Why I Homeschool, part 2

11. There's no pressure to dress a certain way. We don't go shopping for school clothes in August, spending mega-bucks on the latest fashion so they feel they fit in.

12. Colds and flu virus' are at a low. We're not exposed to every disease going around town.

13. If it's gorgeous day we take off, walk, picnic, drive up to St. Louis for a special day, especially on Mondays when it's Dave's day off.

14. I love teaching. I think I have the heart of a teacher. I love asking Emma and Aidan questions, making them think through issues, subjects, testing their logic skills. I didn't do well in school. I was mediocre and I think a lot of that had to do with the fact that there was no one in my life pushing me. My parents never asked me about school, made sure I was doing my homework. And I don't recall teachers ever taking any interest in my learning skills. I insure my kids understand concepts, know important historical times/people (Because, like #4, I am (re)learning this stuff myself). And I want to make learning a natural part of their lives - not something segregated into a "School" category.

15. There's a lot of crap going on in public schools. Peer pressure from other students to junk that some secular educators want to pass on to students...we don't have to deal with that.

16. Our curriculum is fun. We use Sonlight and I love it. We read alot of historical fiction/biographies/missionary stories. There is a strong emphasis on reading. I appreciate the fact that Sonlight has such a strong emphasis on learning WORLD history, not just U.S.

17. I LOVE reading out loud. I do voices. This drives Aidan crazy. One of the last things we do for school is reading. Aidan and I snuggle on the couch and I read. It's a special time. I don't know how much longer he'll lay his head on my shoulder and patiently listen to my narration, so I cherish this time. It's my favorite time of the day. You may wonder where Emma is--she's studying world history and is pretty much on her own during the day. That leads me to #18...


18. The kids are gaining a certain responsible in scheduling their time to insure that their reading/math/writing lessons are accomplished by the end of the week. I give them a schedule on Mondays, detailing what they need to do by Friday. They are learning how to discipline their time.

19. Teaching my child to read is an amazing accomplishment. Aidan struggled with reading up until last year (4th grade). This year was a huge turn-around for him. I believe part of that was allowing him to read a book during school hours which was not on the school list - Eragon (and now he's reading Eldest). He saw the movie and wanted to read the book. He devoured it. Every other paragraph he would stop and tell me what was going on in the story. The excitement in his voice was contagious. Altering his reading schedule just slightly gave him the motivation and love for reading which he didn't have last year.

20. Okay last reason and probably the most selfish...I enjoy homeschooling for the routine it gives me. I know what I will be doing each day: 9am bible study/prayer; 10am spelling/dictation/history; 11am walk the dog while kids read; 12 lunch; 1 reading; 2pm math/dictation/tests. I never wander through my day, "What to do, what to do?"

Next posts will be the gritty truth from Emma and Aidan what that like/dislike about homeschooling. And I will let them be honest because I already know there are dislikes. Heck I have dislikes myself.