learning at home

It is a little funny how much I have been thinking about homeschooling lately. After all, we are starting with Kindergarten- a year that is about play more than anything, and a grade that is not even mandatory. As well, I happen to hold the belief that kindergarten is too young for academics, and am using a curriculum that also believes that waiting until the child is at least 6 until reading and writing is wisest. Because of this we so we will not be doing any direct instruction of letters or numbers this year or other things regularly thought of as "schooling." Really, our days will change very little from how they looked before we were officially homeschooling- we will read books, sing songs, play games, bake, do crafts, spend lots of time outside. But somehow this year feels like a big one. Everywhere we go people say to Ari, "Oh, you must be starting school this year!" and all of a sudden we have to declare a new status, or rather he does, as he is more than happy to do so- "Ya!" he says "I'm a homeschooler!"

So there it is. He is a homeschooler. We are homeschoolers. It has been a bit of a journey to get here, to the place where we knew this was right for our family. I have been interested in alternative education for a long time, and knew, while I was in university  working on my undergrad and then my teachers certificate, that I would not be teaching in the public system. But I always imagined I would be a teacher at an alternative school. I thought I would be part of starting one in our little town. And when I had kids, I thought, they would be part of this little school we would start. But somehow I have a school aged kid and there is no little school. Not yet anyway. Maybe someday. But starting a school is no small feat, and it isn't something I could take on alone. And when it comes right down to it, I don't want to send my kids off anywhere just yet, even the perfect little school.

I enjoy my time with my children immensely, and I see them thriving at home. They are learning so much every day and I feel blessed to witness it and be part of it here at home. I don't think it is going to be easy, I hardly have the kind of kids who are going to sit politely with their hands folded on their desks, waiting for instruction (do those kids of kids actually exist?) I know there will be struggles and conflict at times. But we will be working things through together, figuring it out together, growing and learning together.

And it wont be just us either. It takes a village to educate a child, right? There will be friends and family and neighbours and community members. There will be other kids, lots of them- homeschoolers and schoolers, to play with and learn from. There will be communities found in sports or music or other chosen activities. There will be communities for me the homeschooling mom to be part of- other mamas and papas to talk with and share ideas together. There are the Enki discussion groups I belong to, and the people I value in my life to give good advice and steer me back in the right direction if I veer off course. We have a good team I think.

And then there is this child. This first-born, this beautiful free spirit who I will be learning beside. This boy who is so full of wonder and exuberance and delight in the world that watching him learn is a blessing. Though I will be guiding him on this path, we will be walking it side-by-side, me providing the compass, he pointing out all the beauty and splendor along the way.

It is good, I think- this choice we made. It is just the right one for us right now. Someday there likely will be other choices to be made, but for now we will be doing our learning at home, right where we all love to be.