I consider myself an accidental homeschool parent because I hadn't planned to homeschool at all. When I had my first son, I imagined him going to school with his little lunch box and backpack twice his size, coming home from school showing me his schoolwork and proudly displaying it on the fridge door. I pictured myself going to PTA meetings, being room mother and baking cupcakes, and my son doing homework at the kitchen table while I cooked dinner. I knew he'd have issues most kids go through--friend problems, teacher problems, bullying--which at the time, always had seemed like a rite of passage. I went through it, my husband went through it, you probably did too. But things just weren't working out for my son in school. All paths led to homeschooling, and, I as hard as I tried to take others paths, Divine Intervention wouldn't let me.
Homeschooling...my husband was all for it. In fact, he was the first one who kept bringing it up. Sure, I thought, easy for him to say as he trots off to work. No way can I teach my son. My son who is the most headstrong person I know. My son who refused to do homework no matter what bribery I offered. My son who is in constant need of mental activity, who baffled his teachers and doctors. Nope, not me! No way can I teach my son...I thought.
But strangely enough, something changed once we started. Our family dynamics calmed. No more fighting about homework and getting to school on time. No more worries about the other kids in class and the teacher who may or may not like him. The schoolwork I gave him was done, for the most part, without a fight. And my younger son just melded right into homeschooling as well. Since he had health issues, and we were constantly dealing with hospitals and traveling out of town for specialists, we didn't need to worry about missing school and the ever dreaded "getting behind," not to mention avoiding the colds and flus that run rampant in schools. With much trepidation, we took the path we couldn't avoid, and we became what we were meant to become all along--Homeschoolers!
Accidental? Maybe that's not the best way to describe us after all.
Homeschooling...my husband was all for it. In fact, he was the first one who kept bringing it up. Sure, I thought, easy for him to say as he trots off to work. No way can I teach my son. My son who is the most headstrong person I know. My son who refused to do homework no matter what bribery I offered. My son who is in constant need of mental activity, who baffled his teachers and doctors. Nope, not me! No way can I teach my son...I thought.
But strangely enough, something changed once we started. Our family dynamics calmed. No more fighting about homework and getting to school on time. No more worries about the other kids in class and the teacher who may or may not like him. The schoolwork I gave him was done, for the most part, without a fight. And my younger son just melded right into homeschooling as well. Since he had health issues, and we were constantly dealing with hospitals and traveling out of town for specialists, we didn't need to worry about missing school and the ever dreaded "getting behind," not to mention avoiding the colds and flus that run rampant in schools. With much trepidation, we took the path we couldn't avoid, and we became what we were meant to become all along--Homeschoolers!
Accidental? Maybe that's not the best way to describe us after all.