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Well This Wasn't The Plan!
We never expected to homeschool...but here we are! Life is funny that way, ya know?
After 4 years in public school, we've made the unexpected leap into homeschooling our 3 kids--while still working full-time! On this podcast, we're documenting the journey in real time: the good, the hard, the hilarious, and everything in between.
Whether you're a curious parent, a fellow homeschooler, or just here for the chaos, welcome!
Let's figure it out together--because sometimes the best things start with, "Well, that wasn't the plan..."
Well This Wasn't The Plan!
14. Our Public School Betrayal List
We faced these issues head-on after years in public school with our three kids. Two full-time working parents, zero plans to homeschool, and a growing list of friction points pushed us to try something different. The result surprised us: calmer days, happier learners, and more time for the life skills we thought we’d lost.
We unpack the exact moments that tipped the scale: recess cut to minutes and sometimes used as punishment, lunch rushed to the point of waste, and classrooms leaning on candy rewards instead of movement and choice reading. We talk about the mental load of constant school notifications, dress-up days, and sign-ups that turned into a second job. Then there’s technology: one-to-one devices that drift from math to social feeds, creating distractions teachers can’t reasonably police with 20-plus students.
And if your kids are thriving in school but you’re nodding along to the pain points, you’ll find simple changes to advocate for: guaranteed recess, protected lunch, less sugar-as-reward, and a tighter focus on creativity and real-world skills.
If this resonates, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a review telling us one change you’d make to the school day. We’ll feature your ideas in a future episode.
The phone we have with NO social media and NO internet browser!
We have created a giant disaster. We have set them up for failure when we take away recess, when you give them all kinds of sugar and you lock them in a room to sit still for that amount of time. We have created this disaster. We are two full-time working parents who just made a crazy decision.
SPEAKER_00:After four years in public school, we're homeschooling our three kids and documenting the whole thing.
SPEAKER_02:Never in a million years did I think we would be homeschool people.
SPEAKER_00:Welcome to, well, this wasn't the plan podcast.
SPEAKER_01:I'm slate, and school's in the kitchen now. I'm Scotty. We just start when I say style. I'm Sailor, and this whole podcast was my idea.
SPEAKER_00:This podcast is our real-time journey, unexpectedly juggling homeschool, jobs, parenting, and everything in between.
SPEAKER_02:Follow along each week as we document how it's going and share the good, the bad, and the ugly. Because we know some days are going to be ugly, and we're not holding back.
SPEAKER_00:We're learning to expect the unexpected. So let's get into it.
SPEAKER_01:Let's go.
SPEAKER_02:Happy Sunday.
SPEAKER_00:We made it here.
SPEAKER_02:It's been a long week since getting back from Costa Rica.
SPEAKER_00:It always feels like that after traveling. I know. Poor us. They went to Costa Rica. Life's hard.
SPEAKER_02:I know. I know. But if you travel with kids, you get it. So we're getting back into the swing of things. And today we're actually going to Six Flags. So like we haven't been busy enough with Halloween and all the things, we're going to Six Flags because we promised the kids.
SPEAKER_00:Yes. It was a reward for working hard all semester. And the semester's not over, but this is really the only time that we can go. So we're going to go now.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. The crowd calendar says no one's going to be there today. So we're going for it. People ask us all the time, like how we keep the kids motivated. And I do think, like school, this is one thing that you probably should do, like give some sort of motivation, whatever works best for your kids. Our kids have been dying to go back to Six Flags for years. They've been one time. And we were like, okay, if you can show up every day with a great attitude, that will be our like end of semester field trip. So anytime we're getting a little pushback, we're like, hey, you do want to go to Six Flags, right? And they're like, oh yeah, yeah. And we're like, you don't have to do these problems correctly. You know, you can have a bad day, but if you show up with a good attitude, we still get to go. So I think for our first semester that they've done really well.
SPEAKER_00:I think so too. The other way to make sure they stay motivated, though, is consistency. I don't think it's a reward and punishment thing. It's a reward and consistency thing. You can't ever let them talk you out of doing school that day or stopping early. And there's going to be days that you want to because you're tired too and you don't feel like doing it. There's been a lot of days when they ask me, and there's a part of me that's like, hell yeah, let's just shut it down. But I don't because I know that then they're going to ask every day. So they know no matter what, we're going to do all the lessons that are assigned for that day. And the faster they get it done, the faster we're done with school. So that's also motivating for them.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, absolutely. I think the key to homeschooling is just consistency. Because if you can show up and do the lesson in your curriculum when you're supposed to, your kids will do well. You do not have to worry about them being behind compared to public school. But if you take too many days off and you let your kids talk you out of it too many times, then yeah, they will fall behind. So consistency. And I think that we've done a really good job with that this first semester. And so we have very little pushback. That doesn't mean that they're not saying, oh, I don't want to do it today. But we respond with, well, you don't have a choice. You got to have an education. So let's get started and let's just do it as fast as we can, and then we can do something else. And they're like, okay. So I feel like that part of homeschooling hasn't really been that hard for us.
