Why We Homeschool

Seriously, if I received a dime for every time someone looks at me funny when I say we homeschool… I’d be soooo rich!  First of all, it probably doesn’t help that my sweetie has taught in public schools for 10 years and is now an Elementary School Principal.  Secondly, I plan to eventually use that degree hanging in my wall and it will most likely be used to teach High School math.  Oh and third?  Get me talking about why I am so passionate about working for the Arizona Teaching Fellows and you’ll never be able to walk away .  Oh how I love to dive in and have a fun educational and political discourse!

So… why do we homeschool?  To be honest, I don’t have a true definitive answer.  It is what has worked for us and we evaluate our decision each year. Lil G began to read when he was three years old.  I loved teaching him at home and we decided to continue. If he would’ve went to preschool, he would have been sooo bored!  Besides, I had scheduled plenty of activities and play dates to deal with the other topic that usually gets asked – socialization.

I love, love, love being able to teach.  So why not my boys at home?  Eventually they’ll attend school but for now, we are having a blast.  We go on field trips, and they are involved in a whole lot of activities.  Don’t get me wrong, there are many some days I want to send them on that big yellow bus to school, but that’s when we just sit back, throw on a cool movie (i.e. History of the U.S. DVD made by the History channel) and eat some popcorn.  Oh, and we don’t just watch the movie, we talk about they whys things happened and how things could have been different if such and such didn’t happen or so and so didn’t take a stand in what they believed in. Even my five year old can articulate how important it is to stand up in what you believe in.
So in a nutshell that’s why we homeschool.  Yes, I am grateful for the freedom but don’t judge others for not doing so.  It doesn’t make us a better family just by homeschooling. Just doing what’s in my heart and what works for us.  You also won’t find me telling others that they should.  Or ranting on how terrible our school systems are (yes they could use some reform, for sure). I don’t complain, I do.  If you don’t like something for the way it is, then change it. Or do something to change it.  You know?