Why We Do What We Do {Homeschooling}

We have not always homeschooled our children. Our boys went to a small church school until 3 years ago. They did well there and we were pleased with the education they received. But we had a growing realization that it might not be the best fit for our family.

Our boys have always learned pretty quickly and easily. They would end up spending hours of every week sitting at their desks reading books from the school library. They all read all of the books available to them in the course of each school year. This is great in a way, but they really were just putting in time at school. We realized more and more that each of them could pursue their own interests more if their free time was spent doing something they enjoyed doing or wanted to learn about.

So, we pulled them out and started homeschooling. This was a huge step for us because the church we were part of at the time required families to send their children to the church school. So this meant a church change as well as an educational change for us.

It hasn't been easy, this homeschooling thing. And it hasn't always worked exactly like I thought it might. But... the children are learning and so am I. And, for the most part, we are enjoying doing it.

Douglas is set to graduate from high school about 1 1/2 years early. He has been able to spend a lot of time learning to play the violin and piano. So it has been good for him.

We talk of possibly joining a Classical Conversations homeschool group next year. We think that it might help to provide some challenge,  competition, and interest to our school year. I think we are always trying to find a way to allow our children to learn and to become well adjusted adults. But I guess that is just called parenting, right?

I would have to say that homeschooling has been good for our family. I love to think about, talk about, and read about different learning styles and how to tailor each child's curriculum to meet his/her needs and abilities. I love to theorize about brain development and how to facilitate optimal learning for each child.

But in the everyday stuff, it pretty much means doing lessons, helping them over the rough patches, and adding a little this or that to make it interesting. It is more glorious in the planning than in the executing! :) 

So we love homeschooling. But we are not die hard homeschoolers. We know it is working well for our family right now. But some time we might decide another option would be a better fit for one reason or another.

Until then, most weekdays between 9 and 1, I'll probably be trying to help someone diagram a sentence or sound out a word.