Reasons I like Homeschooling

[Mommamia]

I just read a 4 page thread on another forum where people stated the reasons they loved that their kids were in public school. As I'm in the midst of the February homeschool blues, I was hoping we could start a positive thread about homeschooling. Could you please share something positive about homeschooling?

 

Thank you!

[Georgiana Daniels]

I go through cycles, but right now I'm on an up. So here's my list of why I love to homeschool:

 

Complete control over what my kids learn, and how they learn it.

 

Running our own schedule. The public schools do not own our time. Ever.

 

Don't have to worry about the quality of teaching, and the fact that around this time of year some of the ps teachers start slacking because they know pink slips are out soon (and really, who could blame them with that looming over their heads?)

 

My kids are just a whole lotta fun to hang out with.

 

My children have more time to pursue their interests. No way could we do competitive sports if we had to worry over homework, etc every night.

 

Seeing each academic step they take and knowing I was part of it is priceless.

[thescrappyhomeschooler]

I like not having to get up and get everything done in a rush in the mornings- lunches packed, backpacks packed, shoes located, etc. We can eat a leisurely breakfast, clean ourselves up and get started with our day at our own pace.

 

I like seeing the interest in my kids when we are learning something they enjoy. I like hearing about what they find interesting as we are learning together.

 

I like that our evenings are homework-free. We can hang out as a family and read books together with no stress.

 

I like that I don't necessarily have to have clean clothes available every day. :tongue_smilie:

 

I like that my kids are going to know WAY more about history and geography than the public school kids in my area.

 

I like coming up with fun activities to incorporate into our studies. It gives me something to occupy my mind.

 

I just really like homeschooling!

[KristenR]

I like working in my pajamas. :tongue_smilie:

[psychmom]

There are lots of reasons I love homeschooling, but the biggest thing for me is that I get to participate much more actively in my dc's learning--seeing their eyes light up when they get excited about something or finally "get" a concept, for example. Wouldn't trade it for the world! (at least not today;))

[Georgiana Daniels]

I like working in my pajamas. :tongue_smilie:

 

Oh, YES! This is a good reason. But I still wear make-up. Go figure.

 

Just thought of another reason: yesterday when I had one kid working on the Greek alphabet and the other working on Mindbenders--during their free time when I told them to go play--I thought, "Dude, this is the life."

 

So many moments not to miss:001_smile:

[dangermom]

Since it's slump season, this is probably a good idea; lots of us are ready to put the kids on the bus!

 

I'm grateful that I get to be with my kids so much and see so much of their childhood years. My oldest is almost a teenager and I can't believe it went so fast. I do think that we are closer for it.

 

We recently diagnosed an eye problem with my younger daughter that was quite difficult to spot. I believe that if she was in public school it would have taken longer to figure out what was going on. Now she's in vision therapy and will hopefully improve.

 

I get to have fun talks about weird stuff with them.

 

I have an excuse to get a great chemistry set!

 

So many books, so little time...

 

They are so much happier and doing better socially than I was at that age. Maybe they would be just as fine in PS--but I'm not sure.

 

I get to try to give them the education I wish I'd had, though tailored to them. I get to make sure that they are better prepared for college than I was.

[ksoika]

Time. We get to be together.

[Swimtaxi234]

I love not limiting our study just because it is the wrong year. We are focused on the middle ages right now, but in one of our discussions, I asked if they remembered the "Scopes Trial" (aka Scopes Monkey Trial).

 

Instead of saying, "Remind me to talk to you again about it in a few years, we stopped what we were doing to look it up. We had an amazing discussion on history from this century vs the middle ages.

 

Another thing I love is owing our schedule. The weather was beautiful this morning, so my daughter and I went on a long bike ride. She completed her work when we returned and I spent some one-on-one time with my son's subjects while she worked since he stayed home and did school work while we biked.

[NanceXToo]

Several days this week, we've had sunny, mild weather for February in Pennsylvania. My 11 y/o, who is now old enough to be my companion as well as my daughter, is my walking buddy. We piled into the car a couple of different days and headed over to a scenic walking path across town.

 

We'd walk, chat about different things, giggle about different things, enjoy the fresh air and sunshine. We'd look at some of the signs identifying different plants and trees. We'd strike up conversations with a couple of the people we passed.

 

One lady (who we saw two days in a row) had a dog who would randomly just lay down in the middle of the path. The second day, we talked to her. It turned out her dog was old and had cancer. So she lets him explore or rest at will.

 

Another elderly couple had a huge bag of peanuts and they were feeding squirrels. We remembered them from visits there last spring, because they had shared their peanuts with us then. They shared them again this week and we got to feed the squirrels, too. Today, we bought our own bag and fed a bunch of squirrels, who would come very close in their eagerness to be fed.

