5 Reasons why I Home School

Yesterday morning I sat in the front yard with my journal.  The rhythm is definitely different with people getting themselves ready for their work day and kids in new clothes toting full backpacks waiting for the school bus to come rumbling in.  It's the start of the new school year; a fact I had completely forgotten as I decided our school year won't start until September 4th.  I'm so glad I have the privilege to home school!

Talk to any home schooling parent and you'll get loads of different stories as to how they got started and what their reasons were. I'm no different. Today I thought I'd share my top five:

1.  Bullying.  My first experience came about five years ago when once enthusiastic, learned daughter started coming home from middle school not wanting to go back.  Every day was a fight with her to get her up.  Turned out she, and the 17 other multiracial kids, weren't 'black' enough or 'white' enough for the school bullies. 

Despite our repeated attempts to get the Principal to do something, it never improved.  After weighing all the options I chose to home school her.  She blossomed again.  She decided to return to public High School and felt much more confident to stand up for herself against bullies.

I noticed kids in the Pre Kinder classes were bullying our son, so back to home school he came!

2.  Experiential Learning.  Budget and program cuts leave school little room to bring the what the kids are learning to life.  That means no field trips and limited hands on experience.  I know I enjoy things most when it's an experience.  Why shouldn't my child's learning be an experience too? 


3.  Personalized Schedule.  Being a Priestess, its part of my calling to honor cycles and rhythms.  Home schooling allows us to work within the cycles and rhythms of our family life. My son has a set morning schedule and a set afternoon schedule as those are the times he's most receptive. 

Bonus: because we're not bound by a school calender, we've been able to take advantage of off season vacation deals. 

4. Choice of Learning Materials.  Last year my son was in love with Thomas the Tank Engine.  As a result we did lots of academics around trains.  This year he loves Legos.  I get to take something he already loves and apply school subjects to it in a fun way. I can also incorporate subject requirements into real life situations.  I think more of the learning 'sticks' that way.

5.  Individualized Learning Style.  We all have a different learning style; audio, visual, or kinetic combining in a multitude of levels.  Home schooling allows me to tailor the learning experience to my child's learning style and what he wants to learn.

My daughter has graduated and is now on to college and there may come a time when my son decides he wants to go into school.  We'll look at our options and decide what's best then.  Meanwhile, I will fill myself with gratitude for the blessing this has been for me.