Homeschool Stress

Homeschool Stress Homeschooling is a big responsibility and commitment. It can be stressful, but far too often we homeschooling parents make it more stressful than it has to be.   Are you guilty of stressing out yourself or your kids unnecessarily with any of the following? Expecting Perfection Expecting perfection in yourself or your children is certain to put unnecessary stress on your family. If you’re  transitioning from public school to homeschool, it’s important to remember that it takes time to adjust to your new roles. Even if your children have never  attended a traditional school, transitioning to  formal learning  with young children  requires a period of adjustment. Most veteran homeschooling parents would agree that this period of adjustment can  take 2-4 years. Don’t  expect perfection right out of the gate. You may be caught in the trap of  expecting academic perfection. is a  popular phrase among homeschooling parents. The idea is that you’ll stick with a topic, skill, or concept until it is completely mastered. You may hear homeschooling parents state that their children get straight A’s because they don’t move on until the skill is mastered. There is nothing wrong with that concept  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ in fact, being able to work on a concept until a child fully understands it is one of the benefits of homeschooling. However, expecting 100% from your child all of the time can be frustrating for you both. It doesn’t allow for simple mistakes or an off day. Instead, you may wish to decide on a percentage goal. For example, if your child scores 80% on his paper, he clearly understands the concept and can move on. If there is a certain type of problem that caused a grade less than 100%, spend some time going back over that concept. Otherwise, give yourself and your child the freedom to move on. Trying to Finish All the Books We homeschooling parents are also often guilty of operating under the assumption that we have to complete every single page of every piece of curriculum that we use. Most homeschool curricula contain enough material for a typical 36-week school year, assuming a 5-day school week. This doesn’t account for field trips, co-op, alternative schedules, illness, or a myriad of other factors that could result in not completing the entire book. It’s okay to finish most of the book. If the subject is one that is built on previously-learned concepts, such as math, chances are that the first several lessons of the next level are going to be review. In fact, that’s often one of my kids’ favorite aspects of starting a new math book  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ it seems easy at first because it’s material they’ve already learned. If it’s not a concept-based subject  Ã¢â‚¬â€œ history, for example -  chances are, you’ll come back around to the material again before your kids graduate. If there is material that you feel you simply must cover and you’re clearly not going to have time, you may want to consider skipping around in the book, dropping some of the activities, or covering the material in a different way, such as listening to an audiobook on the topic while running errands or watching an engaging documentary during lunch.​ Homeschooling parents may also be guilty of expecting their child to complete every problem on every page. Most of us can probably remember how happy we were when one of our teachers told us to complete only the odd-numbered problems on the page. We can do that with our children. Comparing Whether you’re comparing your homeschool to your friend’s homeschool (or to the local public school) or your kids to someone else’s kids, the comparison trap puts everyone under unnecessary stress. The problem with comparison is that we tend to compare our worst to someone else’s best. That causes self-doubt as we focus on all the ways we don’t measure up rather than capitalizing on what we’re going well. If we want to produce cookie-cutter kids, what’s the point of homeschooling? We can’t tout individualized instruction as a homeschool benefit, then get upset when our kids aren’t learning exactly what someone else’s kids are learning. When you’re tempted to compare, it helps to look at the comparison objectively. Is this something your child should probably know or be doing?Is it something that would benefit your homeschool?Is it a good fit for your family?Is your child physically, emotionally, or developmentally capable of performing this task or accomplishing this skill? Sometimes, comparing helps us identify skills, concepts, or activities that we would like to incorporate in our homeschools, but if it’s something that doesn’t benefit your family or your student, move on. Don’t let unfair comparisons add stress to your home and school. Not Allowing Your Homeschool to Evolve We may start out as staunchly school-at-home parents, but later learn that  our  educational philosophy is more  in line with Charlotte Mason. We  may  begin  as radical unschoolers  only to discover that our children prefer textbooks. It is not uncommon for a family’s homeschooling style to change over time, becoming more relaxed as they get more comfortable with homeschooling or becoming more structured as their  children grow older. Allowing your homeschool to evolve is normal and positive. Trying to hold on to methods, curricula, or schedules that no longer make sense for your family will likely put undue stress on you all. Homeschooling comes with its own set of stress-inducers. Theres no need to add more to it. Let go of unrealistic expectations and unfair comparisons, and let your homeschool adapt as your family grows and changes.

