The Beginnings: Part B

Yesterday I wrote about the systemic reasons for choosing to homeschool our kindergartner. Today, I'm going to tell you a little about the child-specific reasons for choosing to homeschool our kindergartner. We'll call her Joy because she's our great joy! She was a surprise and a blessing and is 20 years younger than any of our other four children.

Joy is a GREAT kid! She is curious and intelligent and caring. She is a busy, active girl who doesn't much like to sit down. She has a wonderful memory, high enthusiasm, and loves to try new things... as long as she can succeed.






If Joy sees something that she thinks is "hard," she shuts down. She refuses to attempt the task or breaks down into tears, saying she can't. And if she doesn't like an activity, she pretends not to know how to do it, even if it's easy. There are myriad reasons for this, none of which matter. This is who she is right now.

My husband and I know our daughter very well. We avoid her oppositional behavior most of the time because we know her triggers. But when she's in dance class, swimming lessons, piano lessons, or gymnastics class, the teachers sometimes push the wrong button for Joy. Then she shuts down, melts down, or get sassy (like sticking her tongue out at the gymnastics teacher last week!).

None of this is acceptable. We do not allow her to act like this without consequences, but we can't hold her accountable for her behavior if we are unaware of it. And in a classroom of 20-25 kindergartners, the teacher will not have time to figure out whether she really doesn't understand the concept or she's pretending. I wouldn't expect a teacher to wait for Joy to comply; it's not feasible in a group setting!

But I also do not want Joy to be labeled as a behavior problem. She's not! She has had experiences that have taught her to react in these ways. She simply needs to learn to adapt her reactions so they are more socially acceptable. And she has made MAJOR progress in this over the last year! She's learned so much in the year I've stayed home with her, homeschooling preschool.

And I don't want Joy to miss instruction because of her shutdowns. Those foundational building blocks taught in kindergarten can't be missed without serious learning problems later. Given all these factors, in addition to the probability of our family moving within the next year, we have decided to homeschool Joy for kindergarten. In fact, we've already started!

One day a couple of weeks ago, Joy said, "I want to do kindergarten now!" I said, "Okay! We start kindergarten today!" We have had kindergarten for about two weeks. The first two days were fabulous, then the oppositional behavior started in. "I don't like this!" and "This is no fun!" But what Joy doesn't realize is....

All day long she's learning what she needs to know for kindergarten! The short time we "sit" and "do school" is a very small part of our "curriculum." In fact, I only make her "sit" and "do school" because she needs to learn how to do that if she's going to attend public school someday. The longest she "sits" at once is 10 minutes or so, but she learns 24/7!

That's why I call this Stealth Kindergarten.  Joy is excited as can be to use the Play Doh to build landforms and waterforms, then play with Squinkies on them so she can learn their names. "Meet me in the valley!" brings her Squinkie down the mountain (perhaps by sliding down the river) and into Snake Valley (so named because it was originally made by a Play Doh snake being squashed).

If you are interested in how to get your reluctant learners to engage in learning....Stealth Kindergarten is a good place to be. If you are concerned that your little learner is missing bits of the curriculum due to testing mania... Stealth Kindergarten will give you ideas for activities to do around the house, yard, and community to fill those gaps.

Join me on this journey! It'll be a blast!