Doubt:Please Tell Me Why You Are Glad You Homeschool

[NewIma]

I was homeschooled from 3rd to 12th grade and always wanted to homeschool my own children. I've been homeschooling for 6 years now and my oldest is 11.  She has started having preteen moodiness and is sometimes very difficult so homeschooling isn't easy.  And now my dear friend who started this homeschooling journey with me is putting her 11 year old in school this fall.  Then last night my dd11 told me she doesn't like school because it is hard, but that her school friends say they like going to school. She is also feeling left out on preteen culture (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!). I am just feeling so discouraged.... I need some positive homeschool energy! What do you love about homeschooling? Why are you glad you so it?

[kristin0713]

I love being in charge of my kids' education, building them up in their strengths, avoiding middle school drama, getting their work done during the day and not dealing with homework after school, flexibility with our schedule, less germ exposure (important for my autoimmune/PANS kid), LESS exposure to pre-teen culture/teen culture, surrounding ourselves with like-minded families who don't give their young teens phones or let them spend hours on a screen, a more wholesome environment, avoiding the pressure to become boy-crazy at 12yo...  And btw my kids do have exposure to kids in school through some activities (taekwondo, our local health club programs, church youth group). They are not in a bubble, but the difference is clear.  I am SO thankful we homeschool. 

[HomeAgain]

I would love to, but my reasons are not yours. ?

My dear, take pictures.  The good times, the special times, the mundane.  Take pictures.  Because these will be the things that keep you going.  7th grade was a hard year for us, so that's what I'll share here with you.  It was a year where I cried, after a year where I cried because middle school didn't work out.  I tailored more to my kid in 7th, kept him busy and active and touched base with him a lot more.  This video is a compilation of some of the good times of that year.
We recently sat down over dinner, the 19yo and I, and talked about his schooling.  While he did eventually go to a real high school, he was glad that I had taken the time to figure him out, and allow him to grow at home instead of in a school environment.  It wasn't easy on either of us, particularly in middle school, but it was worth it in the end.
 

 

Edited August 20, 2018 by HomeAgain

[mom@shiloh]

kristin0713 expressed my exact thoughts!  In addition I've found that my kids have more time to explore their interests. One spent hours teaching himself computers which led to an internship at 18 and a high paying part time job when he was 20. Another taught himself piano and guitar. Another loves to babysit and helps out several local families with small children. Another is an artist and spends hours drawing and perfecting her skill. They wouldn't have time for that if they were in school.  

Can you find something that your dd is interested in doing that will give her some focus AND maybe more time with friends?

[Momto6inIN]

5 hours ago, NewIma said:

 (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!).

Flossing, like flossing your teeth? ? Seriously, if it's something else, then this 44 year old mom doesn't know about it either LOL

I am thankful I homeschooled my teens because of the relationships we were able to build by being together every day. We had bumps in the road for sure (remembering particulary the year DS was 12 and also the year DD was 11 ?) but we had TIME together to work those bumps out. If they had been in public school we would have had the same relationship problems and only a fraction of the time together to work them out.

As a PP said, I'm also thankful that they missed out on the cattiness of middle school. Several of DDs friends go to public school, and the back biting and shifting allegiances were apparent to her at church and other social gatherings, but she wasn't immersed in it day in day out.

I have academic reasons too that make me thankful we homeschooled high school, but it doesn't sound like you're looking for those.

[Arcadia]

5 hours ago, NewIma said:

 She has started having preteen moodiness and is sometimes very difficult so homeschooling isn't easy.  

She is also feeling left out on preteen culture (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!). 

 

My boys needed lots of sleep and food in middle school. It’s a good thing my DS13 was not in brick and mortar school as he wakes up around noon most days just to have sufficient sleep and did most of his academic work in the evening. DS12 started needing more sleep once his growth spurt started, he used to get up at 7am but now wakes up naturally at around 10am most days. DS13 also eats every two to three hours so he was hungry when at brick and mortar public school.

As for preteen/teen culture, my boys do have outsourced brick and mortar classes and they know enough billboard hits and smartphone games to get along with their classmates and tennis lessons buddies. They also listen to the radio in the car and heard all kinds of trivia. They aren’t interested in Fortnite but knows about its existence.

“It's become popular again after featuring in the Fortnite video game, but it's got nothing to do with dental hygiene sadly

It’s the latest craze among children of a certain age, but do you really know what flossing is?

