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How to Grow to Love Being a Homeschooler

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How to Grow to Love Being a Homeschooler. You can begin to homeschool without adopting the homeschool lifestyle but you would be missing out @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Whether it was a last-ditch decision or you planned for years to homeschool before your first child was born, everybody who begins to homeschool has to make the decision to grow to love being a homeschooler or not.

It can just be an educational choice or you can decide to passionately live the homeschool lifestyle.

Enjoying the benefits of the homeschool approach without adopting the lifestyle is possible, but not without being short-changed.

How can you adopt the homeschool lifestyle or be sure that you are embracing it to the fullest extent that your circumstances allow?

Look at these three ways how to measure your growth.

ONE | You have stopped trying to find the perfect curriculum.

It was about five years into my homeschooling journey when I learned that the challenge of choosing curriculum wasn’t going away. I knew that teaching my sons through everyday life was paramount.

Nurturing a Love for Lasting Learning

Living the homeschool lifestyle means that curriculum is now just a tool and you learn that it doesn’t really teach anything.

Sure, I need to have objectives and choose curriculum that gives me the freedom to teach my worldview, but I am doing the teaching.

What you are willing to do to teach your children is way more valuable than what you are willing to buy to teach them.

The challenge in homeschooling is not the endless pursuit of curriculum, but in helping your child to maintain his love of learning that he had when he was young.

Adopting the homeschool lifestyle means that you have moved beyond curriculum, progress reports, tests and needing accolades from friends and family that you are doing a super job.

Now, you simply don’t care what other people think. Did I mention it’s really liberating?

Learning that your life, no matter how boring you may think it is, it’s full of rich meaning for your children.

TWO | You maintain a homeschool routine, but not necessarily a rigid schedule.

Another tell-tale sign that you have embraced natural learning is that no longer do you fight to maintain your homeschool routine, but now homeschooling is not something extra you do in the day. It is the way you spend your day and everything else now revolves around it.

It’s hard for anything you begin to become a lifestyle overnight.

I think about being newly married or when I lost a lot of sleep when I brought my first son home from the hospital. Significant changes in my life called for significant effort to make them part of my life. It’s not long after the new changes in your life that you realize it’s hard to remember a time without your kids or your spouse.

Homeschooling becomes the same way. You are not constantly worried about completing curriculum or making grades and testing. Like life, you realize homeschooling has certain tests that need to be met, bt you meet them like you do anything else in your household.

THREE | You learned that you can’t homeschool on an ‘island.’

Associating with and joining with homeschoolers is like being immersed in learning another language. Until you do it, you can’t see where you’re coming up short.

For example, I didn’t fully appreciate how much faster we could learn another language until we had moved overseas. Having studied Spanish for many years, I had a good command of the vocabulary, but it was fragmented.

After we moved to South America and received total language immersion, it made me fully appreciate the language, lifestyle and culture.

When you refrain from meeting up with other homeschoolers or isolate you and your kids, it’s not only unhealthy, but it’s unnatural.

Don’t get me wrong, I am not telling you that you have to be a social butterfly and join every possible homeschool groups. Some groups are just too extreme for my taste and I tend to be very picky.

How Are You Measuring Up in Adopting the Homeschool Lifestyle?

What I am saying is that when you and your family stand in stark contrast to those in your neighborhood or your friends, you need a support system with others who are like-minded.

Instead of being overly critical of other homeschoolers’ choices when you meet with them, look at what you can learn from them. I received tips on how to homeschool multiple children, make time for myself and move ahead on curriculum when we were hitting a brick wall. Without the tips, I would have struggled longer.

Growing is part of everyday life and it’s amazing. If something or someone is not growing, it’s always a sign that something is wrong.

Have you adopted the homeschool lifestyle?

Grab some more ways to be an empowered homeschooler below:

3 Reasons Why Homeschoolers Are Take Charge People
Go Ahead and Make a Mistake: Homeschool Without Fear
10 Books That Boost Your Homeschool Zen (When It May Be Sagging)

Hugs and love ya,

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3 Reasons Why You Should Be Reading Homeschool Magazines

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

3 Reasons Why You Should Be Reading Homeschool Magazines @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

The homeschool community is tight-knit. Geographical boundaries or cultural differences are transcended when a family mentions they are homeschoolers. For many years, homeschool magazines have played a huge role in helping homeschooling families stick together.

Is Homeschooling Your Hobby?

