CASD HomeSchool Option: Melissa's Story

Our first guest blogger on this topic is Melissa Landrum, a Coatesville graduate, former CASD elementary teacher, wife, and mom of two. She has been in education for fifteen years, with the first twelve spent as an elementary school teacher at Caln Elementary, where her passion for education began.

She now spends her time as a home-educator, home school evaluator, online reading enrichment teacher, and tutor.  She feels her personal and professional worlds have truly collided over the past three years, and she’s grateful for it.

The story I plan to share with you is different than most, but I think it is relatable especially in these unprecedented times.  It is the story of my family's educational journey and how we have adapted to meet the ever-changing needs of each of our children during circumstances that were out of our control.  Our story shows how some of the best set plans can change and how keeping an open heart and open mind can lead you on a journey you never expected. 

 

In 2017, my family was presented with a relocation for my husband’s job.  I resigned from my teaching position and my family ventured 1,200 miles to Florida.  With every move there is upheaval; the circumstance of this move would include multiple stops and starts in multiple schools for my kids. This was not what any of us wanted or needed during this already stressful time.  So, in the best interest of my children, I chose to home-school during that transition with the intention of re-enrolling them once we found our permanent home.  At that moment, homeschooling was a good solution to a temporary problem.  I never intended for it to stick.  But here I am, back in Pennsylvania for over a year, entering my 4th year of home-education with one child.  And now, like many of you, I’m also facing decisions regarding what to do in the midst of a global pandemic for my middle schooler, who returned to public school last year.

 

When we arrived in Florida and began homeschooling, we were pleasantly surprised by the number of quality community resources and large homeschooling community accessibly for my second and fifth-grader.  We quickly began to see the benefits of homeschooling: flexibility in our schedule, the ability to explore topics of interest, individualizing each of our children’s educations, creating more hands-on learning experiences, and the connection of learning together.   A few months later, when it was time to re-enroll in a more formal learning experience, I hesitated.  I was enjoying our homeschooling experience! I was witnessing “light bulb moments” in my children, and I loved being so connected to what they were learning.  It all seemed too good to be true!  As a family, we sat down and we wrote a list of pros and cons and made a decision together to continue to give this new journey a real go and complete the year homeschooling with the plan to reassess in June.  And that is exactly what we did.  June 2018 came and we committed to year two of homeschooling in Florida. 

 

In the summer of 2019, preparing to move back to Pennsylvania, we again sat down as a family and made decisions for the next school year.  My daughter, who would be entering 7th grade, decided that while she liked homeschooling in Florida, she wanted to enter public school when returning to PA.  My son, who was entering 4thgrade, had become a die-hard home-schooler and insisted we keep homeschooling.  So, I honored both of those wishes, knowing that both would do well and knowing that we could make adjustments as needed. 

 

My daughter transitioned beautifully into 7th grade, (and all of my ‘secret mom fears’ of having maybe messed everything up for her were put to rest!)  In fact, in many ways, I saw improvements in her learning from her traditional school days a few years prior.  Meanwhile, my son and I ventured into the world of homeschooling in PA.  I admit I was nervous; I wasn’t sure PA would have what we needed.  I found out quickly that I was wrong. 

 

We found this area to have not only a great number of opportunities but also a thriving and rapidly growing homeschooling and unschooling community.  Unschooling is a holistic lifestyle approach to education that centers on child-led learning and natural curiosity that uses life as the main source for learning.  We personally like to use a balance of both approaches.  We quickly connected with and joined a weekly curricula co-op with the goal of meeting and learning with like-minded families. 

 

My son and I were also seeking a nature-based group to explore and hike with.  We wanted something relaxed, child-led, consistent and full of friends.  This is something we decided to create and bring our community.   What started out as a small meet-up group of just a few other families last August has now evolved into a Facebook group, “For the Love of Learning,” which offers support and meet-ups weekly for child-led exploration of nature and hiking as well as other services for families. It has been extremely exciting to see this tribe grow.

 

It was a wonderful beginning to homeschooling in PA.  The pandemic has certainly changed so much of our normal home school routines.  But luckily, we were pretty well suited for being at home however we still missed our friends.  We are planning optimistically for the fall to be able to resume some of our activities. 

 

While I know I left out many details of our days, curriculum, and learning experiences this blog’s message is this: I think it is important to be aware of all of the options when you are making educational decisions for your family.  But you must know that you cannot make a bad choice for your family if you go in with an open heart and an open mind. Just as families have options between brick and mortar public, charter, and private schools, there are cyber/online options, homeschooling, and unschooling options.

I often hear of how families want to home school but just don’t think they can.  The truth is, if your child’s education is a priority in your life and you are willing to have an open mind, then you most certainly can.  There are endless resources and much support out there.  There are groups and education oriented families who are all eager and willing to help!   You don’t have to have years of experience teaching; you just need to be willing to learn, willing to adapt, and willing to see the world of education in a new and flexible way. 

Interestingly, some of the biggest obstacles to a happy homeschooling life are other people’s assumptions of home-schoolers and homeschooling.  Luckily, I have grown very confident in my choices and no longer feel as though I need to defend or explain my choices for my family.  I know I am doing right by my kids, both of them.  I know that before my own journey, I probably didn’t understand homeschooling entirely.  Because of that I truly enjoy helping others see what a wonderful education opportunity this can be for a child. 

 

I also know that these choices are the best choices for my family right now.  We take it year by year and honestly for my public-school daughter, right now, we are making decisions week by week.  I don’t know exactly what this school year will look like for her.  The bottom line is that we will make informed choices together to decide how to take on the next right step, every time another step is presented. That’s where my confidence helps so much.  I am comforted in knowing we can home school and there is a beautiful community here for her if we need it.  It goes without saying that there are many other obstacles such as parental availability to be home to educate, balancing jobs, multiple children, children with special needs and simply being overwhelmed.  None-the-less this option may still be worth exploring to see if home-education is an option for your family and maybe those obstacles can be overcome.   Had my situation not thrown me into homeschooling, I may have missed this amazing experience with my family.  I’m grateful every day my eyes were opened to a different approach to education.

 

All paths will require patience, understanding, and empathy for all involved in these unprecedented times.  Whatever journey you decide to take for your child, know that it will be a small part of your family's story and one I am sure you will tell for years to come; I know I will.  I wish you the best, and I am happy to be a resource for you should you need it.

For more resources on Homeschooling check out our Homeschool Resource Page