You might be forgiven for thinking that it's got something to do with dental hygiene but unfortunately it's not the case.

Similar fashion to the Dab, the Floss has captured the imagination of kidseverywhere. 

The act of 'flossing' is a rather peculiar dance move involves a lot of fast arm and hip swings, as though using a huge, invisible piece of dental floss.” https://www.dailypost.co.uk/whats-on/family-kids-news/flossing-dance-move-fortnite-stranger-14517216

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

I homeschooled in the younger years to give my kids time to explore words and numbers and concepts through play and other hands on activities.

I homeschooled in the middle years to give my kids a bully free zone where they could explore interests (DIY.org had a big part of our middle school years.)  Homeschool did not take away the hormones that lead to moodiness etc.  I got my kids into sports and volunteer activities at this age so that they could find positive social outlets that helped them to grow as people.

I homeschool in the high school years to give my kids a place to delve into harder subjects and deeper thinking at their own pace.  We continued the sports and volunteer activities in areas that were especially meaningful to them.  My kids also did more independently with friends that they had made in those sports and volunteer activities. 

[EKS]

Looking back over 15 years, there are several reasons I'm glad I homeschooled:

• I was able to remediate my older son's dyslexia to the point where his achievement and his ability were fairly similar.  At the public school, their goal would have been to remediate to the 16th percentile as compared to age peers.
• I was able provide both of my sons with an individualized education where not only the level and pacing were appropriate, but I was able to incorporate their interests and sometimes even foster new ones.
• I was able to help my sons avoid the peer orientation that is fostered in age-segregated classrooms and schools.
• I learned an incredible amount myself.  The most satisfying things were going from a prealgebra level in math to being able to effectively tutor calculus, finally learning world and American history properly, and reading a zillion books aloud at all levels--including things like Jane Eyre and Moby Dick.

[MinivanMom]

The reasons I'm glad I homeschooled especially through middle school:

-Homeschooling kept my dear daughter out of the day-to-day drama of the middle school crowd. We got plenty of that drama just from extra-curricular activities and church youth group, but she could come home and be safe from it the other 90% of the time. 

-Homeschooling gave her the opportunity to keep moving forward academically with an individualized education instead of being caught in the intense lock-step of our local middle school.

-Homeschooling kept her in an environment where she could continue to learn the things she loved for their own sake. It preserved her excitement and enthusiasm for a little longer before she got thrown into the world of grades and gpa's and "Will this be on the test." 

-Homeschooling let her continue to pursue several time-consuming extra-curricular activities and still have plenty of time for sleeping and downtime and more sleeping.

Preteen moodiness is hard, but it will pass. The best help here was good food and sleep - lots of sleep.

Edited August 15, 2018 by MinivanMom

[shawthorne44]

Flossing has multiple urban meanings.   Not all of them are as nice as a dance move.  Hopefully the dance move is the one she is talking about.  Although my first thought was. 'Not learning the meaning of flossing is a reason to homeschool'.   

We had multiple reasons, starting with my wish to be homeschooled when I first heard of the concept when I was in high school.   One big reason that I didn't expect, DD isn't jaded.   It took me a lot of observation to figure out, but I look at her homeschooled friends/associates and the public schooled friends/associates and there is a difference.  The public schooled kids are more jaded.   They work hard to behave cool and older than they are.  Their interests seem lemming-like in that they all seem to be followers.  I don't want that for my daughter.   Plus, she is a follower by nature, which drives us batty.   DD would totally be one of those good kids that does something horrible because her friends are doing it.  

Also, school shouldn't be easy.   It is quite possible to go to public school and learn absolutely nothing from the school for years.  It happened to me.  

Looking over that, it is very negative and I didn't mean it to be.  We love that we can change math curriculum when we need a change of pace.  We love that there is time to read.  We love that there is time to be a kid.  We love that we can plan vacations when everyone else is in school.   We love that none of us uses an alarm clock.   Everyone wakes up naturally.   That is another huge benefit that I didn't realize would be so important.  

 

[regentrude]

My kids got to escape the negative social atmosphere at the middle school. They got the gift of academic challenge instead of boredom in school. They got a much better education, spent less time on busy work, got to follow their academic interests, had a say in designing their education, took ownership, got to learn at a pace and level that was right for them. Lots of things to love.

[sweet2ndchance]

10 hours ago, NewIma said:

Then last night my dd11 told me she doesn't like school because it is hard, but that her school friends say they like going to school.

