Читать книгу Homeschooling For Dummies - Jennifer Kaufeld - Страница 17

The parents in your life, whether they are actually your parents, favorite aunts and uncles, or close friends who function in a guiding role for you, always have something to say when you announce a major lifestyle change. Sometimes they’re for the change; other occasions tend to spark less-than-positive responses. Although they usually mean it in love, negative reactions from those around you tend to derail you if you aren’t ready for them. Be prepared — when you announce that you’re thinking of homeschooling your children, someone will probably give you flack.

Before you respond, take a moment to consider whether a person is having a knee-jerk reaction because you threaten to go against time-honored United States culture (at least for the past hundred years or so) or whether this person is voicing well-grounded objections. If you truly believe this is the best course for your family members today, you need to proceed forward in the face of negative reactions.

This book gives you the ammunition you need to discuss homeschooling rationally. In fact, you can even hand a copy to your mom, if you like. In 30 chapters, this book talks about all the major homeschooling movements, educational needs of children at various age levels, and even includes chapters on adding zing to your school days.

When you discuss your decision with your mom, tell her what you know. Homeschoolers do get into college if they choose to go, they aren’t afraid to play outside or make friends, and today’s homeschoolers have many, many activities to choose from in addition to time at home with the books. If you have already decided on a teaching approach (such as classical curriculum, unschooling, or operating as a satellite school, which are all discussed later in this book), tell her about it. Tell her why you chose this method over all the others. In short, share your enthusiasm and hope.

She may not agree with you at first, but time will probably prove your decision to be a sound one. When we began homeschooling, I worked with a nonverbal, almost-3-year-old. That child not only learned to speak his native language fluently, but he went on to graduate from college, work as a web developer, and start his own international not-for-profit dedicated to making information on the Internet accessible to everyone regardless of disability or restriction. I’d say that for this child, homeschooling worked!

When we announced that we planned to homeschool, even our friends — not to mention our family members — thought we’d lost it. Twenty-five years ago, homeschooling was much less common than it is today. (Some of the people who are close to us still think we’re wackos, in spite of the evidence provided by two well-adjusted children. Oh well, there’s no accounting for some people’s opinions.)