Today, in sharing 3 reasons why you should be reading homeschool magazines, I want to share about not only why I love homeschool magazines, but why I specifically love Homeschooling Today.

Homeschooling journeys are time specific, but not so with homeschool magazines.

If you have homeschooled for a while and graduated a kid or two like I have, you know how precious short the time is to homeschool and to share personal experiences of your journey through blogs.

Homeschooling magazines don’t necessarily have a short life (that is unless we support them) span. This is a good thing because if you are new, you are encouraged from experiences of the past and are informed about trends of the future.

For example, one year at a booth Kelley and I had, we got to visit with Debbie Strayer, who was one of the original founders of Homeschooling Today and my heart was moved by her passion and love for homeschooling.

We shared some chit chat, but more than that she was willing to share so openly about what kept her going through her homeschool journey for many years.

Sadly, she is gone now, but her daughter keeps the homeschool passion alive through the pages of that magazine.  So the homeschooling community moves forward strong as ever as our ideals are passed down to the next generation.

Do not miss precious nuggets of wisdom shared in that magazine from many seasoned homeschoolers from times past. A homeschool magazine, like Homeschooling Today, gives you roots.

Ready to Use Lessons. Love it!

Another perk of Homeschooling Today that I love is that they have ready made lessons.

Ready made lessons in Homeschooling Today @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

In the above picture is one ready made lesson you’ll love that just came out in their current magazine.

The lesson is built around beautiful literature and the book in this lesson is about Abe Lincoln. Not only is a book mentioned, but hands-on activities and ideas are given so that you can use them instantly with your kids.

I love the teaching support I have received from them throughout the years. You’ll pine over this section.

Not time specific, but subject specific.

I know you would get hot under the collar if somebody told you that homeschooling is a hobby. It happened to me back when the kids were little and I was shocked and speechless.

Yes, I know hard to imagine me without a word to say, but I realized that a lot of people just don’t understand that homeschooling is a lifestyle.

And because homeschooling is a lifestyle choice, we need help on specific subjects and concerns that might come up in our journey.

Whether we are teaching multiple ages, special needs children or need help on organization, Homeschooling Today gets very specific on teaching tips.

Encouraging and timely articles in Homeschooling Today @ Tina's Dynamic Homeschool Plus

Not all homeschool bloggers can host more experienced homeschoolers or even professionals on their blog, so we need homeschooling magazines, which continue to share very subject specific content.

Get a glimpse of Homeschooling Today by reading some of the up to date articles on their blog.

So not only purchase magazines for your children, but grab some help for yourself too.

I am unabashedly proud to say that homeschool magazines, like Homeschooling Today, not only make me feel like I am part of the global homeschooling community, but revive my homeschooling spirit when I feel it slumping.

Those are just three very short reasons why I love homeschool magazines.

Have you seen Homeschooling Today? You’ll love getting yours in the mail too. (uhmm yes I still love print magazines)

Hugs and love ya,

Tina Signature 2015c

Don’t forget to follow BOTH of my Pinterest accounts for more AWESOME pins.

Visit Tina Robertson’s profile on Pinterest.


Visit Tinas Dynamic Homeschool ‘s profile on Pinterest.

 

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling. The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers. Part 3

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

3 Rs of Homeschooling Part 3 Research

Half-hearted homeschooling, I can’t even type the words without already feeling a bit of energy draining from my fingertips.  Keeping the same resolve to homeschool throughout your journey is crucial to being able to weather any storms that will come your way.

Homeschool Delusions

How you rise to meet those challenges is more significant than you may realize.  Though I don’t usually like to make blanket statements about homeschoolers, in my experience I have found that by nature we come with a bit more resolve as we start to homeschool.  Maybe we are more armed in the beginning because we have had to overcome any naysayers.

But somewhere along the way, doubt sets in and then we question our resolve to homeschool.

Reasons and research, which are the first two R’s combined with our fortitude or resolve to homeschool stands as an almost impenetrable barrier to giving up our homeschool journey.

To think that we can control our lives, our schedules, our children or even our own negative thoughts is a mistake.  It happens to all of us.  Learning along the way that I can control sometimes very little about my journey helps me to put a plan in place.

Combat the Control Hoax

You can’t control what flies overhead in your journey, but you can only control what you allow to land permanently or how it affects you.  Think about that though for a minute because that is powerful.

Thinking that is counter balance always helps me to not stroll down pity party road too.  For example, I don’t think life just happens and then just roll with anything that comes up in my life.  We do decide what people and what circumstances we allow to take up permanent residence in our lives.  That is a force to be reckoned with and it allows us to not just go with the flow when we need to avoid the flow.