SPEAKER_00:Right. It hasn't been. And we're honest with them. I don't, I don't ever tell them it's going to be so fun. Uh some days I'm like, I really don't want to either, but we got to do it. So let's go.
SPEAKER_02:And it's not always like that. We have been getting some like, oh yay, I'm excited for math today, even from our first grader. She's said that a few times. And I think they're just having some little wins, and it's getting the ball rolling on them being more excited. But it's not the case every day. Like they're not always excited, and they're not ever gonna be excited daily.
SPEAKER_00:And they're never excited to write short essays, writing workshops, or any of that. None of them. Even the ones that are good writers. A sailor might be a writer one day, and she's not excited because maybe that's something they could work on in the curriculum. They're like, write why this picture is so pretty or something stupid, and I don't know. We could work on it.
SPEAKER_02:Well, we did use Night Zookeeper, and we maybe will use it more when she can type.
SPEAKER_00:She enjoys that one. That's different though. That's almost like a game.
SPEAKER_02:It's writing about things you want to write about. So we're off on a tangent. Let's get focused on today's episode. I wanted to start by reading the fan mail for today. So we had somebody that said, I am so happy and thankful I came across your podcast. My husband and I have decided to take our three kids out of public school at the end of October. It's been a roller coaster of emotions, if we're doing it and if it's the right thing. And though I know it's in the back of my mind, it's hard when other other people in your community don't agree and are probably talked about behind our backs. Yes, I totally get that. So she said, listening to your podcast has made our confidence in our decision come back stronger than ever. We've got this. And I love that because we're here now and we can sit here and talk about how like we've got it figured out and the first semester went great and everything, and it has. But yeah, this was at my my stomach was churning leading up to this decision. And I just, for all of those reasons that she just said, it was so hard. It was one of the hardest things that we've ever done because I felt like we were all in the other way, and we knew nothing different, and our families don't homeschool, and that's a really hard place to be in. So I'm so glad you found the podcast. And this is exactly why I wanted to start it.
SPEAKER_00:Me too. And just to warn you, yes, people will, friends and maybe even family will talk behind your back about your decision to do this. Just accept it, let it wash over you, be uncomfortable, and then push it away and it's gone forever.
SPEAKER_02:Well, everything that you do that's different in life, people are gonna talk about you. And I've kind of come to terms with that. And so, yes, you're right, they will. And especially if you're the first person in your household, your family to ever homeschool, they're gonna think it's very weird. But that doesn't mean that it's not right for your family. So anything that you can do to like push that out of your mind is what you need to do. Like listen to this podcast of people that are doing what you're doing. I think that's all always really helpful.
SPEAKER_00:Yes.
SPEAKER_02:So there's one other one. She says, it's especially helpful to hear that working parents can do homeschooling. We are working parents as well. One of us works from home and the other outside the home. I would love to hear about your journey, how as a parent, you make sure you get self-care time to yourself. We're probably not the best people to answer that question. I think for years we've been wrapped up in our kids' lives. And it's like if you ask what our hobby is, it's watching your children do their hobbies. And so I think other than just having a good routine, we don't do a lot of like us doing things that we enjoy.
SPEAKER_00:Right. Taryn loves to travel. We all love to travel, but that's Taryn's passion in life. And so, I mean, we're traveling with the kids, and so I don't know if you would count that as self-care, but she does, you know, enjoy those trips and usually relaxes on them. Although this last one to Costa Rica, she worked every single day. So I don't know how much relaxing and self-care she had while we were there.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and self-care kind of comes to my mind. It's like they tell moms, like self-care, you need to be able to drink a hot cup of coffee or take a shower. And I get that when they're younger, but we have really put in the work. Like our kids don't expect us to do things for them 24-7. And like we've kind of shown them along the way. Like, mom and dad are humans, like they need to have a minute in the mornings to have our coffee. And our kids know that. I think we've just done a good job of that. So I don't feel like I need a specific break to have a workout or do a shower or drink a cup of coffee. We do those things. So the typical like thing you see on social media of self-care, we get those. So we're met there. We do workouts every day. We wake up. I love having the time, like when the kids are sleeping, to get work done because I'm super type A and I feel like accomplish starting my day. So I love that. But switching from them being in school to them being home with us full time, it it sounds crazy, but I feel like I have more time to myself, even though they're with us 24-7.
