5 Reasons To Homeschool
Many families are needing to make a decision right now about whether they will homeschool, or send their children to school in a mask. We hope this pandemic is over soon, but until then, we want to give you five reasons why homeschooling is a great option.
1. You get to be with your kids.
My children have become great friends and coaches to me, and our conversations constantly inspire. I know that the early years can feel like a chore in so many ways, but when we learn to love being with them when they are little, they will love being with us as they grow, and you will become a tribe that is a force to be reckoned with in the world.
2. You curate the education of your children.
Instead of teaching to a scope and sequence, you can research subjects of interest to you, and introduce them to your children. There will always be holes in learning (how many of you graduated knowing everything there was to know?) but homeschooling allows you to spread a feast of knowledge for your children and to pursue interests together.
3. Homeschooling allows us to keep learning.
Instead of being in a cubicle learning only about the information pertinent to a job, a homeschooling mom (or dad) gets to learn a broad knowledge base. Since I started homeschooling I’ve pursued a second language, learned about economic and political systems, learned to identify edible plants in the wild, researched educational philosophy, and learned about daily life in developing countries. My own education is broader and deeper than it would have been had I not been homeschooling my own children, and in the process, myself.
4. Homeschooling can save money.
Many of us have been affected by the shutdown, but for a family where one partner already stays home, homeschooling could be less expensive, even than the “free” public schools. Children who go to school need more clothes (my homeschooled son gets by with a few pairs of cutoffs and a few nice pairs of jeans), and parents often end up spending more on fuel, food, and extracurricular sports and field trips when their children are in school. Homeschooling can be done with simple resources (The Peaceful Press elementary resources are only $49), and many free books are available on Youtube as read alouds or audiobooks.
If you need more help with living and homeschooling on a budget, click here to check out my course and save 25% with code "budget"
5. Homeschooling can prevent burnout.
The early years are supposed to be the "Love of learning" phase, according to the book, A Thomas Jefferson Education by Oliver De Mille, and Charlotte Mason called the early years, "the quiet growing years" and urged parents to protect those years. Unfortunately, many children are already getting burned out on school and labeled as learning disabled in these early years, in large part because of the pressure to align all children to state standards. This pressure crowds out the freedom to grow at their own pace. This pressure produces discouragement and burnout, but with homeschooling, we can tailor learning to our children and our own interests.
What are your top reasons for homeschooling?
Are you wanting a low-pressure intro to homeschooling?
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Want to join us this year as we study American History with The Playful Pioneers? We will be reading through stories of brave Americans, and learning practical skills such as gardening, bread baking, and more as we follow a Charlotte Mason method of learning.
Are you starting to plan your school year? Here are our learning recommendations.
Kindergarten
Many families are combining our one-month nature-based guides with some supplemental math and phonics for an engaging, hands-on approach to kindergarten. You can read more about these guides here:
Check out our month-long nature-based guides for young learners.
Elementary school
We follow a three-year history cycle with our resources to correspond with the Classical Conversations Foundations memory work. This means that our coming year will be spent studying American history with The Playful Pioneers after we finish our European history with The Kind Kingdom. In two years we will be studying world history again with The Precious People.
We add in math and phonics, spelling, or a writing curriculum along with The Peaceful Press resources, in order to provide grade-specific instruction in those subjects. You can read more about our favorite resources for homeschooling older children here, and favorite math resources, or phonics resources as well.
As you wrap up your school year and plan for the next one, what are your biggest questions? We would love to help answer them.
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