Why We Homeschool
Why We Homeschool
We’ve been homeschooling for almost fifteen years over 20 years now.
Homeschooling has become such an integral part of my life that it’s not even something I ponder. It’s just the way it is. It’s a way of life for us.
Recently, we met a very nice older couple who asked us lots of questions about homeschooling, and that inspired me to revisit the topic of why we homeschool.
How It All Began
When I was seventeen or eighteen (almost twenty-five years ago!), I met an amazing family in a Christian bookstore.
They introduced me to the idea of homeschooling, which was something I had never heard of before.
There were three children in the family, and the oldest one was a teenager about my age. The children were polite and kind, and their whole family seemed to exude peace and happiness.
The thing that amazed me about their children was that they could actually carry on an intelligent conversation. And they seemed to get along well with each other.
They were very interesting people, full of life and fun. They didn’t look or act “weird.” They seemed to be well-adjusted, intelligent, and well-spoken.
My Background
I attended public school from the time I was in kindergarten until I was about fifteen.
I had been getting into some trouble in school (after being a straight A student in my younger years) because I fell in with the wrong crowd.
My parents and I thought it might help if I switched from public school to a private school.
First I tried a private Baptist school for awhile. But I couldn’t seem to fit in there, and we couldn’t afford it.
Next, I received a scholarship to attend a Catholic college prep school. I wasn’t Catholic, but they accepted me anyway.
I liked this school quite a bit, since they had a classical education focus. But then we moved, and it was back to public school for my sophomore year.
The public school I attended was an inner-city school, and the academic program was a joke.
Drug deals were conducted right in the classroom, and my algebra teacher had a nervous breakdown that year because of the stress of teaching there.
I was threatened by a girl I didn’t even know, just because she felt like fighting with someone.
I wanted to get away from the partying and drug atmosphere, and I was now fearful for my life because of the mean girl who wanted to fight me (she would corner me in the hallway and try to get me to fight until a teacher would come along and rescue me).
It was at this time that I gave my life to Jesus. My Christian testimony of how I came to Christ is so amazing!
Homeschooling Myself
I had never heard of homeschooling before, but the year that I was sixteen, I decided to leave public high school and teach myself at home.
I finished my education and was able to pass the GED test without difficulty.
College While My Friends Were Still in High School
I started taking some college courses at a local community college.
I thought it was amazing that I was able to leave high school early, finish my high school education on my own, get a full time job, and take college courses while some of my friends were still working on high school.
Enter Homeschooling
So around this time I met the aforementioned homeschool family in a bookstore.
When they started telling me about homeschooling, I was tremendously excited. I didn’t know such a thing even existed!
Right then and there I decided that any future children I had would be homeschooled. Why would I want to put them through what I had gone through in public school?
*I do want to interject here that not all public schools are equal. I had an amazing kindergarten experience. We only went half a day, and it was largely centered around play. I couldn’t wait to go to school each day! My teacher was wonderful, and I wrote her years later, when I was in my teen years, just to thank her, and we corresponded for a time.
*I also want to mention that I’m not saying everyone should homeschool. Of course I think it’s the best option for my family, but I’m not here to pass judgment on anyone or to claim that everyone should do as we have done. 🙂
One of My Prerequisites for a Husband
I knew I wanted to homeschool my future children if I was blessed to become a wife and mother.
But the problem was, how would I ever find a man who also wanted to homeschool? I began praying about it.
On the first date I ever had with my husband (before I knew he was going to be my husband), I found out that he wanted to homeschool his future children.
And not only that, but he just happened to attend a church that contained lots of homeschooling families! He was one step ahead of me. 🙂
A Deliberate Decision
Even though we had already decided that we wanted to homeschool, we still spent a lot of time researching and studying the idea before we dove in.
This was back in the days before there was anything on the internet (and we hardly ever used it), so I turned to friends from church and books for information.
I read every homeschooling how-to book I could get my hands on!
Why We Homeschool
So this brings me to our reasons for homeschooling. There are so many reasons! But I’ll just stick with the main ones.
We believe God called us to homeschool. The way the Lord brought together two people who had already decided they wanted to homeschool before they met seems pretty miraculous considering this was in the early 90’s and homeschooling wasn’t as popular back then.
We love spending time with our children. This is a huge motivator for me. I really love each of my children, and I wanted to be there for all the important moments.
I was the one who taught them all to read. What a privilege!