SPEAKER_00:Oh, definitely. Yes.
SPEAKER_02:It it's weird. It does the math isn't mathing because they used to be going out of the house for seven hours a day and then now they're with us, but it just doesn't feel like that. And that was one of my main concerns was that what like they're gonna drive us crazy. But it just doesn't feel like that. We have such a good routine and we're able to just do things when it feels right instead of doing them on the school schedule that I think it just took a lot of stress off of my plate and I feel better. So the them being home doesn't really bother me like I thought it was going to.
SPEAKER_00:No, me neither. Not at all. It's it really does feel like we have, I mean, I think we do have more time because of so much time we were spending on other things for the kids and everything, and having them around all the time. We're actually around them when they're in a much better place than they were when they were exhausted all the time from being overscheduled. Yeah. And so it's it's actually pleasant to be around them most of the time when they're not fighting.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. I think that we just have a good groove and we do get the best of them. And then at night, when everyone's kind of done being around each other and ready to like be by themselves, read a book, like I get to take a long bath, like watch a show. We don't feel guilty. Like, go do your own thing. We've been with you all day. We we have rewarded ourselves with that time, and I never felt like that when they were in school. I felt so guilty because I was done at the end of the day, and they're like, Mom, can you do this or have this conversation with me or read this book or come sit with me while I take a bath? And I didn't want to. Like, I was just done, like from getting them to school and working and picking them up and activities and all of that. And I but I felt guilty because obviously I haven't seen them. And so I think this switch has just been great for us. But to answer the question, if you don't have those basic things done, like the workout and the getting to shower or getting to read a book for 30 minutes at night, if you don't have those basic things met, like that's where you should start.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, definitely.
SPEAKER_02:So the next we have two quick questions, and then we'll get in today's episode. One was what are the ages of your kids? And our kids are 10, almost eight, and six. So we have a first grader, a second grader, and a fourth grader. That's right. Okay. Sometimes I say the wrong ages. So if you're wondering, those are the ages. I don't recommend starting before that because I don't think we could make that happen. Not to say that you couldn't, but it wouldn't have been a good fit for us. Their ages are perfect for us. And even our youngest, like it really helps that we have our oldest because she helps keep her on track when we are trying to like get work done. She's like, Yeah, remember, Scotty, you gotta do your reading, or remember, Scotty, like you're cleaning the counters today. So the fact that we have an almost 11-year-old is really helpful. And then the next question was a lot of people were messaging me saying, Do I think it's okay if they go ahead and send their kids to kindergarten, or if they have younger kids, send them to pre-K in kindergarten while also homeschooling an older kid or waiting until they get a little older? And 100% yes. We talked about this before we started recording, but it's so hard to homeschool a young kid. And it's not really that necessary. Like they need to play, and you know, that's pretty much it. They don't need to be sitting down doing a curriculum. Like our first grader barely does like 30 to 45 minutes is her thing. So, no, I think if you want to send your kids to kindergarten, that's great. All of our kids had a wonderful kindergarten experience, and I do not regret sending them to pre-K or kindergarten.
SPEAKER_00:No, we knew people before we even thought about homeschooling that did that. And they it seemed to work really well for them. Their older child was home at homeschool. And she let her younger daughter pick, and she chose to go to kindergarten. And after kindergarten, she was like, Okay, do you want to go to first grade or do you want to be homeschooled? And she's like, I'm ready to be homeschooled. So then they do that.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, and I and I think maybe people are worried that their kid will want to keep going to school. And you can do two ways. You can either, like, we pulled our daughter from Kinder and she she liked Kinder. She wasn't like, Oh, I don't really want to go to school other than early mornings, but you can just say, okay, we're homeschooling now, and she was fine with it. Like she was just like, okay, she didn't know any different, or let them continue. Our son had a great kindergarten year, was ready for first grade, had a really terrible year for many reasons. And our kids have been in school long enough that your kids are gonna have a tough year at some point, and you have to be okay with that, which is kind of sucky. But all parents that are sending their kids to public school or probably to any school know that some year is gonna be really hard, whether it's they have like a bully in their class that they just don't get along with, or their teacher and them don't go together well, or whatever. So you could let them go until it just feels right to pull them.
SPEAKER_00:Yes, I think that's a good plan.
SPEAKER_02:So let's get in today's episode. This was like all inspired by a post I did on my Instagram, and it's just our public school betrayal list. Just a funny way of saying like what wasn't working for us in public school and why we chose to pull the kids. So do you want to start?
SPEAKER_00:Sure. Number one, little to no recess or outdoor time.
