In most cases the decision to homeschool a child is made before the child needs to begin schooling and therefore will associate studies with just the homeschooling method. However, in some cases a parent may move out of the country, or find that regular schools are unable to cater to the special needs of their child, or some other reason may be instrumental in reconsidering their schooling decision. If you have been sending your child to regular school for a while and need shift to homeschooling after a few years, the period of transition can be a challenge if you don’t know what to expect.
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Handling decompression
Going from regular school to homeschooling is termed “decompression” by homeschoolers. Essentially it gives a greater sense of freedom to students who have left a possibly more stressful educational environment to come to one where they can dictate some terms themselves. In regular school, a child is used to following a number of rules and teacher’s orders. So when he shifts to home school the initial decompression period is a great way for the child and the parent to connect. It also allows the child to gain confidence in his own ability to figure it out, no matter what ‘it’ is all about.
Let your homeschool student relax
At this stage, relax as much as you can. There is no need to rush into lessons just because the school year is racing past. For the initial period, focus on setting up the infrastructure which you’ll use to educate your child for years to come. Have the child understand what can and cannot be done in the homeschool classroom. Stay loving and don’t give them too many rules to handle but do establish your authority as the guiding factor in the homeschool classroom. Pick up small, fun to do learning activities at first and then move on to the more complex lesson plans. Remember that playing with an educational toy or watching a video that explains a topic in the curriculum can qualify as studying.
Article Inspiration: About Homeschooling
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