Our Overall Goals

A little over two more weeks and we are officially homeschoolers! It is exciting and scary all at the same time. I’m excited and feel beyond blessed that I have this opportunity to teach, disciple, and just be with my children every day.* I’m nervous because I have big ideas. I realize my big ideas are often altered. I mean, five other people, who have their own ideas, are along for this ride with me. Homeschooling our children will take much sacrifice, but my children are worth every sacrifice, every tear, and every struggle. For this journey, I’m keeping this in mind, “True joy is found somewhere between the ideal life and daily realities...I have come to realize, after much struggle, that I will spend the better part of my life adjusting my expectations to life’s limitations, rather than having my expectations fulfilled. Yet that is the first step on the road to true contentedness- learning to accept those limitations as a normal part of life.” Sally Clarkson, Season’s of a Mother’s Heart

As I began to plan this year, (because I’m a major planner), my first step was to determine what my goals are for my children. These are not goals for this year, but goals for the whole duration of our homeschooling life.

After some thought, Nate and I agreed on the following:

• To have faith and love for Jesus Christ, by God’s grace

• To have an understanding of God’s Word and a biblical worldview

• To know how to read and communicate with the written word

• To have an understanding of math to function easily in life – basic math concepts for recipes, budgeting, building, etc. and to understand the importance of living debt free

• To have an exposure to a variety of cultures and socioeconomic levels and to be able to communicate effectively with those of different worldviews and backgrounds

• To know the appropriate life skills to function independently as an adult

These are the basics and very general. The plans in between are to give our children a “feast of ideas” to feed upon.

Over the next week or so, I hope to journal our plans for the upcoming year. Over the next year or several years, I hope to record our journey. The purpose for this blog is simply for recording our homeschooling journey. This blog is not a how-to-homeschool or you-should-do-it-this-way blog. In my very short time of researching and considering homeschooling, I know first hand that each family is very different. We should all figure out what works best for our families and our children. We should not try to imitate others or fit their plans, schedules, and curriculums into our own lives.

For the sweet family member(s) who actually want to follow this journey, (Nana Beth), my updates may be sporadic. I mean, I know you’re dying to know what’s going on over here, but hey, somebody’s got to take care of these little people!

*In all honesty, I am very grateful to be able to spend every day with my children and would not choose to have it any other way. However, just know that I don’t always enjoy it. Actually, there are a lot of days I struggle to enjoy the constant demands of having four children five and under. I felt I should put that note in, because I didn’t want my excitement of spending every day with my children to sound phony to those who truly know my struggles.