Madison

The end of the second grade school year was approaching quickly, as it always does.

Being back to the second grade was not what her Daddy and I wanted to hear Madison's teacher say at our meeting with the teacher.  Madison was very discouraged at a mere 7 years old.  I was worried, honestly.  Why was she failing?

I investigated and found out she was significantly behind on her reading.  She had no problems doing the daily work if it were read to her.  I also found out that grading with letters discouraged her and made her quit trying.  Madison struggled to get good grades on her papers; and when she did get an "F", she would cry and blow it off.  She had it in her mind that she could not read.  Her self-esteem was destroyed at such a tender age.

The decision was made to home educate Madison.  She was excited to be with me all day.  She was also excited to get to be with her sisters more.  She looked up to her older sister and since she was happy to be homeschooled, so was Madison.

Fast forward a few years to today, Madison is a new girl.

Going into the fourth year of homeschooling, Madison has really improved on her reading.  She is now excited to read aloud, do papers by herself, and get rewarded for her hard work.  I do not use letter grades for her papers to this day.  I do not want to bring up old memories or negative feelings.  I grade her with love, explanations, and assisting her one-on-one until she 'gets it'.  She has learned so much in each subject because she can read now.  She does not feel behind like she did when she was in the school setting.  She smiles now when reading.

Madison has learned how to read from the Bible.  Scriptures that mean a lot to her have helped her memorize things as well.

I am so glad that homeschooling allows you to provide what your child needs and also allows you to teach any way you see fit to assist your child to learn.