If you are new to homeschooling, I would like to welcome you to the homeschooling community!  Whether you are extremely excited (and purchasing enough curriculum for your entire neighborhood) or biting your nails and wondering -How am I going to do this? – you are embarking on a wonderful journey.

So, relax, and enjoy this very special time. Since you are new to homeschooling, you may worry about the tremendous responsibility of personally overseeing your child’s education, asking – How can I be sure I will do a good job?  That is an excellent question. Let’s go back a few years…

Remember, not long ago, when you were responsible for a dear little one who could not speak or understand any language, could not walk, could not even handle basic needs like going to the bathroom? This little one also had many other things to learn (how to hop, skip and jump, use a straw, print the letter A – but space does not permit me to list all of the tasks you were determined to accomplish with this precious child . 

Like many moms, you may have chosen to do one or more of the following to tackle any or all of the challenges you faced:

• Purchase a book
• Consult an expert (your own mother, neighbor, friend, doctor, or other professional)
• Tackle it primarily on your own with the help of your immediate family.

Amazingly, a few short years later, it is likely that unless there are physical impairments, your child is fluent in English, walking on his own, able to go to the bathroom without assistance, and printing the letter A!  Hat’s off to you and your child!  Some of you have even accomplished these same feats with 5, 6 or more little darlings at once .

But, aren’t academic subjects different?

Let’s examine this a little further.  Personally, as a Christian parent (and I’m certain this would be true for parents of most religions), nothing is more important to me than my son’s religious training.  If you are a Christian, you may take your child to Church and Sunday school. You may or may not have enrolled them in a Christian school at one time.  Notwithstanding all this, it is likely you did not rely on any of these sources entirely for your child’s religious training. The things that you believe critical to your child’s well-being and best interests – no doubt, you personally train them in these areas.  The Bible, of course, instructs us to train up our children in the way they should go.

Now, why would you as a parent – when there is perhaps a seminary trained pastor/teacher preaching God’s Word on Sundays, a wonderfully gifted Sunday school teacher teaching your child’s Sunday school class, and college educated (and perhaps certified) Christian school teachers teaching your child during the week, still feel the need to personally oversee your child’s religious training?  Most parents are not theologians. Many are not necessarily better educated than their child’s Sunday school and/or Christian school teachers. Yet, on this most important matter, they, like perhaps you, feel it imperative to personally teach God’s word to their children themselves.  Why?

The answer is obvious, of course – you love your child. You love your child and want to make certain that he receives the best religious training.  You want to make sure he loves the Lord with his whole heart.  You want to make certain that he knows that God loves him very much.  So many other things you want to be certain of – and no doubt, because you feel it is important, you oversee that training yourself.

In this matter, you are not unlike most good parents who have chosen to place their children in public, private and parochial schools. In the evening, after their children have spent hours with professionally trained teachers, these parents still believe it is important that they check on how their children are doing. They may help them with their homework, tutor them, hire a tutor, purchase extra books, supplement with other curriculum in the summer.  Why would they do this, even when they believe their children are likely receiving a good education?  Because they believe it is too important to rely solely on other experts.  They love their children.

Academic training is very important.

I wouldn’t say that it is more important than your child’s religious training, however.  So back to your question — Since I am new to homeschooling, how can I be sure that I can handle such an important responsibility? — You have taught this child to speak and understand English (and perhaps another language if you are bilingual).  You have taught him about fingers, toes, cheeseburgers, how to use the potty and to say please and thank you.  On the very critical matter of his religious training, while you may consult books, family members and religious leaders, you maintain direct oversight of your child’s religious education, precisely because it is so important – too important to solely rely on others, no matter how well-trained they may be.

You love your child.  Although you are new to homeschooling, you will make certain that he has the instruction that is best for him.  As you may have with your child’s religious training, there will undoubtedly (and blessedly) be times where you will utilize, books, curriculum, family members, teachers, etc., but with academics, as in your child’s religious training, you have decided that his education is too important to solely rely on anyone else – no matter how professionally trained.  At least for now, you have decided to directly oversee his education yourself.  Maybe you want to make sure that your little one truly enjoys learning and isn’t stifled by uninteresting texts when living history opportunities are all around you.  Maybe you want to challenge a student who has become bored.  Maybe you want to slow down the pace so that your child can achieve mastery learning at a speed just right for him.

Whether for one reason, or for a million and one reasons, you have chosen to homeschool.  You are new to homeschooling, but you will do a wonderful job.  You are new to homeschooling, but you will make sure that your child receives an education that is pleasing to God.  You may consult textbooks.  You may consult other moms.  You may consult professional teachers.  You are new to homeschooling, but you will teach your child well.  How can you do it?  You can do it the same way you have undertaken all the other critical matters in your child’s upbringing — with the faith and determination that grow out of the profound love you have for your child.

Welcome to homeschooling. May God bless you and those precious to you.

Have a joy-filled day!

In the past seven days, my son has finished winter basketball, completed a soccer evaluation, attended band class and four other group classes.  Later this morning he will join other young would-be speedsters in a “Pinewood Derby” race.  His schedule this week has also included Sunday School and Family Night at our church – and he had his braces adjusted .  I haven’t even mentioned the studies we do at home, or the wide variety of curriculum we use, but you can already see that we have found lots of resources to enhance our homeschool.  I’m looking forward to talking with you about many of the considerations (and limitations – like budget) that go into a search for resources.  But this morning, before I even turned the light on, it occured to me that the best place to begin our discussion might just be to think about why we have chosen homeschooling in the first place.  Why one-on-one?

When we speak about reasons for homeschooling, we often include the well known benefits of a one-on-one education.  Does this mean that we always keep our children at home, and only provide instruction to one child at a time?  A quick re-read of my son’s activities this past week suggests that we might mean something else.  When I am talking about the merits of one-on-one, in addition to the obvious benefits of one-on-one teaching, I also mean one-on-one planning.  Specifically, I am referring to the benefits of a parent led education.  Homeschooling parents teach many subjects at home.  As needed, we work with each child individually to help them grasp new or challenging concepts.  However, before we sit down to a math lesson, or drive to a science co-op we plan individually for our children.  This one-on-one planning leads us to seek out group kung fu lessons for one child, and ”Introduction to Poetry” classes for another.  We sit at the kitchen table to work with a math-resistant child in the morning and count out coins in a piggy bank.  In the afternoon, we take the same child to community theater rehearsals, where her smile (and talent) light up the room. 

The one-on-one in homeschooling makes this all possible.  The one-on-one in homeschooling leads us to choosing curriculum – or creating our own.  We find a class that best meets the needs of our children, or we start a co-op.  We meet for group instruction at libraries, churches, community colleges, even a friend’s house, or we invite other families to join us in the backyard for cool science experiments.  As we get swept up in our exciting discussions of where and how to find math curriculum, and when to toss the book in favor of macaroni noodles , lets not forget our starting point, that one-on-one educational plan that we are constantly reassessing for each child.  The greatest advantage of our decision to homeschool, to plan one-on-one for each child, is that we are reminded about the real reasons that we are seeking out the resources.  We are not looking for resources to teach some math, or to teach some theater.  We are looking for resources to teach some one, a child. 

I’d love to hear your thoughts.  Take good care.  -Joyce