The Badgers are embarking on their twenty-eighth year of homeschooling. With ten kids, the look of our school has changed over time. We went from what was essentially a preschool to a one room schoolhouse and now we have a tutoring service with only two kids, thirteen and nine. We have had to adjust our systems along the way. We have gone from school around the kitchen table (it was the only way to keep track of everyone!) to school lounging around the family room. Our field trips have gone from visits to the petting zoo to trips to the salvage shop and three mile hikes/climbs.
Homeschool groups go through those transitions as well. Groups start because moms with kids the same age tend to hang around together. They have play dates when their kids are five, plan art classes when they are ten, and do biology labs together when they are fifteen. Then, they graduate and leave homeschooling behind them. The groups often follow this pattern, dying out as the highly involved parents graduate out.
For those of us with a wide age range in our children, we've seen these patterns. It can be discouraging to see a vibrant, highly active homeschool group fizzle out. But what we need to do is what we do as moms: adapt to the needs of the next generation. Our homeschool group has gone from STEM and art and gym classes to US Government, Chemistry, and "Pride and Prejudice" to potlucks and hiking club during COVID. But many of us have graduated and there is a new generation that needs the wisdom of the older moms (Titus 2, ladies!) and the encouragement of other soon-to-be-homeschooling moms in the trenches to know that they can do it. Let's do it, ladies!
