So, we started another year of school this week. Last year with everything that went on in our lives, we got behind and ended up doing school well into June. I am not a fan of that. So, I am determined to stay right on track this year. And since I already know some time we will be taking off in November for our vacation, I decided to go ahead and get going on it. So we started up Monday.
This year, we have Little Handsome in grade 2. As usual, he dove right in with great gusto. He loves school! And I love that he loves school! He definitely has the mind of his father. He is a thinker. Pumpkin started Kindergarten this year. We did K4 (preschool) with her last year, and it went okay. She is like her mother. She gets distracted easily and would rather be talking or socializing than sitting still doing schoolwork. But I am hoping that since she is a year older and somewhat accustomed to the way things work with school, that she will do a little better this year. I'll keep you posted. ;-)
Actually, I wasn't totally sure that we were going to home school again this year until just a few weeks ago. When we first moved here in December, we had the very generous offer presented to us for Little Handsome's schooling to be paid for at the Christian school. We were blown away by this offer. To attend the Christian school here costs around $6000!
We originally started homeschooling when Little Handsome was starting K4. We didn't really like the option we had for Christian school, and public school just isn't an option for us. So we have home schooled thus far.
I didn't really think it would be such a hard decision for me, but it was. Mr. Handsome told me he wanted me to make the decision, since I am the one who oversees all the homeschooling. I prayed about it. I thought about it. I prayed about it. I asked people who had children in the Christian school what their feelings were on the school. I asked others who had both home schooled and sent their kids to the Christian school. I went and visited the Christian school - twice. And I prayed. I can tell you it was a decision that I literally would stay awake at night trying to decide. I don't know why it was so hard. But it was.
Finally, I came to this conclusion - I could not decide. So I told Mr. Handsome that I just wanted him to decide. And he immediately said, "Then we are homeschooling. I can tell that's what you really want." And you know what, he was right. That is what I really wanted. So that was that.
I know not everybody understands our decision to do this. There is a very good Christian school here in town. And we had the opportunity to send our kids there at no cost to us! Are we crazy? Maybe. But I firmly believe that we are making the right decision. I feel very strongly about this. Let me explain.
First of all, I want to say that I realize homeschooling is not for everyone. And I do not look down at anyone who does not choose to home school. No offense should be taken. I'm just stating how we feel for our family. So lets get that clear. :-)
Our main reason to home school is not a "religious" reason. No, our main reason is actually education. We don't feel that public education gives a top-notch education. I realized this a few years ago when I was at youth group. Hearing our teens try to read even simple words and having trouble took me back. Reading is the foundation to so much of life - a child should be able to read and sound out words that they don't know. The more I looked into it, I realized that public education was not for us. And while Christian schools do seem to do a better job in the education department, I was already leaning more towards homeschooling anyways.
And now we get to the ever famous "socialization" part. If I had a penny for every time someone mentioned this to me when we talk about homeschooling - I'd have a lot of pennies. To me this is one of the "dumbest" reasons a person would use to send their child to school. If anything, it is a reason to NOT send them to school. They are exposed to so much at earlier and earlier ages now, and I prefer to decide who I let me children be with and when. And I prefer to let them learn about facts of life, etc. from us through a godly, biblical perspective. Call me overprotective, call me controlling. I don't care. That's how I feel about it.
My children do "socialize" with kids their age. The have their siblings, but they also have lots of friends at church. We go over to friends houses and they play at friends houses. Good grief! How much socializing does a person need?
Some of the other reasons we home school is the freedom that it gives us. Mr. Handsome is a pastor. Their hours are different than a lot of people's. Their day's off are not usually Saturday, and definitely not Sunday. Their vacations are at different times (like our main vacation time this year is November). Homeschooling gives us the freedom to take time off whenever we want to. Often times, we will take Monday off to do family things, since that is Mr. Handsome's day off. I love the freedom that we have to do that!
I also love to be so involved in what my kids are learning. I like seeing them catch on to a new concept. I love knowing exactly what all they are learning, and seeing firsthand their progress. It is exciting to be so involved.
Those are just some of the reasons that we have chosen to home school. We decided that we will take each year and evaluate, but as of now, we are loving the homeschooling life. Yes, it does get tiring. Yes, some days I wish I could ship my kids off somewhere for a little time to myself and some peace and quiet. But I can already see how quickly time goes. We only have a few short years with these children. Before I know it, they will be grown and gone and making decisions like these for their own kids. God has given us now, this present time, to shape and influence our children. I just pray we can do our best to train the in the way that they should go.
So all that is to say we are back to school. Its going well so far and I am loving being back in a more structured routine for each day.
Until next time...
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