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I think it’s appropriate I live near the Mason Dixon line. My whole life I’ve been in the “middle.” I like to dabble in lots of things, but don’t master very many. That’s why in casual conversation you’ll find I know a little about everything; but if you probe, you’ll find I don’t know much about anything. But I do love to learn, love to teach, and above all, I love my family.
When I began home schooling, I really thought I’d do “school at home.” I bought a pre-packaged curriculum with a teacher’s guide which told me which pages to assign and grade each day—that lasted about two months before we were bored to tears. Then I thought I’d “wing” school entirely on my own; but I discovered we spent entire days on rabbit trails, not satisfying anyone’s appetite for learning. I realized what I needed were prompts.
A wise friend who was finishing up home schooling her third child introduced me to KONOS. I call it my “Yellow Pages” for home school. It’s a series of three volumes of unit study ideas for elementary through middle school. It allows me freedom to address each unit in my own time and my own way. We are flexible in making time to investigate things that really pique our interests, and schedule plenty of down-time in order to pursue other interests and activities.
So, now I call us Relaxed Home Schoolers—we have a little something to guide us toward a goal we set for ourselves, but leave a lot of room for exploration and mastery. Come visit us at our blog—you never know what you’ll find!
Deb
