I learned the three R’s when I was in elementary school. Since then I haven’t heard much about the three R’s and I’m not sure if the reason is due to my own ignorance or if it’s simply out of style as a teaching philosophy. What exactly are the three R’s? They stand for Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic. I truly believe that in the elementary grades, the three R’s are all one should focus or concentrate. When I talk to homeschoolers, especially newbies, many seem so paralyzed by all the subjects and curricula available at their disposal. Rather than being empowered to homeschool, they feel very inadequate simply because there is so much to do. What I’m afraid of is that instead of proceeding with confidence in homeschooling, people shrink back in fear and quit even before they start. In this post I hope to shed some light on homeschooling and encourage anyone who is interested in homeschooling to “just do it!”

Before I move on, a little background on me. I am not a veteran homeschooling mom. I’ve only been homeschooling for three years, but I have been reading and researching for the past seven years. My thoughts on homeschooling are based on books/articles I read, interaction with homeschooling moms, and my personal experience in homeschooling.

Now that homeschooling has gained popularity across the country, more and more vendors are catering to this niche. While this is good because it means we have more access to many different curricula, this can also bad because there are simply way too many choices to pick from. Now we have to weed through many curricula to find the right one for our family. Such a task can be very tiring and discouraging.

In addition to the overwhelming resources available, our discouragement may come from other homeschooling moms. In their zealousness for homeschooling, they tell of their experience of homeschooling and all the subjects, activities, field trips, and extracurricular activities they do year round. Undoubtedly we feel the pressure to be just like them. Soon enough we are burned out!!! Our vision for homeschooling is no longer as clear and inspiring.

So, what is one to do? The answer is: focus on the three R’s for grades K-3. Concentrate on reading, writing, and arithmetic. What about other subjects such as science, social studies, music, sports, and history? I’m not discouraging anyone from doing these subjects, but these subjects should be secondary to the three R’s. In our homeschool, we do history, science, and music but only when we have already tackled the three R’s. If we run out time, or life otherwise interrupts us, we simply don’t do the other subjects. With this approach our lives are much more sane and manageable.

I should also mention that before you start homeschooling, you don’t have to have all your ducks lined up, meaning you don’t need to have everything together in order to start. One of the beauties of homeschooling is learning together with your child. Just as your child is learning how to read, you are learning how to better teach and adjust to your child’s uniqueness. No curriculum out there will teach you how to study your child and his individuality.

For those who are interested in the three R’s, Ruth Beechick’s The Three R’s is a great book to get started on teaching reading, writing and arithmetic.