Today’s post comes from Kristie of Saving Dollars And Sense. If you haven’t had a chance to visit her blog, you should head over there – she shares the best advice and ideas for stretching your hard-earned dollar. She also shares her wisdom and insights as an experienced homeschool mom. We saw this post on her blog and it really struck a chord. We’re reposting it here (with Kristie’s permission, of course!) because we think whether you are a veteran homeschooler, or just starting out, you’re sure to appreciate her advice on avoiding homeschool pitfalls.
There are several pitfalls to avoid while homeschooling. These are my personal top three.
1. Do NOT compare yourself to another homeschooling family! This is probably THE single most important lesson that any homeschooling mom can learn. You can cause a lot of damage to both yourself and your children when you do this. God made each one of us totally unique, so why would we want to try to be like anyone else. This just stifles who we are intended to be. I think I finally learned this lesson for the first time last year, and it has changed the entire atmosphere of our homeschool fr the better.
2. Don’t get upset if your child isn’t the next Mozart, Einstein or DaVinci. If you are homeschooling for this reason, you may be setting yourself up for disappointment. I’m not saying that your child won’t be smart. In fact I do believe that homeschoolers are super smart about the things they are passionate about. But as homeschoolers, I don’t feel that we need to make this our priority. Learning will happen, but more importantly are the relationships that will grow stronger every day!
3. Don’t seek outside approval. There is absolutely no way that you are going to please every single person who looks at your homeschool. There will always be at least one judgemental person who is going to raise an eyebrow at what you are doing. I am so guilty of wanting to please other people. The first couple years that we homeschooled, I felt myself always defending my decision to homeschool. I wanted to make every person I talked to agree with me that this was the ideal situation. Since I learned to avoid this pitfall altogether, I have felt so much freedom to do what I know is right for us since someone is bound to object anyways.
If you learn these pitfalls early on, you’ll be much better prepared for an abundant homeschooling experience. Remember that God has created each and every one of us unique. This means that he also must have a unique plan and direction for your homeschool and your family. I know I wouldn’t want to carve out my own path because I saw someone else doing it, and miss out on the plan the Lord has already carved out for us.
This is a time for the Lord to prepare your chldren to become the people he has chosen them to be for His Kingdom and not yours.
Kristie is the Money Saving Mom Blogger behind Saving Dollars and Sense. She has a passion for learning to live on less abundantly and she loves sharing what she has learned with her readers. She is also the homeschool mom of one child graduating from high school this year and another entering high school. When she isn’t working on homeschooling, you can find her sharing giveaways, freebies, and other money saving ideas!
Where to begin? I guess the beginning is a good spot! I’m Jen B, married, with two boys-both with special needs. My eldest was told he would never learn to read, he’s presently in grade 11 in public school, getting straight A’s. We homeschooled him until he was high school age. My youngest was told he will never talk and although his articulation is poor, the boy never stops talking. We still homeschool him and love it. My point? What do people know? Go with your gut!
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Right now we are planning to make pillowcases for each of the nieces and nephews. My daughter is 9 and is very excited to learn to sew, so this is an easy little project for her and counts as homeschooling hours 
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