I was there when they took their first steps, said their first words, learned to ride a bike, and made each new discovery. I LOVE THIS!
One of my favorite things about homeschooling is just getting to spend so much time together.
We get to choose the curriculum. I love curriculum. I love books. And I love choosing the books and methods that work best for each of my children.
When one of my children struggled to learn to read following the method I’d used with my older three children, I was free to search for another method for teaching reading.
This led us to All About Reading, which was just what that particular child needed! I love being able to tailor the curriculum to each individual child.
I also love the freedom to pray and talk about God, and to nurture my children’s Christian faith.
Wonderful memories and beautiful family relationships are built as we live and learn together.
Of course it’s not all sunshine and rainbows, but I believe being together all the time creates lasting bonds between parents and children and between siblings.
We have the freedom to set our own schedule. If something comes up, we can be flexible with our schedule.
It’s wonderful to be able to set our own hours and take off when we need to. And if we’re really into a certain book we’re reading, we can keep going if we want to!
Homeschooling: A Decision I’ve Never Regretted
Choosing to homeschool our children is a decision that I’ve never once regretted or wondered about.
I’ve never wondered if we made the right decision. I’ve never had doubts.
It was just something I knew I wanted to do, even on the hard days. And there have been hard days, believe me.
But this is one decision I’ve never wavered on. Not even one little bit.
Next year my oldest child will graduate. And I feel a bit sad that she won’t be part of our homeschool anymore.
But I’m also excited for her and what lies ahead. And I’m so thankful for the privilege of learning together and all the memories we’ve made through the years. ♥
Do you homeschool? If so, why did you choose that path?
This was beautifully written!
Thank you!
I’ve just started to homeschool my middle child because of a chronic illness. I love it so far. There are hard days, but I love that our relationship is getting better. Thanks for sharing your story!
Many blessings on your homeschool journey!
I loved reading about your journey! So happy to “meet” you via the Mom Gene link up!
Thanks so much for stopping by, Elizabeth!
I live in a rural town with a terrible public school system (in terms of education) so I plan to homeschool my future children. My husband thinks homeschool kids grow up to be weird and antisocial but I assured him ours will grow up perfectly fine:) But we will cross that bridge when we get there!
I was home educated for a few years as a child when my parents pulled my brothers and i out of private school (tuition was very expensive), so i know it works!
Thanks for sharing, Christina! As someone who went to both public and private schools, I’ve met plenty of weird and antisocial kids in traditional school settings! 🙂 And of course some homeschooled kids do turn out weird, but it really just depends on the people/family. But of course you already know that since you’ve experienced it yourself!
This post is so beautiful! I love homeschooling, it gives me so much joy and peace to see my girls learn at home! I love how we can do it together!
Thank you! I’m so glad that you’re enjoying homeschooling!
I am in the learning curve of homeschooling. I was thrown on to this pace by accident but so thankful I found it. I have a child with special needs and we know in our hearts that if he went to a public school it wouldn’t end well. He’s incredibly smart but behavioral issues will be our focus first and foremost.
Thank you so much for sharing your heart, Chaney! I have many friends with special needs children who homeschool for the same reason. Being able to tailor your child’s education to what works best for them (and giving them the attention they need) is one of the beauties of homeschooling. The journey is sometimes difficult, but so worth it!
What a beautiful post! I am a certified teacher who just left the public school system to homeschool my two girls this fall. I am a little anxious about the change, but mostly excited! My oldest daughter was having a lot of educational issues which were leading to anxiety and feeling like a failure. She has SO many strengths and it is hard to teach in a way that would best suit her needs when her teachers have 25 other students. I felt like I was spending my days teaching/raising other peoples’ children while I was failing my own. I am so looking forward to this new season God is leading us into.
How exciting that you’re beginning the homeschool adventure, Krystal! I’m sure there will be challenges along the way (there always are!), but what a blessing for both you and your children! I hope you have a wonderful year!
I enjoyed reading your story. You must be an amazing woman to self-educate yourself before you even knew what homeschooling was. We homeschool for many of the same reasons you do. Thanks for sharing at the #LMMLinkup
Great to hear from you, Leslie! Nothing amazing about me, seriously. 🙂 I just enjoy reading and learning things, and both of my parents were constantly modeling a learning lifestyle for me (teaching themselves how to do so many things just by reading books).
Joy- Your blog is beautiful! My step son went to public school but it was a smaller school in a rural area and he actually had a pretty good experience. The thought never occurred to me to homeschool when I married his dad but I sure do see the merits of it! How great that your family is able to do this!
