Monday, 07 July 2008

• Why I Homeschool My Kids

  by mrs violet

  There are many reasons I could give you for why we home school, but for me it all started with a vision.  As I held my first child and breathed in his new baby scent after arriving home from the hospital, I felt completely overwhelmed by the great responsibility of raising a child.  As tears trickled down my naive and inexperienced baby-face (I was 21), I asked the Lord to give me His wisdom for this little life. I looked down at his big brown eyes and perfect skin, and I  caught a glimpse of an 18 year-old man.  It wasn't so much about what he looked like on the outside that I took notice of, but what his character was like, his strength, his gifts, talents, life skills and his security in who he was in his Lord Jesus Christ.

  As I saw that picture in my mind, it was almost like I was seeing logical steps tracing backward through the things he would need to do, the experiences he would need, the training I would have to employ to lead him to that place.   The only way I could see that happening in our family at that stage was by home schooling.  For me the message was loud and clear from the first weeks of my sons life.  Yet my husband was still to be convinced, he had never heard of home schooling and certainly wasn't moved by any esoteric spiritual experience I had claimed to have from a God he didn't believe in.  He wanted logic, he wanted reasons and he wanted understanding!

  As the years went by and school age approached I took my husband along to a home school convention.  I was filled with great anticipation that this would be the event that the hallelujah chorus would sound, angels would fill the air and a flashing neon sign from heaven would display the message....

  Thou Shalt Home School
  
  Boy was I wrong. As we drove away from the days program I turned to hubby with my bucket loads of girlish anticipation and asked him what he thought.   He turned to face me, his face was white and he uttered words that I will never forget.

  "I have been to the edge of the lunatic fringe."

  I was floored!

  I had never thought of it that way.  Putting God aside for a moment, having trained and graduated as a primary school teacher, home schooling made absolute sense too me.  In fact my lecturers had given it a fairly good rap, and certainly when I had been about my practicals in various schools I had seen that there was not one perfect way to school a child.

  I had deliberately gone out of my way on my teacher pracs to go to a different kind of school each time.  I had seen Christian schools, Catholic schools, private boarding/day schools, public schools in low socioeconomic backgrounds and in the middle class.  And yet I saw flaws in every system.

  I was convinced this was the way forward for our family.  I thought the convention would still hubby's nerves, but rather than do that, it put more concerns in his way.   He was right of course, we home schoolers are often seen as the lunatic fringe.  Those of us not in some cult or odd 'movement',  tend to be quite independent thinkers. We are people who are happy or at least willing to swim against the tides of convention, and the reasons we do it while similar in part, are usually very individual and quite reflective of each families values.

  This sometimes may show itself in our out outward appearances.  Some have big families, others small, some wear head scarves, long skirts or beards for the men, and others are more 'herbal' in nature with dreadlocks and tie dye.  Some practice a more disciplined regime and some are quite natural in their approach to child training.  These were the extremes my husband was reacting to that day.

  It wasn't so much about whether he we should home school any more, but did he want to be associated with these kinds of extremes?

  In the end I took to prayer, and as I prayed I believe the Lord gave me a solution. I should ask my husband for a trial period.  So this I did.  I asked if I could home school my son for the 6 months before he would 'officially have to go to school and then we could take it from there.

  Hubby thought that was a great idea and really we have never looked back.  The 6 months flew quickly by and it was obvious our son was learning.  He was involved in a home school group and was being adequately socialized with other children out of school hours.  When we ended up moving to Sydney at what would have been the beginning of his first year in school, hubby's decision to keep home schooling was a blessing in disguise because we seem to have to move around a lot with the rental houses we were taking.

  Now we are here in the UK 9 years on and home schooling is well and truly ingrained in our life.  School comes with us where ever we go.  Our children make friends outside of school, in church, scouting and sporting groups, they are well socialized, well adapted and are always welcomed wherever we go.

  Should you home school? 

  I am not one of these home schoolers that believe it is the ONLY way to go.  I believe God gives us very unique directions for our families when we stop to ask Him.  Some families I know are bringing up marvelous children in the public education system, others in Christian or private.  The decision shouldn't  ever be limited to should I home school, but rather the more widely asked question, what does God want for our family?

  Do you ever think about homeschooling your children? Why or why not?

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