13 years ago I sent my sweet daughter to kindergarten for the first time. I didn't love the idea, but I did what I was supposed to do. Right? All parents, both good and bad, send their children off at the tender age of 5 to get an education. Of course "good parents" have already taught their children how to read, write, pretty much everything that one might teach in kindergarten. This means that anyone whose child has not been taught the entirety of the kindergarten curriculum prior to the first day of school falls in the "bad parent" category. I generally fell into the "bad parent" category. My cute girl did not know how to read and write and was not working on a cure for cancer in her spare time. I did get points for volunteering incessantly. I did it mostly because I missed my girl. I dragged my two wee kids along with me. We continued this pattern for a couple years until.....ROAD BLOCK! The second grade teacher mixed with my daughter as well as water and oil. She made my daughter wait until she had wet her pants to use the bathroom. She called her lazy in front of the class. It was the second time in my life I truly lost my temper. (The first was when a man told me that my still born son wasn't really a child because he never breathed.) That was when I realized that if I wasn't going to advocate for my child, no one else was going to either.
I moved my kiddos to a local charter school. We loved it. My children thrived. I still hung out at the school a ton but really I was OK. Then my sweet daughter #2 started kindergarten. Sigh....It just was not easy for her. She learns in a very different way. In the midst of her kindergarten year I was on bed rest, the *issue* with our marriage started and she pretty much fell through the cracks. For the next couple years things were pretty unsettled for us. We finally moved an hour and a half away from our "home town." Sweet daughter #1 and Awesome Son #1 were both doing well and thriving in their new environment. Sweet daughter #2 continued to struggle. We moved from a charter school to a regular school. We did an EIP. Still she continued to have issues. AT this point she was leaving our house at 7:30 AM and returning at 5:30 PM. She was gone longer than my husband was during the day.
While Sweet Daughter #2 was struggling, we were having issues with Awesome son #2. He was in Kindergarten. He is a *smart* kid, but he wiggled too much. He talked too much. It didn't matter that he was the top of his class, he was considered emotionally immature, therefore could not move into the top reading group. He cried everyday, begging me not to send him to school.
Now keep in mind that I was never a fan of sending my kiddos off to school anyway. We had tried public school, charter school and public school again. Private school wasn't an option financially. Well, home school it is. We have LOVED it! Our two oldest still attend public school and are doing well. They are both in high school.
Reasons I love home schooling....
I have control of what they learn, when they learn.
I know my children are in an environment where they are loved.
No bullies.
No worrying about whether or not I signed that calender, permission slip, or planner.
I know exactly what my kids know and what they need to work on.
They work on their own pace.
We work when and where we want to work. Late night? My little ones woke up at 8:30. My big kids at 5:30.
Sick kids? No worry. We can cuddle up and do reading on the bed.
Vacation? We can do that.
Socialization? We still attend church, participate in team sports and play with neighborhood friends.
It works for us.
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