Why are we deciding to homeschool?

I am getting asked this question a lot, so I thought it would be fun to write out all of our reasons. So here they are:

1. Because we feel that it's what the Lord wants us to do. We are a Christian family and enjoy asking God what He would have us do in different circumstances. As we have prayed about where to send our children to preschool, Kevin and I both keep feeling like homeschooling is what we're supposed to do. So that's the most important reason of all. :)

2. I love my children. Hehe. I (for the most part) really enjoy spending time with my children. Sure they drive me crazy from time to time, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. I love watching them grow and develop. We made a choice for me to stay at home to raise them, and I have been so blessed to be there for every milestone - first words, steps, potty training, etc. And it just makes sense for me to continue raising them and not miss out on seeing them read their first book or complete their first math problem. :) I want to witness their excitement as they master new skills and be there to encourage them when they struggle through others.

3. I am already their teacher. I have been teaching them since they were born. I helped them learn how to breastfeed, then how to take a bottle. I taught them the meaning of "no" and trained them to use manners. I have worked with them on their shapes, colors, numbers, letters, their names....the list goes on and on and on. Just about everything that I've done with them is teaching of some sort. So it just makes sense to continue on doing what we've already done! Having a degree in education and extensive experience in the classroom setting probably makes it a lot less intimidating for me as well. :)

4. Because my kids are smart. Isaac and Naomi have both shown signs of exceptional capacity to learn and remember things VERY quickly. Isaac came into this world early, started rolling over, crawling, walking, and talking early...and hasn't slowed down one bit since. He has already mastered most of the things typically taught in preschool - knows all of his letters and most of their sounds, knows all of his shapes, colors, etc. He still struggles a bit with his numbers, but can usually identify them and sometimes counts accurately. He has grasped almost all concepts of opposites and comparisons. I recently did a Kindergarten readiness test for him, and aside from working on writing his name, he was pretty much ready for Kindergarten. Now I realize that at just 3-years-old, he is not truly ready for Kindergarten! His behavior is still very much in line with his actual age!! :) And he still has a long way to go before being able to draw any type of letters (although I guess he has written O's and I's so far). I am not planning to push him into higher grade levels than what he is actually ready for. I am planning to start with a preschool curriculum this fall and continue with that throughout the school year. He will very likely be ready for Kindergarten the following fall, when he'll be 4 and a half. I would not normally put a boy that age in a traditional school setting, but with homeschooling, he'll likely be ready and be challenged by it. I'm still not sure what I'll do with Naomi quite yet. She very well may be ready for a preschool curriculum when she's 2 and a half, but I may hold her off until she's 3-years-old. She's not even two yet, but knows most of her letters, including some of their sounds...and counts better than her older brother! :) She is also grasping other concepts well ahead of time. So who knows!?!? I just love the idea of being able to nurture their natural gifts and abilities and teach at their pace...be it fast in some areas and slower in others! :) I am also excited to incorporate LOTS of PLAYTIME into our daily routine. To start out, we'll probably only spend 30-60 minutes a day on school (split up, of course). We'll see how it turns out! :)

5. I want to shelter my children. Yes...I just wrote that. :) And please let me explain. When we did try sending Isaac to preschool last year, he came home with behaviors that I had not taught him. He came home with a whole new vocabulary of potty talk that he didn't learn from me. I was not ready to deal with this so early. Children are SO impressionable. And having them away from me for 3-4 hours each day (three days a week)...makes it impossible for me to control what they are exposed to. If they hear another child talking with a filthy mouth or see a child bully another without any correction, it wreaks havoc in their little hearts. Being a Christian, I plan to train my children up in the Truth, according to how the Bible instructs. By sheltering them, I do not mean that their lives will be void of enriching experiences or relationships, but rather, that I will intentionally monitor what they are exposed to and when. I want to fill their minds with things that promote love, faith, and other godly character traits...rather than the hatred and self-serving messages that are at the core of so many secular movies and media. I would rather have a sheltered child than one who blends in with every other child in the world. I want to maintain and preserve their innocence and purity for as long as I can. And homeschooling is one way to help me do this! Children, by nature, are not ready to be exposed to HALF of what our society allows for them to see and hear. They are bombarded with messages of violence, sex appeal, and consumerism. We live in an instant-gratification world and our children are suffering because of it. I won't shelter them forever, but plan to allow exposure to different things at later times, when they are more mature and can handle them.

6. I don't like the way traditional schools are run. I think the way schools are functioning these days is detrimental to our society as a whole. Class sizes in most public schools have gotten ridiculously large, due to widespread budget cuts. Teachers are no longer given the freedom to use very much creativity in what they teach...as what they teach is almost solely dictated by what is on the standardized tests. They have specific goals they have to meet in order to keep funding. Teachers are over-worked and underpaid. And it is impossible for them to teach to the many different learning styles that are out there...so they choose one or two of the most common. Many children (especially young boys) are being diagnosed with ADHD, when in fact, they are just little kids with LOTS of energy...and who were not designed to be sitting and paying attention for such long stretches of time. And speaking of time, there is LOTS of wasted time in the school day. Children spend half of their days waiting...waiting at the drinking fountain, to use the restroom, to get into the cafeteria, then in line in the cafeteria...waiting for slower students to finish their work, waiting for the teacher to finish helping another student before answering their questions...waiting with their hands raised to answer a question. With so many students per classroom, students have to learn the art of waiting. While there is certainly character to be developed with respect to waiting, I don't think it's a great use of time during the school day. If a child has already mastered a concept, why do they need to wait two or three days for all of his/her peers to catch up? And what about the student who is really struggling to keep up, but the majority of the class has mastered the lesson so the teacher moves on? Those students who didn't quite grasp the concept get left behind, in a cloud of confusion. Why not let the children move on at their own pace? Because that would be impossible with the way schools operate right now. But with homeschooling, I can cater to each of my children's own learning styles and help them grow and learn at their own pace. I will not teach them so much WHAT to think...but rather, HOW to think.

7. I'm a free-spirit. I've always been one to march to the beat of my own drum. I like doing things a little differently. I don't enjoy waking up super early. I don't enjoy rush-hour traffic. I like the freedom to plan our days as I see fit. I like the option of being spontaneous...doing things on a whim. I am a creative person and I look forward to using that creativity to plan sweet lessons and create structured, meaningful activities that will help guide my children and help them grow in knowledge. I LOVE the flexibility that homeschooling offers. I LOVE the idea of NO HOMEWORK. Before daddy comes home from work, all schoolwork will be complete for the day...thus our family time will be just that...family time. I also LOVE the idea of longer recesses, more time for lunch, and more one-on-one, hands-on education. Oh...and I LOVE field trips. And I can plan as many as I want...all year long! :) If we are studying something that took place on the East Coast, I can drive my kids over there for a history lesson. If we are studying space, I can take them to Cape Canaveral to explore the space museum! The sky's the limit (as long as the budget allows)! And I just LOVE that freedom.

 

So....that ended up being longer than I expected! :) Bottom line is that I don't need to justify myself or our choice to homeschool to anybody. Everyone chooses what they choose for different reasons. Sure...there are aspects of homeschooling that I am not at all thrilled about (I'll save those for another post!). But we are pleased with our choice for now...and hope that it works out well for our family.