 

They've been such pleasant mornings.

 

I compare them to way our mornings used to be back when my daughter was in public school (before I pulled her out three years ago, toward the end of third grade)...frantic, chaotic mornings of dragging her out of bed and rushing her to get ready, rushing her out the door, rushing her onto a bus, not seeing her again for hours, then having to enforce homework for the school before going into the dinner time routine, the "bedtime because it's a school night" routine instead of just enjoying my time with her-

 

Our days are much less stressful, much more our own, much more pleasant now. We really enjoy them. I'm not saying every last thing we do is fun, but a lot of it is.

 

And whenever we want to drop everything and go on a field trip, an outing, a nature walk, we just do. Whenever we feel like it. 9 in the morning, 1 in the afternoon, on a Monday, a Thursday, whenever... I love that. :D I've never looked back. I'll take our homeschool day routine over our old public school routine any day of the week!

 

As for my 6 y/o, well, he's never been to school, and sometimes he's more of a handful, but he's often sweet, and affectionate, and funny, and he's changing and growing so quickly, and I'm just glad not to be missing out on it, glad his childhood isn't flying by in the blink of an eye somewhere else while I miss out on the vast majority of it. I'm glad HE'S not missing out on the vast majority of it stuck behind a desk hour after hour, day after day, month after month. He's experiencing more of the childhood I wish my daughter had gotten to. The way I think it should be experienced!

Edited February 24, 2012 by NanceXToo

[Donna]

I love....

 

Being able to teach dd at her pace and watch her eyes light up when she learns new things or finds new interests.

 

When I was homeschooling all 3, we could always go on vacation when everyone else was in school....no lines at Disney World. Ha!

 

Gives dd time to pursue her interests at the level that suits her.

 

Curling up on the couch to read together.

[TheApprentice]

I like not having to rush in the morning, even when I wake up "late".:001_smile:

 

I like going at my child's speed, be it either repeating something until it's learned, or moving past certain things because the info. is easy/known.

 

I like sharing their childhood and having great relationships with all three of my boys, even my 14 yo. teenager.;)

 

I like watching their progress through the years and not have to schedule a "parent/teacher conference" to find out how my child is doing.

 

And I like researching curriculum that will meet my children's needs the following year.:001_smile:

[Baseball mom]

spending time with my children

 

staying up late (family time)

 

sleeping late

 

schooling in pj's

 

being able to go places as a family without worrying about what time of the day/week/year it is

 

knowing what my children are learning

 

being able to slow down and go over the material until they get it

 

watching the "light bulb" moments (when they get it)

 

skipping school on pretty mornings to go play at the park or friends house then schooling in the afternoon or evening

 

having a close relationship with my children

 

my children are best friends

 

[swellmomma]

I love that I can book appts for my kids all over the province and never have to worry about them missing school to go to them. As these medical appts are vital to their wellbeing it is important to me that we can do that.

 

I love that my teens can sleep as long as they need, no forcing their eyes open at 6 am, they wake when rested which helps in dealing with the teen attitude that like a toddler gets worse when they are over tired.

 

I love that I can serve a hot lunch everyday and know what my kids are eating, they are not tossing their lunch bags to buy chips and pop (or having their lunches swapped out). If we decide to eat one of the foods that is typically very restricted due to issues it can cause with behaviours I love that we can cancel school and go play outside or watch a video together etc to make it a nice treat instead of a torture for all concerned.

 

I love that I have control over what my kids are learning. I had a scout leader meeting last night, the scoutmaster's son brought his math homework with him. Yeah, I am not even a little bit worried that my kids are behind anymore, that math is taught weird.

 

I love that my kids can be kids. There is no pressure to be "cool" or act older than they are. My ds13 can play with webkinz if he wants, my DD12 can feel more at home playing dolls with dd4 than talking about boys/hair/makeup with other girls. I love that my ds8 does not have to feel stupid because he can't properly read or write yet, he is free to progress and develop at his own pace.

 

I love that when it is -40C out we can decide that cuddling up together and watching documentaries or reading aloud is a better idea that trudging out in the cold to get to school Or that when the weather is especially nice out, we can spend time outside playing while the sun is still warming the air, by the time school is out it is already starting to get chilly again as the sun starts to set.

[myfunnybunch]

We did our read-aloud in the February sunshine today.

 

There are lots of other real reasons, like individualizing instruction and spending time together, but today reading in the sun and fresh air is it.

 

Cat

[Baseball mom]

I love that my kids can be kids. There is no pressure to be "cool" or act older than they are.

 

 

 

:iagree::iagree::iagree:

[chepyl]

Sleeping in and staying in our pjs.

