddaughter. I consider that a good thing. I do
have to watch trying to accomplish too much - I tend to be
very goal and schedule oriented; therefore, I'm trying to
throttle back and keep the whole picture in mind.
Do I fit in with the other mothers? Fitting in is
a problem for me, I find I feel isolated. I've also
found that mentioning that I'm her grandmother can bring out
different reactions. The hardest for me is feeling like
I'm kept at arms length because "there must be something
wrong". Or the assumption that I have lots of friends
because I'm older. We move a lot and making new friends
has become harder with each move and developing a much needed
support group takes a lot of work. It doesn't
help I'm really not interested in many of the topics that
young mothers are caught up in. Plus I have never been a
"kid" person and all the noise and confusion that often
accompanies little ones can get to
me.
I'd love to follow through to graduation but that is a
long ways off and many things can change in the next 12
years. We're going to take this one year at a
time.
There are days I regret not having my retirement.
I only had a few years where I could pick up and go "do"
whatever if I wanted to. There are things I had started
to work on that once again have been put on the back burner
and may never be pursued again. I really need some
sitters so I can take care of "me" once a week. I do so
much better if I can get away for a massage or just sit in a
coffee shop for an hour and just "be" without the constant
chatter of a 5 year old. I also miss going away
with my husband at the drop of a hat, or meeting him for
dinner or a movie at the spur of the moment. That said,
I can't imagine life without this little one. She is an
absolute delight and a wonderful challenge to stay
young.
If I couldn't continue homeschooling I would seriously
consider a private school although there aren't many to choose
from in our current area. I might also consider doing an
online school if that situation would work with
her.
Yes, the sacrifices are worth it. And it's not
just sacrifice, there are many freedoms as well.
Thanks for asking.
Jenny |
| Choosing This Responsibility |
|
Our first
grandchild has lived with us since he was 11 months old
and we adopted him at the age of 5. He is now 12 years
old and we have homeschooled him starting in
kindergarten. I did not homeschool pre-school as he was
considered at risk due to some delays and was involved in the
public school early intervention program. I quit working
full time to start homeschooling when he would have entered
kindergarten. We did not homeschool our older children,
now ages 34, 33, and 26. His natural father, our oldest
son, is aware of the schooling process but only as much as the
rest of the family. If he would ask, of course we would
fill him in, but he has respected the fact of the adoption and
recognizes our rights versus his at this point. He has
full custody of a younger daughter (just in the last two
years) and is now married with three step-daughters so he
has his hands full.
Our 12 year
old is ADHD and a learning disabilities as well, though not
officially diagnosed. We use a literature method of
education, focusing on reading, writing, and math, getting
history and to this point science through literature. We
are starting Apologia Science this year. The math
program we use is Saxon Math. We start with spelling
practice (computer program), Bible (Switched on Schoolhouse on
computer, then math drill (computer) followed by Saxon math
lesson. On alternating days, we will next do science or
drawing (improving his fine motor skills). Writing (on
the computer or copywork) is scheduled daily as well as his
trombone practice as he is in a local homeschool band.
This sounds great, but in actuality, we rarely get everything
done.
Skipping down
into the next questions - I feel I fit in pretty good with the
younger homeschool moms. In fact, a couple of them
aren't so much younger than me anyway. One of my best
friends is a younger homeschool mom, young enough to almost be
my daughter. We trade sitting back and forth and rides
as we live near each other. I don't feel the age
difference between us at all.
Yes, I do
plan to homeschool to H.S. graduation unless I'm totally
"crazy" before then and have to be institutionalized (that's
just a joke, I think, lol). There have been an occasion
or two when I have wondered what it would be like to not have
any kids at home and how our life would be different, but we
freely took on this choice and this obligation, which may be
different from the obligation you have taken on. So I
refuse to dwell on thoughts of that nature.
I
have always been working from home doing medical
transcription, but the transcription has decreased lately and
so I have recently taken on working part-time in the medical
clinics in the area, up to 3 days a week. My friend is
taking him into her home with her three kids and homeschools
them together, at this point on an abbreviated summer
schedule. This is not optimal, because I am
starting to feel like I am not as aware or even as interested
in what he is doing in math, for instance, so my out of home
work probably will decrease come fall when we start
homeschooling full time again. If something happens to
me and I cannot homeschool at all, we will most likely have to
put him in the public school as there is no parochial school
around here at all unless my friend is willing to take on the
task full time. My husband and I have thought much about
guardianship should we die and none of those we are
considering would homeschool, so we simply have to accept that
and are trying to choose someone who would stand up for
him and be assertive at the school to make sure he gets what
he needs.
I
always recommend homeschooling. I firmly feel it is the
best choice for almost any and every child but only if the
parent/teacher is willing to put forth the effort and
commit to do the job.
|
| Encouragement From Others... |
|
In 1987 we
began our homeschooling adventure teaching our kindergartner.
While we received mixed reactions from my husband's side of
the family, my mother thought it was a great idea. I believe
that if in the 1960's homeschooling had been what it is
today, I would have been homeschooled.
In 1989, my mom decided to homeschool my nephew
because of extenuating circumstances. He was in the 3rd
grade. She taught him almost exclusively with some help from
my grandmother. They all lived in the same house so it became
a joint effort. Mom continued to homeschool him until high
school, at which time he entered public school at the request
of my sister.
