Homeschooled Through High School:

Kendra Stamy from

A Proverb’s 31 Wife

Those of us who homeschool or who have been homeschooled through high school know that IT IS VERY Possible.  But how? Many parents and students look towards high school with fear and trepidation instead of being joyous as to how far into the journey they have come. I realize that families homeschool for a multitude of reasons and that each family is unique, but questions still arise when the words high school are mentioned!

 

I was only 5 and begging to go to school, so 3 days before I turned 6 I started first grade at our private school. I loved school and learning and in first grade I won 2nd place in a reading contest. But somewhere along the line I decided I hated math.

By the time I was in 4th grade, I would’ve told any one that asked; “science and reading is my favorite subject, but I hate math!”  In my 5th year, mom started homeschooling my brother and I. She bought curriculum just like what we used at school and she set school hours for us. In fact, our home-school those first few years was very much like school itself. And I still hated math.

As the years went on, mother began to un-school, the whole purpose of home-school in the first place. We began to enjoy school a little more and math wasn’t such a trial. Until I hit JR High, and algebra. That year was a nightmare!

I would sit there crying, partly because I didn’t want to do it, and partly because I didn’t understand it. I squeaked by on 80% grades (to me, anything less than 90% was failure) and breathed a sigh of relief when the year was over.

The next year, mother really branched out. She bought me a totally different curriculum of basic high school math. And I started to enjoy it, then I got to a section that said pre-algebra and nearly fainted! But would you know, the different curriculum explained it so well that I loved the challenge. And here is where things really clicked for me.

That summer mother took me along to a home-school convention and I had with me a pencil, tablet and calculator. Then I went to various booths where algebra curriculum was sold and sat down and studied. By allowing me to choose my own curriculum I was able to find a book that explained the problems in a way I could understand.

I know if I were still enrolled in a school, math would’ve never become my friend.  After that year, I always choose my curriculum and even though I still had to work hard at it, I never gave up because it finally made sense.

Had I been enrolled in public school, I know I would’ve been diagnosed as ADD. Hearing the stories about how I was then, (talking, couldn’t sit still, only listening if I thought the subject interesting) and how kids today are diagnosed (I worked at a preschool for several years).  What would being told I had ADD in school, have done to how I approached learning?

Hubby has ADD, he went to public school and was told that from the start. In high school they gave him easier classes instead of working with him a little harder. Today he still thinks that he can’t do certain things because he thinks slower (or faster) than normal.  I had to fight for everything I learned and I remember getting headaches from school. It really does hurt to think! lol  But, I love to learn, I love new challenges and even though I may get madder than a wet hen because I can’t figure something out, I don’t give up.

To get a job I had to have a state issued GED. I took the pretest and scored great. So I went and took the actually GED test. Surprisingly, I would get done with the test and no one else would be done, so I would worry I missed something and do a second check.  When I got my scores, I was disappointed. Why? Because I didn’t have a perfect score! After talking with the instructor I was told my score was higher than most and so I felt better. 😉

My brothers also scored high on the GED test. To this day, I say that homeschooling was one of the best things mother ever did for us.  Mom herself says it was harder teaching us to read than it was to teach us high school!  She found curriculum that we could use to teach ourselves with.  And by learning on our own that way, we learned the best thing any child can ever learn. Problem solving skills.

So take heart mothers, if it looks like a big job ahead, it is. But someday your child will thank you.

 

Kendra was a high-schooled homeschooler and is now a happily married wife. Drawing from inspiration from Proverbs 31, her blog A Proverbs 31 Wife, was born.  She shares fun and inspirational stories, recipes, crafts, and more. Her desire is to share encouragement to other aspiring Proverbs 31 Wives.