FIRST WEEK OF HOMESCHOOLING // EXPECTATIONS VS. REALITY

I’m sure every homeschool mom will tell you they had some expectations on how their first week of homeschooling would play out.  You’ve got the moms that have an entire room dedicated to homeschooling, and then you’ve got the moms who have books scattered through-out the house and they’re just hoping they can find the right book at the right time. Maybe there is a set schedule all typed up that the child is expected to follow exactly or maybe unschooling is what you’re interested in and therefore choose not to use a schedule or curriculum.

Well, I’m here to tell you that I had my expectations too, and I had my reality. In some ways, my reality was better than my expectations; and in other ways it was worse. Nevertheless, we’ve made it through our first week of homeschooling and everyone is still alive!

Here is my list of: TOP 10 EXPECTATIONS VS. REALITY IN OUR FIRST WEEK OF HOMESCHOOLING

 1.EXPECTATION: We would follow the schedule I made for the day.

REALITY: I realized after the first day that if we did not get through a math lesson and a language arts lesson first, then we’d be dragging all day. In my opinion those are the most important subjects (besides Bible) but if we’re saving those for last then my son is just exhausted and can hardly focus. By doing math and language arts first, we get through it and I feel like he’s absorbing much more of the information.

2. EXPECTATION: We would get through all of our work by lunchtime.

REALITY: IT.TAKES.ALL.DAY. In my mind I thought, “Perfect, we’ll start at 9am after a relaxing breakfast and bible reading and we’ll be completely done by lunch time and have the entire day to play, do chores and anything else we want!”. At first it really bothered me, but I soon learned that by taking breaks my son was focusing better. And as annoying as it can be to have school drag on all day long, it’s definitely been less stressful for my son. It is also nice because it just allows for flexibility. If it’s sunny in the morning then maybe I’ll have the kids run around outside for a bit before it gets cold and rainy in the afternoon.

3. EXPECTATION: We would get to each “special”.

REALITY: At my son’s elementary school they would have a “special” every day and it would rotate depending on the day. The specials included Spanish, art, band, etc. I wanted to make sure we incorporated that into our day. Although we’ve missed a few specials here and there, I have to say that it has exceeded my expectations. I feel incredibly blessed to have so many friends and family who are helping in our homeschooling journey. We have a friend who is a professional chef and gave my son a little cooking lesson one night. My husband has an art degree and worked on some things with my son too. My father is a musical genius and is giving him saxophone lessons. And my sister in law is fluent in Spanish and can help converse with my son when she visits.

4. EXPECTATION: My younger kids would play nicely in their playroom while we worked.

REALITY: I don’t know why I expected this to happen, but I did. Not only do they refuse to play nicely in the play room, but most of the time they’re running around the house making messes and jumping on each other. We’re learning ways to manage the younger kids (3, 2 and 8 months), but it’s going to take some time. As crazy as they are, we usually get through everything we need to finish each day so it’s working somehow.

5. EXPECTATION: My toddlers would nap and we would get a lot of work done during that time.

REALITY: It’s like they knew we were starting homeschooling because a couple weeks before we started they decided to protest their naps. I couldn’t believe it. I probably cried a couple times over it, but oh well. Sometimes one will nap, sometimes both. Sometimes they’ll nap for an hour or for three hours. Their sleep schedule is all over the place. I was really banking on them sleeping at the same time for a decent chunk of time and that just hasn’t happened.

6. EXPECTATION: I would feel overwhelmed and/or stressed.

REALITY: I have to say this is the biggest shocker on this list. I AM LESS STRESSED! Don’t get me wrong, I still get overwhelmed at times, but it is usually not even about homeschooling. I feel like the biggest change since we started is that our mornings are SO MUCH BETTER. I am not a morning person and neither is my son. Forcing myself to get up and force him up and force him to eat breakfast and then load my other three kids in the car and give him money to spend on a crappy lunch was all just very stressful and exhausting. I think my favorite thing about homeschooling so far are the relaxing mornings (well, as relaxing as a morning can be with a 9-year-old, two toddlers and a baby).

7. EXPECTATION: There would be frequent meltdowns. 

REALITY: Honestly, there really haven’t been any meltdowns. Complaining, yes. Meltdowns? Maybe one or two in the first week but one was my fault after I gave my son a math placement test way above his level. He’s smart, can you blame me?? He has a history of having meltdowns from time to time, so I just expected he’d have more of them. But really, he’s been way happier since we started homeschooling.

8. EXPECTATION: My house would be in a constant state of mess.

REALITY: I don’t even know how this happened, but my son is obsessed with making his bed all of a sudden and his room is practically spotless every day. He will literally spend like 20 minutes making everyone’s bed, using all the fluffy pillows he can find. He’ll put the stuffed animals all sitting upright and the sheets tucked in. It truly is hysterical to see sometimes. It’s amazing what your child will do after having a full night’s sleep and a slow morning. And all of this coming from a kid who would literally cry if I ever asked him to clean his room. It helps to have nothing but beds and a desk in his room, but still, he’s been a cleaning master lately. And I have to say, the rest of the house hasn’t been too terrible. It’s still messy sometimes, but not any messier than before.

9. EXPECTATION: We would become closer as a family.

REALITY: Oh, I’m so happy to say that this is true and so much better than I ever expected. The second day of homeschooling my son decided he wanted to have his younger brother and sister sleep in his room. By himself, he moved each of their beds and their dressers. I couldn’t believe it. My son has said on numerous occasions that he didn’t like his sister and here he was bringing her bed into his room. I think I cried a happy tear that day. They now have a “dressing room” (a room with all of their dressers where they get changed) and the bedroom (where all of their beds are). It literally reminds me of an orphanage. There’s a bunk bed in there with a twin on top and a double on the bottom, a twin size bed and toddler bed. It is a sight to see and it is absolutely precious. Also, my father in law came over at one point during the week and in the middle of the day all the boys went on a hike/bike ride. It was going to get really cold later in the day, but what a treat to be able to go out together in the middle of the day with family and not have to worry about missing school. And my son is constantly telling me he loves me. Seeing all of my children love each other and play together nicely (most of the time) has been such a blessing and makes it all worth it.

 10. EXPECTATION: My son would love homeschooling.

REALITY: My son had been asking me to homeschool him long before I even considered it so I expected he would love it and after a week of homeschooling, it is evident that he does in fact love it. He told me recently that at one of his basketball practices a kid asked him if he liked homeschooling and he said he told him it was really fun! I should tell you that he has said on a few occasions that he’d “rather have Nana teach me or go back to public school” but it is usually said when he has done enough school and needs a break. I have asked him on a few occasions what he thinks of homeschooling so far and he is always talking about how much he loves it.

Overall it was a great first week of homeschooling and it gave me even more confirmation that I made the right decision to take my son out of public school in the middle of his fourth-grade year. Some expectations were met and some were not. Has it been challenging? Yes. Has it been rewarding? Definitely. Am I going to continue homeschooling until June? Yes! Will I homeschool again in the fall? I don’t know. Only time will tell! Stick around and you’ll find out!

If you are a homeschool mom and you had expectations that were either way off or better than you expected comment below! I’d love to hear from you.

Be Good. Be Wild.

 Xoxo Rachel