SPEAKER_02:That was a really big one for us because I think that was the main reason our daughter hated school. Because as they get older, they cut recess and they cut recess, and then they basically just have like 15, 20 minutes. They did like a poll on the radio show I listened to, and they were like, guess how much time kids are getting outs outside at school, and everyone was guessing like 45 minutes and stuff. But it ended up being about 21 minutes on average that kids are getting outside all day.
SPEAKER_00:Wow. And it's not always the same consistent 21 minutes, which as we know from anything, I mean, it's the same as like sleep. You know, you could get six hours or you could get six hours broken into two, three hour naps, and it's just it's just not the same.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, like they may run outside after lunch and they have like 10 minutes to play, and then they go back out and they have like a 15-minute scheduled thing. So our daughter just was not thriving with that. She has ADHD, she moves around a lot, and our kids are used to being outside. So that is like a big number one for us. Number two was recess being taken away as a form of punishment. A lot of teachers were doing this as a class punishment, like if the kids were being loud and not doing their lines properly, like they would get it taken away. Okay, I lost recess today. And for people in elementary, like I just feel like that's crazy because they are gonna act way worse if they don't have recess.
SPEAKER_00:No, there was another teacher that had a better approach. They would still go to PE as soon as possible or recess or whatever, but instead of getting to play and do what they want, they had to run laps. Now that seems like a great way to get some of their energy out if they're a little ramped up that day.
SPEAKER_02:And I get it. I think a lot of parents would be mad if they were running. I'm sure a lot of people were mad that they made their kid run at recess. So you can't win. And uh, I had a teacher message me saying she totally doesn't agree with taking recess away, but it's like one of the last things that they actually can do that works. So I get it. As a parent, I've been there. Like you don't know what to do, so you just like say a punishment. So that's kind of where they they are right now, and they don't know what else to do because nothing is working. And so that is uh was a big one for me because the little amount of recess that our kids were getting, they were getting it taken away once they got older. That was a pretty big source of like punishment for the class.
SPEAKER_00:And sometimes it was the whole class whenever some of the kids weren't being bad, and then the whole class gets punished. So and then the kids that weren't being bad are probably gonna start being bad.
SPEAKER_02:Well, yeah. For Sailor for sure, she starts acting crazy because she didn't get to go outside. But yes, a class punishment, especially if there was like a sub there or something, and the sub was like, they weren't good, then the teacher's like, okay, y'all weren't good, so no recess. All right, what's next?
SPEAKER_00:Long school days and homework on top of all of that. So we'll have kids at school for seven hours, which with their attention spans being so much less than an adult, and and even their total day is shorter because they sleep longer, then it's like an adult being at work for a 10-hour shift. And, you know, that's rough. That's overtime for adults, and that's the kids are doing that all school year. So, you know, that's really sad, and also it's it I don't think it's healthy. And, you know, this it it steals away from your family time, it steals away from everyone's energy, and this is why we get to the end of the day and everyone's at their worst, and that's when we're around each other. So it really isn't good for bringing the family together.
SPEAKER_02:And then you have a project to do, or you have to study for that week's spelling test, or you have UIL to practice for, or you have homework, which our school did not do a lot of homework for elementary, which I liked a lot. But that doesn't mean there wasn't stuff to do at night. They had things to check off the list every night.
SPEAKER_00:There were years we were studying for spelling tests, and then they started dialing back some of that stuff that was expected at home. But there were a lot of, you know, sight word and then later regular spelling tests that with my oldest we were studying for every night, after sports, after school, everything. And that alone will make you feel like, oh, I can't homeschool. You won't be homeschooling at 8 p.m. or 9 p.m. when everyone's exhausted after a full day of school and a one-hour practice for basketball or volleyball. That's not how it's gonna be. You're gonna be doing it when everyone's at their best and their minds are at their sharpest. So, but that did make me feel like I couldn't do this. Me and my daughter were both nearly in tears for me trying to get her to learn these spelling words.
SPEAKER_02:That was what scared me the most was that we couldn't help her with things because it was always a fight. And I just kind of was like, well, hopefully it's better earlier in the day. We'll see. And it, oh my gosh, so much better. Trying to do anything with your child at the end of a very long day is next to impossible. They're not retaining that information. They have proven that over and over again. I don't know why we continue to do homework. They have them there for so many hours. Everything should be done at school. All of the time at home should be family time.
