Every single school morning since August 29th I have awoken the girls with a simple morning greeting: "Good morning my loves! Time for school!" I know it's not a particularly flashy wake up call, and really I probably could dig deeper and come up with something brilliant if I tried, but morning is still morning and I'm not completely my superior self in those hours. So there you have it.
And every morning as the girls hear my greeting and begin to stir in their cozy beds, their response is always the same: "Homeschool right? Not school at a building?"
Every night as I plant one more kiss on their heads and squeeze one more hug in before the lights are turned off, I ask them what they are most looking forward to in the next school day. What new piece of learning are they excited about?
And their reply is always and ever this: "Homeschool right? Not school at a building?"
Here we are, greeting the month of February already, and still they worry about school. Even after 5 full months of this routine;103 days, each a continuation of the day before. They each still suffer a moment of worry every day. (Or at least 2 moments of worry, I guess).
Has mom changed her mind?
Has something changed?
Will tomorrow be the day we have to go back?
My heart hurts for them in their worry and fretting. They only went to one year of school at a building. One traditional year. And it was Kindergarten at that. But still it has left its marks on them. I think back to my own Kindergarten experience and I still smile. It was fun. I'm a natural chatterbox and being around a squajillion other kids all day suited me just fine.
But not my daughters.
They are not me. They are their own individual selves, and for this stage in their lives they like quiet and stillness. They like the neatness of moving fluidly from one subject to another. Or having the ability to linger on something that might be tricking them up, going over it "just one more time, just to be sure I've got it, Mom. Please?". Or being able to delve deeper into a subject that interests them, further exploration, more discussion, an impromptu field trip. "I just can't believe how amazing this is, Mom!"
This works for them. It works for me. Win-win. We'll do it as long as we're able. For as long as they're willing to put in the effort, because it is by no means a small sacrifice on their parts to do this every day. It takes a lot of work on the part of the parent and the kiddo to school at home successfully. Anyone who thinks otherwise may want to rethink it a bit. I'm just sayin'.
But how I wish they had happier memories from their time in a classroom. I truly do. They are living proof that there are no cookie cutter learners. We are all different and unique. And I feel like we're kind of celebrating that with this first year of OHVA. We're taking what works best for them and absolutely embracing it every single day.
And you know what? That's a pretty good thing. It really is.
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