Teacher, leave those kids alone! I don’t often write about parenting, not because there is anything wrong with it, but it isn’t my area, per se. However, we just started homeschooling our 11-year-old, 5th grader, which brings up a whole host of issues. When working on my Master’s degree, I did my thesis on Adult’s Perceptions of Children and Adolescent Use of Medical Cannabis (for ADHD, Autism, Seizure Disorder, Cancer, etc). It was one of the first of its kind, a pioneering psychological research study, so that’s pretty cool. My interest in this area was not entirely selfless. My 11-year-old has ADHD. When my older two (22 and 20 now) were kids, I was one of *those* people. The people that said ADHD isn’t a *real* disease. I said it was over-prescribed and over-medicated and I still believe that, but believe me, it’s a real disease.

As I sat on the couch for the third time since the school year began, with my extremely bright and sweet little man, and he cried about how stupid he was, I knew something had to give. So, we began home-school. Now, I work from home and teach from home and don’t get much peace and quiet. I was one of those moms who always said I couldn’t do it. I could never homeschool my child. Lucky for us, homeschooling has come a long way. There are hundreds of sites and school curriculums online. My brother and his wife have been homeschooling forever, so they’re a great source of questions. We couldn’t change the school model, so we had to change the learning model.

Is it more difficult? Sure. Is socialization an issue? Only if you don’t make an effort for it not to be. Is it more work? Yes. But, I’m Wonder Woman, right? I Am Woman! Hear me roar! Am I sorry I did it? Just ask my 11-year-old. He hasn’t cried or felt stupid in months. That’s worth all the extra stress in the world to us.

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Anna Levenson-Pintrest