SPEAKER_00:It's the same as if, you know, you had employees, you owned a business, and they're not getting their work done in the eight-hour shift that they have five days a week. And then so they want to go home and work extra and charge you overtime. And it's like, no, that's you have plenty of time to get it done in eight hours a day.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. They need to adjust to make sure that kids are getting everything done in those hours and that there is not anything left on the parents to study or whatever. Incorporate that in the day. And that leads us into the next point is that there's no time left for life skills. So people used to complain to me that schools don't teach your kid to do X, Y, or Z. And in my head, I was like, well, it's not the school's job to teach your kid everything, right? But fast forward to me having three kids in school and I want to teach them all of these things, but I don't have enough time in the day. They're at school all the time. And then they, when they get home, they're not in the right frame of mind for me to really teach them anything like that. Yes, we have weekends, but then they have sports and activities and birthday parties and fun things, right? So yeah, there's really not a lot of time left in the day for me to teach my kid how to cook, or my how to make a budget, or how to open a bank account, or the anything that you love that you want to teach your kid. I just guess I just didn't realize that at first because I didn't have kids in school. So that's one of the biggest things is that they're at school so much time. Parents don't have the opportunity to do those. So if it's something that's really important, they do need to learn it at school because those are the hours where they actually can learn it.
SPEAKER_00:Or they'll learn it as adults the hard way.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely, which is what that is the system that we're doing right now. Like they're not learning about taxes, they're not learning about a tax return or mortgages or budgets or any of these important things, and then you release them to college and they haven't learned any of those. So, but it's not really parents' fault either. Because where are you gonna get this time? Like, I totally feel that now that I've been in this situation, and that was like some of the biggest issues that I had was just that like I was like, I imagine myself teaching my kids these things and like them being really aware of X, Y, or Z, but I don't have enough time to do that.
SPEAKER_00:But now we do.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, we do now. We have more time for life skills. And the next one on our list here is the the dress up days, the donations, the fundraisers, the reminders on Parent Square. If you know, you know, it felt like a complete second job for me, and it was exhausting mentally. I think as one of the biggest changes I felt is that is the relief off my brain. Our school uses what was it called? Parent Square. Parent Square, yes. Well, it's like a cuss word in our house. And I'm sure every school has some sort of version of that, but it was blowing up my phone 24-7. Sometimes it would be the school saying, like, hey, your child's having a rough day. Here's what's going on, just want to let you know. You very important, right? Sometimes it would be like, hey, you know, the football team won. So, like information that I don't need to know, but I didn't feel like I could silence my phone because I needed to know what was going on with the kids. And a lot of the other ones were reminders like here's your sign-up genius for this, here's a sign-up for this, you have a field trip on this day. Don't forget that your permission slips are due then. Don't forget you have a parent-teacher conference on these days, don't forget this. So I my brain was going to explode once our youngest was also in school because I had three different classrooms and the PTO from every single one, and all of the teachers and all the school updates, and I just like I couldn't handle it.
SPEAKER_00:I I mean, I really can't tell you. And that was me doing maybe five to ten percent of that stuff. So I can't even imagine how it felt.
SPEAKER_02:It was just so freeing. And I sound like a Scrooge sometimes, and I'm like, oh, the dress-up days and la la la. And I get they're trying to make kids have fun at school, but it was simply too much. It was not fun. It was not fun for anyone.
SPEAKER_00:No, it's the same as giving kids projects that they have to do at home when they're when they're nine. You know, it's that's just more work for the parents. No but none of the kids are doing it. I don't care what anyone says.
SPEAKER_02:Well, you have one kid like Sailor who's super excited to do it. And so, like, she would be devastated if we didn't do a dress up day. So, okay, I'm gonna make that happen for her, get on Amazon, order her stuff. Then you have another kid who likes the idea of it, and so he picks something, and then that morning is really upset because he's afraid no one is gonna be dressed up and he's gonna be the only one and wouldn't get out of the car when we get to school because he doesn't believe me that it's actually the day. And then you have another kid who just is crying in the morning because they don't want to get up and are having a rough day, and it just trying to get three kids out the door into school on time is hard enough as it is, and then throw in a dress up day every week just makes me want to like stab my eye out. Like, just I can't. And once again, it's one of those things that seems silly until you're in it, right? If I would have told myself this years ago, I would have been like, wow, you're being really dramatic. But it's not, it is just awful. And then sometimes people don't dress up, and your kid is like, I was the only one like really dressed up. So you can never win.
SPEAKER_00:Just I mean, in one of our other episodes, we talked about the math. We actually sat down because we were accountants and did the math to add up the number of hours that we spend homeschooling and the number of hours we had to spend on driving our kids back and forth to school, all of the silly reminders, the dress-up days, the extra stuff that we had to do outside of school. And we realized that we were spending more time on school.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:So the homeschool is actually takes us less time. That's what's crazy about it.
SPEAKER_02:And the curriculum we're using requires no like planning ahead. Where school requires so much planning ahead.
unknown:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Now that might change whenever they're in, you know, junior high. If they're doing algebra too, I might need to look at it a little bit before we sit down because I might need a refresher, even though I'm pretty good at math. But right now, I mean, no, because it tells us what to say, it tells us how to teach them, and it works really well.
