Homeschool FAQ

My cousin sent me an email asking me some questions about homeschooling.  I decided my answers deserved to be their own blog post!  :)

Education and homeschooling are someof my favorite subjects to talk about, so I'll jump right in!

Why did I choose to homeschool?

I can answer this question because I made the decision that I would homeschool my kids a longtime ago. The answer is complex though. I could write pages andpages, (heck, probably even a whole book,) about this topic alone. The short answer? A lot of reasons. :) More specifically though,my number one reason is that I want to be super involved in mychildren's education, right front and center. Maybe this makes me acontrol freak, but I want to be the one making the decisions aboutsomething that I consider so incredibly precious and obviouslyinfluential in their lives. Almost all my other reasons seem to besupported by or related to that first reason. I want to be able toteach gospel principles within the context of every other subject. Iwant my children to have the educational freedom to choose how,where, and what to study. I want instill in them a love of learningthat seems far too often to be crushed out of kids in public schools. To a certain extent, I want to protect my children from what goes onin schools, but I must admit that that reason is very low on my list. :)

Would I suggest homeschooling toothers?

Yes, but it depends. I don't believethat everyone should homeschool. I don't believe that it's the rightfit for every mother or every child. I do believe strongly though,in awareness of educational options. I think far too many people buyinto the system of public schools because “that's just whateverybody does.” Regardless of the end decision I believe parentsneed to be well-informed about the options and what they entail, andthen to be intentional in the execution of their choice. Additionally, I think that no matter what they choose, they need tobe sincerely interested and involved in the education of theirchildren. (Judging from your interest in this topic and thequestions you are asking, I'd say your golden in this respect.) :) Although I don't consider homeschooling to be for everyone, I dobelieve it would be the right choice for far more people than arewilling to consider it. Too many moms underestimate their ownabilities and overestimate the difficulty of homeschooling. It ishard, and there will be times you think you're going to lose yourmind. But the truth is that it IS manageable and incrediblyfulfilling... much like motherhood itself. :)

What do I think about private schools?

I think they are a great option alongwith charter schools, both wonderful alternatives to public schools. Most of them have some central focus or goal, and as long as thatlines up with your desires for your kids education then it will workout great. The great thing about a private school would be that youcould reap many of the desirable benefits of homeschooling, such asgospel integration, smaller class sizes, and better teachers withouthaving to take on the entire responsibility yourself. Beyond that, Idon't know very much about them.

Do I have any book suggestions?

Tons. Haha! I'm reading a bunch rightnow, a few that I have read before. Most of them are reallyinspiring and motivating.  The books that I am reading are mostly about education ingeneral and different specific methods of homeschooling. A Thomas JeffersonEducation is the shortest one, and it's packed full of greattheories. I LOVE this book called The Well-Educated Mind, but it'smore about self-education than about homeschooling, but a lot of thesame principles come into play. And the lady who wrote it wroteanother book with her mother called The Well-Trained Mind (itactually came first) that is all about teaching your children. I'veread some of that one, but haven't finished it yet. I'm reading aseries of books by Charlotte Mason. She has a whole method ofhomeschooling based on her theories and ideas. And there are a bunch of books by aman named John Holt who started the Unschooling movement. I intendto read some of those after I finish the ones I'm working on rightnow. :P There is a really good book called Teach the Children, butI haven't finished it yet either. It's just really long and takes alot of concentration to understand. But the ideas and principlespresented are amazing.

Is it hard?

Again, though my experience is limited,I can answer this question in part because I was homeschooled andcarefully observed my mother especially as I grew and matured andeventually realized that this was what I was going to do when Ibecame a mother. Homeschooling IS challenging. There's no doubtabout that. To say that it was easy would be to undermine the effortand thought that homeschooling mothers put in, not to mention theimportance of what they are trying to accomplish. The difficultycomes not in the ways you might think though. For most I wouldventure to say that the hardest part is dealing with family andfriends questioning, worrying, and even judging you for your choice. Add in your own fears and insecurities as you go along, wondering,“Am I making the right choice? Will they turn out alright? Arethey learning what they should?” and many more questions. Thisleads to high degree of anxiety, though I feel sure the severity ofwhich depends highly on your personality type and confidence in yourdecision. I feel very blessed in that respect, because I not onlyhave a personality which is not very anxiety prone, but I also haveadvantage of being homeschooled myself. So I feel a high degree ofconfidence in my choice to homeschool and I have a fairly clearconception of how I intend to go about it. Another great challenge,and the one I feel certain will be my struggle for the rest of myhomeschooling years, is trying to run a successful homeschool whilestill accomplishing all of the responsibilities of a regularstay-at-home mom. There is an obvious time-crunch here. It meanssacrificing certain things and becoming more efficient and organizedin other things. This is the “problem” that I find myselfstriving to solve before I even begin so that I can be sufficientlyprepared for the upcoming hurdles.

Am I glad I chose to homeschool?

I can't really answer this questionbecause I have obviously onlyhad limited experience with it so far, although I am consideringthis year to be my first year of homeschooling for real. ;) I guessthe one thing that I can add to this topic is that the only time thatI have doubted whether or not I really wanted to homeschool is whenmotherhood and housekeeping have overwhelmed me and I've thought howblissful it would be to send the kids off one by one into the publicschools for the day! Haha! But, in the end, I feel confident andabsolutely sure that this is what I want. The benefits are worth thesacrifice to me.

Cloned Minds

(A Thomas Jefferson Education, Chapter Two)

I have been pondering lately what it really means to get an education.  What does it mean to be educated?  What are our goals for education?  This book has been great in exploring some of these ideas.

DeMille divides education styles into three types:  Public, Professional, and Leadership.

He says that Public education teaches us WHAT to think.  Professional education (law school, medical school, MBA and CPA programs, etc.) teach us WHEN to think.  But a Leadership education (also referred to as a Thomas Jefferson Education) teaches us HOW to think.

DeMille covers a short history of education and points out that our current educational system is not necessarily "normal," but rather a relatively recent development.  Previously, the wealthy were educated at home with mentors and tutors, the middle-class had private schools and apprenticeships, and public schools were created to give poor and low-class children the opportunity to develop the skills and abilities to enter the work force and contribute to society.

The problem is that now almost everyone goes to public school, some go to professional schools, and very few get the leadership education that we so desperately need our politicians and statesmen to have.  The public school system, due to inherent limitations, gives each student a cookie cutter education.

I loved the image of "cloning the American mind," because isn't that exactly what we're doing?  Isn't that exactly the problem?  How are we supposed to progress from one generation to the next and as a country if we are telling our children, "This is what your are supposed to know.  Nothing more, nothing less."  How do children take the step further, rise above, do more?  Many do, in my opinion, by great talent, exceptional teachers, or both.  But just think how much more could be accomplished, how many more minds could be inspired and cultivated, if they were given the opportunities of a true Leadership Education!

According to DeMille, a Thomas Jefferson Education consists of being a mentor to our children and then exposing them to as many classics as possible.  The approach is simple: Read, Write, Discuss.

This is in complete accordance with the ideas found in The Well-Educated Mind, and I'm excited to continue to try to apply these principles to my studies.  I'm going to read the classics including the books on the WEM list, I will write about what I read in my blog posts, and I hope those reading this will be interested in posting their thoughts and beginning a discussion with me.  Let's participate in the Great Conversation together!