Questions For A Homeschool Mom

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There are so many misconceptions about what homeschooling really is.  The main reason for these misconceptions is that all homeschoolers are lumped together into one big category when, in reality, there are so many different types of homeschooling and homeschoolers.

We are life learners or unschoolers.

This does not mean that we do not educate our children.  That is a misconception for another post.  We do educate our children, just not in a very obvious way.  There is no desk work, no worksheets, no classroom.  Learning encompasses our entire life, and we learn through being apart of the world around us.

I was recently invited to do a video collaboration on YouTube.  It was a collaboration all about the random questions that homeschoolers get.

I am doing a live video about these questions, and any others that might come up, on Monday February 12th at 2pm EST.  I know I will not be able to go as in-depth with these questions of that video as I would like, so I am answering them here as well.  If you would like to participate in that live stream, we would love to see you over on our YouTube channel!

Now, onto why you are here!  The questions for homeschoolers!

Do your children have gym/phys ed?

One thing I do wish we had access too, as homeschoolers, is a gymnasium.

Living in Canada, it can get quite cold in the winter.  I am not one to bundle up and go out for a walk when there is a foot of snow on the ground.  I also do not like ice.

Why do I live in Canada? haha

I do appreciate that being cooped up inside can limit your expenditure of energy causing a whole range of issues from fatigue to rambunctiousness to moodiness.  One thing that I enjoyed about public school, especially in elementary grades, was that we had gym time every since day.  On nice days, we would be outside.  On cold days, we had the school’s gym to burn off that pent-up energy.

Unfortunately, we do not have access to a gym so we have to improvise and look to other means to move our bodies.

During the spring and summer months, the boys are apart of a local soccer club.  In the past, they have done skills and drills type classes as well as played on a team.  This year they are apart of class that is only for homeschool students.  This class allows them to get out and active but also helps to establish friendships within the homeschooling community.

One night a week, the older boys participate in a Karate class.  This is something new to us, we just started this class last month but the boys are enjoying it immensely.  Karate is also a skill and way of moving that they can practice in the confines of our home.  Unlike soccer, which is not allowed to be played in the house, they can practice Karate inside.

In the warmer months, we also incorporate all sorts of movement into our lives.  We go to the park, play basketball, go hiking…  The opportunities for gym or physical education are endless.

What about socialization?

Socialization.

It is a 4 letter word to many homeschoolers.

How many public school students have heard “You are not here to socialize”?

I have met many homeschoolers – both adults and children.  Homeschoolers are as diverse in their social skills as any other person.

For many years (and perhaps still am), I was considered to be socially awkward.  I was not homeschooled.  I just did not really care about what society deemed normal.  I could hang out with any groups of kids in the halls, from the popular kids to the nerds.  I fit into all groups while fitting into none.  I could talk to the teachers or younger students.  My parents taught me to be respectful of all people, and that I how I want my children to be socialized.

I am very proud of my children’s’ social skills and have had many compliments about how respectful and articulate our children are.  I attribute this to the fact that they are not only socializing with people in their age group.  Instead of being surrounded by other children who share a birth year, they are immersed into an environment with all different ages and backgrounds.  My children can talk to the elderly lady at the library or the teenager packing our groceries.  People are people, and all people deserve to be talked to with respect and compassion.  We model this form of socialization every day and will continue to for the rest of our lives.

Do your children miss public school, if they’ve ever attended?

None of our children have attended a public school.

When Lucas was in grade 1, he participated in an extracurricular class hosted by a local public school board.  He was the only homeschooled student in the class.  Before this class, he really wanted to go to school.  He dropped out of the class after 2 classes and has never asked to go back.

He was the only student in the class who was willingly participating.  It was very frustrating to him to sit there, with his hand raised, and watch the teacher try and force an answer out of other students.  After the second class, Lucas asked the teacher why he wasn’t asking him for the answer.  Even at that young age, Lucas knew the other children did not want to participate.  He was very disappointed when the teacher told him that he had to allow all the children opportunity to answer.  After that discussion with the teacher, he decided that he would prefer to stay home and not go to school.  He was bored because it was “taking so long to talk about easy things.”

