As parents and home educators it's easy to fall into boxes -- expectations or patterns that do not necessarily meet our children's needs. That's ok! One of the great advantages to homeschooling is our ability to adapt and change as needed. And it's ok to think and learn outside the box.

Allowing your child to think (& learn) outside the box

My heart was torn in two when my firstborn cried out in defeat that she couldn’t do her copy work, even saying she was stupid and writing “No” all over the page.

I was stunned. I felt to blame and confused.

We had had a wonderful time learning around the table until that point so I just stayed positive and wrapped up so that she could have relief from this obvious burden.

I had boxed her in and didn’t even know it.

In this journey as a mother, I have found out a lot more about myself than I ever thought possible. And one of those things is that I’m a boxer. No, I am not any sort of athlete. I mean I like things to be nice, snug, and categorized.

Boxed in.

I had built a routine around boxing my kids into their activities before they were even able to walk. Sadly, I carried this right into teaching them, and it had broad negative effects on my firstborn.

All that was until Dr. Kathy Koch from Celebrate Kids taught me how to step out of the box I had put myself in and embrace the smarts my kids were designed with. Her research is inspiring and strikes a true cord deep down inside.

Read the full article at Simple Homeschool here.