 

Watching my kids play together.

 

Having lots of family time:)

 

Flexibility!

[NotAVampireLvr]

great thread... I agree with almost every statement.

 

As a newbie, I appreciate:

 

the flexible schedule

freedom to speed up and slow down as needed

interest driven learning

my kids are all friends

daily smiles, laughter (and yes tears)

learning new things myself

family time

[Mommy22alyns]

I get to be with my girls all the time. They got to take advantage of the great weather today and blow bubbles outside. There's no way they'd be learning Latin in school here. I don't have to wake up early and rush around. I can stay in my PJs all day. :auto: Well, most days!

[redsquirrel]

I love that we get to spend these years discovering each other.

 

I love that we are on this intellectual journey together.

 

I love that my kids are not a part of the mainstream popular consumerist culture.

 

I love that my boys are allowed to be little boys and grow up at their own pace.

 

I love that my older boy is becoming a teenager and that he feels good about himself.

 

I love that my kids love learning.

 

I love that my boys are 5 years apart, but are the best of friends. They know each other and are there for each other in a way I never dared hope for.

 

I love that all those family members who though I was crazy and disapproved of homeschooling now take me aside and tell me that my boys are a delight and that we are doing SUCH a good job teaching them.

[meggie]

I love that I taught my son how to read (Ok fine, Jessie Wise and Sara Buffington did the majority of the work!) Watching him learn was truly like a miracle to me. How many thousands of people throughout time were illiterate and yet, here was a four year old reading. I feel very blessed to have given him that gift.

 

I love that he looks through the Lakeshore Learning catalog and wants so many fun, educational things. I love that he loves learning.

 

I love that I got to take a long time to recover after baby Chuck was born. I needed it.

 

I love that Digby tries to copy Pigby doing "school." He started asking me to write the letter "D" over and over. It makes me happy because that's how Pigby started his fascination with letters when he was about the same age. Oh man, I had forgotten how many letters I had to write on his magna-doodle.

 

I love that Pigby wrote my sister an equation (? + 4 = 7) and asked her what the answer was. She stared at it a bit. Then stared at me. Then stared at him. "Megan, this is an equation!" "Yes, I know." "He's five! How does he know what an equation is?" I love that he loves math so much. It scares me a bit because it means I have to bring my own math game up to snuff, but that's another thing I love.

 

I love that I can pursue my own self-education. I felt so woefully unprepared for college work. I am loving the fact that I can fill in my own knowledge gaps. I love that I can prepare them much more than I was *knock on wood*

 

I love that we can have fun. That's a huge thing that attracted me to homeschooling. I could do all the fun stuff with them!

[LibraryLover]

Freedom.

Edited February 25, 2012 by LibraryLover

[Mommamia]

Thank you for sharing! Your posts were so nice to wake up to.

 

I love that I can focus on the individual needs of my dc (and that I have the opportunity to recognize those needs through their school work)

 

I love that my dc are not peer dependent

 

I love that we can move without worry of disrupting their schooling

 

I love re-learning all the things I missed during my education. I actually think this will benefit us all as we age. Plus, I cannot believe all the info I have forgotten. I now love history and literature!

[Mom28kds]

I love homeschooling because I want to make sure my kids are learning what I think they need. The PS was behind what I thought my son should know.

I love being able to get done with our work and still having lots of playtime for the kids. PS doesn't allow for this. When they get home they still have homework.

I love being on my own schedule, not someone else's.

I love being able to spend all this time with my kids in the younger years. They grow up so fast.

I love the fact they don't have to deal with any bullying, peer pressure etc. They can just be kids and learn without those additional issues (my son was picked on in PS)

 

This is just to name a few things :001_smile:

[LuvingLife]

Days are less stressful, I can be sick without falling behind, I have lots of great friends, my relationship with my family has grown, I can cook and bake great food. I have learned valuable skills, I'm independent, I've developed my writing talents (a true gift I have and enjoy doing in my spare time), and I have time to do the things I enjoy after my schoolwork is finished.

 

There are so many good things that they diminsh most of the cons of homeschooling and I never want to go back to public school again!:)

[Mom-ninja.]

I love it because my oldest can make breakfast for me. He makes great french toast. :D

[Element]

It's not just homeschoolers who get burned out this time of year! Public school teachers and kids are feeling it too. One of the things I like most about hs'ing is that we set our own yearly schedule. We do 5 or 6 weeks on, then 1 week off (and right now is our off week :hurray:!) My friends that are ps teachers and the ps'd kids I know (dd included) are counting down the days 'til the end of school. Really, how productive is anyone when they are just marking days off a calendar? I'm certainly not bashing. I would be the same way if I couldn't take break weeks.