Monday, February 02, 2009

What I expect from home school

I have been in public school for almost 9 1/2 years. I have been homeschooled for only three weeks, and already I like it better. I like the fact that homeschool is self-paced and super lax in rules compared to the rigidity of public school. It seems as if public school makes rules just to make rules. I also realize that, if this homeschooling is going to work, I need to reassess my strengths and weaknesses so that I can learn as much as possible.
First of all, I know I am good at focusing. If you give me a project, I will definitely get it done. It may take me awhile, but if you give me time to focus and set myself in the right state of mind, it will get done. I also know I am good at seriousness. When it comes to schoolwork, I do not joke around. I also know that my seriousness causes me great distress when I am not able to complete a project. One more thing I know I am good at is trying my hardest to succeed. In public school, I tried my very hardest to make the best grades I possibly could, and I don’t know how the loss of grades in homeschool will affect me.
Although I have many strengths, I also have a few weaknesses, my biggest one being procrastination. I think I might be able to go pro at it. I have procrastinated since I was young and usually wouldn’t finish a project until the night before it was due. I also worry too much about little things. I want my projects and my schoolwork to be perfect, so often I worry about doing it when really it would just be easier to get it done. This doesn’t help with my procrastination problems. I also need to work on my self-confidence issues. Even when I have done my very best, I do not feel very proud of it, as if I have not done enough. I know that I also need to work on my writing skills, and the first step to doing that is to improve my vocabulary.
With all the strengths and weaknesses considered above, I also know that I work better with structure. I do so much better when I get assignments that I have to finish and turn in for the day. I also work better with an allotted time for each subject. I know that I also work better with some sort of incentive, such as stickers, grades, or points. An incentive would give me something to work toward, and I think that it would help me complete my work in a timely fashion. Speaking of time, I know I also need to work on time management and I think an incentive would help me with that.
It is important to know my strengths, weaknesses, and what I need out of home school to really jump on board this train. I hope that home school will work out better than public school has and I am able to learn a lot more without being overly stressed.