Wednesday Why: Deciding to Homeschool

To homeschool or not to homeschool, that’s a good question.  I periodically get asked why I homeschool.

*please see note below

I found the above cartoon a little while ago when I was browsing pinterest.  I think it is pretty funny, as well as accurate for some of the many reasons it presents for homeschooling.  So if I had to list out reasons as to why I homeschool, I think most, if not all, of these would be on my list as well as one of the reasons I like to homeschool:  I can really tailor the lessons and speed to each of my kids, they are individuals and so to have the best teaching and learning experience, they need individualized lessons.  

But, I’ll admit one of the biggest reasons why my family decided to homeschool is based on one very scary statistic we heard a few years ago--the average age a person (child) is exposed to pornography is 7 years old--and guess where most of the exposure came from?  Internet and school!!!  I learned this information through a person giving a lesson at church and don’t have a source, but even hearing it could be so is terrifying!--enough to make it worth the hard work and occasional headaches to homeschool and to invest in a good internet filter.  Note:  doing a quick search on google to see if I could find a source for the above statistic, many of the stats right now say the average age children are exposed to internet pornography is 11 years old, where some of the pornography was intentionally sought out, other was unwanted/accidental, but it did mention it often happened while a child was on the internet doing schoolwork.

Every family has different circumstances that would encourage them to choose to homeschool or not.  

Some possible benefits and disadvantages of homeschooling that will probably sway a family towards or against homeschooling:

1. You get to spend more time with your kids- & lots of it, no longer are they away during the day, so appointments, shopping, cleaning, etc. will need to be scheduled with them in tow or around another time when someone else can care for younger children.
2. You control/decide on the schedule, the lessons and topics, etc.
3. Focused teaching and learning--one on one, allowing for advancement in strengths, or extra time for weak spots.
4. More control over what is taught, when it is taught and how it is taught; able to answer questions along the way.
5. As the parent you choose the curriculum (some states have requirements as to specific subjects, but you still get to choose the curriculum to teach those subjects).  There is a massive variety of curriculum available, so you will need to think about what style and methods you want to use and then match curriculum to your these and your goals.
6. Will probably be asked why choose to homeschool, just be prepared for nay-sayers, don’t need to defend right to choose, be calm and kind in your response.
7. Learning happens on both the parent as well as the child side.  As does patience, hopefully.
8. Homeschooling usually has more costs associated with having to have school supplies, curriculum, etc. at home.  (there are ways to lessen these costs)
9. As a parent, you will have to be positive and encouraging, even on bad-hair days, got out of the wrong side of the bed days, Mondays and any other day/time you aren’t feeling perky and excited to share time and patience.
10. You will need to learn to budget not only money but time.
11. Each state has different laws that allow for homeschooling, some require more, others less; you will need to be aware of these laws so you don’t bring unnecessary headaches upon your family.

So...Which is better?

I have a friend in south Florida who once put it this way:  How do you get to Orlando?  Coming from south FL, you can take 95 or the turnpike, both get you there, the difference is time and cost.  By choosing to take 95, you cut down on some costs, but add on some time, whereas taking the turnpike you add on costs, but cut down on time.  Neither is necessarily better than the other, as they both get you there, it depends on what you want to save--time or money.  Her other question, what is better--red or yellow?  Again, it all depends, what are the colors going to be used for--painting a wall, a piece of clothing, frosting on a cake, etc?  Neither is better or worse than the other, they simply have different uses for different situations and such.  

The same is true for homeschooling.  I, like my friend, don’t view it as a better or worse choice when compared to public schools (except perhaps in specific circumstances), it is simply a choice in situations and desires.  I do homeschool, but not because I think the public schools are a bad choice, but simply because I have the choice (and responsibility) to teach my children and desire to be the one to teach them.  Of course there are some things they would get at public schools that they don’t/wouldn’t get at home, both good and bad.  I prefer to filter what they are presented and how, and so far it has worked out pretty good.

I hope this helps provide some things to think about when deciding to homeschool or not.  Once the decision is made, there will be other questions like:  what curriculum to use, how to schedule the days and weeks, etc., what to do if have younger children at home, what about homeschool associations, keeping records, and more.  Perhaps in future posts I will address these, but for this post I wanted to focus more on some of the whys of homeschooling.  Many of my friends that have homeschooled have also had times when they didn’t, and the kids went to public schools.  I think their kids turned out ok either way--they still learned what they needed to for college and life.  And asking the kids of their experiences after the fact-- they were glad they got the choice, and most of them really enjoyed being homeschooled at least some of the time growing up.

For some other thoughtful and funny advantages of homeschooling see:  http://heartofwisdom.com/blog/top-20-advantages-to-homeschooling/

*please note:  I have not visited or tried the website mentioned on the above cartoon.