You may be wondering if you should be homeschooling your children. Of course, that is a personal choice, but I would like to give you some points to think about. Remember, you as the parents, get to make the choice.
- Are you unsatisfied with your child’s current education?
- You, as the parents, are considering homeschooling. Are you willing to be a full-time teacher?
Advantages
There are advantages to homeschooling. Let’s talk about the advantages.
When you homeschool, you know what your child is learning because you, as the teacher, are involved. You make the decisions of what your child is learning. Now, there are guidelines to learning what your state requires. These are worth looking up, and they are usually very good guidelines to ensure your child is keeping up with his/her grade level. That way, when testing comes, your child is right where he/she needs to be.
You, as the teacher, are able to teach the way your child learns best. Most parents know their child very well. I’ll bet you know if your child needs to learn in a setting that provides activity, or if he/she does best in a setting that provides quiet and sitting and focusing. You can provide that for your child. In a public school setting, there are so many students that a teacher cannot tutor your child in his/her preferred way of learning.
Your child has social strengths and weaknesses. As a parent, you are aware of these social strengths and weaknesses. You can help your child to blossom socially by having the freedom to place your child in an atmosphere that helps him/her to grow without undue stress or pressure. By knowing what your child is interested in, you can give him/her an opportunity to be successful.
There are opportunities for children that we, as parents, pass by because when your child is in public school, there is no time to do extra things. The homeschooling parent can take advantage of opportunities because you have more control over your time, and your child’s time. You can enroll your children in activities that interest them, like horseback riding lessons, or sewing lessons, or gymnastics, or rock club, or rock climbing. Sometimes you passed these opportunities by because you were working or your child was not home early enough.
Some other opportunities that you can take advantage of while homeschooling are the following:
- A road trip to Grandma’s during the day
- Taking a vacation in off season
- Taking field trips–as many as you want
- Hiking a local trail for P.
Disadvantages
There are some possible disadvantages to homeschooling. Not everyone can be or is willing to be successful at homeschooling. Let’s look at the possible disadvantages.
As a parent, homeschooling will become your main hobby or job. Homeschooling will become your main responsibility. You will homeschool more than anything else. There is yearly testing required for each student (check your state’s requirements). You will be making syllabuses, lesson plans, grading papers, making report cards, discovering federal and state homeschool requirements, and making sure your child is learning at grade level.
There is also the matter of togetherness. You will be with your children a whole lot more when you homeschool. There will simply be less time for you to take a break from being a parent and a teacher. There are ways to make this easier, of course. Your spouse, or the children’s grandparents can help provide breaks and personal time. Also, you can arrange for your child to have out-of-the-home activities that will provide you with some personal time.
Conclusion
There are definite advantages to homeschooling. You don’t need to worry about what the public is teaching your child. You don’t need to worry about how your child acts in school because you will already know. You will definitely have more control and choices available to you.
There are many ways to homeschool. There are organizations available to help. There are co-ops and online school options that make homeschooling easier. There are programs that do a lot of the work for you, as the teacher.
There are disadvantages to homeschool. It’s a lot more work. You are responsible for your child on a new level. You may not have as much private free time.
I am a homeschool parent. I think homeschooling is worth it. I like being a part of my child’s education. I love thinking of things that I can do to make my child’s learning experience fun and exciting. Looking at the opportunity to make learning an adventure is fun for me. I love that I can include family time with learning. I feel like I’m making lasting memories of field trips, building things, baking things, art projects, science exploration, playing math games, watching documentaries (while eating popcorn), etc.
There is private school, if that is an option for you. This option will take the least amount of effort for you, and keep your current lifestyle as close to what it is now. Private school does cost more, but if you are a career parent, this may be the best option.
So, if you have any more questions, please watch my videos or check out my website at www.homeschoolchatwithkatie.com.
Thank you for taking the time to read this article. I hope it was helpful. Until next time…
Have a blessed day.
