2nd question : Home Schooling

So the next question I'm answering was this: What are our views on home schooling, have we decided to do it with our kids and what are our reasons.

We remain open-minded about it. Right now our daughter is getting ready to start Kindergarten, and she did great in preschool. Basically, this is our theory:

It all depends on them. I wholeheartedly believe that some children need more one-on-one teaching than others, and being Christians, we also want our kids to learn as such. For a young mind it can be confusing to be learning evolution in school but learning God's Creation on Sundays and at home.

Right now, because Tay is so social and seems to be handling public school well, we will keep her in. Our plan is to supplement her education at home. If there are subjects that she seems to be struggling with, or if there is a subject that she would like to take on, or if there is a subject that she excels in and feel bored with at school, we will take it on at home. Once she is older we have plans to make her read the newspaper everyday and over the weekend, choose an article or subject to write her own opinion essay of.

If it turns out that she begins to show signs of needing to come out of school all together, then we will do so and start home schooling primarily, but once she is 11 or 12 she will have to take 1 or 2 classes at the public school.

I think one thing that home school kids fall victim to is social awkwardness. Despite doing "Home School Group" activities and group classes, I think it is vital to a young person to develop the social skills that come from public school at that age when they are starting to discover more about themselves as individuals.

Also, as Christians, I think it is a seriously important thing for them to learn how to interact with those who do not share the same faith and beliefs. Not being in a diverse religious environment does not allow them to learn that not only are people of other faiths good people to be friends with too, but how to stay strong and defend your own faith. Comfortably.

I draw these conclusions from my own experience as well as observing other young people who are or have began to develop signs of these struggles.

I believe it is not healthy for a young person to feel desperate to fit in with or be accepted by teenagers or adults. I did that, I preferred to stay and hang out with my friends' parents rather than with my friends, and it made me what I affectionately call "socially retarded" because I could not comfortably interact with people my own age.

I don't think there is anything wrong with home schooling and like I said before, it is an option, but I am all too aware of the risk of home schooled kids become "nerds" or "geeks" or socially awkward, and whatever path we choose for our kids, it will be influenced primarily by how their personalities develop. Either way, though, they WILL have public school experience, be it 1 or 2 classes or more.

Another thing I think is detrimental is to home school until Junior year in high school, then letting them do Junior and Senior year in a public school. I've seen several kids go through that and it's setting them up for a whole series of issues that I won't go into right now, but seriously, don't do it. It's not fair to your kids, and it only creates problems that you as the parents are going to have to battle, and you can avoid them completely......

That's my two cents on the issue. A lot of people disagree with my views about it, but take it as you will. It's from my own personal experience and what I've seen in others, but everyone is different, and as parents it's your right and your choice to do what you feel is best for your child, but honestly I've not met anyone who has gone through it as a home schooler that disagrees with me.

If you have any other questions, check out my list of facts and comment with your question!!