Once upon a time people took on adult jobs/responsibilities at an early age. Everyone was productive, everyone did their part, and families were united. Then a law was passed that kept people below a certain age from working at jobs. This was great news back then, but it paved the way for the teenage laziness we see today.
Schools today are merely places for social communication with preparations for jobs after college; you learn the essentials of how to work at jobs but not much else. Many teenagers hate school, wanting to get home to play on their Xbox 360s and/or hang out with friends. Few have the best education available. Many children/teenagers get more praise than they deserve with little effort and good grades and teachers who teach only what they are supposed to. A lot of teenagers have secret lives, as parents don’t know what parties they are in. lots Families have become disconnected. If this sounds like yours, you have a problem.
The thing is, schools are overrated. That isn’t to say every school is like that but at most schools, what you learn is limited to what you choose/ what’s available. Also, if all schools gave the highest education possible, the economy would not be the mess it is today. But the only way to get a high education today is to home school (until college), In fact, home schooled students typically have a better education, are better connected with parents, and are less likely to starting doing drugs than the average student because they are almost always at home.
So, if you are interested in homeschooling, here is what you must do to get the most out of it.
1. Put forth the effort to learn.
Getting an excellent education is like seeking treasure; you won’t find it without work, you have to be willing to do what you must to find it and you can’t do it alone.
2. Structure your time to learn.
Now you won’t always know what to expect but if you can, find some time to learn each day.
3. Submit to your mentors.
Mentors are an excellent help to get the best education you can. What is a mentor? They are people who can see who you are what you need, and how to move you’re education forward. What’s the difference between a mentor and a teacher? Well…
• Mentors give wisdom, teachers give knowledge.
• Mentors Individualize, teachers generalize.
• Mentors give pointers/corrections, teachers give grades.
• Mentors push limits, teachers set limits.
But mentors can’t do anything if you won’t submit to them and be a mentee. The difference between mentees and normal students are…
• Mentees accept criticism, students take offense.
• Mentees go above an A, students stop at an A.
• Mentees want to learn, students are forced to learn.
One of the best examples of a mentor/mentee relationship is in the original karate kid movies (The new one is good too.). One such example is in the first movie when Miyagi tells Daniel to do some mundane and seemingly pointless tasks but later are shown to have taught him karate moves. Another is where in the second movie Daniel is in a club of sorts and Miyagi bets $700 that Daniel can break six ice blocks. At first Daniel is frightened saying he has never done so before but with some encouragements from Miyagi, Daniel breaks all six. I could list several more but if you want other examples for mentoring watch the original trilogy yourself as well as many other movies/books with mentoring in them. Your parents can also be your best mentors.
4. Never stop learning.
There is no such thing as knowing everything. Even if you’re the smartest person on earth, have an IQ of 200 or more, and have made 100s of inventions there will always be something out there you don’t know so always keep searching for knowledge.
5. Have fun.
Learning doesn’t have to be a chore. One of the advantages of homeschooling is you get more free time if you finish quickly. Now there are certain things you can’t do during school hours but you can practice sports, go to a museum, etc.
Now this isn’t to say everyone can home school (Many children don’t have a choice because their parents are at work all day.) but those who can should consider it because they might be better off for doing it. Why settle for average education when you could get something better. For more info on low expectations and how to go beyond them, please read “Do Hard Things” by Alex and Brett Harris and Thomas Jefferson education for teens.
