Comments | fyshmom: Kindergarten

fyshmom

Kindergarten

Mar 10, 2009 16:10

I am feeling a mix of feelings right now…. I went out to lunch today with a good friend of mine; I wanted to interview her for a research project I'm doing. (I'm working on a project called "Trauma and Tradition" about healing trauma through traditional / tribal / ceremonial means and she is a non-Western trauma counselor who uses these types of ( Read more... )

Comments 6

barenakedrachel March 11 2009, 04:44:33 UTC

I can really relate to where you are right now in your thinking and your feelings of concern about sending M off to school. I went through the push/pull of this with Jacob (although the program I put him in was not nearly as excellent-sounding as the school you are speaking of!!). It was relatively easy for me to choose to give preschool a try because it was so part-time and I was still able to heavily homeschool him (which is something I've been doing since he was a toddler without him even being aware of it - you know, just taking advantage of all the neat learning opportunities every day). But preschool was fun and very laid back. I admit I only gave it a try because I knew that my marriage wouldn't be lasting much longer and I feared having to go back to work or school, thus really NEEDING to use the public school system and I did not want to put him into any type of school without doing so gradually... so preschool it was. And preschool was wonderful. Yes, they did things like "teach them to be good boys and girls" and it ( ... )

barenakedrachel March 11 2009, 04:47:09 UTC

... It was really about me letting go of my desire to control his environment as much as I possibly could. I was afraid of any negative influence. So I decided to look at all the positive influences and remind myself that I have always been and, likely (unless I do something to cause a lack of connection or trust in our relationship), always will be far more influential on him than all of the outside world. Plus, he's his own person - a smaller person than I am and with fewer life experiences, but he's still his own person ( ... )

fyshmom March 11 2009, 05:01:13 UTC

Thanks so much for this reply!!! It does help to know that other parents have been there -- I know that they have, but it helps to actually hear about it. I also know that this decision isn't "carved into stone," meaning that she may get there and decide that it isn't what she really wants, or she may decide three years later that she wants to homeschool, and/or she may go back and forth throughout her school years between home and school; I'm totally okay with that -- she can decide as she goes. Part of my reasons for having hesitancy about school is that I saw / see the negative effects that it had on me, though that was largely as an older child because I didn't have much of a choice -- I HAD TO go to school, or at least I did until I realized that there really are no "have to's" in life -- then nobody could make me go. :<) I would have been so much better off doing some type of independent learning -- being held back by "regular school" was really the pits. (I did okay in elementary school because I was enrolled in all kinds of ( ... )

fyshmom March 11 2009, 05:03:04 UTC

Oh -- and how did YOU do with the first day? It will probably be me crying after dropping her off if I'm honest about it. :<)

barenakedrachel March 11 2009, 05:39:19 UTC

I think your school of choice will be WONDEFUL and filled with all kinds of teachers from all kinds of backgrounds... I cannot imagine there being much homogenous-ness going on there ( ... )

barenakedrachel March 11 2009, 05:49:17 UTC

When I say I sometimes face the concerns you mention, one example of a minor worry I had a few weeks ago: there was a homework assignment to watch a TV commercial and answer a set of questions about it, such as what was the commercial selling, do you think this product is necessary, do you think the claims made in the advertisement are really true? I was torn about what to do because we don't watch commercials, but I judged the assignment to be a "good" one overall because it presented the opportunity to actually discuss the agenda of the marketing world. I do have a TV and DishNetwork (satellite) with DVR service so I can record shows that I'm OK with them watching and pick my own times for them to watch stuff - and no commercials, but I had no desire to sit down and actually TRY to find a commercial on live television!!! I wanted Jacob to be able to complete the assignment, but I did not want to spend time watching commercials!!! Eeek! So I wrote a short note at the top of the page explaining that we have a family policy of ( ... )