Plan? What plan? Homeschooling & Flying By the Seat of My Pants

This post will be comical to look back on because I’m sure we will change our minds and our direction countless times over the coming months, but here goes…

Lots of people have been asking me what Our Plan is for homeschooling this coming school year. “What is your homeschool plan?” they ask.

We have been advised not to think too far ahead, and our research indicates that this is sound advice.  Kids at this end of the gifted spectrum are, by nature, unpredictable. These children will typically learn new material the first time it is presented.  They are asynchronous.  They are square pegs and, as parents, we need to think outside of the proverbial box, get a little creative, and learn to outsource as needed.  This can make homeschooling challenging and potentially expensive.

Other than EPGY, I am trying my best to follow the advice we’ve been given about not planning too much, or too far in advance.  Sure I’ve been reading everything I can get my hands on about gifted education and homeschooling (and I *may* have been taking copious notes), but I do not have a strict “plan” for next year. No schedule.  No boxed curriculum. Several wise friends have said, “You’re already homeschooling, you just don’t call it that.” I know they have a point.  Come fall, things will change a bit. We will continue with EPGY but we will supplement, and -at this moment in time- I think those supplements will likely come in the form of books, library trips, oodles of play, and tons of field trips. We’ll do some reading and math daily.  We’ll add in other subjects, too. I’m going to document it all like crazy. We are lucky in that Leo is a passionate learner. This means I can leave books out around the house on virtually any topic and he will joyfully consume them. Most of what he has learned to date has come via his library card and I’m sure this will continue. I also picked up some cheap old-school composition notebooks so that Leo can write about the various things he studies. He is  a list-maker after all, just like his mum.

I am certain that homeschooling will be incredibly challenging, but I have zero doubt in my mind that it is the right choice for Leo. I know I will fly by the seat of my pants sometimes, or maybe even a lot of the time. I’m sure I’ll make mistakes. I’ll second-guess. I’ll probably have days when I wish he was at school.

Years from now, I know I’ll look back at even the worst days and smile. Much like motherhood.

The only thing that I actually *know* right now is that I am determined to rock the hell out of this new gig.

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It is as true now as it was then that no matter what tests show, very little of what is taught in school is learned, very little of what is learned is remembered, and very little of what is remembered is used. The things we learn, remember, and use are the things we seek out or meet in the daily, serious, nonschool parts of our lives.

~John Holt, How Children Fail

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