If you haven’t done so yet, read the first post in this series here.
This was our first “official” year of homeschooling. My oldest son was starting Kindergarten and our younger son was a toddler.
I was excited to finally be homeschooling after several years of reading about it and trying to plan ahead for the unknown. We’d already done preschool at home and, of course, he’d been learning at home since he was a baby, but I felt like this was the moment I’d been waiting for.
Homeschoolers are blessed with FREEDOM. But sometimes that much freedom can feel overwhelming. Even paralyzing. Especially when it comes to choosing curricula, how do you know where to start?
Besides the basics (you know…. pencils, paper, chocolate, etc.), I’ve found there are a handful of relatively inexpensive items that have made our homeschool days go much more smoothly.
No, these supplies aren’t going to teach for you. They won’t empty the dishwasher. And they won’t fold your laundry. But even though they can’t work miracles, I do sometimes feel a little like super mom when my Meltdown Radar* goes off and I swoop down with a sheet of Hole Reinforcement Labels and save the day…
Necessity is the mother of invention, right?
Or, to say it another way, desperate homeschooling mothers sometimes balance a hose on a chair with a rake to occupy the toddler so the other kids can finish their science.
For some families, homeschooling has been the plan all along.
They’ve seen it work for friends or family. They knew they’d homeschool their future kids before those kids were even born. They’re totally comfortable swimming against the societal current. They understand the benefits and they welcome the challenge.
If that’s you, feel free to skip this post.
If, on the other hand, you’re more like the main character from the PBS kids’ show Peg + Cat…
(that is, “TOTALLY FREAKING OUT!”)
…then read on, my frenzied friend, read on!
