Why We Decided To Homeschool

My husband and I were both home schooled. All the way. From kindergarten to senior year of high school.

We both absolutely loved it and knew it would be the best way to raise our kids. And before you start asking questions like, “How did you make friends?” or “Didn’t you miss out on life?”. Let me tell you, we were both a part of a home school community that offered lots of activities and extra curricular activities. There were sports teams (basketball, baseball, volleyball, etc.), home school co-op (art, foreign language, music, etc.), we went to prom my senior year and I graduated with a class of about 80 kids. So, no, we did not feel like we missed out at all.

Here are our top reasons to home school:

• Closer Family. A lot of home school families are closer just because you are spending more time together. I don’t want to be that mom that rejoices when school starts or when Christmas break is over. I want to LOVE spending time with my children. That’s the reason I had kids in the first place, right?
• Specialize teaching style. If you have a child who is an auditory, visual or physical, you can cater to that learning style and really help them to get the most out of learning.
• Work at their level. If you have a child who struggles with one subject you can really focus on that subject. On the flip side, if you have a child who is excelling you can work at that level. I think this is something that the public school doesn’t do very well, and can’t do well. The kids who are struggling get left in the dust, and the kids who are excelling are bored and therefore start acting out.
• Graduate with an Associates degree. My husband and I both took college classes our Junior/Senior year of high school. Those classes counted for dual credit for high school and college. We actually had friends who graduated high school with their associates degree.
• Christian Worldview. I want my kids growing up knowing and loving Jesus. I don’t believe that the public school system really fosters that.
• You decide what your kids learn. If I sent my kids to public school, I would have absolutely no control over what my kids were taught. Religion. Sex. None of it. That is scary.
• Kids get more play time. I remember growing up, most days we were done with school by noon and then got to play. Playing is such an important part of a kids day. I think a lot of times if kids had more play time at public school, they would then be ready to learn and we wouldn’t have as many kids on ADD medication.
• Learn real skills. When you home school your kids learn to cook meals, take care of animals & clean the house. They help out and learn what it takes to be a good mom, dad, husband, or wife.
• Sibling Bonding. When your at home most of the time, you play with those that are around you. My sister and I were SUPER close all growing up (we even CHOSE to share a room together). I want my kids to be each others best friends.
• Traveling & Hands on Learning. When you are home schooling you get the choice to decide how to school your children. You can take a trip to D.C. and learn about our government. You could go to Niagara Falls and learn about waterfalls. Or you can just stay close and visit a farm, conservation area or art museum. It’s much more fun learning that way and some kids learn better.
• Kids should love learning. I’m not sure any kid LOVES school. But, it should be as enjoyable as it can be. They should love learning (whether they love school or not). At home, they have much more of a voice when it comes to what, when or how they want to learn.
• Protect my child. I want to protect my child. There are so many school shootings out there that you hear about.
• Better ratio of teachers versus students. The internet said there were 12:1 students to teachers at private schools and 16:1 at public schools. We want a big family, but probably not that big. So, we will have a much better ratio of teachers to students.
• You care the MOST about your child’s education. You, out of ANYONE, care the most about your child’s education. I’m not saying teachers don’t. But, as a mom I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure my child is succeeding in their education.

Now you say, “that’s all great, but, I work and we can’t make that happen for our family”. I believe you can make anything work if you want it bad enough. You will sell your fancy house and expensive car and work fewer hours. Have grandma come over a day a week and help. Join with another family and one teaches English and the other teaches Math.

Now for the stay at home mom who says, “I’m just not organized or smart enough.” You aren’t giving yourself enough credit. It’s not that hard (Okay, there may be just a FEW days that you want to pull your hair out). But, you can do it.