 

Well, it's true that school is suppose to be a bit of a challenge, she shouldn't be in tears everyday over everything but if it were all easy then she wouldn't be learning anything. Do you feel she is challenged but not overwhelmed? What specifically does she think is hard? Is there something that can be done to lighten her load a little without sacrificing stretching her mind a little at a time?

 

10 hours ago, NewIma said:

She is also feeling left out on preteen culture (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!).

 

Umm... honey, that's why we homeschool. There are some things about preteen culture that no child should have to be exposed to. I get that she feels left out but maybe it is time to have a heart to heart with her about middle school culture and what a true friend is. Discuss with her what is wrong with pop culture in your family's opinion, why you believe it is wrong and why following the crowd can be unhealthy.

 

10 hours ago, NewIma said:

I am just feeling so discouraged.... I need some positive homeschool energy! What do you love about homeschooling? Why are you glad you so it?

 

I love that my kids were allowed to be kids for as long as they needed to be. I love that they could be individuals and not feel pressured to fit in. I love that they had plenty of time to figure out who they were before they were more exposed to the big wide world. I love that they could learn on their own personal time line and not feel under challenged or overwhelmed by a one size fits all system. I'm glad I was able to foster and model what a good relationship looks like, whether is it be friendly, familial or romantic. I'm glad that I was able to have the kind of relationship with my kids that they felt comfortable coming to me with anything, even as teenagers. I don't think I could have had the same kind of relationship with them if they spent most of their waking hours in school from the time they were little bitty. I'm glad that I could up and change the curriculum if it didn't fit the child inside of trying to make the child fit the curriculum. I'm glad we could just up and have a family day any time we wanted and get school done when it was convienient for us. If we had a late night at ball games, we could sleep in the next morning so no one missed sleep and everyone could do their work when they were rested and able to do their best.

[freesia]

My number one tip for tweens is--don't take them personally.  They feel all discombobulated and your dd would even if she was at school.  Middle school is, without a doubt, the best time to homeschool for the child's sake (followed closely by K-2) imho.  Putting a group of insecure, hormone raging, unstable emotionally kids in one place makes for really, really difficult times.

I just dropped my oldest off at college.  I am so glad that we stayed the course.  My kids are close to each other and to us.  They are not perfect and neither are we.  It is so easy to "blame" all the tough spots on homeschooling, but no matter what course we had taken there would have been tough spots.My regrets aren't in homeschooling, they are in not recognizing certain social dynamics in our circle early enough to change course. I wouldn't have even been able to see the problem or change course if we hadn't been homeschooling.

It is important to listen to your dd.  I'm not discounting her feelings at all.  See what you can do to address whatever the root of the issue is.  It may be right to put her in school when she is 14 or 15.  But not 11 unless you really weren't able to homeschool her (she won't work for you, LDs you can't handle, life emergency/crisis).

[PeterPan]

13 hours ago, NewIma said:

She is also feeling left out on preteen culture (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!). I am just feeling so discouraged.... I need some positive homeschool energy! What do you love about homeschooling? Why are you glad you so it?

Oh mercy, *I* know what flossing is, and I'm NOT exactly hip, lol. 

I think social is a totally valid reason to attend school. If you take her all the way through, it will have the perks you think and the cons you suspect. Some bad things will probably happen and some things will probably go in a non-ideal way, and at that point you'll only have yourself to blame. There won't be much approbation at the either, with someone to say Good Mom, you did great, blah blah. They just go off to college, tell you you're an old fogey and an idiot, and move on. Ok, yours won't say that, but just saying.

Does what you'd do better outweigh what the school would do better? I like that my dd is a confident thinker who challenges ideas, a self-starter who makes things happen. That also could have been genetics (haha), but she would have gotten squashed in a very perjorative environment. The ps here wasn't on the table for a variety of reasons. Let's just say the schools are so bad even the catholics send their kids to the fundy baptist school. Like scratch your head on that one. (Send your kids to a school where they say your family's religion is sending them to h*ll???) 

Personally, I'd put a short leash on it. If she wants to go, fine, she goes. Just SEND HER. Your identity is not wrapped up in homeschooling, and it's no skin off your hyde if she goes there. She goes, she has an experience. It's great and she stays or it's junk and she returns home the following year. You do the starbucks, gym, hobby thing, get back your life, have a great life, move on.

