Tough Day Yesterday

Tough days.  I guess all homeschooling moms have them.  Yesterday was one for us.

We started the morning out well, with spelling and math.  I had to go to the chiropractor so my son brought a fiction book he's been reading.  On the way home we stopped at a grocery store, reading labels and talking nutrition.  If a person wished to eliminate all sugar, fat and salt from their diet, we found that in this particular store some aisles only contained one or two acceptable items for purchase.

He seemed to dawdle over lunch, taking his time and stretching it out for as long as he could.  I felt myself growing impatient.  After lunch, he spent about another hour working in his workbook, and then it was time to go pick up his brother at school and take him to speech therapy.  During speech therapy he worked in his workbook a bit more, but his attention was beginning to wane and his productivity decline.

I was beginning to become concerned.  He had spent a total of three hours on education that day, and isn't coming anywhere near the volume of finished work I hope to see from him.  Former teacher comments were echoing in my mind.  The problems he exhibited in school are repeating at home.

I have him a rather stern lecture on work ethic, effort, and productivity, and told him that I needed six hours of homeschool work and study per day, with a much higher volume of finished work.  It didn't go well.  He needed to spend an hour in his room to think.  But later, he told me that maybe  he reacted the way he did due to puberty.  I admitted that it might be best if we gradually increase his work time and output.

We did have a talk about responsibility.  I said that I've been demonstrating to him that nothing need get in the way of learning.  He has access to all of the information and instruction he needs.  I asked him what was getting in the way of learning, and he said his brother's name.  I was stunned.  Clearly he is cultivating the mental habit of making excuses for himself.  I told him that responsible people determine what obstacles are getting in the way of success and then find their way around them.  We are definitely going to revisit this.

I realize that his learning style is more kinesthetic, but I still want him to do worksheets. I figure that he's capable of it and simply needs to increase his tolerance for it.  It's something that every typical person needs to be able to do.

Last night before climbing in my bed, I said, "Tomorrow will be better.  Today I tried to be a drill sergeant.  Tomorrow I will try to be Mother Theresa."  At least my husband thought it was funny.