Thank you, Heather! That’s great that your son had a good public school experience—so much depends on the individual school, and it often seems that rural schools are better than urban ones (at least in my experience). Thanks so much for stopping by! 🙂
I never had considered homeschooling. I knew one girl when I was in school who was homeschooled. She took violin with me. But they did so for religious reasons, dressed very differently, and stayed to themselves. I had a horrible K experience, but then tested into a magnet school and their gifted program and I loved school after that for the most part. When dd came along I assumed we would just follow the normal path but then at 2 her pediatrician started talking to us about finding gifted education options. At 2.5 we moved and her pediatrician there recommended we homeschool as did the librarian as she was already mastered most of K standards. At 4, we had her evaluated by the local school psy and he said she was on a 2nd grade level or higher on all subjects and that she needed radical acceleration. The school told us “sometimes gifted kids just have to be miserable in elementary school” At 6 we had her tested and found out she is profoundly gifted. IQ greater than the 99.9th percentile. Homeschooling works great for her. At 9 she should be going into 4th grade but she tested from mid 7th through college levels on subjects. We can dig deep, explore, go at her own pace…and the added bonuses is the time we spend together, the ability we have to travel, the lifestyle as a whole. It is a beautiful thing.
Thanks for sharing, Amanda! I love how homeschooling allows us to tailor our children’s education to their unique needs and strengths. It sounds like your daughter is thriving, and your family is enjoying the journey together as well! Definitely a beautiful thing.
Oh, I wish I I wouold have heard of homeschooling before I had children! We’re going on our 8th year of homeschooling now, and I can still see some of the negative affects that public school had on my older kids. My four youngest (3,5,6, and 8) have never been to school and never will.
Shelly, thanks for stopping by and sharing your story! 🙂
What a wonderful post! I will be homeschooling my children (one, as of now, age 8 months!) and I was homeschooled myself. It was an amazing experience. I told my now husband within a few dates that I wanted to homeschool. And as someone with ADD, he totally thinks homeschooling is a great way to go 🙂 I’m so blessed he agrees with me!
Thank you, Stefanie! That’s wonderful that your husband is in favor of homeschooling, too! 🙂
I was public schooled from preschool through graduation and my husband was a mix of homeschool and public school. We are planning to homeschool our children for the exact same reasons as you mention!
Though this has forced me to greatly leave my comfort zone, God has been clear and very patient with me in this whole process. As our oldest will be “preschool age” next year, I am both excited and a bit nervous for our homeschooling journey to begin 🙂 Thank you for sharing your experience on #mommymoments!
Amy, I’m so glad you stopped by and shared your thoughts on homeschooling! Preschool is so fun—enjoy these days with your little one! 🙂
Lovely post! My husband and I were both homeschooled. It was truly a blessing to us both and overall a very positive experience. We look forward to homeschooling our little girl and pray that she too will have the opportunity to be raised in the truth of God’s Word.
Thank you, Sarah! It’s always encouraging to hear from homeschool graduates who are planning to homeschool their own children!
I also believe we need to broaden the spectrum of belief about homeschooling. You can be a working parent and homeschool your children, you can be a single parent and homeschool your child, your child can also thrive in some traditional school environments. Many child athletes, artist, and kids with careers use this option but we never hear about them. However, the truth is, if we really want to do something for our kids, there are unconventional ways to do it. Not everyone gets married or have a lasting relationship, yet I’ve met amazing parents that decided to homeschool their kids in spite of not having the ability to stay at home and do so. For me as a working parent, I love the freedom homeschooling gives me and my family. My husband and I co-teach and it’s been a great influence on our kids to see us both invested in their education. You were blessed and lucky to know this was what you wanted at a young age for your kids. I’d never even heard of this possibility until I needed to do it for a healthy environment for my son. Glad your kids are flourishing from this.
Great input, Nita, thanks for sharing!
My husband and I both work from home (he works full time and I work part time), so we’ve experienced the benefits of co-teaching that you’re talking about (although in our case I do most of it).
I have met quite a few single moms and also moms who work outside the home who have been able to make homeschooling work for their unique situation. I greatly admire their dedication to sticking with homeschooling even if they can’t be home full time. I’m so glad to hear that it’s working so well for your family.
Thanks again for sharing and encouraging other moms that homeschooling is still a great choice even if you’re a working or single parent!