Some of the experts to say that when you first pull your child out of school and begin homeschooling, your child needs to take off a month for every year they've been in school. They call this "deschooling" which is the period of time where the child recovers from public school habits.
In our case that simply isn't practical. The child can't take six months off from education. If he did, he certainly wouldn't spend that time playing video games and watching cartoons.
We are taking a relaxed approach for now, while we work toward developing goals, a rhythm, and a routine. He has to do challenging math problems every day. He has to read a bit, learn something about current events or geography, and he has to write in his journal. We are using educational materials that we already have on hand, supplemented with things we find in the library and online. But we are certainly not taking six months off.
Still I am seeing the "deschooling " process. For example, he is learning that if he doesn't understand something, it doesn't work to patiently wait for the teacher and the rest of the classroom to move on to the next topic. We don't move on until he "gets it." Maybe it was okay if he didn't follow everything that was happening in the public school classroom. It's not okay at home.
I benefit too. I am much happier, because I feel like I am doing something important. And the more I teach him, the more I learn. It's not about me, but I can't deny that it's an enjoyable experience.
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