Navigating A New Kind of Education
School closures all around the country have pushed parents into a role we don’t feel fully equipped to handle. At the same time, we are juggling our own careers, perhaps a spouse’s career that likely looks different, and children of various ages with diverse academic needs. All this on top of raw emotions as we look to an uncertain and scary time in our world. Here at Connections Academics, we want to be a voice of truth and encouragement as parents tackle their children’s new virtual education.
Let’s begin by making an important distinction: Pandemic homeschooling is not the same as true homeschooling. For most families, one of the greatest benefit to homeschooling is the flexibility and freedom it offers to go places and experience things in the community (museums, service opportunities, libraries, etc.). Also, many homeschooling families are involved in cohorts that provide peer interaction and additional learning opportunities. Obviously, this is much different than what parents around our nation have been thrown into as a result of school closures. Consequently, we need to hear this message over and over again: give yourselves, your children, and your teachers grace as we all navigate this new territory.
Today we are going to hear from two moms who are figuring this out right alongside you. It is our hope that hearing from them will help you feel less overwhelmed as you make decisions that are best for your family.
Last week, Page Lee shared her perspective on homeschooling…again. Page homeschooled her two children, a 2nd and 5th grader, for six years. This current school year was the first time her children were in public schools. As she readjusts to life with everyone at home, she has noticed some key differences between true homeschooling and what is happening right now - pandemic homeschooling.
It is tempting to think that Page and her family could easily fall right back into old routines. Certainly six years of homeschooling would make this a breeze, right? But Page has noticed a few key differences that are important for all of us to remember. Here is what she had to say:
With homeschooling, I chose the curriculum, I had the teacher’s manual, and I was steering the ship. But now, the kids have a motley collection of paper packets and online assignments from their teachers. I have less understanding and control over what they’ are to be doing.
Because so many parents are suddenly and unexpectedly homeschooling, there are a lot of online resources and suggestions floating around. This is both a blessing and a curse. There are so many ideas to sift through. In my experience, my kids’ buy-in is much lower for these extra enrichment opportunities than for their teacher-assigned work.
Generally speaking, my authority over schoolwork has diminished now that they have public school teachers. My son, in particular, has always given me a lot of pushback, but it is heightened now, and my daughter is pushing back more, too.
We also heard from Connections Academics owner and founder, Amanda Vaughn, who is one of millions of parents now juggling her career while also supporting her children with their school work. Initially, Amanda felt prepared and competent to turn her home into a school for her two boys After all, she was at teacher for many years and now runs a tutoring company. She knows a thing or two about education. But nothing about this situation is typical, and Amanda is learning to adjust day-to-day. Here is what she said:
The teacher in me got up on days one, two, and three to write a morning message and craft a morning meeting. Day one and three went beautifully; day two was not so pretty. I now realize our family’s plan is changing on a day-to-day, week-to-week basis based on weather, the work provided from the school, and our attitudes and emotional response to what's going on in the world around us.
One thing that has been helped provide a great deal of security for my children is to start every day with a morning meeting at approximately 9:00. This is after we've had breakfast, and they've had some chill-out time. We discuss what our day will look like, and we use this morning meeting time to make the to-do list for the day.
The reality is we all need to give ourselves grace as everyone is in this new role. We are all navigating a unique and unknown territory. I recognize that some days we won't get everything done on the school checklist. Some days we may snuggle on the couch, some days we may have lots and lots of outside time because it's sunny and we need it. Some days we will clean together. Some days my kids will just play with each other. No matter what, all days we will strive to provide a loving, safe, and secure learning environment regardless of what kind of “school” learning is taking place.
Above all, Connections Academics wants our families and students to hear the message of grace as we all navigate this challenging time. Connections is still available to support your students and do anything we can to help ease the load of “pandemic homeschooling.”
