Why Did I Choose Homeschool?
I am often asked why I choose to home school and do I worry that the kids will not get enough social interaction.
The truth is that I have often teetered back and forth with, am I doing the right thing....however, I have found that each time I feel unsure, something happens that reminds me that I am making the right choice for our family. I don't know that it's the right choice for everyone. It's just what works best for us.
I started home schooling because I liked the idea of having freedom to choose what was to be instilled in my children's minds. I also wasn't ready to stick them on a school bus and turn them over to people I didn't know for the better part of heir day. I loved the idea of nature walks and creating a school room, teaching creationism, having flexibility to travel and in our daily schedule, and teaching history from a Christian viewpoint.
Those things are still important to me but now that we are a ways down the road with 2 8th graders, a 6th grader, and a kindergartner, I feel my perspective has changed a bit. I do believe we have to work harder for the kids to have other kids to hang with...we just haven't lived in neighborhoods with alot of kids...but, I am also thankful that Tony and I and the people we have spent time associating with have been he primary influences in their lives. This is a major factor, today. Our kids act cuckoo and silly and like 13 year olds with all the other kids in youth group when they are together but there is also a maturity, a strong sense of personal responsibility, and an emotional stability in them that always stands strong. I feel that, at least so far, they aren't easily influenced by others, and that they have good, sound judgement in most situations. They can really think and evaluate. I love that they don't ct like most other kids I meet or see their age. I am thankful for all they haven't been exposed to until they were ready for it, and that they have an understanding of honor, a strong sense of family....I love that I know that I would never hear some of the things leave their lips that I hear come from so many others their age. I have had so many opportunities lately to be around other's children and I am so often shocked and appalled by the behavior I see. And though my kids aren't perfect and we are just beginning the teen years, I am thankful for where we are right now. I deal with kids who are raised in daycare and I am sometimes dumbfounded by what I see and hear. Even in Christian schools, are kids are still so influenced by other kids -- it's who they spend their whole day with! I remember a day Caleb went to hang out with one of Tony's classes at an after school video game party...and another time at an after school movie....and I was so thankful when he came out and thanked me for teaching him how to act and how to think and for home schooling him.
There are drawbacks for sure, but for us, for now, the benefits outweigh the negatives. Maybe that will change in the future -- I always keep my options open and rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us, but I do like where we are right now.
The truth is that I have often teetered back and forth with, am I doing the right thing....however, I have found that each time I feel unsure, something happens that reminds me that I am making the right choice for our family. I don't know that it's the right choice for everyone. It's just what works best for us.
I started home schooling because I liked the idea of having freedom to choose what was to be instilled in my children's minds. I also wasn't ready to stick them on a school bus and turn them over to people I didn't know for the better part of heir day. I loved the idea of nature walks and creating a school room, teaching creationism, having flexibility to travel and in our daily schedule, and teaching history from a Christian viewpoint.
Those things are still important to me but now that we are a ways down the road with 2 8th graders, a 6th grader, and a kindergartner, I feel my perspective has changed a bit. I do believe we have to work harder for the kids to have other kids to hang with...we just haven't lived in neighborhoods with alot of kids...but, I am also thankful that Tony and I and the people we have spent time associating with have been he primary influences in their lives. This is a major factor, today. Our kids act cuckoo and silly and like 13 year olds with all the other kids in youth group when they are together but there is also a maturity, a strong sense of personal responsibility, and an emotional stability in them that always stands strong. I feel that, at least so far, they aren't easily influenced by others, and that they have good, sound judgement in most situations. They can really think and evaluate. I love that they don't ct like most other kids I meet or see their age. I am thankful for all they haven't been exposed to until they were ready for it, and that they have an understanding of honor, a strong sense of family....I love that I know that I would never hear some of the things leave their lips that I hear come from so many others their age. I have had so many opportunities lately to be around other's children and I am so often shocked and appalled by the behavior I see. And though my kids aren't perfect and we are just beginning the teen years, I am thankful for where we are right now. I deal with kids who are raised in daycare and I am sometimes dumbfounded by what I see and hear. Even in Christian schools, are kids are still so influenced by other kids -- it's who they spend their whole day with! I remember a day Caleb went to hang out with one of Tony's classes at an after school video game party...and another time at an after school movie....and I was so thankful when he came out and thanked me for teaching him how to act and how to think and for home schooling him.
There are drawbacks for sure, but for us, for now, the benefits outweigh the negatives. Maybe that will change in the future -- I always keep my options open and rely on the Holy Spirit to guide us, but I do like where we are right now.
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