I am writing quick updates as I go along to mark our journey and hopefully to show how much further along we will be when we go through this process with our subsequent children! (Poor little first child guinea pig!)  You can see my previous thoughts in a back post about pondering homeschooling high school.  I have been doing a little bit of research since then, and thought I would share a few things.

• One thing I did was pull curriculum from a wide variety of Waldorf High Schools to see what is taught when at different schools.  I was particularly interested in where the curriculum differed or was adapted for a regional area.
• I read two small books by Lee Binz: “Setting the Records Straight:  How to Craft Homeschool Transcripts and Course Descriptions for College Admission and Scholarships” and “How to Homeschool 9th and 10th Grade:  Simple Steps for Starting Strong”.
• Based upon the suggestions in Lee’s book about crafting transcripts, I wrote a description of our high school and our eighth grader and  I named it.  Unlike many others, we have never had a “school name” before!   Very exciting!  Because we are focused on a holistic, artistic, interrelated curriculum and  experiential style of learning with Waldorf Education, these were heavily considered in the  description of our high school.
• We looked at the “requirements” of credit hours in order to apply for college.  I looked at the requirements for the University system of our state, and then several colleges I handpicked in other neighboring states and one private school just to get a feel for requirements in our region.  Most students applying to high school have 24 credits or so, but the actual state requirement for graduation is only 17 credits for four years of high school – 4 in English, 4 in Math, 4 in Natural Sciences, 3 in Social Studies, 2 in Foreign Languages.  Some universities asked for specific things, such as “fine arts elective – 1 credit”; some asked for “American Economics and Government – 1 credit or “general electives – 2 credits”.
• Some universities want a brief description of the course the student has taken, required texts, sample of work, and HOW the course was graded – ie, the grade was comprised of  1/2 homework assignments, 1/2 quizzes and test, etc.    Again, because of the experiential nature of our schooling, I am having to think about what part “experiences” will play in the grading of courses.
• I found out a general timeline for taking the PSAT, SAT, ACT and also how to access AP classes.  This is more important for some universities than others – for example, if Georgia Tech was a goal, ninety-something percent of incoming freshman have taken AP Calculus or equivalent, and the average incoming student has taken  9 AP classes or more.  Important things to know!
• I am still sorting through the science end of high school –>While the typical Waldorf High School still does science in blocks and has a multi-disciplinary focus in science all years (ie, ninth grade could contain anatomy and physiology, geology, physics and chemistry, for example), the credit hours don’t add up well until one has complete all four years as far as I can tell…ie, you may not have all the hours for “biology” until senior year of high school.  And, most college applications want to see 1 credit biology with lab, 1 credit chemistry with lab, etc when students apply…So perhaps others out there can enlighten me how this normally works at home or if most Waldorf homeschoolers just decided to go a more traditional route for high school sciences in terms of biology one year, chemistry one year, etc?

Blessings,
Carrie

Many families have children who are so smart and so eager to learn.  They talk early, they read early, they are full of interesting questions about the world around them.  They are easy to teach and really,  they practically teach themselves.

And then there are other children who are not so eager to learn.  And I find amongst this “category” there are different groups of children…There may be the type of child that may not be interested in much outside of their own bodies and when food will be served.  They do not display  much interest in those abstract letters on signs or in books, and are not too interested in writing or math.  These are the kind of children that want to eat their way through any kind of main lesson.   The second type of child I have observed are the children that are very dreamy children.   Perhaps they are living in a little world of their own and are not too interested in coming out of that.  We probably all knew very dreamy children growing up.  Maybe we were those children growing up ourselves.  They don’t seem to have a lot of questions about the world around them, at least on the surface.  Maybe they do inside but they don’t ask the questions outwardly, and don’t give too much of a reaction to the things you try to bring as a teacher.  

I think perhaps the third type of child, whom I would NOT consider a “non-eager” learner are the “do-ers”  who really have so much to do that they just cannot sit down to any sort of book work.  I think these children come along just fine, and homeschooling gives them the time and space to be who they are.  They often seem to come into their own in the later middle school and high school years.  I would like to talk about that group in another post.

The typical advice I see for this on the Internet and in talking to teachers about “non-eager learners”  is one of two avenues.  For children in school, the recommendation is to volunteer in the classroom, dialogue with the teacher, sit with the child for homework.  In the homeschooling camp, the advice more often seems to be expose your child to a lot of things, take note of what a child likes to DO and see if you can build off of that, and don’t worry about a “passion” until high school years.

