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The Grade Pile...

Here I am, hoping to come up with something amazinlgy insightful in this post...or perhaps I'm sitting here with the laptop because I am avoiding the dreaded pile of work to be graded?! Uh, yes, I'm hiding from "The Grade Pile".

It seems as if it used to be much easier to grade my children's daily homeschool assignments. What on earth could possibly have happened? Was it ever really "easier" or is this simply a "grandma's cookies" kind of memory lapse on my part? Am I just being a whiner about doing what I ought to do - and if so, does that make me a terrible hypocrite in that I don't want my own offspring to whine about taking care of their responsibilites?

Why does this one little (or not so little) thing make such an impact on my days? Would it really be so tough to just grade for one hour in the late afternoon and get it over with?! What about grading as we go through the day, leaving only the "harder" subjects for later, like math and science...why wouldn't that be a workable soulution to my "problem"?

As usual, and in accordance with God's Word, the problem is me. Not the size of the pile of books, not how busy my day is, not even if I'm feeling under the weather and in need of a nap. I am the problem, and I know it full well. I truly hope I'm the only homeschool mom who has this particular issue. I hope no one else in the whole wide world runs away from her daily grading like I try to do. Because it's just plain yucky of me to behave as if grading my own children's work is a burden. It should be a blessing, and my attitude should "represent", if you get my meaning.

Sigh. What's a mom to do? I know what this mom is NOT to do, and that's to attempt to find a trick to make my dreaded task less dreaded. I do not need a trick or a gimmick; I do not need a pep-talk or a more organized grading system; I do not need an improved routine or a coffee break to Starbucks or some down time all for myself. Nope, that's not what I need. I need a really big, really serious attitude adjustment straight from the Word of God. What His Word says, I need to do, becuase Jesus said that if I love Him, I will obey Him. Obeying Him as I homeschool means being joyful and God-honoring as I purchase the curriculum, plan the weekly lessons, work on each subject with each child (as needed - my 11th grader needs very little from me anymore!), make them lunch (cafeteria style, for those of you who remember that joke!), clean up science experiments, and yes, grade it all and put it away at the end of the day. Good attitude, joyful heart = obedient to Jesus. Period. The End. No excuses, no baloney - just getting it done in the right time with the right attitude. All because I love Jesus. That's all the motivation a girl needs!

So, I'm off to knock out today's "Grade Pile" and then I'll hang out with my youngest daughter and enjoy the fruits of my labor and the blessing of obeying my Lord.

Happy Grading, Homeschool Moms!!

Day 17 - done :)

Jan L. Burt
www.homeschoolingmothersbiblestudy.com

Comments

  1. RebeccaFebruary 12, 2010 at 1:11 PM

    I cannot begin to tell you how very needed this post was today! I appreciate it Jan! AND no, you are not the only homeschool mom to feel this way...I would say far from it unfortunately. However, seeing that particular work as a blessing, something to be thankful for is a HUGE attitude adjustment that needs to be made over at our house...alright, um...by ME! He must increase and I must decrease. Thanks for the reminder!

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownFebruary 12, 2010 at 4:02 PM

    Aw, you're too sweet Rebecca! How long have you been my biggest cheerleader? Years and years!! I just love you, girl! Tell Q happy birthday from the Burt house :)
    Package coming your way in a few days...

    ReplyDelete

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