I've been doing this long enough that I'm over the romance. If the kid doesn't want to be there, fine, I'll go have my good life and stop slogging to help you.

[maize]

I will tell you my perspective:

I believe in flex-schooling, defined as facilitating the academic, physical, emotional, and social development of my child through whatever opportunities I find best at a given time.

I loved the years when we were entirely homeschooling. I loved the family closeness and the simplicity of our life, I loved the extra time to pursue individual passions and the opportunity to share with my children things that were important to me.

Now with five school aged children at different points in development and with differing needs I love the opportunity we have to take advantage of diverse educational options. I won't have anyone entirely homeschooling this fall. I have one child enrolled for a few classes at a charter school with a focus that interests them, another enrolled in a twice a week project based learning program that provides needed structure and social opportunities, another who was desperately needing new consistent friends and is choosing to try out a local school full time, etc.

What I love most about parenting is the opportunity to provide my kids with opportunities and support and watch them fly. 

[Sneezyone]

30 minutes ago, maize said:

I will tell you my perspective:

I believe in flex-schooling, defined as facilitating the academic, physical, emotional, and social development of my child through whatever opportunities I find best at a given time.

I loved the years when we were entirely homeschooling. I loved the family closeness and the simplicity of our life, I loved the extra time to pursue individual passions and the opportunity to share with my children things that were important to me.

Now with five school aged children at different points in development and with differing needs I love the opportunity we have to take advantage of diverse educational options. I won't have anyone entirely homeschooling this fall. I have one child enrolled for a few classes at a charter school with a focus that interests them, another enrolled in a twice a week project based learning program that provides needed structure and social opportunities, another who was desperately needing new consistent friends and is choosing to try out a local school full time, etc.

What I love most about parenting is the opportunity to provide my kids with opportunities and support and watch them fly. 

 

This is very much where I am too. I love that I have both of mine home again full time this fall but I'm equally glad that I sent her to school when she asked. DD, at the same age as OP's child, was convinced that homeschooling sucked, I sucked, and school would cure all woes. It didn't. Homeschooling an unhappy, sullen child who's convinced the grass is greener on the other side of the fence is no fun. Two years later, DD is THRILLED to be back home and loving every minute of it. She's also been able to reassure DS about his (eventual) launch and the fact that, yes, Mom really does know what she's talking about...most of the time. Also, both my kids know how to floss, even DS who's been home since 1st grade. It's really a cute, silly, funny little dance. It's really not the end of the world to take a break. I'm so glad DD decided to be home with us. Our home life is rocking right now but I'm not sure we'd have this if I hadn't let her try.

Edited August 15, 2018 by Sneezyone

[NewIma]

Thank you all so much for your replies. I cried reading them and I know I'll come back and re-read them.

Reasons I am glad we homeschool are that my girls have more time to play, they aren't in such a rush to grow up, they aren't exposed to the negative diet and boy/girl talk of public school, and I can tailer their learning to their needs.

I love that I can read aloud to them for hours and have poetry tea parties and do art projects together. I love that they have more time to do extracurriculars. I love watching them learn and grow firsthand. 

Thank you all for your kindness.

 

[NewIma]

P.S. by Flossing she meant the dance!

[8filltheheart]

15 hours ago, NewIma said:

I was homeschooled from 3rd to 12th grade and always wanted to homeschool my own children. I've been homeschooling for 6 years now and my oldest is 11.  She has started having preteen moodiness and is sometimes very difficult so homeschooling isn't easy.  And now my dear friend who started this homeschooling journey with me is putting her 11 year old in school this fall.  Then last night my dd11 told me she doesn't like school because it is hard, but that her school friends say they like going to school. She is also feeling left out on preteen culture (I didn't know what Flossing was Mom!). I am just feeling so discouraged.... I need some positive homeschool energy! What do you love about homeschooling? Why are you glad you so it?

I have been homeschooling since 1994 and have graduated 5 of our kids from our homeschool. For our family, I wouldn't change anything.  Our kids have been able to design their own high school yrs and pursue their interests at their own academic level. Our 3 at home still love homeschooling and have zero interest in attending school.

i asked them if they knew what flossing was in terms of teen culture, Not even my college student knew. When I said it epwas a dance with fast moves, they did know. They just didn't know it was called "flossing."

fwiw, I have family members who completely resent their mother and homeschooling. They have a very different family dynamic and parent/children relationships than we do. Can't imagine my kids ever responding the way those kids do, so it may depend completely on how your family functions and relationships as to whether or not homeschooling could impact adult children relationships. (Parenting adult children is a completely different experience than young children. Think about the future relationship younwill have with your kids.)

