I’m Not Patient Enough to Homeschool

Over the last year, I’ve had several moms comment to me, “I’m not patient enough to homeschool.” That comment stuck with me because (a) I’ve heard it from at least three moms and (b) I’m not patient enough either.

I’m not patient in the middle of the night when one of the girls has a bad dream or a cough or a sore leg. I’m not patient when they ask me the same question six times. I’m not patient when my two-year-old is whining at me because the markers she wants to colour with don’t work. I’m not patient when my seven-year-old wants to help chop the veggies for supper and I just want to get them into the pot and cooking as fast as possible. I’m not patient when they want to stop to pick the flowers on our way somewhere.

Sometimes I think that I must’ve, at some point in time, prayed, “God, make me more patient.” And I’m sure he smiled and said, “Sure,” and sent me kids. Having children can definitely be a test of patience—or an exercise in developing it. (Just as marriage and motherhood are also exercises in developing selflessness.)

I have friends who are exceedingly patient as mothers and I admire them greatly. I hope some of their patient example wears off on me. I do try to emulate it, when I’m hanging out with them or not tired and hormonal and focused more on my to-do list than on my girls and what they need. Yes, motherhood requires great patience, and homeschooling is only a small part of that.

Before I started homeschooling Sunshine this year, I did wonder at times if I could be patient enough to do it. I’ve noticed in other areas that it is easy, when you are proficient at something, to be impatient with those who are still struggling to master it. However, patience hasn’t been a struggle for me in our homeschooling, and here are a few reasons for that:

1. I follow a curriculum. I’ve found the curriculum and the lesson plan very helpful for knowing that Sunshine is learning what she needs to be learning when she needs it. I don’t have to push her to learn faster or be impatient that she’s not reading yet even though she had younger friends who are. She is doing fine in her curriculum, following our lesson plans, and that’s great.

2. We do school in small chunks. Overall, I think we spend maybe two hours a day doing school (probably less), though usually I let Sunshine have breaks between each subject so that school gets spread out through the morning. Math takes about twenty minutes, religion five, spelling anywhere from five to thirty minutes (depending on Sunshine’s motivation). If my mind wanders to my to-do list when Sunshine is taking a minute to figure out 5+3, I can remind myself that this time is for her and the laundry will still happen when she gets math done.

3. I see the success. It’s been fun this year to see Sunshine succeed at what she’s learning. I first noticed it in math, when she struggled for a couple days to learn her doubles and then one day just knew them all. Lately, I’ve seen this leap in confidence in her reading, as she starts reading signs and more things around her, as well as trying to read easy books by herself. Seeing these little success helps me to be patient with other areas she’s still working on, knowing that success will come there too.

If you have also thought “I’m not patient enough,” then I hope this will encourage you! If you’re looking for more encouragement on the topic of patience and homeschooling, then I encourage you to check out what some other homeschooling moms have shared (apparently this is a common question!):

• Busting the “I don’t have the patience to homeschool” myth
• “I can’t homeschool because I’m not patient enough”
• The TWO Biggies: Patience and Socialization

What is a question you asked yourself when you started homeschooling? What doubts have you overcome in deciding to homeschool?