Have Faith in the Homeschooling Gods

The first year we homeschooled, I was in a panic to perfectly deliver every prescribed subject to my daughter for her grade. I was convinced I was going to be struck by lightning if I missed anything. I diligently tried to follow a typical public-school schedule, basically trying to recreate school at home.

That year we were “supposed” to be learning about the Industrial Revolution. We were also doing a little poetry block (which we have continued ever since). I thought it might be a good idea to combine the two and started searching for a poem about the Industrial Revolution. I came across Daffodils by William Wordsworth written as a reminder of the beauty of nature in a society that was becoming more and more industrialized.

We read the poem after our boring textbook assignment, then went to feed our neighbors’ cats. On our walk we discovered, to our surprise, the daffodils were blooming all around our neighborhood.
It was then that I got the first glimpse of the Homeschooling Gods.

Since that experience I have learned to become less fearful of missing important milestones, of doing things the “wrong” way at the wrong time. Every year, I spend the summer exploring what our next homeschooling year will entail. I get a general idea and keep a list. Last summer I realized we hadn’t done much in the way of World Studies since middle school. My daughter was asking questions about our heritage and wanted to explore some genealogy. So, I plugged that into my notes and waited for the Homeschooling Gods to work their magic.

Sure enough, I was listening to a Podcast on Food Writing and they were interviewing a writer with a new book out called The Black Sea by Caroline Eden. The book was a traveler’s eating guide to the countries surrounding the Black Sea. It was perfect! It had recipes, history, culture, geography, and even tied into our family roots. That book served as our “textbook” for World Studies that year.

This year I knew I wanted to get some kind of Civics study into the mix but had no idea how to go about it. My daughter was not at all interested and I always like to find a way to bring her a subject that she’s going to be able to personally identify with. So, I put it on my list for the year and let it go. I have enough faith now that I know somehow the Gods will come through for us.

We got all the way into May without any hope of an interesting Civics idea, when again, I was listening to a news Podcast and heard that because of the Pandemic, the Supreme Court was going to hear oral arguments live over the telephone! That was it. It all immediately fell into place.

We started with a review of the Constitution using a student-friendly website. Then we read some fun articles about the Supreme Court, even one about how they have dealt with epidemics throughout the history of the court. After that we read the biographies of each justice and printed out their pictures. We looked at which cases were on the schedule and picked the one that my daughter was most fired up about. For the next week we delved into that case, listening to Podcasts, reading articles, and discussing all the angles.

Then the day finally came, we sat together with our pictures of the justices and listened to the arguments. We paused to discus and question and look up other cases they were siting, and now we wait for their decisions. In two-weeks’ time, we did a more interesting Civics study than we could have by reading a textbook for the entire year. I don’t think either of us will ever forget the experience.

Now we are wrapping up our school year and already I’m putting things on my list for next year. Right now, they are just hopes and prayers, but I know when the time is right, inspiration will come and the Homeschooling Gods will provide.

It’s not too late… If you’d like to follow our Civics course, I’ve provided all the links you need below. And as always, if you would like personal help in organizing you homeschool year, contact me through my website www.blossomlearning.weebly.com. I believe that every child deserves the best education they can get no matter what their economic situation. So, I’m offering homeschool help by donation of whatever works for your family.

Please have a happy and healthy summer!

Supreme Court Civics Study Links:
https://www.usconstitution.net/constkids.html
https://www.supremecourt.gov/
https://www.supremecourt.gov/about/biographies.aspx
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/10/us/politics/supreme-court-group-photos.html
https://supremecourthistory.org/history-of-the-court/Epidemics%20and%20the%20Supreme%20Court/
https://www.scotusblog.com/author/scotustalk/

I find that poetry is a wonderful way to explore perspectives and life experiences in a very personal way. It allows for a deeply intimate peek into a writer's identity.

I like to start with a cold reading. Just read the poem once through with no background information. For older students, they can read it to you. After that, read a biography of the poet. Talk a little about the poem, allow for questions, do some Google searching for any new words or unfamiliar concepts.

Then, read the poem again. Now you will see flashes of recognition as  your child personally identifies with that poet's life and inner voice. More layers of meaning will be uncovered.

Once your student knows who the poet is, where they were born, what time period they lived in, they will start to identify with the poem in a new way. Now they can place themselves into the life of that poet and see through their eyes just a moment... just long enough to glimpse into their world.

Try it with this Poem of the Month by Zilka Joseph!

The Rice Fields
By Zilka Joseph
                                                   Miles of them grow in my carry-on

and travel with me across continents

but the customs officers are suspicious

they eye my old suitcase and ask me to open it

                                                   Pickles? they ask sniffing deeply

prodding a packet or two

say Sure ma’am you’ve got no jeera or chilies?

(now they’ve learned the Hindi word for cumin

so the new trick is to joke with us) And one time

                                                  I saw three burly officers question

an elderly couple disheveled

as I was from 20-plus hours

of travel from Kolkata

and as disoriented (and yes

as usual all the usual “foreign” suspects

are sent along to “Agriculture”) and

they poked around in their overstuffed bags

(where some rice fields appeared but

they couldn’t see them of course) and

                                                      one officer said Duck? Bombay Duck?

It’s a fish?? Dried fish your son

wanted? Sorry no fish allowed

or birds (The officers looked

at each other again and again:

expressions priceless) So another time I land

                                                     at Detroit airport and I shake my head

at the silver-haired officer

say Sir, no, no pickles meat or cheese

I buy them here at Bombay Grocers

and Patel’s (give them a sweet Colgate smile)

Yes, yes, sweets, only made of lentil No dairy, no dairy

The red-gold cardboard boxes of sweets he can see

but not the rice sprouting beneath

the young green shoots
                                                 No our rice fields he will never see

                                                 we carry them wherever we go


P.S. for more homeschooling ideas, go to Blossom Learning. ​