Benefits of Homeschooling
The day you find out you are going to be a parent is life changing. In that moment you know your life will never be the same. Everything changes, even the way you think and view the world. No longer are you making decisions for yourself but you are also making choices that impact the future generation. That notion is both powerful and terrifying.
One of the biggest decisions regarding children is how you plan to educate them. This is a choice that every parent will make and it sure isn’t easy. When evaluating school options for our little ones we couldn’t fully commit to the idea of public or private school. Yes, they were both great options but the pros didn’t outweigh the cons for us and we found the desire and love for homeschooling. We want to share our revelation with you. In this article, I am going to be discussing with you the top five benefits to homeschooling and why it may be right for your family.
Analyzing the Benefits of Homeschooling
My husband and I do not make decisions easily. It is actually a joke in our family about how thorough we are with every choice we have ever made from paint colors, cars, dinner choices and even parking spots! If any two people could over analyze something it’s us! So trust me when I tell you we have thoroughly evaluated every aspect of homeschooling. Below are the benefits of homeschooling that we came up with after hours and hours of discussion, we hope this will help your family in the decision process.
Top 5 Benefits of Homeschooling
Personalized Learning
Personalized learning is the one thing about homeschool that makes it unique and the most attractive to our family. All children learn at different rates and have unique learning styles. What works for one child will not always work for another. If you have more than one child then you know this already. My two kids are complete opposites in almost every way and hence the way I will educate them will be different. This is the beauty and one of the best benefits of homeschooling.
You are in control. You get to pick what your child will learn, how they will learn it and the timeline in which it is taught. That type of education is unrivaled. If your child is really struggling with a concept you can move slower until mastery is attained. Let’s say they really enjoyed learning about the weather and how it works, you can spend longer on that unit and explore deeper into their interests. Homeschooling allows a truly tailored education that allows you to focus on the needs and interests of your child. That one fact was the most driving desire behind our choice for homeschooling.
Flexibility
This is pretty obvious and anyone who has heard anything about homeschooling knows this is a big draw. However, it really is a huge advantage to discuss. Flexibility in homeschooling covers multiple facets. First and foremost, you have flexibility in your daily and yearly school schedule. Doctor’s appointments, life events, and familial obligations are just the essential and practical pieces that are not an issue when you homeschool. You also have the advantage of a shorter school day which allows for additional extracurriculars or simply unique events you would like to attend as a family.
Flexibility also applies to the academic portion of homeschool. Maybe you were using a curriculum that just wasn’t working and you needed to make a change, you can do that. Maybe, you want your preschooler to have exposure to a foreign language when they can learn it best, you can do that. You have the options, time, and flexibility to make your child’s education exactly what you envision for them. Flexibility is a huge benefit to homeschooling.
Real World Experiences
This is a bit of a spin off from both personalized learning and flexibility but we love that homeschool offers us an opportunity to teach our girls life skills. We feel that life skills are becoming a lost art and we want to provide our children an educational opportunity that builds in skills such as sewing, gardening and homemaking starting at an early age. This a huge benefit to homeschooling that public or private school can’t offer.
Homeschooling also provides opportunities for travel and hands-on learning in the real world. For instance, let’s say you are learning about marine life and want to see it first hand. You can pack up and head for the beach or aquarium. These are memorable experiences that solidify learning goals and promote retention. Not to mention, if you choose homeschooling over private school tuition you will have some extra money in the bank to provide these hands-on real life experiences.
Preserving Childhood
I can’t say enough about the precious and fleeting moments of childhood and the importance of its preservation. We live in a culture that is fast-paced and driven by monetary gain at all costs. Our children will soon enough learn this so why not provide them a true childhood where they can grow and learn at their pace. Let’s be part of a generation that allows our children to explore, think and grow in their own time. Let’s encourage quiet times, moments of solitude and experiences that nurture the mind and soul. Allowing this type of educational environment truly creates a love learning that lasts a lifetime instead of the “school year”.
When we homeschool we also get a say in who our children are around, what they watch and listen to and who the true influencers are in their life. This is a big deal. Ultimately, they will make their own choices but creating a childhood that allows them to be children without the exposure to things we are not comfortable with was huge for our family. Preserving childhood may be one of the most critical benefits of homeschooling.
Personal Values
Personal values and beliefs are another common reason many homeschool. This was also true for our family. It is important for us that our children are educated in a Christian environment that focuses on biblical truths and spiritual disciplines. Not only that but we want to ensure that values and positive habits such as: obedience, loyalty, honesty, dependability, and kindness are integrated into their learning experience. Homeschooling offers the ability to customize your curriculum and “school day” to fit your families values.
Homeschooling Books
I love books and there are some truly great books out there about homeschooling. Below I am listing some informative and inspiring books I have read about how to homeschool, homeschool philosophies and more.
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If you are considering homeschooling we hope this article on the benefits of homeschooling has helped you. We know that homeschooling is not for everyone but it does provide many great opportunities and benefits that simply can’t be achieved in the brick and mortar school setting.
Leave a comment, thought, advice or your experience below. We would love to hear from you!
