Ramblings...

**Disclaimer: All information on homeschooling methods will be just a generalized and very brief *if I can help it* overview of the method. Every family who uses these methods will of course work them to fit their needs. After each overview I will discuss some of the things I do and don’t like about the method in relation to our family. **


Ok, I know I should have posted this weeks ago, but we got busy with school, and I got distracted. It’s here now though *woohoo!!*.

Eclectic is the easiest method to write about since it pretty much explains itself, eclectic means: choosing from various sources: choosing what is best or preferred from a variety of sources or styles. So eclectic homeschooling is when you pick and choose what works for your family in the area of schooling.

You could have a mix of Waldorf, with a dash of Unschooling, and a pinch of Montessori.

Eclectic isn’t just limited to a variety of homeschooling methods, but can also refer to the materials used. Instead of just one box curriculum a family may take a portion of the curriculum from one company, the reading list from another, and then their own ideas to make a curriculum that fit’s the needs and beliefs of their family.

So a quick recap:
Eclectic homeschooling is all about putting together the pieces that work best for that particular family.

So would this method work for us? Yes it would, and honestly it is what we have pretty much been doing. I don’t use a box curriculum because, they are either religious or I don’t like the way they flow.

I see education as a ladder, with one concept leading to another concept, and so on. I feel strongly that subjects, concepts, material should be taught in this manner. So I supplement the curriculums and textbooks we do have with books I’ve handpicked as well as activities, worksheets, and anything else I can get my hands on that will allow our schooling to flow in the manner I think is best for family’s educational adventures.

I don’t really see any negatives to eclectic homeschooling other than the fact that it can be overwhelming having to make sense of everything you are putting together. That has been the one downside to what I’ve been piecing together over the past year. I’m often up late at night on evenings when I am doing planning/prepping, whereas if we were strictly traditional (box) homeschooling I would have everything I needed already put together. That time spent though while sometimes exhausting seems very worth it, when I think of the end result *a personalized education for both of our children that respects our beliefs and our desire for a hands on, critical thinking, fact based education for them*.

So I finally found a method that works for our madness. I’ll go into more detail as to what we will use from each method previously discussed and what core materials we will use to tackle the madness.

I’ve also linked to the other posts in my Method to the Madness post, so you have a one stop shop for the methods I’ve covered! Now I have to go make sense of the chaos that is our dining room table…one bit of chaos at time.

Upon digging into homeschooling I discovered that there are various ways in which to instruct your child/children. Every family, in fact every child, is different. Even if two families are using the same method it will still vary based on what best fit’s the needs of the family implementing it. That is the beauty of homeschooling, no need for a one size fits all approach, this also invites frustration in locating the method(s) that work best for your family. As we come to a close on our first full year of schooling, I’m still working out what method(s) we will use and what we won’t. So as I work my way through it all I will be posting one post a week for the next eight weeks that will give a brief overview of the featured method, a list of books or other resources that relate to that method, and a list of pros and cons of the method in relation to our family’s needs.