SPEAKER_02:Yes. Ten out of ten. Way easier than sending them to school.
SPEAKER_00:So number six, food and candy bribery. This is teaching kids that the height you can achieve is getting candy. The height you can achieve is getting a sugary snack. Why are we not rewarding them with more recess? You know, why are we not rewarding them with more reading time to do a fun reading at school instead of, you know, whatever they're normally scheduled to do? Rewarding them with things that are enriching to their lives instead of bringing them down. This whole thing starts to get crazy. And people think we're a little too much on the no candy and all this. But the thing is, our kids have plenty of sweets, they have plenty of candy. They just ate a bunch of candy on Halloween. It's just that when they're getting it at school and they're getting it holidays, it starts to become an everyday thing. It's always somebody's birthday, it's always some Valentine's or Christmas party at school. Every single day they're having cookies and cake and cupcakes and candy, and it just starts to become a serious problem.
SPEAKER_02:It did. It it became a very big problem to where I was like, is there not a way that we can ban the schools from like feeding our children things that we don't say is okay? Like, if we say, Yeah, they can eat the school lunch, you know, that's one thing because we checked the list and we were like, yeah, we're we're good with them eating that. They like it. Okay. But then they come back and they're like, well, we had donuts this morning. So-and-so brought donuts. And it was so-and-so's birthday. And they're coming out like green all over their face. So the amount of crap that they're getting that we're not okay with, like, I just feel like that's kind of like crossing the line a little bit. Like we don't get to actually be pa their parents with that. And we are trying our hardest to teach them balance in this crazy world that we live in that's like food obsessed. And then we send them to school and it's like a free-for-all. And everything that they did, you get dojo points. Oh, it's candy. Or you guys are in an ice cream party, or whatever. It was always candy. They never did rewards like you said, like extra PE time, extra recess, more reading. They didn't do res rewards like that. And even I got to the point where they asked for more treats for their dojo points. And I just sent like bracelets and stuff. Like I didn't, they were like, we want those little blue drinks and sodas and something else. And I was like, no. No, thank you. And I mean, I sent just like a bunch of stuff that was like lip glosses and stuff for the boys and like hacky sacks and you say lip glosses and stuff for the boys. Like hacky sacks for the boys.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah.
SPEAKER_02:And lip like chapsticks and lipsticks and sorry, lip glosses for the girls. And the teacher was very thankful, but I'm like, we gotta think outside the box, guys. We have to stop relying on food as the number one reward.
SPEAKER_00:Right. Well, and they know that in addition to the sugar, I mean, they were getting all kinds of red dye and stuff, which we we actually don't let our kids have because it makes ADHD worse. That's been proven. And so here you are with more and more kids have ADHD than ever. So you might have half the class has at least a little bit of ADHD, probably from the screens and all that or whatever reason. And then they give them all this sugar and all this red dye, and then they take away recess, and they're like, why are they acting crazy? I don't know. I mean, all you all the only thing you didn't do was give them cocaine.
SPEAKER_02:We have created a giant disaster. We have set them up for failure when we take away recess, when you give them all kinds of sugar and you lock them in a room to sit still for that amount of time. We have created this disaster.
SPEAKER_00:How would they do if they had whole grain carbs, protein, healthy fats, and plenty of water and lots of recess outside? How much better would they focus just from that?
SPEAKER_02:Exactly. That's the point we're making here. So next on our list was just the quick lunch times. All three of our kids, three out of three, were like, we don't have enough time to eat lunch. And we've been there during lunchtime now, we witnessed it, and it's not like they basically get there and the teachers start saying, Okay, come on, you got five more minutes. Clean up, clean up, clean up. So they don't sit down and have a good lunch. So 10 out of 10, don't recommend.
SPEAKER_00:And we work so hard, not just packing it ourselves, but a lot of times packing with the kids or having them pack while we supervise, and they had this beautiful lunch that they have to throw away. No wonder they're downing as many cupcakes as they can in class. They didn't even get to finish their food.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. They just don't have enough time to eat it. And I think that to them, it's like checking off lunch off the list, like, okay, we got it, we've got stuff to do. But lunch should be a priority. Every kid needs enough time to sit there and have a good meal so that they can get through the rest of the day.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, even prisoners get longer than that for lunch.
SPEAKER_02:Next is the teacher-student ratios. Let's say 20 kids in our district, but even more in other districts. That's just not enough to do a good job. Those poor teachers, I don't know how they do it, but it's not setting them up to be able to do their job.
SPEAKER_00:No, they do way better than we could with that many children, that's for sure.
