Classroom teachers and homeschooling

Toot

Mon, Dec 07 2009, 8:29 pm

I am a teacher in a school, and I have been doing some reading on and thinking about homeschooling. I love teaching, and I have the privilege to impact so many children. I also believe that my strengths as a teacher are with middle school students, and not with very little kids or with older, high school age kids.

That being said -

Has anyone had experience, or have thoughts on, going from a classroom teacher to a homeschooling mother/teacher? Do you feel that you made/could be making more of an impact on the hundreds of children who pass through your classroom over the years, or do you feel that the impact you make on your own children is incomparable to anything you could do in a school? Do you feel that you are as good a teacher to your children when they are 3, 7, 10, and 16, or do you feel that your strengths would be better manifested if you could focus on one age group in a school?

I'm not necessarily looking for practical advice, my child is far from school age and I'm not leaving my job any time soon. But I would like to hear other people's thought and experiences.

Seraph

Tue, Dec 08 2009, 2:30 am

That's a toughie.
The real question is- what is more important to you? To make an impact on the world, or to help your kids turn out to be the best kids they can be?
I'll admit, for me, most important is that my kids turn out as best as they can be. Once I influence them positively, then I can turn to the rest of the world to help.
Chessed starts at home, and so should your order of priorities (in my opinion).

But I do see the appeal. To have thousands of students over the years remember you in a positive light and to be able to influence their lives is quite a feeling.
But I'd trade all that for my kids.

Seraph

Tue, Dec 08 2009, 10:50 am

Mommy3.5 wrote:

Homeschooling is a completely different skill then school teaching. I don't homeschool, but am acquainted ( with people who do, I don't think the school teacher mentality is going to be a asset in Homeschooling. There are a few homeschoolers on this board, I hope they chime in soon.

It really depends what type of homeschooling you mean. Some homeschoolers do a more formal schooling and that teacher mentality is fine there. For a looser type of homeschooling, like unschooling, the teacher mentality probably would not be an asset.

alpidarkomama

Thu, Dec 10 2009, 2:37 am

I was a classroom music teacher for years and years (and years) before children. I taught classes beginning in 9th grade, and now I still teach one family each week 28 years later. Smile

I had as many as 50 private students + 22 school classes per week (BUSY!). So, I've taught and taught and taught.

And none of that kind of teaching was ANYTHING like homeschooling. Not at all. Truly, 80% (or more) of the skill set required to be a successful classroom teacher is related to classroom management, which becomes more or less irrelevant in a home setting. I loved teaching. I love thinking of those hundreds and hundreds and hundreds (1,200?) students that I taught over those years. I was passionate about my classroom, about my students, about teaching them not to just recreate music but to create/compose/improvise their own music. To teach 1st–5th graders to write 3-act operas, where for the final performance I sat in the front row and did NOTHING except applaud while they directed themselves. It was lovely.

But all of that teaching, all of those students, don't even compare with the deep love I have of learning with my own children, and knowing that the worlds that will emanate from them, be'h, will come from what we are doing now. The future impact from THAT significantly outruns the fleeting impact I had on all those former (and my 3 current!) students (perhaps some less than fleeting - some were my students for 10+ years, after all!).

So, I don't think teachers or non-teachers are any better or worse as homeschooling parents. It takes a great deal of passion for learning, a devotion to your family, much enthusiasm, and a lot of help from Hashem. The rewards are innumerable.

Happy Mom

Thu, Dec 10 2009, 10:37 am

There's nothing you can do that will make a bigger difference in the world than raising your children well. Nothing. What we put into our kids continues to pay off for many, many years.

Seraph wrote:

Actually, the teacher skill set is so different from what homeschoolers need that for most parents it's not helpful regardless of what style of homeschooling they use. And often, it even becomes a liability- teachers tend to have a hard time shifting away from a school mentality. (Seraph, you might find it interesting to do a bit more reading about different methods of homeschooling; I think you're making some faulty assumptions about non-unschooling homeschoolers.)

Seraph

Thu, Dec 10 2009, 11:54 am

Happy Mom wrote:

There's nothing you can do that will make a bigger difference in the world than raising your children well. Nothing. What we put into our kids continues to pay off for many, many years.

Seraph wrote:

Lol. I know plenty of homeschoolers and I still hold by what I said. There are all types of homeschoolers, all different styles. I was part of a homeschooling co-op when growing up and I do know quite a few homeschooling families in which the parents teach their kids like a teacher does in a classroom. Thats not my style, and perhaps you're correct that the majority of homeschoolers follow more of a centrist approach, neither classroom style teaching or unschooling. I am just talking about the people I know in the homeschooling coop I was a part of.

Happy Mom

Thu, Dec 10 2009, 4:32 pm

>>I do know quite a few homeschooling families in which the parents teach their kids like a teacher does in a classroom. <<

To clarify my point - it's not about how many people have a structured approach to homeschooling, but that the teacher mindset doesn't serve them as effectively as embracing the possibilities and flexibility of homeschooling would.