homeschoolers who choose not to homeschool their children

[Night Elf]

One of the reasons we homeschool is because of the negative aspects of being in school. There are so many things we experienced that we just don't think are integral to growing up.

 

DH has some good memories. His experiences were much better than mine. In my 12 years of school, I can probably count the positive experiences on one hand and still have fingers left over. Truly.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Just because homeschooling wasn't great for me doesn't mean homeschooling can't be great. It wasn't any inherent flaw in homeschooling that made it bad for me. Like anything else, homeschooling doesn't look the same in every family. Each family is going to have a different experience with it.

 

I think there are probably more kids traumatized by public schools than home schools. :)

 

I think this is key. You can more easily change the experience of homeschooling because we have so much freedom to individualize, to learn from the past and make changes while in a school, the teachers are to a great extent at the mercy of the bureaucracy and can't change many things.

[angela in ohio]

I think that, like any other choice a child makes once they are an adult, it will probably depend greatly on the relationship they had with their parents, epecially mom if she was the primary educator.

 

FWIW, I'm homeschooling even though I had a great public school experience. So making a different choice isn't always a negative reaction.

[HS Mom in NC]

I know two couples where both the husband and the wife were hsed K-12 and they are hsing their kids.

 

I know another couple where the wife was hsed K-12 and the husband was hsed 1 year in Jr. High. Their kids are hsed.

[iona]

thanks to all who chimed in. i agree with hsing being a "sanctifying" experience(parenting itself is) and also that i need to be tuned into my kid's needs and what environment i am creating at home. most weeks my oldest(k6yr) asks to go to "real school" next year. i ask him why and it has to do with well equipped playgrounds and (i think) spending time with friends. hmm...maybe we can schedule time for "recess" at really cool playgrounds. i realize that i don't need to be bending over backwards to please him, but i do know that my laziness will make me not want to do a lot of what he wants to(he is very high energy and always wanting to do something WITH someone) thanks again for sharing your thoughts.

[Night Elf]

i realize that i don't need to be bending over backwards to please him, but i do know that my laziness will make me not want to do a lot of what he wants to(he is very high energy and always wanting to do something WITH someone) thanks again for sharing your thoughts.

 

Just my personal experience: I'm a very introverted person with an extroverted dd. It takes work from both of us. It was a mistake for me to spend more time doing what made me comfortable. It took me 7 years of homeschooling to learn that lesson. Once I found opportunities for her to be with other children, she found friends and her entire outlook on life changed. Hopefully she'll remember more good times than bad times when she looks back on her childhood. :o

[iona]

Just my personal experience: I'm a very introverted person with an extroverted dd. It takes work from both of us. It was a mistake for me to spend more time doing what made me comfortable. It took me 7 years of homeschooling to learn that lesson. Once I found opportunities for her to be with other children, she found friends and her entire outlook on life changed. Hopefully she'll remember more good times than bad times when she looks back on her childhood. :o

 

thank you for sharing. i think i'll need to work hard in that area as well.

[Kel & the Kids]

Homeschooling is a huge commitment - even if you are doing it a year at a time. It takes a certain amount of virtue to be a good teacher and I think that applies to being a good homeschooling parent as well.

 

I have not done an A+ performance the entire 9 years I've been homeschooling my kids. But I think our overall experience has been more good than bad. There was a time though when dd9 told me that she did not want to homeschool her kids and in fact wasn't sure she even wanted kids. Now I wouldn't have paid any attention to her words (she was 7 at the time) but her reasons made me sit up and pay attention anyway. Her reason was because I was stressed and "mean" all the time. That wouldn't be acceptable if I taught outside the home and I think it was even less acceptable in my home. I've worked hard to change and while I'm still not perfect (!), I think I am now getting a passing grade as a homeschooling mom & teacher.

 

This exact thing happened here a few months ago. I've changed my attitude big time. I keep asking myself if I would pay myself to teach my children (as in if this was the private school they were going to), I'm getting better!

 

How tragic if my life seems so terrible to my children that they want no part of it for themselves! A big eye opener for me.

[Jean in Newcastle]

This exact thing happened here a few months ago. I've changed my attitude big time. I keep asking myself if I would pay myself to teach my children (as in if this was the private school they were going to), I'm getting better!

 

How tragic if my life seems so terrible to my children that they want no part of it for themselves! A big eye opener for me.

 

Humbling, isn't it.