SPEAKER_02:And then teaching to the test, this was a huge one that we kept bumping against for the first time in third grade, because in Texas, that's the first time they take standardized tests. And our daughter just was like very upset, like and and nervous about the test and all this. It was not coming from us, it was coming from the school. And then the things that they were teaching, we when we had conversations with the teacher about it, she's like, no, I mean, I don't agree with that. I just I have to teach this because it's on the test. We're like, okay, so we're not even being practical here. We're just teaching to this goofy test that the teachers absolutely despise. And if you've even read some of the test questions, they're awful. So that was basically our first introduction to that. And I can see why people hate it.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. And I actually did have that conversation with your math teacher. I was like, you know, I use math for my job. I feel like this is dumb. She's there's eight ways to do multiplication, and she's pretty good at six of them. These other two, she's not getting. Does she have to learn that way? She can figure out the answer one of these other ways. And she said no, because on the test, they have to figure it out each of these different ways. There's ways that they can make sure that they do, or they don't get the answer right.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:And I was like, oh, well, I mean, I don't want her to fail the test, so I guess proceed, you know?
SPEAKER_02:I'm so glad that our kids don't have to take that test now because it was just not doing its job. It was not helpful in any way. And that leads us to the next few points that we had of just school being like old thinking. Like they are teaching and memorization over somebody like thinking and being creative, thinking outside the box. The school system that was set up so long ago doesn't work anymore. And we know that kids who or parents who send their kids to public schools, they agree with that. We're all agreeing that something needs to change. We need to completely overhaul the school day. Like, let's start the day with recess. Let's start the day with something other than what sitting in the desk. Like, let's change the food. Let's let them learn in a different way. Like, let's add more like creative things into the school day. Like, and we all agree yet we can't make any changes.
SPEAKER_00:No, and look, we get there are some things in math and let's say grammar that have to be memorized. But there's so many other things. History, is it more important to understand why something happened the way it did and why that was good or bad for the world at the time? Or is it more important to know that on this exact date and this exact year this thing happened? I don't, I don't think that's as important. Or with science, do we need to spend all this time memorizing conversions of kilograms to pounds or liters to whatever, gallons? I mean, you know, an app can do that for you, an AI can do that for you. Or should we be teaching them curiosity about science and how the world works so that they have an interest in science so that they go into one of these fields that are desperate for people, nurses and doctors and engineers, nobody wants to do it anymore.
SPEAKER_02:Well, we're creating the same child over and over again when we should be looking for their strengths and things that they're interested in so that we can have people in the workplace like that. You know, our son is super into math and science, and his desire for those things were crushed in school. So we are not taking kids' interests and letting them be unique and playing into that in school. We're literally just trying to shove every single person into the same box, and then we are wondering why everyone's turned out like this.
SPEAKER_00:Right. And that goes right into our next one. That there's no creativity or individuality. They're, you know, trying to squeeze everyone into the same box.
SPEAKER_02:Exactly. And it just doesn't work for the kids either. Our kids aren't happy doing that, and then it also doesn't create adults that we want. So why are we still doing it? I just don't understand. Another big one for us when we were making this decision was the cell phones in school. And that at least Texas has changed to where they're not allowed to have them. I don't know that it's going the way that they planned so far. I guess we'll just wait and see on that. But that was a huge one for us. We just didn't want to send the kids to a school where every kid has a cell phone, our kid doesn't, and expect them to have a good day.
SPEAKER_00:Right. Yeah. I mean, I don't know if it's being enforced as strictly as it should be, but at least it's a rule and we're, you know, there's I think that's a good thing.