Explore These Free Online Macroeconomics Textbook Resources

Explore These Free Online Macroeconomics Textbook Resources Today, there are more resources available for economics students than ever before. This new knowledge-rich environment has opened the possibility for enriched learning and has made research more easily and readily accessible to the average economics student. Whether you are seeking to supplement your university studies, dig deeper into your economic research for a project, or drive your self-study of economics, we at About.com have compiled a series of excellent economics resources and assembled them into a comprehensive online macroeconomics textbook. Introduction to About.coms Online Macroeconomics Textbook About.coms online macroeconomics textbook is presented as a set of links to various resources and articles on key macroeconomics topics that are perfect for the economics beginner, undergraduate student, or someone just trying to brush up on the basic macroeconomics concepts. These resources present much of the same information as the classic hardcover textbooks listed on university course syllabi, but  in an easily accessible format that encourages fluid navigation. Also like those expensive economics textbooks that undergo revisions and updates as they are published in subsequent editions, our online macroeconomics textbook resources are always being updated with the latest and most useful information some of which is driven by readers like you!   While every undergraduate-level macroeconomics textbook covers the same core material within its many pages, each does so in a different order depending on the publisher and how the authors choose to present the information. The order we have chosen to present our macroeconomics resources is adapted from Parkin and Bades quintessential text,  Economics. Complete Online Macroeconomics Textbook CHAPTER 1: What is Macroeconomics? Compilation of articles that strive to answer this seemingly simple question, what is economics? CHAPTER 2: Unemployment An examination of the macroeconomics issues surrounding unemployment including, but not limited to, productivity and income growth, supply and demand of labor, and wages. CHAPTER 3: Inflation and Deflation A look at the basic macroeconomics concepts of inflation and deflation, including examinations of price levels, demand-pull inflation, stagflation, and the Phillips curve. CHAPTER 4: Gross Domestic Product Learn about the concept of gross domestic product or GDP, what it measures, and how it is calculated. CHAPTER 5: The Business Cycle Discover one of the keys to understanding how periodic but irregular fluctuations in the economy, what they are, what they mean, and what economic indicators are involved. CHAPTER 6: Aggregate Demand Supply Supply and demand at the macroeconomic level. Learn about aggregate supply and demand and how it influence economic relationships. CHAPTER 7: Consumption Saving Learn to analyze the economic behaviors of consumption versus saving. CHAPTER 8: Fiscal Policy Discover the policies and actions of the United States government that influence the American economy. CHAPTER 9: Money Interest Rates Money makes the world, or rather, the economic go round. Explore the various money-related economic factors that drive the economy. Be sure to check out this chapters subsections for a deeper exploration:- Money- Banks- Demand For Money- Interest Rates CHAPTER 10: Monetary Policy Like federal fiscal policy, the United Statess government also directs monetary policy that impacts the economy.   CHAPTER 11: Wages Unemployment Looking deeper into the drivers of wages and unemployment, be sure to check out the subsections of this chapter for further discussion:- Productivity Income Growth- Demand Supply of Labor- Wages Employment- Unemployment CHAPTER 12: Inflation Looking deeper into the drivers of inflation, be sure to check out the subsections of this chapter for further discussion:- Inflation Price Level- Demand-Pull Inflation- Stagflation- Phillips Curve CHAPTER 13: Recessions Depressions The phases of the business cycle are exaggerated with the occurrence of recessions and depressions. Learn about these deep falls in the economy. CHAPTER 14: Government Deficit Debt Discover the impact government debt and deficit spending has on the economy. CHAPTER 15: International Trade In todays global economy, globalization and international trade along with its concerns regarding tariffs, sanctions, and exchanges rates are consistently among the most debated issues. CHAPTER 16: Balance of Payments Explore the balance of payments and the role it plays in the international economy. CHAPTER 17: Exchange Rates Exchange rates are ever more important to an economys health as international trade continues to be a great influence on domestic economies. CHAPTER 18: Economic Development Beyond the borders of the United States, explore the economic issues faced by developing countries and the third world.