I have been very open about our homeschooling adventure, not to suggest that what we are doing is better than what you are doing, but to provide a vision to some that might need it. To challenge parents to think outside the box about their child’s education. To show that ordinary people are capable of providing their children with the tools they need to be successful. It’s not for everyone and I completely respect that but I wanted to be transparent in our journey in hopes that one day it may inspire someone.
Our decision to homeschool came after incredible thought and prayer on what our family was being called to do. My husband was skeptical at first (and I was insanely nervous) but after reading a few books and attending a homeschooling conference we heard God speaking and we knew what needed to be done.
We started our adventure on the road. Our first day of homeschool was at Falls Park in South Dakota. We were on our way to the Black Hills. Education happening outside the cement walls of a building; it was amazing. I actually loved the freedom this provided and the curiosity that it sparked in the kids. I even may have mentioned to the hubby a time or two that we should sell the house and homeschool on the road. I could totally live in our camper. Who doesn’t love having their entire living space spotless in less than 30 minutes!
On the drive home the hubby and I decided to take the advice of a speaker at the conference we attended and write down all the reasons we were interested in homeschooling. I intend to get these printed someday soon and post them on our wall in the homeschooling area. At times I need to look back at this list and remind myself of why we started. It’s not always an easy adventure but it’s our adventure and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Without further ado, here’s our list (in no particular order):
Reasons to Establish the Schroeder Homeschool:
- faith
- no one cares about our children as much as we do
- teach life skills
- have our children in the presence of better role models
- spend more time together
- less chance of bad influences
- less wasted time
- more flexibility in our schedule
- opportunity to start mini businesses
- character building
- child directed learning
- volunteer opportunities
- no time limits
- learning focused on individual learning styles
- fieldtrips
- job shadowing
- instill a love of learning
- more enrichment activities
- more time to spend with family and friends
- learning will be fun
- time for creativity
Addicted to Education 
That’s a very impressive list. I like your intentions are all positive; you are not just bashing the school system or anything like that. I believe a failure in our public education system is that the parents aren’t involved. I feel people assume that the school is there to educate and teach your kids how to act. Behavior and morals are something parents need to be involved with. Also, with the education spending cuts proposed each election cycle, I wonder how we are able to effectively educate our children. I know a couple of people that homeschool and their kids are advanced in mathematics and English. They are taking advantage of the PSEO program taking college calculus as a ‘high school’ class. The kids are well educated and they are getting free college credits. One interesting thing I learned is that there home schooling groups. They meet at parks and such so the kids can play and interact. They actual get recess and meet new kids. It would be interesting if you took your family on the road. You could find these groups across the country meet many new people that also home school.
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Nicole I home educated my children for 8 years and it was truly one of the best times of my life. Leading up to homeschooling God placed in my path the neatest people to assist me in the decisions my ex and I made for our children’s education. One of the ladies had an education degree, they put their children in a private school, but she attended MACHE every year so she could be equipped to be the best parent she could be. I remember her telling me that I can learn from everyone and to be open to the path I take with my children’s education because it might change someday. Another lady I knew had wanted to home school her children, but her husband was dead set against it. They put their children in a private school and she home educated them nights, weekends and summers. She told me everyone is educating their children whether they home school them or not, it just looks different for everyone. She gave me so many books and dvd’s (yep!)for my children before I started homeschooling them. Another lady lived down the block from me and she sat down with me one night and shared with me everything she had learned from homeschooling, right down to how to go through MACHE. Each one of these ladies gave me valuable information and lessons on education and just being a mom! After I had home educated for 8 years I knew in my heart my time was done. I had planned on homeschooling my kiddos through highschool, we bought the lifetime membership to HSLDA after all. I knew when I was going to start and I knew when that season of my life was done. All of that to say-good for you and your family to follow the Lord’s leading, listen to your heart and do what you know you are supposed to do right now. I wouldn’t trade any of the days I homeschooled for anything. I learned so much about myself during that time and I bonded with each of my children in a special way through it. What a great experience!!! God bless you on this journey 🙂
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