Failing at Homeschooling: How to Get Your Homeschool Back on Track

IF YOU ARE FAILING AT HOMESCHOOLING, YOU ARE PROBABLY ASKING: AM I CUT OUT FOR HOMESCHOOLING?

I have been a homeschool mom for almost seven years and I have failed at homeschooling just like many of you.

The truth is, if you homeschool long enough, there will come a time when you start to feel like a failure.

So if you feel like you’re failing at homeschooling, know that you are not alone!

For example, a while ago, my kids were behind in their school work, and I had to work hard to get them back on track.

When you’re behind on homeschooling, it’s normal to start doubting yourself and feeling very inadequate.

But, it isn’t really the time to quit homeschooling unless that’s what’s best for your family.

A better approach is to work on getting your homeschool back to where it’s supposed to be.

So how do you get back on track in your homeschool?

That’s what I’m going to show you in this post.

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FAILING AT HOMESCHOOLING: HOW TO GET BACK ON TRACK

1. ACKNOWLEDGE THE PROBLEM

Don’t you sometimes wish your homeschooling problems would go away without you needing to address them or do anything about them?

Unfortunately, I haven’t discovered a magical solution for our homeschool struggles, so I usually have to face them head on if I want to stay on track, and achieve my homeschooling goals.

That’s why the first step to getting your homeschool back on track is to acknowledge the problem.

In case you’re asking what good that is going to do, let me tell you.

You can’t fix something you’re unwilling to acknowledge.

If you keep pretending that everything is fine and carry on like you’ve been doing, you risk causing even more harm to your homeschool, and I know you don’t want to do that.

That’s why you need to take a step back and acknowledge that you are failing at homeschooling or that you’re struggling.

Once you can acknowledge that, it means you’re ready to find a solution and willing to turn things around.

Acknowledging a problem doesn’t make you a homeschool failure or a bad mom, so don’t think or feel that way.

It’s possible for things to get out of hand despite all our efforts and good intentions, that’s why we must approach homeschooling with a humble heart and be willing to change and accept our shortcomings.

2. IDENTIFY THE CAUSE OF THE PROBLEM

Okay, so you’ve acknowledged the problem, now what?

The next thing you need to do is to identify the issues that made you fail, or the reasons why you feel like a failure at homeschooling.

Here are some questions to help you get to the root of the problem:

What are the issues (sickness, moving, financial etc)?
What are you struggling with?
Why do you think you’re failing?
Are you trying to do too much?
If your kids are behind, why are they behind?
Are you struggling to balance homeschooling and housework?
Are you dealing with unwilling learners?
Do you struggle with teaching the material or particular subjects?
If you work from home, did you prioritize your business and put homeschooling on the back burner?
Is your husband not helping enough?
Is it a lack of discipline and consistency?
Do you hate homeschooling?
Are you overwhelmed and burned out from homeschooling?

These are just some questions to help you identify the cause of the problem.

But, a word of caution here.

Please resist the urge to blame other people for your shortcomings (or like we say, don’t pass the buck).

If deep down you know that you’re responsible for the situation you find yourself, please just own it.

Now, I am not saying you should beat yourself up or anything like that, but I know from experience that there’s a tendency to blame everyone and everything but ourselves.

So, I just wanted to throw that out there.

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3. DO A THOROUGH ASSESSMENT OF THE SITUATION

So now you have accepted that things aren’t working in your homeschool, and you know exactly why they aren’t working.

It’s time to do a proper assessment of the situation so you can create a plan for getting back on track

The best way to do this, is to ask some questions like:

How far behind are you?
Where do you need to be?
What do you need to do to get caught up

Note that these questions are only applicable if your kids are behind in their homeschool.

However, I know that when most moms feel like they are failing at homeschooling, their kids are usually behind academically, so they start to panic.

I did that too.

Homeschool neglect is real and it scares me. That’s why I frequently carry out an assessment to see if I am on track.

Sometimes after doing a proper assessment, you may find that things aren’t as bad as you feared.

So what if your kids aren’t behind and some other issues is causing you to fail?

Maybe you’re failing because of disorganization. Maybe you are having problems planning lessons or keeping proper records.

Maybe all these issues are making it hard for you to stay on top of things.

Whatever the issue is, the same principle applies.

Evaluate the situation so you can pinpoint how serious they are.

The reason you need to do this is so you can come up with a plan to help you resolve the problem.

You need to know the extent of all the problems so you don’t end up putting a band-aid on a deep wound that requires something stronger or more effective.

Spend as much time as you need to get to the root of the matter. Don’t forget to ask for feedback from your husband (and maybe your kids).

Sometimes, we are oblivious to things that are staring us in the face.

There’s no shame in letting others hep you identify problems you may be having.

4. CREATE A PLAN FOR YOUR HOMESCHOOL

Now that you know what the problems are, you’re ready to create a plan to address them.

If your kids are behind on homeschooling, let me share some things I did when we were in this situation.

I decided to focus on the most important things first. What are the things they needed to know?
I cut out the extras. I am a big believer in having some riches and extras to make homeschooling more fun, and to give my kids a well-rounded education, so I hated to this, but it was necessary at the time.
I figured out how much time I needed to get back on track. How many hours did we need to get caught up? How many weeks or months?
I asked myself if I needed any extra resources or external help to get back on track.

Depending on your situation or the reasons why you’re feeling like a failure at homeschooling, all these may not be necessary.

But, if they are similar to mine, this is a good starting point for creating a plan.

Perhaps, your issue is one of character and discipline. Maybe it’s a health issue.

Or maybe it’s because you have set your standard too high and you’re disappointed because you can’t reach those lofty goals.

Whatever the reasons are, you still need a plan to address them so you can stop feeling the way you are right now.

5. DISCUSS YOUR PLAN WITH YOUR KIDS AND EXECUTE

Depending on the circumstances, you may need to discuss your plan with your kids.

I am assuming you will need to discuss the issues with your husband and you’ve both agreed on a plan for moving forward.

So, it’s time to share the plan with the kids and to put the plan in action.

Sometimes, all that’s required is for your husband to talk with the kids and straighten them out (if you have some behavior issues).

In my case, because my kids were behind in their school work, I had to discuss what I planned to do to help us get back on track.

I wanted them to know my expectations and what was required from them.

Since I didn’t want any arguments or resistance from them, I needed to let them know in advance what we were going to be doing.

The kids were quite happy to work with me to get our homeschool back on track.

Take the time to chat with your kids (especially if they are older). Let them know about any changes to their routines or schedules to avoid push arguments.

It’s very frustrating when you feel like a homeschool failure, but you can take action to change the tone of your homeschool.

6. MAKE SOME RULES FOR STAYING ON TRACK

You know what they say, old habits die hard. That’s why you need some rules to help you stay on track so you can stop feeling like a failure.

Some rules you can make include:

To address issues as soon as they arise.
Ask for help when you need it.
Take care of yourself to avoid burnout.
Work on character building in your homeschool and not only academics.
Avoid perfectionism and comparison with other families.
Be consistent.
Prioritize homeschooling and learning.
Become better at time management

And lots more…

What rules you need to make will depend on your personal circumstances, but they should help to prevent a recurrence of all the issues you identified earlier.