Our Journey to Homeschool- Part 2

So last time I told you all about how I pretty much started looking into homeschooling in response to the “threats” I had been making to my son.

Well as I started doing research I learned some really interesting things:

• There is a TON of information on homeschooling available. It was a little overwhelming but also really great because I originally wasn’t sure what I’d be able to find. There are awesome books and web sites, co-ops, and all kinds of other programs. I’ll be sharing some great resources in the weeks ahead.

• There are different methods of homeschooling. This was kind of news to me, I thought you were somewhat limited in how you did it. But no, there are all kinds of curriculum you can use and different ways to go about it. Some examples:

• Traditional textbooks
• Online learning
• A combination or eclectic style
• Co-ops
• Private Satellite Programs

• Normal parents homeschool. Yes, this was a bit of a shocker to me as I thought only people the Lord blessed with exceptional patience and gentleness gifts would be able to do it. The reality is that this is a growing movement and parents from all kinds of backgrounds are deciding that this is the best option for educating their children. You don’t have to be a genius or a college professor or even be a certified teacher.

• Children who are homeschooled are social. I don’t mean to offend anyone but I think there’s a belief out there that homeschooled kids don’t get enough socialization and can be “awkward” when that’s just not true. The reality is that they often have opportunities to socialize with people of different ages and stages and can have even greater socialization skills than kids who attend “regular” school. Additionally, there is an assumption that kids learn to socialize at school, when in reality there is no class that teaches “social” skills or even where kids learn to be kind to one another. In some schools there are programs that teach character development but I believe that is an exception rather then a rule. Kindness, values and morality really start at home so why wouldn’t I want more time for my kids to teach them to treat others with kindness and respect? Also, I’ve worked at schools, I’ve seen the bullying and relational aggression that kids deals with first hand and quite frankly I’m not sure my kids need that to be “social”.  Here is an interesting article that talks about how homeschooled children are less preoccupied with peer acceptance.

• Children who are homeschooled perform better academically than children in public schools. Now, please hear me. I know this is not the case for everyone. There are kids who do exceptionally well in public schools as I’m sure there are kids who do poorly with home education but statistically speaking homeschooled children out perform students in public schools where it comes to test-taking. Here are some interesting stats.

Have a great weekend!