[laundrycrisis]

I love that homeschooling gave us the freedom to find our way through the three Rs during some very tough years due to challenges with health, vision, LD and developmental issues.  With those behind us, both are doing well in part time school. It’s just enough and not too much.  They both needed a part of their lives to be outside of home. I see this as developmentally expected.  It’s good for them and for me. 

[Rachel]

We are in the midst of homeschooling but I love that my kids don’t know they are only supposed to be friends with people their same age. There are a lot of pop culture things I’m glad they don’t know!  I love our read aloud time, getting to go hiking every week and having time for the kids to play in the creek. I like that my kids don’t have to get on the bus at 6:45 most mornings. I especially appreciate being able to teach my kids at their appropriate levels. 

[BlsdMama]

Wow - you're hitting me on a pretty emotional time.  ?  This time last year we were deciding whether or not to put our girls in school and prepping to send our two babies to preschool.

Four years ago i was feeling pretty burned out.  I wasn't loving homeschooling.  I'd sent my oldest off to college (like pretty much every person I knew who didn't work crazy hard to homeschool their kid) and I was missing her and wondering what was so special about homeschooling that I was willing to put in another 16 years of it.

It's my 18th year of homeschooling. 
Why do I do it? Because I almost had it taken from me and I feel I have absolute clarity?  I'm struggling with medical stuff (in case you don't know) that is almost guaranteed to make it so I can't finish homeschooling my younger kids.  I'm sucking every minute out of this journey that I can.  It is a privilege.


I homeschool for more time with my kids.  I homeschool because parenting is about so much more than homework, bath, dinner, bed and I WANT it.  I homeschool because there is more to prepping young adults for life than what they can give them in a school.  I homeschool because eighteen years goes faster than you think.  I homeschool because even on my worst days I'm with the ones I love the most.  I homeschool, despite the fact that it really has no outside atta-boys, because I know that what I'm doing has intrinsic value.  I homeschool because once I got past the middle chapter of my oldest daughter looking like "everyone else" and spending a few years at a university, when she got married and she had babies? She started buying all the books I'd read to her 100 times when she was little and she loved her childhood and wanted to emulate it.  I homeschool because it's a legacy.  I homeschool because I can read aloud to my kids in the middle of a rainy day that has been declared a cookie day.  I homeschool because it's hard and because I struggle and because I can show my kids that hard things are worth doing.  I homeschool because I can share my worldview.  I homeschool because I love them so much sometimes that it hurts.  I homeschool because it is a powerful conviction.  I homeschool because it gives our family the gift of time.  It gives us the freedom to take some time off on OUR schedule and do what WE want.  I homeschool so we can spend extra time on things to let my kids follow their passions.  I homeschool because I have INVESTED kids who pour themselves into this or that.  I homeschool because some of my kids are dyslexic and I can do it better than the schools.  I homeschool because I love other homeschool kids.  I homeschool because I love other homeschool moms.  I homeschool because nothing else I ever do will matter as much as what I am doing right now.

[Terabith]

You know me.  I think there are huge benefits and distinct drawbacks to pretty much every form of schooling.  But my immediate thought is if the time is right to try an online class or two?  Maybe Athena’s Academy or something?  

My kids did express tremendous relief when they started at school.  I hadn’t realized how always being on the spot and not being able to hide was stressing them out so much.  They also genuinely believed they were the only kids having to struggle with some school work.  They didn’t believe me until they saw it with their own eyes.  If I could do it over again, I would try to figure out a way to replicate some of that sitting in class but not having to answer all the questions dynamic. I think they definitely did learn more when we homeschooled, however.  

Catherine is 13 and didn’t know flossing.  Anna eventually realized what it was and explained.  

You do an amazing job and have awesome kids!  

