New Year, New Focus

With the new year upon us, the new semester begins in just days. I've been praying and planning, going over new plans and deciding what works and what hasn't.  In all this planning and scheduling I've come across an attitude problem that, while it has shown its face before, seems to be growing stronger now in my ten year old.

Laura is homeschooled, but she spent until the into her third grade year in public school.  We've fought with attitudes about school before, and I always passed it off as attitudes from public school.  I still think that plays a part, but I now think more comes into play here.

I've seen the same attitudes in my older children.  All of them are intelligent, but most don't have that elusive love of learning.  My oldest likes to read and because of that always did well without having to try very hard.  Tasha, the next one in line, also never worked overly hard.  She is now homeschooled, but she doesn't like to read.  She does her work and does it well, but she isn't always very motivated.  Last year I bribed her to read a book I thought was amazing by buying her pizza at her favorite pizza place.

My step-daughter has learning disabilities.  She has struggled in school her entire life and, as a result, doesn't like school much at all.  She would benefit immensely from homeschooling, but that isn't an option at this time.  Her attitude about school isn't casual disdain like the older girls.  It is outright grudging tolerance.  She doesn't like school.  There definitely isn't any love of learning.

Now I am back to Laura.  The attitudes of her older sisters, as well as the addition of her public schooled friends and a dose of her public school attitude, have influenced Laura a lot.  She has a love of being entertained, of being passive in her learning.  She would rather play outside than read a book.  She has developed more of a love of reading, but often it is more of a tolerance of it than a deep love.

In evaluating what works and what doesn't, I have learned that Laura doesn't learn the exact same way I do, or even the way I thought she would.  Laura learns with reading, but she also grasps things when she can do hands on work.  She loves experiments in science.  She likes multi-sensory learning.  She learned her math facts with Timestales when flashcards and drill exercises wouldn't work.  Once she knew the facts, the flashcards were great for reinforcement.

When I pictured homeschooling a few years ago, I pictured lots of great books and some workbooks.  Now, I picture something totally different.  Lots of great books are still a part, but now we're going to add in fun projects and music and even movies here and there.  I am willing to use whatever it takes to help Laura discover that learning is a lifelong process, and should be part of the adventure of living with Christ.  Laura is a beautiful, smart, wonderful girl.  She learns some things differently than the public schooled methods could provide.  I am learning how to compensate for that, how to use different techniques and methods of teaching. 

I am working on creating an atmosphere in our home that is more conducive to exploration.  I want more discussions with her on the things she is learning.  I want to see her eyes light up with delight as we read a story together or complete a project.  I am excited about the new plans as they come together.  I am still working on details, but that is part of the fun.  The adventure in homeschooling has gotten some new life, and that thrills me!