The Homeschool Decision

The only homeschooling family I knew growing up was, in my teenage opinion, odd.

Based solely on that experience, I became vehemently opposed to homeschooling my own children, because, DUH!!! Public education could do a much better job! And I didn't want weirdo kids!!!

I was so the mom who enrolled her sons into preschool at the very first opportunity. I was so the mom who would only live in neighborhoods where there were fabulous schools with fabulous test scores and fabulous parental involvement. I was so going to be the PTA mom who volunteered in the classroom and obsess over Box Tops.

So what happened? What changed?

I won't go into a rant about my qualms with public education or the test taking culture that has overtaken public schools. I won't go into a tirade about the insufficient funding for public education where important programs are eliminated. And don't even get me started on the inadmissible, pathetic Student-Teacher ratios! Recess and Physical Education?! Foreign concepts, apparently. Although not entirely extinct, they are dying a slow, painful and pitiful death.

Annoyed as I get over these issues (and SO MANY MORE issues), these are NOT the reasons why I'm homeschooling. This decision came after much prayer and seeking guidance. I won't bore you with the details of the journey we've taken to come to this decision except to say: it was most certainly an inspired decision. A decision we wouldn't have considered without the nudging and feelings and promptings from the Spirit. 

Will we homeschool forever? I don't know. We'll reevaluate yearly and seek heavenly guidance from The One who knows and loves our children perfectly.

Am I nervous? No! I'm incredibly excited! That's not to say, however, that I've taken this decision lightly. The decision to homeschool is incredibly consequential. I mean, we're talking about our children's EDUCATION. But I'm not afraid. I feel such overwhelming peace because I know how right this is for us at this specific time. I'm not terribly fond of the work-load that will be added to my plate, but I am willing to take it on. I expect a significant learning curve, tears of frustrations and moments where I'll want to drop the boys off at the nearest elementary school. But I am surprisingly eager to begin!

Luckily, we've found a Charter School where Pax will attend classes twice each week and be at home with me the remaining days. It felt like a perfect route to ease into our homeschooling adventure. Through the Charter, we'll work with a certified California teacher to touch base every other week to ensure he's progressing and to address any questions or concerns I have. Pax will be responsible to submit some of his work at these meetings, which means he'll be accountable to somebody besides myself or Rod {{{grin}}}. 

He'll also be apart of a Co-Op (founded by yours truly!) as another learning opportunity, but mostly as a means to develop lasting friendships.

For those interested, I HIGHLY recommend The Well Trained Mind by Susan Wise-Bauer, which is the perfect introduction to Classical Education.

Curriculum choices (with links):

Right Start Math

Story of the World (Ancient)

REAL Science Odyssey (Life Science) 

Handwriting Without Tears

First Language Lessons

All About Reading