SPEAKER_02:And that leads me into a really big thing that should have been like first on our list, is the technology in the classrooms. And I wasn't really against that when they started school. This is coming from my experience with it. I'm like, every kindergartner has an iPad. I'm like, well, that's great. You know, they have enough resources for them to have what they need. And every first grader has their own Chromebook. I'm like, okay, great, that's awesome. I'm glad our school has enough resources. No, that is not. It's not awesome. Giving kindergartners daily iPad time is not okay. And I didn't like that. But then you get into first grade where our son's class was Googling things they shouldn't have been Googling. They were trying to buy stuff on eBay. My daughter's class, people were getting sent to the principal's office every single day because in math, when they were supposed to be doing their math work, they were actually on Facebook and TikTok and Instagram. These are problems that we're having in elementary right now. That is nuts to me. They're using these tablets and devices as like babysitters to try to get everybody to do work at once. Okay, it I it is a good idea in theory, right? You're all sitting down doing like a math game or something, but it is not going like that. It's actually providing distractions to the kids where they are just completely distracted, no one's doing what they're supposed to do, and they're just going to town, getting around all of these protections that they have in place that they're not supposed to. And so many of you have messaged me on Instagram saying just the wildest stories about what was found on kids' school iPads and school computers.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah. So it's wild. And, you know, it it goes back to the teacher-to-student ratio as well, because there's some technology that can be helpful, especially with older students. But when you have 25 kids being monitored by one teacher, it's really hard to keep them on task and make sure they're doing what they're supposed to. And I do think a lot of these, you know, trials they do to see if these programs work, if they help, if they improve education, they're done on small groups for obvious reasons that are closely monitored and they're making sure they stay on task. They haven't put them in a situation where these in these trials to make sure that these resources are actually better than a textbook, they haven't put them in a situation where the kids are just unsupervised Facebooking and Googling and doing whatever they want instead of the actual work. So, yes, if there's an IT department for every single classroom and there are multiple people monitoring all the children, I'm sure that technology would help a lot, but that's not the reality we live in. The teachers end up spending a lot of time doing IT, training kids how to use the technology, and then they finally might get around doing some math on there.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah. And the teachers are spending their day getting kids in trouble for doing things they're not supposed to on them. That's not okay. And that's just the world we're living in. The kids are curious, and if they can get around it, they are going to. So it's just become a big problem that I was unaware of. And I actually saw a post this week and it was like, absolutely. So now where they used to a few years ago, each school would be like, oh, we have the best technology, right? This is like how we're trying to get people to come to our school. Things have completely changed very quickly to where the people with the most money and the people that want their kids in the best schools, they are looking for schools that actually advertise. We don't use technology. We don't have any of that in our classrooms. We are a Montessori-based, hands-on learning, no technology zone. That's where all of the billionaires' kids are going. They're going to schools like that. So quickly, we saw a huge change in schools saying, hey, we've got technology, to hey, we don't. So if that tells you anything, technology is not helping kids learn in school.
SPEAKER_00:And it should be an easy problem because I remember sometimes we had textbooks that were 13 or 14 years old. Some of the science had changed since we had the book, the textbook. Sometimes they were 20 years old, but I don't understand how we can afford a computer for every single student or an iPad, one or the other, which costs way more than a textbook. And also they have to be replaced every three to five years, whereas the textbooks can last 10 years. So I don't understand why we can't have that.
SPEAKER_02:Absolutely. I think that we just kind of went all in and now we're backtracking. And maybe we will see some updates with that down the road because teachers, we've heard it, they are kind of fed up with all of this. And they're not the ones giving the iPads, and they're just the ones that are having to deal with it every day.
SPEAKER_00:No, they've been told that you will use this app and you'll use this iPad to teach your kids. Okay, well, I guess I have to.
SPEAKER_02:And it's just creating an environment where the kids don't learn and they're taking the entire day to discipline kids, doing things they're not supposed to do, and they're not actually learning anything. So that's basically our list. I think that it's interesting because I have a lot of friends whose kids are still in public school, and we all agree on these. This is not us being like, oh, we're homeschool, it's so much better. This is us from the viewpoint of we went into school very optimistic and we were like, wow, our eyes were opened, and there's so many issues going on that we just we weren't aware of.
unknown:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I mean, I can't think of a single one of the things we talked about, except maybe the technology and cell phones. Maybe those two things, there's a few people that are like, no, that's great. They should have all the cell phone and technology access they want. But almost every other thing we talked about, I can't imagine a single person would disagree with us on. And some of them seem like they should have easy solutions, which I want to happen. Even though we homeschool, you know, I want the kids that don't have that choice, you know, their parents, you know, have jobs that they can't homeschool or whatever. I I want them to have a better option.
SPEAKER_02:Yeah, I just think that for our society as a whole, these are problems. And the fact that the kids are there all day, this is where we need to start. You know, we need to start teaching them about all of these really important things at school if we're going to require them to be at school all day. And I also want it to be better just because we don't know what the future is for us. What if our kids want to go back to school in a few years? Like what if things change? We don't know. We want the school system to be really good. And right now, it really seems to me like they just need to scrap it all and start over.
SPEAKER_00:Maybe they should.
SPEAKER_02:But these are all of the things that kind of drove us to homeschooling. And if you're listening to this podcast, I'm sure you're just nodding along with a lot of these. But I would like to hear from anyone else what is on your list for public school betrayal. And so if you have anything to add to the list, message me on Instagram because I would love to hear from you guys.
SPEAKER_00:And make sure to send us more fan mail. We really like hearing those. It keeps us motivated. And sometimes it gives us great ideas for additional episodes.
SPEAKER_02:Yes, keep sending those, please. And until next week, thank you so much for listening to Well, this wasn't the Planned Podcast.
SPEAKER_01:We will be really hard on this podcast. Thank you, have a good day.