I have written and rewritten this article at least three times now. Sometimes it's really difficult to pinpoint exactly why you do the things you do.
I think my answer to this changes every single time someone asks it. We have so many reasons for homeschooling our kids and those reasons have evolved and keep evolving as we go.
I'm going to give an answer that may not satisfy some of you. Sorry.
Why did I choose to marry Ben and not some other guy? Why did we have kids when we did? Why have we chosen to live in a tiny apartment in the city? Why did we abandon our car? Why do we homeschool our kids?
The best answer I can think of is that I have chosen things in the past and continue to make choices that I believe will make me happy. I truly live by my motto, "We Only Do Fun Things." However, what I consider fun may be drudgery for someone else, so that's important to remember.
I don't actually have negative attitudes about public school at all. I thrived in the public school system, and I'm sure my children would, too.
But I love the freedom that homeschooling affords us. My kids can learn whatever they want and go at exactly the right pace for them. We can travel whenever we want to, we can go to whatever parks or museums we want to, whenever we want to. When it is sunny outside after raining for three weeks straight we can ditch our schoolwork and go play in the sunshine. Freedom makes me (and my kids) extremely happy.
I totally have respect for parents who send their kids to public school. People tell me all the time, "Wow, you homeschool, that's really amazing. I could never do that." But you know what? I don't know that I could send my kids to public school. I think those parents are superhuman. They get up early and make sure their kids are out the door and in school on time, they sit through hours of homework at the end of the day when everyone is already tired, they volunteer in their kid's classes and do PTA fundraisers on the weekends. They're amazing. And yeah, I'm amazing. And you're amazing. We just all make different decisions, and that's totally ok.
In short, we homeschool because we decided to homeschool. We love homeschooling. It works well for us, so we keep doing it. We only do things that are fun and we intend to keep it that way.
Whether or not you homeschool your kids, I hope you enjoy this blog. It's not easy being a parent, but my hope is that you have more fun by engaging in interesting activities with your kids. That's what I think is fun anyway. Remember, we only do fun things around here. Ever.
Check out these other homeschool related articles:
This is the best answer to that question I've ever heard. I've heard lots of arguments about homeschooling that center around a criticism of public schools, and I just don't buy homeschool as a solution to public school problems (particularly when it comes to the qualification of teachers). I have nothing but respect for a decision that is based on your desires for family. Excellent answer.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Dan, I appreciate it!
ReplyDelete