What is a day of homeschooling at your house like?
Education and our home life is so intertwined; it's hard to say where one ends and the other begins.
Many people think homeschooling is "school at home" with desks and chalkboards, but it's different from that. A lot of new homeschoolers try to recreate school at home with designated school rooms with student and teacher desks, chalkboards, posters, charts, purchased manipulatives, strict schedules, etc. Classrooms are very limiting, very boring, and tend to stifle the love of learning. We do have book and computer based learning in our home, but it is a smaller part of the whole experience.
We might combine science, reading, and math by doing something practical in real life. We have had lessons ranging from watching live animal births to learning how to repair cars to practicing stitching a wound to investing in the stock market to incubating eggs and selling the chicks to pay for the feed for our chickens. We take our children camping to teach them basic survival and first aid skills. We grow a garden and raise animals to teach them hands on where their food comes from, the effort it takes to produce it, how to get it from start to table, and how to preserve it so it lasts through winter. We try to introduce our children to a wide range of learning experiences and emphasize that learning is a lifelong and exciting journey.
You might see a group of children playing in our pool while I see children socializing and getting exercise while honing a useful life skill. You might join us on a trip to the grocery store where math becomes very practical and includes a bonus geography and history lesson from a friendly veteran. A trip to see a sporting event may include estimating the gas, meals, and lodging expense and then be followed by an essay telling the story of what we experienced. That essay would become a keepsake and go into their memory boxes. Living and learning are the same in our home.
Homeschooling, in our family at least, exploits the learning opportunities that come with daily living. You could visit and not realize homeschooling is happening around you.
Because each family is unique, homeschooling will look differently from home to home. Some families need much more structure and accountability to keep them disciplined in their approach. Others thrive best with no structure at all. We have a general schedule that is just right for us without being too stifling.
The best part of homeschooling my children is that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that God called me to do it. I also know He does not set His servants up to fail. I've reaped the fruit through the character and success of my oldest five children. I know God will work His will through my obedience and even my flaws as I continue homeschooling my youngest two children. His way of educating my children is turning out far better than anything I could have imagined, and I am so thankful He called me to this less traveled path!
Commit to the LORD whatever you do, and he will establish your plans. Proverbs 16:3
