During the almost two decades that I homeschooled, I tried hard to let my friends whose children were in school know that I wasn’t judging them. And, I usually wasn’t. I was too busy being hard on myself and wondering if I was making the right decision. When mothers would say to me, “I wish I could do homeschool, but…” I responded that it wasn’t for everyone and that there were many good educational paths.
In hindsight, my husband and I are thrilled that we homeschooled. Of course, our children missed out on certain positive experiences, but that is part of real life. Since no children are always in the perfect class in the perfect school with the perfect teacher, everyone misses out on certain positive experiences.
However, hindsight has also revealed how too many of my peers didn’t realize that the messages their children were receiving in school frequently ran counter to the family’s values and beliefs. They thought their children were learning math, literature, history and science; they didn’t realize that these were being packaged in an anti-faith, anti-patriotic and anti-family container. Even if the early years’ teachers were neutral, their children were ill-equipped to counter the hard-sell propaganda on college campuses.
So, instead of saying, as I once did, that homeschooling isn’t for everyone, I think I would phrase it differently today. Full-time homeschooling may not be for every parent, but every caring parent who does not walk in lockstep with the latest Leftist trends must homeschool. (Sadly, even many religious schools rely on material produced for public schools or have teachers who do not share the values the school touts. Parents should take nothing for granted.) For this reason, I was thrilled to read a step-by-step guide to being proactive in your school-attending child’s education.
Marina Medvin lays out a plan for four sessions of thirty minutes each, per week. If your response is that you can’t fit that into the schedule, perhaps it is time to re-evaluate what truly matters to you. You might chart a different course than she suggests, but the important part is recognizing that if you blindly place your child’s development in hands other than your own, you may be horrified to discover that you provided physical sustenance to your children, while those with whom you have little in common nurtured (or destroyed?) those children’s spirits and souls.
This. I was literally just praying to know if He would have us continue homeschooling (as haphazard but heartfelt that it is) or whether it was time to consider enrollment in our local public school. I got up off of my knees, opened my email and this was the email that opened. I feel it at least a message from God letting me know that whatever path is decided on, it’s going to be “okay.” Thank you!
Oh, Sarah, I know how overwhelming homeschooling can be. I hope you can take time for quiet reflection rather than make a decision in middle of tumult – though we sometimes don’t get that choice. I also hope that you have friends and resources to support you. God bless you and your family in whatever choice you make. And remember – each decision can be reviewed at another time.
<3 I love this. <3
I thought it was a great and doable idea, Gina.