How'd They Teach Twelve Kids?

I am often completely worn out from my day of homeschooling my oldest daughter, and often my husband reminds me that women used to homeschool all eight or ten or twelve of their children at one time. At first, I bowed my head and agreed that women of olden days could handle more than me. But then I started thinking...

There is an enormous amount of material children are not only encouraged, but expected to learn now that they weren't required to learn back then. People could get by with 3rd grade educations, because all they needed was a little writing, reading, and arithmetic. Now, we've thrown in history, geography, science, art, music, calculus, algebra, physics....I'm worn out just from thinking about it all! Yes, they are all important, but they are also time consuming. I'm looking forward to learning with my daughter, but I'm not looking forward to the extra time it will take to re-learn information in order to answer any questions she may have. Women of older generations probably looked at schooling as more of an option instead of a requirement, also, and were not as concerned with completing as much as possible. I'm beginning to wonder if the boxed-curricula (as to which they are often referred) are more stressful than developing your own lesson plans and choosing what to pursue when.

In addition to all of the subjects we must include in our curriculum and the basic requirements of school records, etc. we are expected to keep up with the pace of today. Think of all the bills that are due on specific dates, the appointments we make, the schedules we keep! Simply exhausting!

Next, we have to deal with the drama that children seem to express today. "I don't want to do school!" is an expression often heard in my household. Why can't they see it as the privilege that it is? Why can't I always see teaching as the privilege that it is?