Jonathan, my oldest, is four and a half years old and we’re now a few weeks into Kindergarten. It’s a little hard to believe that my little baby is now in Kindergarten. It’s even harder to believe that I’m homeschooling him. But, here we are: in Kindergarten.
When you first start homeschooling, it can seem overwhelming. So many choices. So many options. You may feel like you have to do everything all at once, especially if you’re a perfectionist overachiever like I am. Take a deep breath and slow down.
Here are three things that I’ve learned about homeschooling for Kindergarten:
- Don’t worry so much about the specifics of what you teach. Instead, lead your child to a love for learning.
Kindergarten is really an extension of preschool in many ways. Mastery of most subjects is not required nor necessary at this age. It’s more about exposing your child to learning. We chose to do Astronomy for Kindergarten science. In many ways, the subject is beyond Jonathan but he loves space. I certainly don’t expect that he is going to remember everything that we learn in Astronomy this year. The point is that he is enjoying exploring the subject. The point is that he loves learning. - If you have a bad day, don’t sweat it. Try again tomorrow.
Did you know that many states don’t even require Kindergarten? The beginning age for compulsory attendance in many states is 6 or 7 years old. Unless your state requires otherwise, one to two hours a day of formal learning is more than sufficient for Kindergarten. Plus, think about all the things that your child is learning outside of your formal school time. Need a day off? Take it. Need to do something different or out of the ordinary to rekindle the spark of learning in your child? Do it. - Go at your child’s pace. Speed up or slow down as needed.
I happen to have a child who at four and a half is already reading chapter books and doing basic math. He pushes me to keep up with him some days. Then some days, I’m reminded that he is just four and he needs to spend more time on something to understand it. This is the beauty of homeschooling. I don’t have a classroom of children to pace at one level. I can follow him. If he wants to spend an hour doing extra math pages, we can. If he struggles with reading a whole lesson, we can break it up.
Feel better about Kindergarten? I do.
Amanda is a perfectionistic overachiever who is navigating the world of Kindergarten with her oldest this year. She is a former church communications director with a MA in Old Testament Studies turned homeschooling mom. She blogs about life, motherhood, homeschooling, technology, books, faith, and more at ThePelsers.com.
Related posts:
- Apple Unit Study for Preschool and Kindergarten Fall is upon us, and apples are in season. Plan...
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
Wow I could have written this post myself – down to the choice of Astronomy for our kindergartner! I am also a little guilty of being an overachiever and have to keep reminding myself that our daughter is not quite 5 and to lighten up! This is why I do my six week lesson plans in pencil! We just wrapped up our first six weeks, and while we didn’t get through all of what I originally (and unrealistically) expected to cover, I feel pretty confident that she is retaining things,and more importantly, she is enjoying learning!
I do six weeks plans – then I can adjust daily/weekly as needed.
This was exactly what I needed to hear tonight. Thank you.
Ha, me too… rough week here. Decided to declare a movie day so we can all relax and then get our lives back into routine.
Great post Amanda. As you know I have a 4 and 5 1/2 yr old. I am also an over planner, over achiever, perfectionist. I started out the year with a plan and schedule. Now 10 weeks in the plan and schedule are phasing out. We have been sort of winging it and doing more interest lead learning. Right now we are learning all about Fall.
I don’t think I could handle full on winging it, but I’m learning to be flexible and adjust as needed. Letting go of unrealistic expectations has been my goal.