No one can tell you whether you are making the right decision to homeschool your children. Every parent needs to make that decision for their own children and family. Homeschooling isn't for everyone.
Here are a few questions for you to answer if homeschooling is on your mind.
* Do you have good communication skills with your children?
* Are you easy going and excited about homeschooling?
* Are you raising your children in a Christian home with Christian values?
If you have answered 'yes' to any or all of these, homeschooling may be in your best interest.
Good communication skills are a must. In a classroom, a student is expected to do what they are assigned. If they are unclear of what the assignment consists of, they will fail. So don't set your child up for failure, make sure they understand what is expected of them right from the start. It will save your vocal chords (yelling) later on. ;) lol
Easy going and excitement is a must as well, for me anyway. I have learned along the way to just 'relax'. Every child is different and every child has a different way of how they learn. Some children (teens) listen to music while doing Algebra. Some children need absolute silence while working. Some need detailed instruction, and others just need a syllabus and they are ready to school themselves. (It's true, I have one of each of these.) So you must relax and don't set your expectations so high that they cannot be reached. If your child needs 3 weeks to learn long division, then give them that. Also, be excited. Your children will 'catch your attitude'. If you are not excited about teaching them, they won't be excited about learning.
A Christian home is very important to us. I thank the Lord for my freedom to homeschool my children. Our public schools are removing our Lord and Savior from their daily routine. From discontinuing the 'Pledge of Allegence' as a daily routine to not even being able to mention God in our classroom. Am I saying that Christian's shouldn't go to public schools? No. I am saying, prepare your child to go into the world and spread the gospel of Jesus Christ. That is what we are to be teaching our children according to the Bible. They cannot do that in a public school setting very easily. I attended public school and I learned about 'evolution vs. creation'. Both. Now in schools we are expected not only to learn 'evolution' only, we are to be tolerant of same-sex marriage, abortion and bullying. Can your child witness and spread the gospel in public schools? Sure. But while they are doing this, they will also be subjected to the negative 'worldly' views at such a young age that they may be deceived and drawn into these sinful natures. Not to mention that your parental rights mean absolutely nothing in a government controlled school. That is correct, your parental rights are void while they are there. (If you don't believe me, look it up. You are giving up your parental educational rights.)
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One of the things I hear all the time is 'I would love to homeschool my kids, but I just don't have the patience." Really? That's absurd. I personally have dealt with the 'patience' issue my whole entire life. It has always been a challenge for me. Homeschooling has really helped me learn patience. My children challenge me each and every day, but in a good way. Some days I am learning right along with them. Yep, I learn something new (or forgotten) everyday. I am into my 10'th year of homeschooling and I wouldn't have it any other way.
Here are a few pointers if you decide to homeschool:
1. Relax. Your children will learn at their own pace. If you get frustrated, take a well deserved break (the kids too). No one will learn from a stressful, frustrated teacher. If you have to take a day off to get your 'groove back', then do it. It's ok. You are the teacher, you are the boss.
2. You make your schedule according to your family's needs. If you want to do Math one full day, Science another full day or maybe have a science week, that is ok. If you want to follow a strict schedule, that is ok. If you want to do a 4 day a week school, that is ok. If you want to school 3 months, take a month off, etc. that is ok. Anything goes. Do what works for you and your family! (But of course, follow the attendance laws if you have them. The state of WV, where I am, doesn't have an attendance law.)
3. Don't compare yourself to other homeschoolers. Every homeschool family is different. Their schedules, their teaching methods, their children......all different. This also goes for your children. Don't compare. It's ok if your 3'rd grader is reading at a 1'st grade level, but doing 5'th grade math. Let them learn at their own pace. That is what it is all about.
4. Find out what kind of learner your child is: visual, auditory or kinesthetic. Then you can teach your child in that way. For more info. about these styles, visit the HSLDA (HomeSchool Legal Defense Association) website - http://www.hslda.org/earlyyears/LSChecklist.asp
5. Look to God for advice. He gave us our life instructions in his word: the BIBLE. We can learn so much if we let him guide us.
6. Also look to other experienced homeschool moms. Find a local homeschool group in your area to plug into. They have some great sounding advice for you. :) To find a homeschool group in your area, click here or google your area if you don't see a local group on that site. (You can also contact me if you are in WV or FL. I can plug you into a local group.)
7. KNOW your state homeschooling laws! To view your laws in your state, go to HSLDA's web site - http://www.hslda.org/laws/
I hope this helped in your homeschooling decision making or give you some good solid homeschooling advice.
HAPPY HOMESCHOOLING!
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