Misadventures of a Homeschooler - The Beginning

I think I will have to rename this blog "Misadventures of a Homeschooler" or "What Was I Thinking?" My daughter and I are on Day 3 of our new homeschool adventure. My dh, I'll refer to him as DrJ, (as a basketball fan, he LOVES this! However he is neither an MD nor a basketball player - at least not since knee surgery) and I decided on homeschooling after years of consideration. Many of my friends and relatives homeschool and I asked for their input on my decision. What I quickly learned was that everyone has their own idea about homeschool and their own style of teaching.

I must admit that I was confused about one method referred to as "unschooling". I thought that it must be some sort of traditional-school detox and I would need to set up an inhouse rehab center like you see on TV. Was my daughter going to need an IV drip of some solution called "Bully Busters"? Turns out, much to my relief, that "unschooling" is actually a teaching method where children learn by a more hands-on approach. No detox, whew!

What we (and I say "we" even though it is really "I", but I don't want DrJ to feel left out) decided was a more academic approach using lots of books and workbooks, but in a more relaxed and flexible setting. At least this is what I keep telling myself. And, so far it has worked. Of course, we are only on Day 3.

I am anticipating many battles, much frustration and I know that the few gray hairs that I do have will multiply rapidly. But at the same time my daughter and I are excited. She loves having school in her pjs and not having to raise her hand to get permission to use the restroom. We have decided that instead of just reading about things in books, we are going to go see them. Next week is the aquarium. I guess we really should get dressed for that one.