Highs and Lows

by Jessica Frierson, April 2023

 

Homeschooling has its highs and lows. There are days when everything goes according to plan and others when it seems nothing does. Are we fitting school into the busyness of life or working life around school? Either way, both worlds collide and intersect with mixed results. Sometimes I feel like it’s a game of tug-of-war with me being the rope pulled back and forth between my plans for school each day and what the day ends up bringing our way. Even on the rare day that we can follow the planned routine, books wind up missing, children argue, or what I had thought would be a fun project is a bust. 

For example, three of my children are studying geology. They had a lab experiment that used a strike plate and various rock specimens. After tracking down an unglazed tile to use for a strike plate, gathering rocks to use, and getting everyone all pepped up for a fascinating science experiment, every rock we scratched against our tile exhibited exactly the same clear marking. As in, nothing showed up. A complete bust! After some advanced research (a.k.a. Google), I discovered that most commonly obtained rocks and minerals don’t show much color when scratched on a strike plate, so I am not sure why this was in their lab books in the first place. However, my children enjoyed looking through all of the rock specimens, sorting them by color or other attributes, and viewing them with a magnifier. In fact, they had more fun and learned more than they would have from the scratch-plate experiment. I think I was the only one who cared that much about the failed scratch plate, which is probably some kind of life lesson for me to contemplate.

Here are some other highs and lows from the past couple of weeks in our homeschool.

High: My senior and sophomore students had a great experience in Raleigh at the Salt and Light Civics class that the NC Family Policy Counsel offered through NCHE. 

Low: My husband and I had planned to take our three youngest children to the Museum of Natural Sciences, the Capitol building, and the General Assembly building while their siblings were at the civics class. Unfortunately, our seven-year-old got sick during the night, so my husband had to stay home with him. I was still able to take the other two, but it was a big disappointment to everyone that Daddy and Little Brother missed it.

 My seven-year-old, who had just learned the beginning phonics sounds a few weeks ago, is on a reading kick. He is reading, or at least attempting to sound out, practically every word he sees, including billboards, books, cereal boxes, and bumper stickers. It is so fun to watch him excitedly figure out a new word!

Low: Not every word on bumper stickers should be sounded out by a seven-year-old!

High: The pioppino mushrooms we have been growing since our mushroom farm field trip three weeks ago were an amazing success!

Low: The crystal growing project we’ve been trying to start for several weeks was again delayed by seemingly unrelated obstacles. Our family van broke down, causing multiple problems that had to be resolved, which took up all of my planned school-time last Friday – the day I had set aside to set up the crystals. We also had two art projects and a history lesson that fell by the wayside as I dealt with the disabled vehicle problem. I get very discouraged when my lesson plans and projects that go together get messed up.

High: Spring arrived! The weather cooperated with the calendar, bringing delightful breezes, sunny skies, and beautiful flowers blooming. 

Low: My asthma has been worse over the past three months, making it difficult to do my normal activities, including reading our science and history lessons. As a result, we are behind in the lessons I had prepared, and I had to cancel several planned activities with our homeschool group. 

High: We are studying the Civil War era. My children impress me with their ability to consider how individuals’ lives were affected by the aspects of war: slavery, division, loyalty, courage, freedom vs. liberty, and all of the conflicting issues at play during that era. I love to see that their immediate reaction to hearing about injustice is to be appalled, sympathy is expressed for those who have been hurt or disenfranchised, and admiration is shared when we read about acts of bravery and gallantry. Seeing the development of values is why we homeschool! Although I am not telling them they should have these feelings of sympathy or admiration, I know that the foundations we have laid in their lives have helped shape them into the kind of person who cares for others, stands up for what is right, and works to correct injustices. 

Life is full of ups and downs, and homeschooling is no exception. If there’s anything you can count on, it’s that few things turn out as expected. If everything were a breeze, we would not appreciate the highs as much – in fact, they could hardly be called highs. Flat-line is a sign of death, so embrace the valleys as much as you celebrate the mountaintops. They are both victories; they show that you are alive and that your homeschool is part of the natural ebb and flow of life.

 

Jessica Frierson is a second-generation homeschooler. She is married to Ernie, a retired minister. They have been homeschooling their seven sons and three daughters since 2000. She is a speaker and writer. She serves as the secretary for NCHE, writes for GREENHOUSE, and is the lead blogger for the NCHE blog. 

Photo credits:  flower photo by Ethan Frierson, heartbeat photo by Ty Tomlinson on Unsplash, other photos by Jessica Frierson