Could Our Expectations Be a Trap?

This week we have not done any formal schooling because I have had a lot on my "To Do" list, which I gave priority to. Last night when we were all discussing this situation over dinner, Sarah recalled the last month of school being about watching movies, talent quests, emptying desks and scrubbing/cleaning same desks with Gumption, and watching more movies. So whilst from past experience I know that not very much formal learning happens during December at schools, I still felt a little guilty that I was letting the children 'do their own thing' all this week, and not finishing up on a couple of things. However, I was gladdened in heart that far from blobbing around watching TV (which would not have been allowed anyway) both Sarah and Daniel busied themselves with their own projects. As well as the usual Karate, Swimming and Music lessons, Sarah engrossed herself in reading, crafting and making Christmas Cards, with quite a few hours spent practising 'Joy To The World' on the piano while one of her friends sang. Daniel spent a lot of time in the garden catching spiders (he wants to have a spider farm) observing the Venus Fly Trap, drawing, reading and building Lego. So it was more like an 'unschooling' week with a lot of natural learning. Lovely!


Could our expectations be a trap? Yes, according to the article below (click on the image to read) "Escaping the Homeschool Matrix" by Steve Walden. Especially if we expect to be able to accomplish everything as perfectly as possible ... all the time. I was grateful for the reminder that we must keep the bigger picture in mind, and be careful that our expectations do not become a trap that leave us feeling frustrated and a failure when things don't go according to plan.



If you'd like to read more of this homeschooling Dad's thoughts, he has a blog at

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/stevewalden