Breaking Hearts

 Y'all.. Hearts are breaking all over the place right now but especially in states like CA. Parents are so overwhelmed with distance learning- are you one of them? As a teacher supporting homeschool/distance learning families, I want to encourage you. There ARE OPTIONS other than what your public school is telling you. 

No, your kindergartner does not HAVE to sit in front of a screen from 9-2 each day. No, your special needs or ADHD kiddo does not HAVE to sit for Zoom meetings or check off a certain amount of assignments. Please know, you have been conditioned (as have I) to believe that public schools are the only way you can survive as a working parent. --> This is simply no longer true. 

I cannot sit silent while parent and child hearts are breaking. Education does not have to look like this; Tears and running from learning...! Whether you want to focus on outdoor learning, workbooks and manipulatives, or have an online program take the lead, you can "homeschool" without it sucking the life out of you and your kiddos. Please HEAR ME in my heart for you: You may need to break away from your local brick-n-mortar school district first. But THEN, you can sign up for a local charter. You can sign up for your own  "private school affidavit" = PSA. Then you can do whatever format works best for your students! The options are WIDE. Start simple; get a grade level workbook from Costco or the local bookstore. Check out a few websites like Time 4 Learning, Schmoop, or Acellus. 

--Then, hey, school them WHEN you HAVE TIME. An hour in the evening, a few hours on Saturday, if needed. Get a responsible high school or college student to supervise/tutor if you need to be gone for a bit. There are ways out of this schooling you have come to see as a trap of oppression. Let's brainstorm together! I want to give you all a bit more HOPE 💕

(P.S. This boy 👇 is my reminder that kids have unique learning needs and they do not FIT in every box assigned to them. He needs help coordinating his executive functions. He does not get a lot out of Zoom sessions.)