Our resolve helps us to resist a willy-nilly approach to homeschooling and allowing things that we have no control over to fester and take up our time.

Resolve means to make up one’s mind and it has the connotation as if we took a formal vote.  One can’t have an opinion on something unless they researched it and have strong reasons to make that decision.

Reinforce Your Homeschool Resolve

Look at these things that will feed your resolve to stick with homeschooling.

  • Avoid isolation.  I don’t care if you are homeschooling in a boat floating in the South Pacific, (sounds good actually) live in a frozen tundra for most of the year or live only among where you see more cows than people, you need encouragement, support and inspiration.  Attending a co-op may not be an option, but reading blogs, reading books and attending on-line homeschool conventions may be.
  • Schedule it.  As moms we tend to put our needs in everything secondary to our children’s need.  There is nothing wrong with this as long as we don’t neglect our needs.  There is a difference.  Finding time to refresh your resolve is not easy so it has to be scheduled in.  My time is early in the morning.  Whether you choose to read blogs, read books, pray, step away from the computer, sit down at the computer, exercise or all of this, you need time to dwell on the reasons you homeschool.
  • Change it up.  Homeschooling has many seasons and sometimes you don’t have to change it up because changes, like moving, a pregnancy or unexpected illness comes to you.  I am not talking about those kinds of changes, but changes like varying our routine, our methods and the people we choose to let in our immediate homeschool circle, adds spice to our everyday.

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling. The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers. Part 3

I hope even one tidbit of any of these three posts helps to re-energize you with a dogged determination to keep homeschooling.  Whether you are weak at times in reasons, research or resolve, the other two R’s will help to jump start you back to your resolution.  Take time to form these 3 pillars in your homeschool and you won’t be so easily swayed as you enter and end different seasons in your homeschooling.

Hugs and love ya,

2012Tinasignature

Did you miss my other two posts in this series?

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers Part 1

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling. The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers. Part 2

Grab some helpful books about homeschooling!

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling. The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers. Part 2

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

When you begin to homeschool, you want to drink in every nugget of homeschool information and rightly so.

But did you know that another common mistake of new homeschoolers is to put their needs as a new home educator secondary to their children’s needs?

Separate Teacher Mom from Mommy

In between stalking perusing veteran’s websites to see which curriculum they use with their children, homeschool forums and reading reviews about curriculum very little brain power is left over for teacher mom.

From the beginning it is important to understand a paramount difference between your needs as mother that most of us do make secondary to our children and your needs as a new educator which most of us also put secondary to our child’s needs.

Understanding that we have to separate the two hats that we wear will motivate us to adopt the second ‘R in our essentials of homeschooling, which is research.

Often times I hear mothers explain how guilty they feel to leave their kids with grandma to attend a homeschool meeting, or attend a homeschool convention, or put them in front a good movie while they grab some information about homeschooling from a live Google hangout.  But what could more beneficial to our children in the long run than to have not only a mother that is taking care of herself physically, but is also at the top of her class in understanding about how to teach?

3 Rs of Homeschooling Part 2 Research

Not having a public school teacher background though I have helped hundreds of them through my New Bee program, I can tell you my jaw still drops at the amount of time public school teachers are required to put into their work whether by attending an official workshop or through an apprenticeship.  You wouldn’t even think twice to look over a teacher’s resume and credentials with a scrutinizing eye if you were hiring her to educate your child?  Are you doing the same for yourself?

Homeschool Research Warrior

Being concerned with our children’s needs goes to the very heart of our reasons to homeschool.  But if don’t allow enough time to research topics that will come up in our journey, then a lack of conviction or really knowledge could snuff out any spark we have for teaching.  Worse yet instead of helping our children to become life long learners, we could possibly impede their love for learning because we did not take time to be educated about homeschooling.

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers Part 2

I am not telling you this because I want you to start off your journey more nervous than you are now, but I want you to place a high price on obtaining answers to your questions that will make you be the BEST homeschool teacher for your children.

What topics should we be researching anyway?

