I started this blog/website fifteen years ago when my oldest daughter was going into first grade. I had struggled to find an umbrella that would allow me to join and I experienced a lot of rejection. Homeschooling in Harford County has changed a lot in the intervening years. There are still church specific groups for members only, and mom's clubs (co-ops that you have to be invited to join), but there are also many groups open to anyone that have started up over the past decade and a half. The increasing number of such groups has made my heart glad.
One group that has also facilitated and brought together homeschoolers across groups has been FCA. Harford County, Cecil County, and northern Baltimore County residents are fortunate to have such a developed sports program available to homeschoolers. Unfortunately, other areas of Maryland do not have such groups.
If you have found this website and are just starting to explore the idea of homeschooling your children, I hope you will find some helpful information here even if it is a little older. I no longer live in this area, but moved to another part of Maryland with my family.
I am nearing the tail end of my homeschooling journey and it is one I'm thankful that I had the opportunity to take with my children. And they are glad, too. When people discover they are homeschooled, there is a wide variety of reactions. To my oldest, the people at her college were skeptical that she would do well--but she's been on the President's List every semester. She had to go in without a chip on her shoulder and show her professors what she could do. For my middle daughter, people at her college are shocked and don't expect it based on how she gets along with everyone and stays on top of her assignments. And for my youngest, people tell him he's lucky because he doesn't have to deal with the bullying at public schools that some kids he knows have dealt with. My kids have dealt with bullying and harassment, but they didn't have to be surrounded by it all day and we had the choice as homeschoolers to leave groups where they were bullied or harassed. That is the difference.
So, here are the top 5 things I've learned as a homeschooler:
#1 Be a student of your student. Learn how they learn. But, be sure to use a curriculum that also works for you, otherwise you will procrastinate teaching it!
#2 If you don't find the activity you are looking for, start a group of your own!
#3 If someone doesn't want to be your friend, go find the people who do! Shake the dust off your feet and keep walking. Don't resent and hold a grudge--just go find your people! This applies to parents and kids. Teach your kids to be the ones who include others. Exclusion can be intentional or unintentional, but inclusion is always intentional.
#4 Remember you are the parent, not your child(ren). You need to do what you believe is best for them--not just what they do or don't want to do. Your children's job right now is to be a student--it is their work, just as your work is to be the teacher. In every job, there are parts that people like and parts they don't, but that they have to do. Schoolwork is the same way. Children have to learn to do both the things they want to do and the things they don't want to do.
#5 Love your kids. Tell them often that you love them. Enjoy them. Talk to them. Listen to them. Correct them when necessary. Teach them to be respectful. Teach them to say they're sorry when they've done something wrong and take responsibility. Teach them to love people and be kind. But, most of all--love them.