Homeschooling is hard, in fact, some seasons and stages, homeschooling is STUPID hard! I’m talking all hands on deck, survival mode here! If you are feeling at the end of your rope, this post is for you! I reached out to my readers and asked them what their biggest struggles with homeschooling were! Let’s get real, let’s talk about it and stop portraying or worse yet, trying to live up to, some unrealistic expectation of perfection!
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What are some common struggles with homeschooling?
- Trying to occupy younger children (babies/toddlers/preschoolers) while teaching older children.
- Trying not to get too overwhelmed.
- Working and homeschooling (click here to see my top tips).
- Juggling housework, meals and family.
- Making homeschooling fun when you are a type A personality #thestruggleisreal.
- Not enough hours in the day to get everything done.
- Time management.
- Keeping children focused on their work.
- Letting go of the judgement of other, non homeschooling people…
- Homeschooling multiple kids at multiple learning levels
- Giving my children the room to fail and then learn from that fail.
- I have problems saying no! People think I have so much free time and I end up interfering with my school day because people ask me to do things…
- Staying on routine!
- Knowing the difference between having a bad parenting day and a bad learning day.
- Keeping myself happy with a HIGH energy level
- Choosing to do school when we are all so not in the mood to do it.
- Record keeping. I HATE RECORDKEEPING.
- Finding out what to teach and how to teach.
- Teaching different learning styles (to find out your child’s learning style, click here!).
- Staying motivated and not getting overwhelmed!
- The “But we did school yesterday!” syndrome (for my top tips on homeschooling the uncooperative/whiny child, click here!).
- Keeping my voice low and friendly when my 3 year old is loud during out loud lessons.
- My husband thinking that I MUST sit with our daughter all day everyday and teach her like she’s in public school.
- Finding a curriculum or something that will work for us for Pre-K, and getting a schedule to start (for my top preschool curriculum picks, click here!).
- Balance for sure. Staying home enough to get stuff done (or downtime) but also accessing all the enrichment that is offered in our city.
- Staying consistent.. Especially on those blah days.
- Staying on top of lesson plans and grading for my high schoolers. And getting them out of bed!
- Actually getting the year done.I like taking breaks!
- Trying to potty train while homeschooling.
- One word…..TODDLER!
- Keeping my patience when working on the same math problem the tenth time in a row!
I think we can all relate to some of these struggles with homeschooling. First and foremost, YOU ARE NOT ALONE! Look at all of these! These are real-life struggles with homeschooling that we face everyday! These are the things that discourage us, guilt us, derail us. And yet when I posed this question on my Facebook page, 78 homeschool moms commented and many of them are struggling with the same things that I am, that you are!
Now if you are looking for a one-stop-fix, I can’t offer you that. I can refer you to suggestions for each of these, but I would be lying if I said I have the perfect homeschool life where I am not one of these numbers. I battle these same things daily! But I can promise you a community of homeschoolers who are can relate to you, encourage you, support you when everyone else doesn’t understand! If you need a homeschool support network, PLEASE come join the Facebook group! It is private, your family and friends won’t see your posts. You can vent, ask questions, get to know other homeschoolers, and share little moments from your day! To request to join the group, CLICK HERE or go to http://facebook.com/groups/keepcalmandhomeschoolon. I’ll add you usually within a day or so and we would love to get to know you!
What are you greatest struggles with homeschooling?
I would LOVE to hear your greatest struggles with homeschooling. It gives me ideas for blog posts that will speak to you and meet you in the stage you’re at. I love to talk (can you tell?) so if you want to vent or need someone to just listen, shoot me an email at rebecca@homeschoolon.com or come visit me on Facebook.