I think any of these pieces in and of their own can be helpful, but as always LOOK at the child in front of you.  Here are a few of my ideas to ponder as well:

For tiny children, under the age of 7, you probably know what I am going to say.  The American school system has now changed to the extent of what I studied in second grade as a child is now the kindergarten.  I feel there is far too much “academic” head work in kindergarten and PreK right now.  In fact, there was a recent article in the Washington Post discussing how the emphasis on academic skills is at a great cost to the child in terms of social-emotional skills and the development of the bodily senses.  If your child is in school, look at grade placement closely.  At this point in time, I have to say older age for the grade is better because of the ridiculous work level. Also, look at rhythm and  routine – is your child getting energy out and having time for free play in the hours after school?  Can you look at alternative schooling situations that match development?

The flip side of this, I think is to establish a good RHYTHM of work.  If your child is in school and expected to do homework and such, this is important, but this is especially important in the homeschool environment for children under the age of 7.   Your child can weave in and out of your work in the Early Years, and absolutely have plenty of time for free creative play and outside play,  but they should not just wander all day long with no adult input if you intend to do some sort of grades schooling that involves sitting down and doing something that you help to direct.   There should be things that are theirs to do in the family, and they should be able to imitate what you are doing and want to join in.  Rhythm in the early years is the key to easier homeschooling in the grades, especially in the beginning grades when children are learning how to be more academic learners.

For children between the ages of 7 and 9 in the homeschool environment, I offer you the ideas of Rudolf Steiner in his lectures, (not  in the school form).  Ages 7 to 9 should still be a good amount of bodily movement – look and see where your child’s physical development really is.  Lack of core strength can really impede writing, for example, and also affect visual convergence and speech.  Look at your child.  Also, think about how much DOING you are asking for versus just sitting and doing something.  It may seem easier to have story, drawing, summary, but I feel this is not at all what Rudolf Steiner intended.   If children this age are able to sit for long periods and don’t want to move, I worry, quite frankly. 

The main challenges I hear from mothers of children this age is a complete disinterest in academic skills (practicing writing, reading,  etc); lack of memory for academic skills; inability to sit still for academic work. Sometimes learning challenges are apparent in this stage, and little things together can add up to a bigger picture of learning skills.  For example, for children who are non-eager learners, maybe reading and writing is difficult in any way or shape or form, but puzzles and mazes are also difficult, crafts are not welcomed, there is not an attention to a task such as cooking.  This could be something bigger than simply “not wanting to.”  If you are concerned about the possibility of learning disabilities or visual problems, I suggest you speak with your health care team.

If you feel there are no challenges, I think one way to approach this age group is two-fold:  working within the physical body and then short bursts of practice as you see your child respond to best.  Choose what you require to be written carefully, and know that in many children academic skills involving lots of writing may not blossom until later ages.  You can introduce, keep it short, be persistent,  circle round and build on things, but you are waiting for development to unfold.   Build great vocabulary and concepts through storytelling and wonderful stories.   Watch and observe your child, use the things your child enjoys within the context of the curriculum, read together, do real-life math and games and know that it really is sinking in.  Focus on doing, and short practice. 

For children between ages 10 and 14,  this should be when interest in the outside world and  academic skills are typically increasing.  For some children, this academic leap will be in fourth and fifth grade, for some children this will be in fifth and sixth grade (I am talking about a homeschooling environment, where we have more time and space to let things ride).  Usually by seventh and eighth grade, many things are evened out and there is a greater ability to start “true academic work” of writing, more examples of critical thinking and original work.   Again, always be on the lookout for any learning challenges that are impeding the way and have not yet been worked with. 

I personally  find the often quoted, “Everything evens out by fourth grade” to be a fallacy in homeschooling.  Many times, children are reading around fourth grade, but some do not read well or are  not really interested in that until age 12.  Sometimes math has sort of evened out, but many times children don’t seem to “get math” until they are 12 and more abstract reasoning has developed.  I myself didn’t develop good math skills until I was a junior in high school and suddenly it all clicked in a way where I really understand the why’s behind what I was doing.  I have no doubt that this was some sort of developmental window  that was personal to me.  So, the years between 10 and 14, and especially  between ages 10 and 12,  require a good amount of patience and persistence and observation of the child on the part of the homeschooling teacher.

