Question:
I realize this has nothing to do with Oxycise!, but I know there are a number of folks on this board that homeschool. I have a little "debate" going with one of my siblings about this and I wanted to take a poll here and see what the results were.

If you homeschool your children, or have a close friend or relative that homeschools.... what is the principle reason for your/their decision to do this?

Just curious. Thanks!

Choices:
Academics
Religion
Personality/temperment of children
Convenience/scheduling
Other

 

While all of those poll choices are definitely benefits of homeschooling, none of them is the principle reason. Not trying to be difficult, but I think it's nigh on impossible to simplify this subject enough to be able to give a one word response.

Out of curiosity, btw, would you mind sharing what the debate is? I'm being nosey.

I can't speak for myself because I haven't done this but -- A friend of mine homeschooled her kids starting in 1st grade. The reason she talked with me about was that she didn't want her kids exposed to kids that didn't behave, etc. She felt that they socialized enough with people in church for her kids to develop a peer group and it was easier for her to control who her kids played with. This was years ago in a fairly small Minnesota town - not in the big city.

All of the above! Plus, I believe that the school environment squashes a child's creativity, over schedules them, undermines their strong points while emphasizing their weak points, etc. Also, I feel that evil influences are entering more and more into the schools. That said---my children have also had some great experiences and wonderful, dedicated teachers when they have been in school. The only problem? Those wonderful teachers and experiences are few and far between. Thanks, Kelly, for asking!
Jennifer

EmBe.... I realize the choices I gave were broad, and that's why I just said the "principle" reason. As far as why I asked....it's really too complicated to get into in detail. As I've shared before, our state is in the process of education reform and there have been lots of ups and downs (mostly downs) as a result. It's a very emotional topic for me right now and I'm just trying to deal with it all (and all my options).

I understand Kelly, and I shouldn't have pried into your business. Jennifer, those are all wonderful reasons you added as well. I've been thinking about your question, Kelly, and I think I've come up with a fairly good short answer. Our principle reason for homeschooling is that we feel we can follow God's leading in raising our children more easily by not having given over partial responsibility for them to someone else.

Kelly,

I know I answered your question on the IM, but I wanted to add my $.02. We started homeschooling because of problems with teachers, and we soon realized that we loved the flexibility that homeschooling allows. We live on a ranch, and our children are exposed to several kinds of animals and all that goes with them. They have the responsibility of caring for most of them, with my dh's help. We just love the closeness that comes with working together as a family. We have our times of having to work through disagreements and such, but for the most part, it's just wonderful. Our older boys have been able to help with neighborhood brandings and other activities that they would've missed out on otherwise. The actual "book learning" only takes about 3 or 4 hours per day, so that leaves them plenty of time to read or explore the great outdoors. If we lived in town, we'd probably spend lots of time in libraries and museums, I think....but then, it's been YEARS since we lived in town...
Anyway, I enjoyed reading the reasons the others gave...but this is why and how we started. This ends our 14th year!
Susanna

Hello,

I am relatively new here and have been exploring the boards. I know this is an old topic now, but I'd like to vote, if anyone is still watching this subject, LOL.

I would say that my answer falls somewhere between *academics* and *other.* First of all, I feel like a minority in the homeschooling world, being somewhere between a secular and pagan homeschooler. My son's prechool was a co-op, and some of us moms spearheaded a pilot co-op kindergarten extention program that has just completed its first, fabulous year! What I lovd about the co-op was the strong community and strong parental support (there is a parent-ed/childhood development class that is part of the preschool). So my oldest son attends this school 2 days/wk, along with a Spanish class we also developed. I homeschool the other days, using a modified Charlotte Mason approach. I was turned off by the mechanical public school system right at kindergarten orientation and was very put off when I was given a hard time about wanting to talk with the teacher about how she was teaching, and visit the class with my son to get acquainted with the program. I remembered disagreements with authority and establishment when I was a high-schooler, and I began to feel very turned-off. I also feel very strongly that the current standardized-test climate is having a very detrimental effect on the educational quality of the school system. Not that I blame teachers, they are stuch with whatever the government tells them they have to do. I personally hope that more charter schools will happen, as they allow for innovation and development of new concepts. They will still require federal testing unfortunately.

