*Disclaimer: Before you read this
blog post, please understand that these views are my own and are only specific
to my personal homeschooling experience. I do not speak for the homeschool
community or any other parent who homeschools.
The following questions have been
asked to me in regards to homeschooling my son Paxton. I would like to believe
that those who have asked me are just curious but I have encountered several
people who are completely skeptical or think I am odd for choosing this path
for my son’s education. I have chosen to use this experience as a way to
enlighten those who might not understand what homeschool is truly about for my
family.
1. So you don’t think traditional
school is good enough?
When I found out I was pregnant
with Pax, I assumed we would place him in a school. (public or private, didn’t
really matter at the time) As Pax got a bit older, I started doing my own
research and was struggling with what decision to make. I do not think public
schools are bad and I do not think there is anything wrong with sending your
child to private school- I attended both types of schools and had wonderful
experiences in each. We just chose a different way for Paxton.
2. Aren’t you worried Pax will
get behind?
This question seems like a loaded
question to me. I wonder why people always assume the worst when a child’s
education is left to a parent. If Pax gets behind in school, I will be able to
work longer and harder on what he needs more practice in. If he gets ahead in
school, I can challenge him or offer a slower pace so that we aren’t too far
ahead that things become difficult. Every parent deals with this situation at
one point in time or another no matter where they go to school. In my opinion,
one on one time seems like a perfect fit for either scenario.
3. Do you follow a curriculum or
make things up as you go along?
The most important thing for Pax
is to be doing work that is geared for his age and ability level. I researched
tons of homeschool curriculums and found one that works for us 100%. Even
though we may add things are alter the curriculum some, I felt it was
incredibly important to purchase a complete kindergarten curriculum so that we
were on target with what other kindergarteners were learning. We use
www.sonlight.com if you are interested in
checking it out.
4. Aren’t you worried that Pax
won’t have any socialization?
Are you kidding me? Pax has a
bigger social schedule than Donnie (my husband) and I combined. I schedule at
least two play dates a week for him and we attend church on Sunday and
Wednesday (he has a giant children’s church group he is a part of) and we
frequent Ergadoozy (one of the places we utilize for gross motor). This kid has
more friends and more social experiences than most kids I know.
5. Do you plan to put Pax in
“regular” school at all?
This question is a hard one for
me to answer right now. At this moment, we are saturating ourselves in the
homeschool experience and enjoying every moment. Pax gets to see his dad every
day when Donnie comes home for lunch, he gets to have the freedom to sleep in
if he needs to, I get to choose what he eats and when he can have snacks or
drinks if needed, we were able to grow our own garden and learn all about
nature at any moment of the day, and we aren’t limited to what we can learn.
We incorporate the Bible, bugs,
nature, the library, friends, continuous field trips (real life experiences), piano,
and many other things into homeschool. We love the flexibility it offers our
family, we are thankful to not have to worry about sick days or scheduling a
babysitter when he is out of school, and we enjoy watching him learn new things
every single day.
We plan to take each year to evaluate what we
are doing and if Pax is thriving and go from there. The ultimate goal is to be
active in his life experiences, education included. If there comes a day that
we change our minds, we will cross that bridge and make a decision.
I hope this has helped you
understand why we do what we do. This experience has brought numerous positive
changes to our family and we are so thankful and blessed to be right where we
are.
