How long should you homeschool? I think a lot of people aren’t sure what the answer to that question is. The truth of the matter, there is no one size fits all answer. You could homeschool to prepare your children to attend school; it could be for one semester to fill in for an energy situation. It could be for just one school year, or until they are ready to attend high school. And often it could be for their entire elementary education, until you see them off to college. There is no one size fits all.
The above picture is of my 5 year old granddaughter on her first day of school this past September. She was excited and rearing to go. How did she come about this great confidence and preparedness? I homeschooled her for 8 months preparing her for that day. When we started out she could not use scissors, tie her shoes, draw, identify money or read. But she is a very bright child, she had just not been taught these things. But then on the other hand she could count up to 100, spell her name, recognized all letters of the alphabet (upper case and lower case), knew all shapes and colors and she was so eager to learn. What I found early on in teaching her, was that her self-esteem was low and when she didn’t master something right away she became frustrated and felt she would never learn. During that 8 month period, I constantly told her how smart she was and that she would know how to read before she started school and everything else we were going over.
Her last day with me and 2 weeks before she started school we celebrated all her achievements by going out to lunch and letting her buy a couple of things at the dollar store with the money I had given her. She was so very excited because she was reading, her imagination had been stimulated and her drawing ability had soared. She could tie her shoes, sit and watch a movie for 1.5 hours, follow instructions and glowed in the daily routine we had setup. And today she loves school and is having a wonderful time! A lot of what they are doing is things she has already learned and her self-esteem continues to flourish.
Tovah (my youngest) was homeschooled until she started 8th grade. I started teaching her at a very early age; she could read before she was 5 years old. And though in her early years she went to preschool, I did not rely on them to give her what she needed, I still taught her in the evenings and on weekends.
I have friends who homeschooled their children from preschool to 12th grade. And I know of a family that homeschooled their son for only 1 year because the school they wanted him to attend did not have room for him in a particular grade and he had to wait a school year.
One year I helped a woman transfer her son into Cyber School because she was afraid that he was going to be attacked by a gang of boys. He had not attended school for over 4 weeks.
Contrary to popular belief, you do not have to homeschool your children for their entire elementary education if that is not what you want to do. Personally, I had no idea how long I would homeschool Tovah and even when she did start attending school, I still did not know until last year that she would not return to homeschooling. For one, it has been a financial struggle to pay tuition, and each year I had to see what God said about it. And each year someone has aided with tuition. Even last year her principal gave Tovah a substantial scholarship because it really looked as though she was going to have to leave and finish up high school as a homeschooler. It was a door that I did not close until 11th grade was well on its way.
The option to homeschool can be a God send to a child who is in trouble. I often wonder when I hear of a young person who commits suicide from being harassed and hounded in school, why didn’t their parents take them out of that environment and homeschool them? I have come to the conclusion that often people don’t really know that this is an option for them. And if you are in public school, they are not going to tell you it’s an option because they don’t want to lose the funding when your child transfers.
If you have been sending your child/children to private school and they close or financially you can no longer afford it, most often you may not want your child to attend the public school in your area and homeschooling is an option until you can figure out something else that is more conducive for your child and family.
How long you homeschool can range from 1 semester to 15 years (including preschool and K).
Why you homeschool can be anywhere from religious beliefs, getting a better education, special needs, to fear for your child’s safety.
Today my goal was to hopefully broaden peoples understanding and perspective on homeschooling, to see that it is a viable option for many people, not just a particular group of people.
I have an upcoming eBook “Single Parents Can Homeschool Too!” Look for it in the early part of 2011.
Love & Hugs
Ponnie
Next Thruday: Another great homeschooling story, but you will have to tune in to see who writes it! ~Smile~
Friday's Blog: An encouraging word for all women!
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