A Little Bit Hippie, A Little Bit Pirate - My Homeschool Type

Just like every other parent with school aged kids right now, we are doing homeschooling. Except really the better name is "Crisis Schooling" because the way we are working here at my house may lean a bit more towards traditional homeschooling but it certainly wasn't by choice. Curtis came home from work and as he walked in the door asked "What's all the yelling for?" and my reply was basically "This is my school, don't question my methods." Truthfully, I am not against the idea of school at home at all.

I actually chose to switch over to homeschooling about 1/2 way through my junior year of high school. As a younger child, I had friends at church whose parents chose to homeschool them and my own mother considered it here and there. We always liked the idea of less structured schooling but we never really wanted to do commit to it. Anyway, I met some new friends in high school that were homeschooled and after not really enjoying the first half of my junior year, I decided to homeschool for the 2nd half. I did have to finish my Science and Math for the year and I wasn't exactly keen on finishing them on my own - and if I am being completely honest I would not have been able to self study Physics and Algebra 2 without some guidance. My parents were able to enroll me part time at a private christian high school so I could take Math and Science from a qualified educator and I completed the rest of my work on my own. I also was able to work part time without having an overload of school work to do for the entire evening.

So, when we switched to eLearning after spring break and the stay at home orders I was mentally OK with the idea. I mean, I felt bad for my kids because they would not be returning back to see their friends and they were immediately stuck with me as their teacher. But, I wasn't overwhelmed by it. I have neurotypical children who don't have any special allowances for support at school. It was definitely the best situation I could ask for given I wasn't asked.

However, I do have 2 boys with fairly different learning and studying habits. After just a couple of days my older son was navigating his Google classroom assignments and online work on his own. He is a rule follower and likes to have things completed and off his plate. So, he self manages most of his work that's assigned. Obviously he gets help as needed from me.  He is quite a bit like me in that sense. Little brother though - Lord help me is like his daddy. Doesn't get invested into the work if it doesn't interest him. He also requires that we take him allllllllllllll the way to the finish line with his work. You can't leave him to do it himself, because he will likely end up staring out the window or on the floor petting a dog. He's a little bit like me in that sense. I can certainly get distracted by the outdoors or by fluffy dogs who need pats.

Now, my older son gets his work done and is constantly giving verbal updates as he completes tasks. This upsets the younger one. He doesn't like knowing he has more left to do than his brother. He chooses his subjects in order of what he wants to work on first, and he usually leaves the writing & reading for last. He was working on a little writing assignment where he was collecting text evidence for an opinion essay. He had ONE more to find and write down - but I just kept having to repeat myself and he would stare at me and the paper and finally I slammed my palm down on the Captain Underpants book and yelled "READ THE !^$%@ BOOK AND WRITE SOMETHING DOWN!" I felt like the pirate captain with a crew threatening mutiny. They nearly had to walk the plank.

Let's just say that we had to take breaks & adjust to each kids style of learning. But, the huge takeaway for us is actually that the boys are now interested in doing legit home school. and my hippie heart is SO down for that. I love having more time freedom & letting them learn more about the things that interest them. A basic curriculum with freedom to pursue the things they genuinely love to know more about. I have a flexible work schedule with my job at Orangetheory working as a personal trainer & Curtis has his own business so we can adjust his schedule as needed for short trips or for more time at home as a family.

I am not sure what the fall school semester will look like. I don't think anyone is 100% certain at this stage. I do know that there is talk of extending the school year by adding longer breaks into the year and allowing wiggle room in the case of a resurgence of COVID-19. I like the idea of knowing what we will be doing so I can plan. I am a bit of a free spirited hippie but I also like to know what is coming. So, the idea of doing a home school year and being able to PLAN ahead gives me some peace of mind.

Have you ever homeschooled prior to the pandemic? What was your reasoning? Would you now consider homeschooling after your experience over the last two months?