So, my long-winded answer is that I homeschool for the ability to attend a wonderful community co-op that I am heavily involved with, and to offer education in innovative ways that work for us. And because I've been a non-conformist waaay to long to stop now, LOL. I love that you asked about this, Kelly. I hope you'll get to read my reply.

Peace,
Erin

Thanks for taking the time to reply to this, Erin. I like it when people find "old" posts and bring them back to the top. I have a couple of polls on favorite positions and how people first learned about Oxycise! that I like to bring back to the top every so often.

Here's my two cents Kelly.
My husband was homeschooled for most of his education. We saw the benefits in his life.
We love that we can teach what we want our children to learn, I hate to see all the horrible things that go on in public schools, (my dh used to subtitute teach). All the garbage that they teach our kids is not something I want my children exposed to.
There is something so special about being the one to see your child read his/her first words, watch them as they are excited about something new that they have learned.
There is so much flexibility in scheduling your days, my dh often has to work out of town and we can pack up our school stuff and go with him. If we had attended a regular school I would never be able to do that.
We have the freedom to incoperate the kind of Christian education that we feel is imperative.
We are more in control of what outside influences our kids will have. In a classroom we have no control over what a teacher may or may not say. My daughter is smart and she knows right from wrong, truth from lies. We visited a church recently where the preacher said some things that were not quite right and boy was my dd mad, she said out loud for all to hear " that's not true..." and proceeded to tell what he said wrong and why. I can just see her doing the same thing at school, and I would not be there to answer her questions, and help her understand the situation.
God gave me a child to raise and train up in the way he/she should go. How can I responsibly do this If I am entrusting her to a school system that has a very poor track record. God did not give my child to the school system He gave her to me and it is my job to raise her the best I can. I truly believe that Homeschooling is what God would have me do and is the right decision for our family.
Michelle

I know homeschooling is becoming a real big deal these days in my area of central Florida. I know in my neighborhood half the children are homeschooled. It seems more mothers are home with their children than they were twenty years ago. I think it's a good thing. jeans

I was interested to see the homeschooling topic on the boards. Kelly, I understand what an emotional issue this can be. It was a source of marital strife between my dh and I for almost 12 years. I felt led to homeschool our bunch and he did not share my passion. I felt God was leading me in this decision but he did not share my feelings. Our youngest is now 16 years old and will be starting 10th grade shortly. Two are out on their own now and #3 will start college in a few weeks. All are emotionally stable, Godly young adults (I just knew they would all turn out to be juvenile delinquents if I didn't homeschool them!!). I guess what I am trying to say is whatever decision you make, just trust God. He is ultimately in control and will not let any harm come upon them if you entrust them in His care. I still wish I could have had the opportunity to homeschool my children, but things did turn out OK, I'll keep you in my thought and prayers - let me know what your decision is.
Love,
Deb

Okay, I just haaddd to post since Susanna told me this was here. I have just recently decided to homeschool my five year old who will be starting kindergarten. The reason I chose this was a number of factors...hope this doesn't turn out to be a book. First and foremost, we are stationed in Las Vegas, Nevada...schools here are ranked 49 out of 50...enough said about that. Second, something my husband was always saying finally got to me..."Kids are in school half of their life" he was saying this when I wanted her to go to preschool or something and he said she didn't need to go any more than what was "required". The more I thought about it the more I thought he was right. Then reading all kinds of websites and realizing that for 13 years of my daughter's life people that don't even know her well are going to be telling her what she can do and when she can do it. 7 hours a day has got to be exhausting for little kids. Anyway, another reason. School bullies. She's already had problems in headstart and I don't want my kid going through what I went through. Another reason...absolute paranoia. I don't want my child shot because someone else has a vegeance or is on too much medication. Plus, I love the flexibility. If I want to visit relatives during the year or something, then I can just pack her schoolwork and go, no worrying about days missed or anything like that. She's really into dancing and stuff like that so now I can find classes at any time instead of worrying about finding some for right after school or evening or whatever. So many more reasons but I don't want to stretch this any farther. My husband has plenty of his own too. You can find lots of pros and cons just by typing in a homeschool search and there are soooo many websites. That's how I found CLASS at http://www.homeschools.org It's a Christian based homeschool program and it sounds great. I can't wait to get my materials to start! Okay, enough said. Just had to add my thoughts.

