An Unexpected Beginning
As a public school English teacher, I had seen both sides of the desk. I wanted my kids to have a "normal" school experience. Please understand I did, and still do, fully support public education, but as we approached my daughter's kindergarten enrollment, our school district came on some hard times. The school district we lived in, just outside of Washington DC, was considered one of the best in the nation. It was the system I taught in for many years, and I knew that it had great teachers and spectacular funding.
The year prior to enrollment, however, the housing market tanked. The district had to make some tough decisions about how to make ends meet and support families. They decided to combine three elementary schools in our area. Enrollment was dropping in all of the schools, and they wanted to cut costs on repairing and outfitting aging buildings. They also needed to eliminate staff positions in under-enrolled schools.
In order to accommodate all the students, they decided to fill all the playgrounds with trailer classrooms. The student enrollment also necessitated turning the gym into a second cafeteria. To ease the traffic in and around the school, all students were required to ride the bus, even if they lived less than a half mile from the school, like we did.
Functionally, my daughter's kindergarten year would be spent sitting in a desk for 6 hours each weekday because the district only offered all-day Kindergarten. There would be no recess and no gym. Her bus ride would add an extra 45 minutes each way each day because of the crazy traffic patterns in our area of town. To top it all off, electives like music, library, art, and physical education were being reduced from once a week to every other week so that all students had access and the system could address budgeting shortfalls.
We knew that the school would work things out in time, but we were concerned about our daughter having time to learn, explore, move, and discover. Thus, our homeschooling journey began, and what and adventure it has been! We never meant for this to be permanent, but it quickly became part of the rhythm of our family, and we really enjoy learning and living together. Sure, we have made mistakes, but we have also had some monumental successes. For now it is working, but that doesn't mean that we won't change directions at some point.
Over the coming weeks and months, I will be posting our daily and weekly learning experiences. So, welcome to our home! We hope you come in and stay awhile, and don't be afraid to ask questions!
Thank you so much for sharing and blogging your home-schooling experience. Before reading your post, I never knew of reasons that some parents decide to home school their children. After reading about your story, I would have most definitely home schooled my children too, if that was my situation. It's a shame to see some of the public education systems fail our students, but sometimes, our school systems have to make due with the hand their dealt. One of my current students in my classroom was home schooled up until 9th grade and she has told me that she has never felt left out for not attending elementary and middle school with her peers. It seemed to suit her academic interests at the time. I look forward to reading more about your weekly learning experiences!
ReplyDeleteThat story is mind-boggling to me! For such drastic changes to happen in a period of one year for a school seems so crazy. I commend you for taking actions into your own hands when the circumstances didn't play out the way you wanted for your children. You never know which direction life will take you but your family appears to have adapted well! What an unexpected, amazing opportunity to be with your kids. I'm sure it can be challenging at times but it also has to be worth it. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI really hope you continue to post to your blog. I think you have such a unique perspective to share with the world that needs to be heard. In my experience, the homeschool community and public school community have an extremely difficult time getting along. I think your voice could help change that. Thank you so much for sharing and I look forward to following your posts.
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