Untangling

A lot of what I am doing with Will in the first month of homeschool is untangling.  By the end of last school year, he was melting down at least once a day.

- Afraid to make a mistake.

- Afraid to try.

- Getting upset because he of course had to try.

- Getting upset because he made a mistake.

- Getting in trouble for being upset.

- Getting more upset for getting in trouble.

- Getting in more trouble for getting more upset.

- Getting a frowny face report sent home.

- Getting more upset because a frowny face (to him) meant he was a bad boy.

- Nervous to go to school the next day in fear of more of the same (which ended up being the case many days).

A big tangled mess.

No learning can take place when someone is so tangled in a web of fear, anxiety, frustration, confusion, and overwhelm (and a healthy dose of sensory overload, too).

My job as his mother & teacher is to untangle this web.  He's made a lot of progress, but it is still a daily project.  My plan for continued improvement includes:

- encouragement

- specific praise

- reminders of his past accomplishments

- giving him realistic amounts of work

- letting him learn at his own pace

- lots of patience

- staying calm when/if he gets upset

- discussing the days plans before school starts so he knows what to expect