Each family situation is different and sacrifices will be made. With prayer, a solid foundation, focused minds, and defined goals, choosing to teach at home can be an extremely rewarding experience.
Choices.
You are free to pick and choose what your child will:
Learn
We live in the digital age and there is an unending sea of curriculum material available. There are also people who will want to tell you the best programs available for you to use. The key here is ensuring that the content selected is well-rounded and covers things YOU feel are necessary for YOUR kids to learn and grow. Pray about what you want your children to learn, take the time to write things down and get feedback from the kids as you work through the choices.
Eat
As much as we might have loved school lunches, it is safe to say that we may not approve now that we are parents. Just as learning has changed since we were taught. School lunches have also changed. When you decide to teach at home. Meal planning becomes another learning opportunity as children can become active participants in their nutritional habits. Assisting with grocery shopping, planting/tending gardens, and preparing meals are hands-on activities for kids of all ages to participate in.
Discuss
School conversations can often stray from the topics we, as parents, deem appropriate. You will have the opportunity to provide a base structure for conversations among your children, helping them form critical communication practices that will benefit them well into adulthood. Socialization at its finest!
Bonding.
The 7-8 hours most children spend away from home are now yours for the seizing! You will come to learn who your child is as well as a better understanding of yourself. What motivates, what discourages, what excites, what angers.
You’re spending more time with your child so you see firsthand their strengths/weaknesses. What pushes them over the edge and what makes them want to learn more. One fatal flaw of the western education system is that it desires to box all children into an approach that may not benefit each individual learning style. You will be able to observe the most effective way to teach your child, what helps them learn best, and what keeps them from progressing.
Gone are the days of getting notes at the end of the day. Or finding that two weeks ago, there was a school situation you wish had been mentioned earlier. You now have the chance to address situations as soon as they occur. Behavior patterns can be caught before they are allowed to fester into bigger issues. Positively, you can applaud and reward behaviors conducive of desired goals and outcomes. Both crucial elements in the child’s overall development.
Flexibility.
Learning can take place anywhere and at any time. Literally, every environment and situation becomes a learning opportunity or can be leveraged as such. For instance, preparing breakfast/lunch becomes a culinary class and builds core skills like teamwork and communication.
The day is yours to wield your creative powers over. Whether you decide to sleep in as a family or take frequent breaks from learning activities throughout the day, the choice is yours to work on your own time and at your own pace. You have complete control over the planning of your day.
Goodbye, Tradition.
Forget the overcrowded classrooms and high student-to-teacher ratios. Additionally, kids are able to avoid the rampant, unnecessary comparisons to others at/on their grade level. Less peer pressure, bullying, anxiety, etc. No longer do you have to worry about your child being made fun of because of the shoes or clothing they wear. Or what about being questioned daily because of a skin condition, disability, etc.?
Build Life Skills.
Let your children explore uncommon things like cooking, cleaning, survival skills and understanding their individual impact early in life. Building their faith, character, self-government, and so much more. They get to think and figure out things themselves…but not alone. With you guiding them through their decisions, not only will it help them navigate childhood but will prayerfully also help when they experience difficult moments throughout their adult lives.
Conclusion
It is time for you to forget about every doubt and fear you (and your families and friends) have. If you have ever found yourself wondering “can I homeschool my child”, our hope is that these reasons will help you get to the answer.
Drown out the doubts. Avoid well meaning friends and family members. Go against a society that says parents have to stand down in the highly important role of educating their children.
Deciding to teach your children at home can be an intimidating and even scary thought.
Undoubtedly, there will be outside factors such as friends, relatives, and internet blogs that make it seem impossible to accomplish on your own. It is definitely easier to send them off to a school and trust their learning to someone else but, is it really? You may even be asking yourself, “Why is homeschooling such a hard decision to make?” Our hope is that you can find the answers you’ve been looking for.
If you can trust someone else to teach your child, then why not trust yourself to?
What is the main reason that you decided to homeschool? Or, if you have not made the decision to homeschool — what is the main thing holding you back?
Featured image courtesy of Nick Tiemeyer via Unsplash.
Leave a Reply