People often ask the same questions when they find out we are homeschooling. Here is my personal homeschooling FAQ.

Will you homeschool all the way through school, until they are "graduated" from high school?
I figure I will help them learn outside of school until they are in
their teens and want to take classes that a community college could
teach better than I could. I figure they’ll take some classes there,
get a feel for the institution of school, and decide what they want to
do after that. GED? Fine. Tech school? Fine. College? Fine. Apprentice?
Fine. Play music on street corners while they travel the world? Fine. I
will have set them up for a lifetime of loving learning.

What will you do if the child comes to you and says, "I want to go to regular school"? Will you let them? Why or why not?  First,
I’ll discern what they feel they are missing. A 6-year-old may simply
desire a lunch box, a trip to a cafeteria, and a ride on the city bus.
An older child may want more structure to his/her days, or a portfolio
so that they can see all they’re learning. Or perhaps they would thrive
with another extracurricular activity, class, or social organization.
If they are in their teens, they can go to "regular" school at the
junior college.

The kids will also grow up knowing that kids who go to school need
to get up early every day even if they are still tired, that they must
ask permission to pee, and can only eat and play when the teacher okays
it. They can’t read whatever book they want whenever they want, and
they can’t keep learning about something they are really into once the
teacher says it’s time to move to the next topic. Marian is only 4, but
she knows that some kids have to go to school and that some kids get to
learn at home and in the community/world.

If, with all they know about it, they still wanted to attend public
school, and the ones available to us are good (safe and good
education), then I would let them attend for a trial period to see how
it affects them and the family. Homeschooling is a lifestyle, not just
an educational choice. One child attending public school in a
homeschooling family can dictate huge changes from the entire family,
and so this is not a choice that is only the child’s to make.



Why are you homeschooling? My short answer? Because the lifestyle works for our family. My long answer?...

I like having my kids around. I like being together as a family. I
like that my kids will grow up following their own interests, living
and interacting in the real world with real people, instead of biding
their time in an artificial setting waiting until they can join the
"real world." I love that they will mature with their natural love of
learning still intact.

In addition, my children will also receive:

An excellent education tailored to their interests and learning styles.

Moral and practical socialization.

Good nutrition–No cafeteria food and vending machines.  Enough
said.  We also have some severe food allergies in our family that are
better managed at home.

A safe environment--No drugs, violence, or unsupervised bullies.
When they do encounter bullies when they are older, I feel they’ll have
a better foundation for dealing with them, and they will hopefully feel
closer to me and more secure in our relationship to seek parental
support. In addition, the real world doesn’t put up with bullies and
drugs, so why should my 8-year-old have to?

Strong family bonds–Lots of time learning and playing together and knowing each other.

Family flexibility–We have no rigid schedules, we have field trips every day, and we can go on vacation any time of year.

Good influences and values–once children start school, their primary
influence shifts from family to peers. Why would I want a complete
stranger’s child as the primary influence on my child? How could they
possibly do a better job teaching my children acceptable standards of
behavior and good values than I could?

Minimal commercialism–We are a TV-free family; while in schools
there are TVs in classrooms, billboards on the field, ads on the walls,
and peers concerned about having the "best" of everything.

What led you to the decision to homeschool?  I was
most of the way through my teacher certification in college when I
realized I would be dropping off my kids to be one of 30 students with
a teacher who can never do enough, while I would go to my classroom to
teach 30 children what would never be enough.  Something clicked and it
just felt wrong to do that when I could give my children a superior
education with a lot more individual attention, freedom, and safety.



Does your husband support homeschooling? Does your family?
Yes and yes. I'm divorced now, but my ex-husband fully supports
homeschooling, even going so far as to pay more than the required child
support so that they can remain homeschooled.  They all had their
doubts, but they evaporated after talking to me and seeing our kids
grow and learn so far.



Do the children get social interaction with other children (either in regular school or homeschooled)?  Socialization
is truly a non-issue. Please take note just how much I can write about
a non-issue. ;) lol Yes, my kids do and will get plenty of social
interaction. I think my kids will get more and better socialization
being homeschooled than they would in a public school. They’ll interact
with children of all ages (not just same-age peers) on playdates, in
community classes (dance, yoga, sports, music, etc.), with
homeschooling groups, in Campfire Kids and Spiral Scouts, and with
neighborhood friends. They’ll also be comfortable with adults of all
ages, since they will be around them every day as we live out "real
life"–errands, volunteer work, library, etc. Didn’t you ever hear the
words, "We are not here to socialize" from a teacher when you were in
school?

 Many others have said this very well.  See for yourself.

From http://www.homeedmag.com/INF/STRT/strt_faq.html:  "[Schools]
classify and segregate children by age and ability, reinforce class,
gender and racial prejudice, and strip from children the right to any
real interaction or private life. Socialization, in this respect,
becomes submitting one's will to that of the group (or person in
charge). This is not the basis for healthy relationships. Home educated
children, because they spend so much of their time out in the real
world, generally are able to communicate well with both adults and
children and to have friends of all ages. They choose to spend time
with others because they enjoy their company or have a similar interest
- just like adults."

From http://www.nhen.org/nhen/pov/editors/default.asp?id=157:  "The
idea of learning acceptable social skills in a school is as absurd to
me as learning nutrition from a grocery store. As Homeschoolers, the
world is our classroom. We interact with people of all ages, sexes and
backgrounds. We talk to and learn from everyone who strikes our
interest. We use good manners in our home and I'm always pleased when
others comment on the manners my children have picked up. I believe
good manners to be an important social skill. Respecting common areas
is also of value to us. We often carry a grocery bag with us on walks,
in case we find trash that needs to be discarded. When we're waiting at
a bus stop, if there is trash on the ground, we make a point to carry
it onto the bus and discard of it properly. Once, while waiting at a
bus stop, we saw a grown man drop his popsicle wrapper on the ground.
He was 2 feet from a trash can. My daughter looked up at me with eyes
as big as saucers. I told her (out loud), 'It must have blown out of
his hand from that little wind, because no-one would throw trash on the
ground on purpose. I'm sure when he's done with his popsicle, he will
pick it up and throw it away correctly -- otherwise, we can take care
of it so we don't have an ugly world.' He did pick it up, rather
sheepishly. I can't imagine expecting my children to have a respect for
the cleanliness of common areas in an environment where bathroom walls
are covered in graffiti and trees are scratched with symbols of 'love'
of all things.

"Another social skill we strive to teach our children is that all
people are created equal. I can't imagine doing that in an environment
where physically disadvantaged children are segregated into a "special"
classroom. Or even children who speak a different language at home.
They are segregated and forced to learn English, while never
acknowledging the unique culture they were raised in, and not enabling
the other students to learn FROM them. Learning, in school, comes from
the books and teachers. We will learn Spanish from a BOOK, not from a
Spanish-speaking student, and not until 7th grade.

"I have never felt it would be beneficial to stick my 6-yr. old in a
room full of other 6-yr. olds. I believe God created a world full of
people of all ages and sexes to insure that the younger ones and older
ones learn from each other."

Any other questions?  ;)