Hey I just thought I would add that I was homeschooled from second grade and all four of my siblings from the beginning of school. In my opinion, we got a great education we had personalized attention and there was always someone to help when you didn't understand, and not to toot my own horn here but, I have been going to college and have a 4.0 and my sister is soon to be published writer. I don't know what my other 2 sisters or my brother will go on to do because they are still in school but I do know they receive excellent marks and both girls plan to go on to college.
I think It's great if you have the patience.

Mandy

I live in a apartment complex in a small town, although back in the midwest in a larger city I didnt personaly know anyone who homeschooled, out here in the west, in northern nevada 2 of my neighbors homeschool..In the building across the way a family of mormons homeschool for religous and other reasons and over by the mailboxes there is a pagan/wiccian family who homeschools also for religous and creative beliefs and differences..
but although the primary reasons in both these cases are based a bit on religon I think they have alot of other reasons too ..

But its extremely common here in carson city , nv I have met more homeschoolers here in this tiny town then I have ever seen in alot of the other places I have lived and I have lived in a few places! Its also very rural here though and gets more and more rural the further from Reno you go and I think that has to do with some of it, there are towns here that in winter, aint no one getting out of their homes to go anywhere cuz of the mountian snow, and I think in very rural mountian communities you will see alot of homeschooling .

And for me since most of the ppl who posted do homeschool or had thought about it, I had thought about it, for alot of the same reasons as someone was saying about bullys and fears and wanting to protect them, but I ended up putting my son into kindergarten 5 years ago anyways and have really had alot of luck, never had a problem with any of his schools or teachers , he has never been hurt, I dunno if I am just flat out lucky or what, but he has had a blast and loves school and is going into the 5th grade still loving it , so when it has come time for my daughter to start kindergarten this fall I sat and thought about it again, she is a little bit different of a character then her brother, I am not totally sure how well she is going to do in kindgergarten to be honest, but I am for now deciding to go on and send her on in to public school just like I did her brother, and I am ok with my decision but I do keep my mind open, I am not one of those who make a decision and then thats it I am done..no I dont think life ever works like that, I am open to change if either one ever shows difficulty at school or if I am finding out they are being hurt in any way, I will pull them out faster then anyone could blink..lol
So I guess for me its a daily decision and not just a one time decision you know?
and it may even come to be that I will homeschool one and not the other, you never know and if that has to happen, it just does, being as children are individuals I dont think anyone can ever say homeschool or reg school or private school is the best choice for EVERY child, it really truely honestly depends on the child and that includes siblings too, what is really good for my son, may not be for my daughter, I wont know till time tells me , you know?

Ok I know that I already posted a while back, but I have been thinking about this topic lately. And I have added a new reason, I still believe all the others but here is just one more to add.
Children grow up so fast and we only have them for a short time, I want to spend as much time as possible with my daughter, watching her discover new things, see her frusterations, her successes her passions, her joys. I love it when she gets so excited because she finally accomplished something she has been working so hard at. I would miss so much of her life if I sent her off to school. I love to be there to help her through a particularly difficult problem or frusteration and I know most teachers do not even have the time to handle things the way that I would.
Also a friend of mine pulled her son out of the school here and she had him tested, she found out that he was 4 years behind ( but his teachers did not think he was!) anyway she has spent the last 18 months trying to get him caught up! I want my child to get a good education and obviously that won't happen at the local school.
Michelle

Now this poll I can pinpoint the exact year I posted: May of 2004. They were consolidating the school my kids went to and I was trying to make some informed decisions about what to do. I think we ended up making the right choice... or at least what was right for us.

If my kids were young and I was starting all over again, I would seriously consider homeschooling. As it is now...I'm looking at an empty nest in just over a year!

quote:

Originally posted by Kelly S.:
I realize this has nothing to do with Oxycise!, but I know there are a number of folks on this board that homeschool. I have a little "debate" going with one of my siblings about this and I wanted to take a poll here and see what the results were.

If you homeschool your children, or have a close friend or relative that homeschools.... what is the principle reason for your/their decision to do this?

Just curious. Thanks!

My daughter home schools her children and all the choices you gave are her reasons.
Ruth