Normal homeschooling vs schooling during a virus crisis
Well, here we are. Something I didn’t think I would ever write about.
This virus has us homebound - most for that matter.
School kids are now at home with their families and having to “homeschool.”
This is not what homeschooling looks like - at least for us.
We do not isolate ourselves and we most definitely don’t spend the majority of our time learning from a screen.
I saw a meme out there that combined all my thoughts perfectly…
“A lot of people are joking that everyone’s homeschooling now. Here’s your friendly reminder that homeschoolers actually get way more social interaction than this! I feel like this is going to reinforce the common misconception that homeschoolers are isolated and never see their friends. In an ordinary homeschooling model, there’s lots of meetups and collaboration and library visits and playground days with friends in the sunshine. So just know that the regular homeschoolers are also feeling cut off and isolated right now because this is not how we usually do things.” - unknown
Thank you beautiful person who wrote this
At first when this all went down - I was like - yes, we can handle this! This is normal life! Normal home day life!
Welcome to the family all! This is how we live! Isn’t it wonderful to all be together?
A few days went by… hmmm no, no, no this is not how we live life.
In our normal schedule we have maybe three solid homedays where we work on the homestead, do lessons and connect back as a family. The rest of the time is spent in the woods, on the beach or in a museum… for the whole day + with friends! We see family often because our schedule allows for it.
So again this is not what homeschooling is for most families. We do not isolate ourselves.
This is schooling in isolation due to a virus crisis
This is not what your kids were asking you to do when they wanted you to homeschool them. Honestly this is not what I want to do either. Learning from videos is our last resort. Going out into the world is how we learn.
We are all in this together. None of this is normal. All we can do is embrace the extra time with our close family. There are lessons here and we are being called back to the very basic building blocks of family foundation.
So let’s teach them something new & even teach ourselves something we’ve been wanting to learn.
Spend time as a family making a meal. Start that fire outside in the firepit you built last summer. It’s waiting.
Keep sending memes and making hilarious content because y’all are coming out with your best work.
Even all the live videos from the zoos and artists. Yes please! Keep them coming!
Here’s a few tips if you find yourself feeling down
Make a list of everyone you know with phone numbers. Carve out a few hours at a time and just talk. Talk about the weather, talk about your dreams, projects, gardening - Anything! Check in with each other on how you’re actually feeling. Fear is real, guilt is real - any possible emotion you are feeling, is REAL.
Thank you grandma for the tip! I heard that she made a whole list and spent hours calling everyone at church to check in and talk. Isn’t that the sweetest?!
Ok next tip is a tough one. Focus on the joy. If you are having a tough day - take a moment and find the joy. It could be walking into your kids room and witnessing them playing. Smile & find that joy!