Edited August 16, 2018 by Terabith

[8filltheheart]

9 hours ago, BlsdMama said:

I homeschool for more time with my kids.  I homeschool because parenting is about so much more than homework, bath, dinner, bed and I WANT it.  I homeschool because there is more to prepping young adults for life than what they can give them in a school.  I homeschool because eighteen years goes faster than you think.  I homeschool because even on my worst days I'm with the ones I love the most.  I homeschool, despite the fact that it really has no outside atta-boys, because I know that what I'm doing has intrinsic value.  I homeschool because once I got past the middle chapter of my oldest daughter looking like "everyone else" and spending a few years at a university, when she got married and she had babies? She started buying all the books I'd read to her 100 times when she was little and she loved her childhood and wanted to emulate it.  I homeschool because it's a legacy.  I homeschool because I can read aloud to my kids in the middle of a rainy day that has been declared a cookie day.  I homeschool because it's hard and because I struggle and because I can show my kids that hard things are worth doing.  I homeschool because I can share my worldview.  I homeschool because I love them so much sometimes that it hurts.  I homeschool because it is a powerful conviction.  I homeschool because it gives our family the gift of time.  It gives us the freedom to take some time off on OUR schedule and do what WE want.  I homeschool so we can spend extra time on things to let my kids follow their passions.  I homeschool because I have INVESTED kids who pour themselves into this or that.  I homeschool because some of my kids are dyslexic and I can do it better than the schools.  I homeschool because I love other homeschool kids.  I homeschool because I love other homeschool moms.  I homeschool because nothing else I ever do will matter as much as what I am doing right now.

Kelly's post is so heartfelt and true.  

I guess it boils down to what do you view as the purpose of life. Is it to get up, go do this, go do that, be like everyone else, get at job, work until retirement, etc? That is not my goal and definitely not the lifestyle I want for our family. Our homeschool is nothing like a public school. I teach differently. We focus on different things. Our daily lives are different. School is not something I do with my kids. It is the way we live; homeschooling is our way of life. 

It is sort of akin to the differences in parenting philosophy. Is discipline something we enforce on our children or something we instill in them? That may seem like a simplistic question, but how it plays out in real life is a very different way of living. 

Life is more than fitting in with pop culture and being surrounded by large groups of friends.  One close friend can add more value to your life than a dozen close acquaintances.  (Pop culture has absolutely no bearing on how we live or what I value, so not knowing what flossing is would be more along the lines of a 2 sec blip of, well, now you do.  "Fitting in with pre-teen culture" is the antithesis of what I value. I am more of the mindset that we live in this world, but I don't hold the same values as it. 

Most importantly for me as a parent, I love the adults my children have become. Homeschooling has enabled them to achieve their goals while being true to themselves.

ETA: If you want to read a blog post I wrote about our severe dyslexic who graduated from college in May, here it is.  His journey would have been very different if he had not been homeschooled. https://treasuredconversations.wordpress.com/2018/05/01/to-infinity-and-beyond/ 

Edited August 16, 2018 by 8FillTheHeart

[fairfarmhand]

I have girls ages 20, 16, and 13. The 13 yo is hard, just like my older dds were at that age. Moody irritable etc. my older dds say though that they are soooo glad they did not have to go to school for middle school. Just think of it: a group of hundreds of irritable, immature, moody girls in one building! Add to that moody immature boys. 

My oldest fussed about going to school around that age. It was bad. But we finally talked and what she wanted was activities and friends. So I had to make those things important too. 

She thanked me when she was 18 for homeschooling her all the way through. She told me that she’d wanted to be in school at some point but she was wrong. It wouldn’t have been good.

Edited August 16, 2018 by fairfarmhand

[Rachel]

@BlsdMama I love your post! I need to print it out for those days I’m feeling burned out.

I hope your medical condition gets a miracle treatment that allows you to homeschool your little ones through. 

[Dmmetler]

When DD started to have major FOMO, we read books about teen culture (starting with “Queen Bees and Wannabees”) and fiction set in schools that was actually fairly realistic.  We also visited quite a few schools, both tours and shadow days, and paid close attention to the class level and what they were doing and the small amount of actual time for socialization (having a child with sensory issues for which bells and crowded cafeterias seem like something from Dante helped here). And once she started learning about some of the negative parts, she started to listen more to what her friends were saying. We still ended up needing to outsource more classes and find more social outlets to meet her teen needs, but she realized that school wasn’t a panacea. 

[Roadrunner]

My kids want to be home at least for now. The moment they express interest in PS, I am driving them without hesitation. Homeschooling if tough, and the income I haven’t been earning for years is starting to hurt us. I homeschool because my my children are willing and because they are thriving. But I have lost my identity when I walked out of my job and it deeply hurts knowing I can’t regain it. I can live with it because I see positive results in my children both socially and academically.