Have you noticed that homeschooling is hard? Look closely at other parents – do you think parenting is EASY for others? Sure they aren’t homeschooling, but I have notice something. Parenting is hard work! Homeschooling or not homeschooling, it’s just flat-out difficult!
Do you remember the story of Adam and Eve? When they sinned in the garden of Eden, God pronounced a curse for each of them.
Genesis 3:16
To the woman he said,
“I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing;
Yup. Raising children is hard.
When you are having a rough homeschool day (who hasn’t?) try to keep the trouble in perspective. It’s not as if your troubles would go away if you stopped homeschooling. It’s not as if you children would never cause you grief if they went to public school. In fact, homeschooling can IMPROVE the behavior of teens! “Improve” doesn’t mean “Perfect” however.
As you look at your troubles in the day, just remember one important point. Most of the time those troubles are inherent in parenting. Most of the time they aren’t homeschool related – they are PARENTING related. Yes, it’s hard work. Hard times happen in life! It probably wouldn’t be *easier* any other way. It would be different, that’s for sure, but easier? I don’t think so!
I’m sorry about the whole “increasing your pain” thing. At least it’s not homeschooling that caused it though. The cause is as old as time.
It was so wonderful to meet all of the parents who attended my Clark County Home Educators presentation on Preparing to Homeschool High School. I am a bit tuckered now, however!
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Christianbook.com Curriculum Page
J W says:
Out of the mouths of babes:
Me at the end of my rope over some idiotic thing my beautiful, wonderful, homeschooled kids had done: “WHY didn’t you two use some common SENSE?!?”
Very gifted 11-year-old: “Since when do us kids have any common sense?!?”
Boy, did that take me down a peg or two!
The difference homeschooling makes is not that you get perfect kids. It’s that you get kids who have a realistic view of the world because they’ve experienced more in one homeschool year than many experience in ten. They’ve had mentors, and they’ve met (and may even be friends with) many people from all walks of life. Naturally, they know their place in the universe, and are secure with who and what they are. And, what’s really scary, is they know their parents’ place too, and will gleefully remind them at every opportunity!
March 1st, 2009 at 10:34 am