Do they enjoy homeschooling?

Yes.

The boys love being able to share their interests and learning about topics they find fascinating.

They also love being able to play Minecraft or Subnautica all day!

How long do you plan on homeschooling?

When we first started homeschooling, we lived in a different province.  Our old province did not give any assistance to homeschoolers.  When we first started our homeschooling journey there, we decided that we would try it out until grade 3 and then reevaluate and go from there.

We now live in a province with lots of support for homeschooling families.  We have a facilitator, or learning coach, who helps us reach our goals.  Because of this support, I see no reason why we will ever give up homeschooling.

If for whatever reason the boys decide they would like to go to school, we will discuss it at that time.  We are not opposed to the public school system.  We just feel that, at this time, homeschooling is a better fit for our families needs and goals.

Do your children get snow days?

For us, snow days are days that we get out in the snow.  Perhaps we test the rate at which snow melts, or how heavy snow is.  A snow day is not a day off.

We do not base our homeschooling around a schedule.  We learn every day.  We certainly do have days where we cancel planned activities because the road conditions are not good for driving, but other than that life just continues no matter the weather.

Do they get sick days?

I fully understand the need to sleep the day away when you are not feeling well.

One of the most important things we can learn, as human beings, is to trust our bodies.  If someone is not feeling well, they need to listen to their body and do what they need to do in order to feel better.

We also use illness and an opportunity to learn about hygiene and how bacteria and germs spread.  Staying home when sick, helps to prevent others from getting sick.   We don’t want others to get sick, so we do just that.

Do they get a spring break?

Spring break is usually a busy time for us.  Our friends who are in public school are off for their breaks, so we take the opportunity to catch up with friends that we may not have seen in a while because of their busy school schedules.

Do you school year-round or take the summer off?

We live year round.

Our schooling revolves around our lives and our children never stop asking questions so their learning never stops.

In the summer, we tend to do a lot of camping and hiking.  Our focus shifts from electronic-based learning to more natural based learning.  Instead of watching a youtube video about bears, we go out into the woods and see if we can find any tracks left by bears.

Do you grade their work?

Our children do not have any work to grade.

We help them come to the correct answer if they need our help or ask for help on a certain topic.

For example, both Lucas and Jack are huge fans of the Pokemon trading card game.  This card game does involve math, so while they are not being graded, having the correct answer is important for the game to progress as it should.  By playing together, we are able to help them with their math skills and assess their level of understanding simply by embracing the experience and paying attention.  They do not get a grade, but we have all the information we need to share with our facilitator how they are doing and how they are progressing.

Do you test them?

No.

We do not believe that testing is a true indication of knowledge.

What is your favourite subject to teach?

Art.

I LOVE ART!

If you have been following our YouTube channel for a few weeks, you will notice that we have been doing a lot of fluid paintings.  I love painting with my boys.  We love creating and getting messy.

Many of the paintings that you see in the background of our videos are my own.  I have been creating art for many years and love sharing that passion with my boys.

What is your least favourite subject?

I used to say math was my least favourite subject, but have since come to realize that it was not math that I did not enjoy but instead was the method of how I was taught math.

In recent years, I have been relearning mathematics and have been enjoying the subject.  Learning it in a way that I can understand it has helped me not hate math.

What homeschool planner do you like?

I am a fan of printables.  I like to make printables to suit my needs.  I also do a lot of bullet journal style planning, and many of those page ideas are later turned into printables that I can use over and over again.

What is your favourite book on homeschooling?

I have not read many books about homeschooling, to be honest.  I have read a lot of blogs, talked to a lot of homeschoolers, and watched a lot of youtube videos.

The only book that pops into mind, that could be considered a favourite, is Radical Unschooling by Dayna Martin.

This is one of the few homeschooling books that had me nodding my head in agreement statement after statement.  Many other books I have read, I agree with certain parts but not others.

If anyone has any life learning style homeschool books they would recommend, let me know!

Well, that is it for those questions!

If you have any other questions for this homeschooling mom, please let me know!