My Child is a Drop Out

My daughter is dropping out of school, and I couldn't be happier.

In the spring, Norah went to visit the school that she was going to attend, and she stated, very firmly, that she did 'not want to go to school' there. To be honest, her dad and I weren't overly impressed with the local options, but we decided to go with the flow and give it a shot.

Well, here I sit on Halloween, happily announcing that we have told her that she can drop out of school. She's 4. She's going to be something amazing one day, but I don't feel confident that the currently offered education system is going to be what gets her to where she wants to be.

Norah has expressed for a couple of years now that she is going to be a doctor. (She has been talking very well since 15 months, so, if the math didn't add up, that would be why.) We fully support her in whatever she wants to be, but we have been warned for a few years that, since she is 'bright', we will need to keep her attention in school, as she will want to learn more and faster than others.... which has very much proven to be true.

She is usually a very easy child, but we have noticed several changes that boil down to her being frustrated with going to school. One concern she has voiced is that 'the days are too long at school.' She has also been concerned about many other situations, ranging from bus incidents to injuries to being frustrated that she isn't being taught to read. The straw that breaks the camel's back is that she is ONLY FOUR. She JUST wants to LEARN at school. Instead, she is placed in free play for most of the day and then she comes home to question what she is learning.

Her father and I have discussed it, and we've selected an excellent homeschool program for her, which we plan to start with her next September, almost a year from now. We can't wait. She can't wait. She is excited to have mommy and daddy teach her.  She is excited to be able to have her brothers with her through the day again. She is excited to be able to explore this big world that we live in and not be stuck in a classroom most of the day. It's kind of funny, because, now that we've made this decision, I see all of the learning opportunities that I have with her throughout the day... and I've tried to start seizing them! Just little things, like when we're driving in the car, pointing out stores and shops and having her figure out what the phonetic sounds are to the letters... She literally is a sponge! It's wonderful!

I think that I finally have peace about her education... which is something that has bothered me since she was born. I always wrote myself off as 'too busy', as I easily fill my schedule with work (my sister and I own a restaurant), caring for her brothers (twins that are almost 2?? that's a whole other level of busy), and time with our families (both of whom live very close, which is great!... other than the few who 'got' away).  I had read a blog of a friend a while back, who had written about having peace when she made this decision... I now see what she means... To KNOW that my child will have a solid education, like, I mean ROCK SOLID, and be taught the values and meanings to life that are important to our family literally make me so excited... like flap my hands and jump up and down excited.. ;) .... How could I not be excited to offer my child the best that I can?

On a different note, she's already bestowed the title of 'best teacher' on me... I know that this won't always be the case, but, hey, I'll take it. :)