  • Research about the different types of curriculum approach.  Why research about one type of curriculum approach if you know it does not work for your child? You do not have to be an expert in EVERY approach to curriculum, just the ones that work best for your family.  Avoid the rest.  Skim them at first, then hone in on one that you think will work for your family.
  • If homeschoolers spent as much time learning about learning styles as they did curriculum, it would be the first go to topic instead of curriculum.  Why research about curriculum that fits a textbook approach if your child learns best through hands-on?  Sometimes you have to start first with learning differences.
  • Choosing a schedule is another struggle of not just new, but seasoned homeschoolers.  Seasoned homeschoolers sometimes never took the time to research homeschool schedules.  Assuming you have to school 5 days in a week is well – just assumed.

Those topics top my top 3 list if I had to make one.  There are several other  topics, but research in these three areas of homeschool curriculum, learning style differences and the variety of homeschool schedules will help you to avoid many common mistakes.

Your reasons for homeschool will then be well founded on exhaustive research.  Can it be said that your homeschool foundation is solid and firm?  Take time now to build it up.

Hugs and you know I love ya,

2012Tinasignature When You Dont Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling The 3 Rs for New Homeschoolers Part 1

Check out these other posts to help you build the 3 R’s of Homeschooling:

Discovering Learning Styles

Homeschool Learning Styles – What’s the Difference Anyway?

Grocery Shopping, Cooking & Laundry Oh My!

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers Part 1

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This post may contain affiliate links. For more information, please see my full disclosure policy.

When you begin to homeschool, you wouldn’t think of leaving out one of the 3 R’s which are essential to teaching your child.  Everything else is built on the foundation that you lay in those subjects.  The 3 R’s of beginning to homeschool are equally important and essential to you maintaining the course when times are tough.

Whether you begin to homeschool in the toddler years, middle school or high school, each season holds it own tests of your new conviction.

Today, I want to share one of the essential R’s to building a strong foundation when you begin to homeschool.

What are the reasons you want to homeschool?

Right now is the time to write down all the reasons when they are so vivid and new in your mind and heart.  It may sound way out there, but draw them, paint them, or add them to your newest techie device that you love because when your love for homeschooling wanes and it will happen, you will want to be reminded of why you made the best choice for your family.

Don’t be discouraged from your conviction so early on by avoiding the mind-set that is easy to get caught up in which is “I’ll give it a try for a year”.

3 Rs of Homeschooling Part 1-1Sometimes we have no control over how long we can homeschool and I too homeschooled each year with the question looming over my head if I had to return to work.  I never had to and I am ever so thankful, but I didn’t stop there.  Each year I worked hard to stay within our means and budgeted when I needed to because homeschooling was a lifestyle choice for us and I was determined to make it work for us by sacrificing.  Certainly it is not martyrdom, but motherhood that keeps me going.

From my experience, I can tell you that budget sometimes never really enters into why a new homeschool mom wants to return her child back to public school.   I am hoping you will address those fears now and avoid any setbacks.

When You Don’t Know Where to Begin in Homeschooling The 3 R’s for New Homeschoolers Part 1

Whether your reasons are strictly academic, faith based or a combination of both like me, they are the very thread of your journey.  Make them strong now by deciding not to waver when you may feel weak.

Painting them clearly like I mentioned whether you write them or journal them is the way to make them real.

Visualization is a powerful tool because your children will grow up, your homeschool journey will fly by and you want to visualize your end result.

Visualize what type of children you want your children to be when they are grown.   It means to ponder the possibilities of your choices.

Looking back now with my oldest son graduated I can truthfully say that I didn’t even come close to pondering the blessings that I have received.  When I held him in my arms at three years old wrapped up with a blanket as I helped him sound out words and helped him with his first pencil grip,  I fell way short of imagining my end result.  I should have imagined and dreamed with a lot more effort.  It is hard to picture something real with weak conviction.

Take time to list your reasons to homeschool and cherish them and renew your love for them each year.

When you have been sleep deprived by a precious newborn for many nights with no end in sight and your not sweet oldest child has hit raging hormone level and he can’t say one thing out of his mouth that is less than fighting words each day and your house looks like mini-bombs have gone off in it, know you are not alone.  It is part of the down side to the journey and it is not even realistic to say you can avoid the stresses of homeschooling.

However, more than anything your attitude and outlook at the lifestyle you have chosen affects the way you deal with it when it comes up.  Falling back on the reasons you homeschool strengthens your resolve.

Don’t give up something that is precious to the very core of your family without a fight anyway.  From those tests that you live through comes a conviction and dogged determination for homeschooling.

How many reasons do you have on your list? Want to share some of them with me?

Hugs and love ya,

2012Tinasignature Free

Look at some of mine on my list, though I do feel it might be time to update it too.

40 Reasons I Homeschool