I never asked my mom if she regretted
what she did ( she passed away in 1997 ), but I never got the
impression that she did. By the way, in August we will have
been homeschooling 20 years. My youngest will be starting
Kindergarten. I also have a granddaughter who will be starting
Kindergarten in a public school. If the opportunity ever
arose to homeschool one of my grandchildren, I think I
probably would.
I am a
Homeschool Grandmother. I homeschool two granddaughters, ages
9 & 7. When the nine year old was 4, she went to a public
school 1/2 day K4 program. She was miserable. Her mother
took her out of school and I finished teaching her that year
and of course the two year old (at the time) wanted to learn
right along with her. She is now starting fourth grade. The 7
year old is a 3rd grader in Math, Spelling, and Language and a
4th grader in the other subjects.
I think that being a grandmother, I am more rigid on
keeping a schedule. I like the girls to be ready for school by
9:00 a.m., and since Grandpa comes home for lunch we have a
set lunch time. I like to be outside playing with the girls
for a while in the mornings and after lunch. I also feel that
since I am GRANDMA, I am less picky and more understanding to
how they are feeling. I can tell if it is NOT a good time to
continue on a subject or if they are actually understanding
something. Or if they just need to be hugged or chased around
on scooters.
We can usually have class work done by 2:00. I may be
rigid with a schedule, but I'm not so picky about where we do
our work. Some days you can find us at the park, out in the
carport or on a blanket way out in the yard.
I would love to be able to teach all the way through
high school. That is going to be up to the Lord. As far as
retirement goes, I won't be there for another five years or
so. By then, if I am gone for a few days, the girls will be
old enough to do a few days of work on their own.
The girls and their mom lived with us until this last
March. Now they have their own place. They still come to me
each morning for schooling. I love teaching them and I know
they love coming to me to be taught. I had wonderful
grandparents, so I know how important grandparents are to
children. I wanted to homeschool my own girls, but it didn't
work out for me. I was a stay at home mom. I know my
girls and I missed out on a lot of wonderful
times.
I am a
great-grandmother and I have been homeschooling for 8
years now. I have 11 grandchildren, 5 great grandchildren , my
husband and I had 6 children ( all grown of course) . We
adopted 3 more children from the Calif. foster care
program and I homeschooled the middle one until this
year, she graduated. For 3 years after a life of public
school, we finished 3 years of high school in 24 months. She
is a brilliant young girl, 17 and one half years old,
going on to college. Even though our 15 year old is
holding his own as he had delayed development from birth with
a lot of drug exposure, he is really doing well with us.
School was not helping him or me. So I decided to try
homeschool and we have been doing that for 8 years. We
love it! ( I am 68 years old)
~Anne
|
| A Wonderful Story to Read Together |
E-book: Grandfather's
Faith
What a wonderful story to use to stimulate
interesting discussions with your children on making good
decisions! Would you like a "safe" way to introduce your child
to challenging situations? "Grandfather's Faith"
was written in 1875 and is a touching, fictional story of an
orphaned grandson who was antagonistic and wayward and yet
finally determined to change his ways "to become a true and
honourable gentleman" in order to make himself someone his
grandfather would be proud of. This is the first book of the
"Dare to Do Right" trilogy. (See the second book, Our Four
Boys, HERE)
The characters in the story and the situations
they face provide excellent and interesting topics for the
readers to discuss. In some situations the choice to choose
right or wrong has intense consequences. Some topics which can
be discussed in the midst of reading this book
include:
What is honor and respect and how does one show
it?
What does it mean to bring honor to one's
family's name?
What is peer pressure?
How can one have a positive
influence?
How can one determine if someone is trying to
"hook" him into doing an evil deed?
What would you do in these
situations?
Written by Julia Mathews and edited by John and
Lisa Mesko (150
pages) |
| Embracing Old Fashioned Skills |
|
In
Volume One of Grandmother's Hope Chest, The Running Rooster,
Lucie's Grandmother comes to live with Lucie's family. What is
even more surprising to Lucie is the big wooden chest that
Grandmother brings with her!
Although
Lucie is a little shy of her Grandmother, she is very curious
about the chest too...
As
Grandmother and Lucie go through the chest together, Lucie is
shown items that are very dear to Grandmother's heart and
Lucie hears about the history and people behind each one.
While watching Grandmother embroider a pillowcase one
day, Lucie asks if she can learn to sew too. Grandmother
begins teaching Lucie three simple and basic handsewing
stitches as Lucie recreates an item found in the hope chest.
Skills Taught in this Book: how to
thread a needle, knot the thread, The Running Stitch,
Overcasting Stitch, and Basting Stitch. A pretty potholder is
the end result of Lucie's effort and patience - and it can be
your reward as well.
US
customers
only. | |
|
Thank you for responding to Liz's questions and
sharing your stories about homeschooling your
grandchildren. Please remember to pray for Liz and
grandparents everwhere raising/teaching their
grandchildren. If you have a question you would like to
ask to other homeschool moms please email us. When you email us you give us permission to post
your question in a future Minute to Minute newsletter.
Sincerely, |
Paul and Gena Suarez, Publishers
The Old Schoolhouse
Magazine | | |
