Homeschooling 101

Lesson 1: Before You Begin

De-Schooling- What is it? Should I do it?

I remember the day we submitted the papers to the school district to pull my oldest out of Kindergarten. I had to... um... "be sick" in the bathroom of Akron (Ohio) Public Schools Board of ED. I was scared to death. (And they thought I was crazy.)

After a very dangerous situation forced us to look for educational alternatives (a classmate stabbed another in the head with scissors) I was determined to “Do it right.” (After all, we had grandma to answer to!) We had a schedule, a curriculum, a schoolroom. My poor Kindergartener didn’t know what to think! Here he is, safe at home after what was a pretty traumatic school experience, and mom was making him do school work! It lasted three days.

Many families find the transition from classroom to homeschool easier with a period of deschooling. If you pulled your child from school because of a bad experience, lack of motivation or some other “negative”, deschooling might just be the “positive” you and your child needs to start your homeschooling off on the right foot.

Simply put, deschooling is giving your child (and you!) time to regroup after coming out of a public school and beginning a home education. The longer a child has been in school, the longer it *usually* takes to get out of the desk, chalkboard, raising their hand mentality. Many times, the bell and desks and schedules are so ingrained it is hard to think “outside the box.”

Deschooling also gives you a chance to figure out what your next step should be. It will give you time to develop your educational philosophies, discover your child’s learning style, and just learn to enjoy your child again! Giving your child the time to rediscover his love of learning and regain his self-confidence is probably the most important thing you can do to assure that your homeschooling adventure is a success!

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