For children ages 14 to 16, I feel things should really be coming together at this point.  I know many mothers have talked about the “hibernation” of children at this age, but I see many homeschooled teenagers at this point developing or at least trying on emerging passions and interests in real life and then developing the academic skills they need to support that.    Many academic checklists cite the grades 8-12 as a time of “emerging abstract skills”, so that means that every child could have a timetable that is individual to himself or herself within that time frame.  It may not all click in eighth grade, but it might click in tenth grade or eleventh grade. 

I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences regarding working with “non-eager” learners.

Many blessings,
Carrie

This topic is going around Marsha Johnson’s Waldorf Home Educators Yahoo list, but it must be something in the air because one of my best friends and I have been having this conversation for weeks.  Apparently it is on the collective consciousness of the homeschooling community!

My schedule with having two out of my three children in the upper grades (which I consider grades 5-8) is quite different than it has been in the past.  Right now, it essentially boils down to the fact that I DO have to keep an eye on the clock.  I am torn about that, because part of homeschooling is the ability to sit and ponder and think and go “deeper” but if I do that with one child who takes four hours and  can only do that with me sitting right there, no one else gets what they need.  Also, because of our large age gaps, I cannot really combine much at this point.  Please see my back post about homeschooling the large family for some talk about combining in Waldorf homeschooling, because there are lots and lots of ways that you typically can combine!  There are broader age categories for things than typical in a Waldorf School!

Some mothers are masters at having all children working on main lessons at the same time in the same room.  I wish I could do that but I don’t seem to be able to do it;  my children can’t concentrate that way and neither can I.  So I don’t approach school  that way, but it can be a helpful approach for so many. Instead,  I approach it as what does that child  need from me directly, what can they do on their own and how do I encourage that (which also takes time and planning)  (and no, my oldest really wasn’t adept at this until sixth-seventh grade, my now fifth grader is a little more independent, and I have a feeling our third child will be the most independent worker of all – so LOOK at the temperaments and personalities of the children in front of you, and look carefully at how YOU are encouraging independent work from your child once they are past the nine year change), and what is essential in terms of building capacities for that particular child.

So, right now I essentially start with a walk for everyone (which I had given up for a long time and have now come back to it), but I keep it short.  By 8:45 our fifth grader and I are doing our main lesson.  Our eighth grader is doing independent work (piano practice, outside distance learning Spanish class homework)  and then working with her younger brother.  At 10:15, I work with our littlest member and our oldest does her independent math work and our fifth grader rests and reads independently for school. (In the past our older children did circle time with our youngest, but not this year.  We may go back to that next year).   At 11:00 I start with our eighth grader and our fifth grader can finish any work needed and then play with her little brother.  We eat lunch at 12:30 and rest.  We come back a few afternoons a week for handwork with a read-aloud, and a few one on one times for special subjects for both older child – for our eighth grader this happens to be World Geography and in the spring it will be Civics and for our fifth grader it is extra lesson activities and math.  On those days, school does go “long”, but I expect that with an eighth grader in the house!   Also, three days a week I work an extra forty-five minutes in  with our eighth grader on math that “would be in a block” and/or Life Skills.  Know the homeschool laws in your state; are there requirements for hours a day or year to be completed?

I think the key to having less full days with younger children in the early grades is 1- to make sure you really get through the “main lesson” part  early on in the day , if having it done early works for you.   2 – do not schedule your home school like a Waldorf School with too many different periods and such – you are one person and will have to be “on” for all those different lessons – remember,  homeschooling is and should and will be different than a school environment 3 – be prepared so you can be efficient – have your drawings done ahead of time, but also draw with your child, know what you are teaching, know what your child really needs and is the essential for that child at that time 4 – remember that for homeschooling to work long-term you have GOT to take care of YOURSELF and the family in terms of meals, rest, exercise and so forth – so resting after lunch, having time during the week to do what YOU as a person  outside of being a mother and homeschool teacher need to do is VITALLY important! and 5 – remember what pieces of “real life” in your real home nurturing schedule are developing capacities – cooking is so much math; playing games can also be logic and math and reading; writing grocery lists and thank you cards are developing skills – start thinking outside of the school box and finally 6 –  yes, you may need to keep an eye on the clock.   Some families are content to go all day, but many have other things to do either for other children in the family or for the home, etc.  The rhythm of school has to work for all of the family in order to be sustainable.

Please do share your experiences.  Help your fellow homeschooling mothers!

Love,
Carrie