Why I Homeschool

Yes, I am a homeschool mom.

I’m a quirky, kooky, creative, nerdy, homebody, wear-my-pajamas-all-day, home cooking, take out ordering, potty training, temper losing, kid correcting, laundry washing, floor vacuuming, diaper changing, read a-loud, dish washing and Jesus loving homeschool mom.

I’ve had many people ask me why I homeschool and I think they almost always expect me to say that I have a problem with public school or I’m trying to protect my kids or some other “anti-public-school” reason.

Even before I was married I wanted to homeschool my future kids but now that I’m 5 years in with a 2nd, 4th and 5th grader this year and with 2 little ones under foot while I teach, I wonder what in the world I was thinking! It’s super hard!

…but it’s the hard stuff that produces great results when you press on.

Here’s why I homeschool.

1) It’s been said that a child’s perspective on the world and reality is being formed up to about the age of 12. This is the most crucial age for me to have the most influence on their view of the world. To teach them how to respond to life’s sticky situations with grace and mercy.

My husband and I both agree that we want as much time with them as possible in the early years to influence their internal dialogue and not just their actions so that they can be epic world changers as adults. We use a Christian curriculum that teaches Bible history right alongside world history. As we discuss Augustus Caesar we discuss the effects of his regulations on the life of Jesus. Our plan is to transition our kids to a Christian private school in the future so they can continue learning from a Christ-centered perspective and also gain the benefits of large group learning and activities. NOTE: You can raise incredible world changers that go to public school too. We all have a different story and that’s ok!

2) There are incredible public schools and even more incredible teachers. I don’t consider myself better than them, heck, I don’t have a teaching degree! I do consider myself to be best suited for teaching MY kids because it’s something God has gifted me to do. I love teaching! I look forward to it, I get joy from it and I think I’m pretty good at it. 😉 I can provide one-on-one tutoring and cater the pace of my lessons to each individual child in my home. I know that any teacher would love the ability to do that, but it’s just not practical in a large class environment.

3) I’m super administrative. I like planning, preparing, executing and maintaining a teaching plan. I keep my kids on a schedule that gives them security and familiarity that helps with learning and we leave lots of time for play because we stick to our schedule. Homeschool without structure is possible, for sure, but most of those families school year round and I like my summers free.

4) I have the support of my husband. It’s a privilege to stay home with my kids and without my husband’s support in being the sole breadwinner, I would not be able to do it. When we make our curriculum purchase before the school year starts we’re in it together. We believe that God has called us to raise His kids up to know and love Him and our curriculum and our parenting point them to Jesus every day. It’s hard work, though, and when I’m with my kids ALL DAY schooling them, he know’s I need a break when he gets home. I’m currently at Starbucks writing this blog while he’s at home loving on our 5 kiddos.

5) We are social people and our kids are even more so. I hear many people say that homeschool kids are weird and socially inept. Our goal is not to isolate our kids from the real world. We believe that it’s our job to present the world to our kids and teach them how to interact with it according to Jesus model of loving God and loving people. My son knows all the cuss words because we taught them to him so he could recognize bad language when he hears it. My oldest two kids know about sex and homosexuality because we told them about it. We don’t let the world teach our children, we teach our children about the world.

We also have a much better handle on who our kids hang out with and are influenced by because they’re with us all day. We watch them interact with their friends, we see them come home with new behaviors and attitudes and can address it right away. We teach them daily about the power of influence and encourage them to be agents of change in our neighborhood. My 10-year-old son is making plans to start a Bible study with his friends on our street.

6) Family style learning is so cool! The older ones help teach the younger ones and that helps them grasp the concepts even better. They learn to prefer one another, be considerate of each other and to have patience with each other. It’s also great when you have other homeschool moms and kids you can connect with for support and to enhance what you’re doing at home.

Homeschooling is not for everyone. It can be the best or the worst decision you ever make. It’s incredibly hard and incredibly rewarding so if you’re considering homeschooling in the future prayer is a great starting point!