Homeschooling
Reality
Bites I HAD A DREAM THAT WE WOULD ONE DAY TRAVERSE OUR GREAT NATION FOR 12 MONTHS, LEARNING ITS SECRETS NOT ONLY FROM THE LAND AND THE PEOPLE, BUT ALSO FROM THE CAREFULLY CURATED BUNCH OF BOOKS THAT I’D STASHED IN OUR VAN. ME, THE ALMIGHTY MUMMA-TEACHER, READY TO BE MY BEST SELF.
M
y firm but fair alter-ego rising to the challenge, my impressive academics finally appreciated, virtuous patience infusing my being as I impart wisdom upon my offspring with a wave of my pen. And they, eager, eyes wide, minds active, patient, thirsting for knowledge, amazed at my smarts, attentive. We would relish in each other’s company, creating, writing, exploring, discovering. We would calmly complete our daily schedule in just hours, unable to contain our enthusiasm, and siblings would be kind, encouraging, assisting. Then Coronavirus arrived. I was forced into homeschooling, 42
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unprepared, unwilling, and reality bit - hard. I must say, that despite knowing I had a challenge on my hands (2 kids, 2 different schools, 2 completely different schedules and sets of expectations…plus a business to run, a husband still at work 12 hours per day and 7 animals to look after!) I began the homeschooling term with wide-eyed enthusiasm. Miss 12 was a breeze. Focused, organised, connected. To be fair, her school had remote learning completely sussed and her week was full to the brim. Master 9? The complete opposite. He learns by doing, not sitting, had just begun at a new school this year so hadn’t had much
time to make connections, and his school offered minimal guidance and accountability. I knew where my time was needed. I created the most epic daily schedule - colour-coded, with wellplanned brain breaks, perfectly ruled lines, and variety of subject matter. Lunch and morning tea were timed perfectly with Miss 12’s so there would be sibling playtime. It was a masterpiece of ingenuity, given the scant guidelines I had to work with, and I was pretty chuffed, thinking I’d nailed the
