In my last post, I wrote about the need for many kids coming out of institutionalized schooling to home education, needing time to decompress i.e, time to regroup from the stress and pressure they have been living under. Now, I’d like to address the need for decompression that all of us will face during our homeschool journey.Stress is part of life – agreed? Educating our kids at home is a huge part of our life – also agreed? Then it only stands to reason that there will be times of stress that will affect our lives and therefore our homeschooling.

The source of stress can come from situations totally outside of our control. For example:

• Illness – yours or someone else, serious or not
• An unexpected death
• A friend or family member in need
• Unexpected financial setbacks
• Unexpected problems with relationships

So what do you do with these situations over which you have little or not control? I don’t know – it depends on so many variables that it would be foolish for me to pretend I have the answers. Each situation is unique and each of us will handle it differently.

But…here’s what I do know. There are 2 things you can do, no matter what the situation is you are facing:

1. Pray. We don’t know the answer, but there is One who does. Ask for wisdom and as He promises He will provide, abundantly.
2. Cut yourself some slack! It’s OK to let go of whatever your homeschool routine is. Home education gives you the freedom to do that, it is one of the greatest benefits! If your kids are capable, you can let them continue on their own, or you can all take time off.

What you & your kids can learn through this trial is far more important than anything that comes out of a text book.

The other source of stress is the stress we put upon our self. This can take place in any number of ways.

1. Trying to be all things to all people. Feeling guilty about saying “no” (especially when it’s a good thing) and therefore saying “yes” and taking on more than we should.
2. Using other homeschoolers as your yardstick of what you should be doing & concluding that you & your kids are falling way short. As a result, you step up the academic pace which increases pressure on you and your kids and consequently on your relationships.
3. This one, similar to the one above, is one I have to be very careful of – thinking what we do isn’t “schoolish” enough. It has been very difficult for me to let go of the ‘public school mindset’ – that what we are doing should ‘look like school’.
4. I am finally learning that when I begin to feel frustrated and irritable, I need to step back & take a hard look at my expectations. Do they line up with my goals? Have I veered off the path that God has clearly defined and find myself instead, walking a path based upon what the experts say we should be doing? I am learning to ask myself “Why are we doing this?”, “Will this bring us closer to our goals.”, and “Is this God’s desire or mine?”
5. Feeling the need for your house to look the way it used to when the kids were gone all day. Check your priorities. You can’t do it all, you can’t! Are there areas where the kids can be taking responsibility, one of those special life learning lessons? No matter how you slice it, you can’t do it all and do it well. What is your priority? What do you need to let go of or what areas do you need to lower your standards in order to keep your focus?
6. Feeling guilty because something’s just not working. Don’t! Another beauty of homeschooling is that it is not a one-size-fits all education. If it’s not working, you have the freedom to refine or just plain chuck it and find something that does work.

I know there are many more stressors we bring on ourselves – anyone out there want to share The point is, whether the trial you are facing is of your own making or something totally out of your control, you as a home schooling family have the freedom to take needed time off, readjust daily routines, to allow the release of some of the pressure, before it leads to problems.

“But”, you might be tempted to ask, “What about school?”

If we will allow Him, God, true to His unchanging Word & faithful nature, will use these times to teach one of the most important life lessons ever. Your kids will learn that stress, whatever its source, is a part of life. They will learn how to cope and deal with the inevitable trials of life in a way that is healthy, productive & honoring to Him.

Education is far more than textbooks, scope & sequences. It is teaching our kids what they need to know to be healthy, productive adults. It is life education, education for life!

Comments?

Next up – Tip #4 Pray & Learn

Until next time,

Sue

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 29th, 2007 at 8:36 am and is filed under Home Education. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.