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This week, I read several posts that made me think again about why we homeschool:
Why I Couldn't Sacrifice My Child To The Public Schools
Jonathan is almost finished with his first year of homeschooling and we're preparing to start Kindergarten in the fall. I've been mentally evaluating how the year went and why I'm homeschooling.
Here are a few of the big reasons that we have decided to homeschool:
- Incorporate spiritual things into our learning – Jonathan became a Christ-follower this year as a direct result of reading the Bible, talking about spiritual things, and reading books from our Sonlight curriculum. Does it get any better than watching your child make such life changing decision?
- Freedom to go at the child's pace – Jonathan wants to push forward much more quickly on some things and homeschooling allows us the freedom to go at his pace. When he doesn't understand something, I can slow down until he gets the concept. Homeschooling doesn't force me to “teach to test”. If introduction rather than mastery is more important in a topic, I can move on knowing that the topic will come up again rather than drilling for short-term memory. When Jonathan is done with his work for the day, he doesn't have to wait around for other kids in a classroom to finish.
- Freedom to teach how the child learns – I don't want Jonathan stuck in a seat for hours a day when he should be running and exploring. If he listens to stories better while playing with trains or standing on his head, so be it! We get to experiment with learning in new and fun ways every day.
- Freedom to follow strengths and interests – There are basics that every child should know. There are things that all children need to be exposed to. But, in the long-run, I want the bulk of Jonathan's schooling to focus on things that interest him and where he shows strength.
- Time with my boys – Josh and I want to be the primary influencers in the lives of our boys. What greater way to do that than spending all day teaching them and shaping them into godly men.
It seems like every day I hear another story about public schools and it reinforces my resolve to homeschool my boys for as long as I can. Ridiculous rules. Poor administrative choices. No common sense. School bus crashes – yes, school bus crashes. Until we moved to North Carolina, I had never heard so many school bus crash stories on the local news. Crazy…
I'm happy with our first year at home together and excited to see what the next one brings!
