Homeschooling has definitely been a journey with a great deal of ups and downs. I started homeschooling back in 2002. At the time, I was mom to two daughters who were in kindergarten and 4th grade. Back then, we were totally school at home homeschoolers. We sat down with text books and basically pretended we were a school. A whole lot has changed since then. Our daughter Jess was diagnosed with ADHD and we realized that school at home just didn't work for her and became a little more relaxed. We also added to our family through adoption. It wasn't exactly the plan for us to bring home a child with significant special needs and a toddler at that, but thats exactly what we did. In 2006, we brought home a 3 year old with intense issues stemming from abuse, neglect, and a multitude of learning disabilities. Since, we have received the dreaded autism diagnosis, along with a few others RAD, ADHD, PTSD, SPD, etc. In 2008, our son Luke was officially adopted and in 2009, our daughter Kara graduated high school as a homeschooler. Since she has went to cosmetology school and is now a liscensed cosmetologist at just 18. Our daughter Jess is a ninth grader this year and for the first time ever is attending school at OBA. Our son Luke homeschooled last year and will be my only child at home this year. I think that might be good for him as he needs a great deal of one on one. So that is the journey up to this point. Join me as we embark on another adventure: homeschooling a child with autism. This one scares me a bit. I worry that I don't have the skills to teach a child with special needs. I worry that maybe Luke cannot learn. I worry that he will lose important social skills by homeschooling. However, I do know that school didn't work. We tried that and it was a miserable experience for both of us. I know in my heart that even if Luke never reaches the goals I have set for him that he will be happier, more emotionally adjusted, and more capable individual because we homeschooled.
No comments:
Post a Comment