“Why did you homeschool your girls?” I have been hit with the questions more times than I can count. Along with all the stereotypes thrown at me about what they are missing due to being homeschooled. Thankfully, I have a very strong support system and a strong come back game, so if someone asks this question…it is their last time. (Insert smirk)
When my husband and I decided to have children we never thought nor considered homeschooling our kids as an option. We did look into the best public and private schools. I laugh now, but being homeschooled to me seemed like Wednesday from the Addams family when she said she is “cage schooled”, but it is far from that…I promise you. So I decided it would be best to breakdown a few reasons that why we choose that the best option for our family is to homeschool.
Safety has to be one of our top reasons as to why we homeschool. I’m sure you are aware of the increase in school shootings over the recent years. I can not imagine the horror those parents faced when they received the notifications on their phones or across the television. Our oldest was in public school for 3 months as I was pursuing my nursing degree and I legit camped outside the school for the first week. I just could not leave my baby there alone! It was short-lived and that brings us to another safety issue which is bullying. Kids can be so mean, and some adults will have the “suck it up ” attitude as if this is just a normal part of growing up. My girls have totally different personalities, but my oldest is my gentle one. She just loves everyone and can’t for the life of her understand why people want to be mean. Unfortunately, she did experience bullying from a kid, and that was the last straw for me. We refused to let this experience have a lasting effect on her, which will result in self doubt.
Natural talents are often neglected in school systems. No jabs to those who are teachers or who can not homeschool, but there is a system that has to be followed, and often times kids with special talents are often overlooked. With homeschooling we have the ability to allow the girls to perfect their natural crafts. Living in California has made this super easy because there are so many organizations that allow children to learn outside of the classroom. Due to COVID, we have had to move a lot of our activities online, but they are still learning. My 7 year old draws better than I ever have and it is completely natural to her. She owes that to her father. Both of my girls are also active in ballet, and other social cultural activities.
Cultural diversity has not been our normal since becoming parents. We have been stationed in areas that lack diversity. In many situations we are the only black family at the grocery store, movie theater, and classroom. I did not feel comfortable with having my girls in the areas that are not accustomed to children of color. I can hear your thoughts, “Oh, come on!!” Nope, I have experienced situations that were racially provoked, and it would just be unfair to put my kids in the situation to not be able to protect themselves. Now this is not the reality of many people, and I understand. But it is our reality. I could write an entire blog about this (and maybe I will) but it is sad to admit that we have to watch our children the same way my grandparents had to watch my parents. Sad, but true.
Travel is such an amazing perk of homeschooling. Since we are a military family my husband can’t always take leave when good deals are revealed, but we can drop everything and leave when it is granted! Awesome right?! And guess what? We also go on vacation when everyone else is in school, so can you say saving money!!!!! Also there are less crowds and we can link up with other homeschool families. I guess this is why people think we ballin out of control! HA! GOTCHA! Pre-Rona we experienced a ton of new experiences.
Love. I love my girls. I love being around them and having them close to me. I love being their example, and having new experiences with them. This blog is about honesty right? So let me be honest. Do I get tired? Yes! Do I wish some days I could send them to a class so I could have a moment alone? Yes!!! But it is worth me not being available to them right now? No its not. They need me in this overly cruel world right now. Prayerfully things will change one day, or I can at least trust the environment enough to allow them to take part in activities away from the homeschool life, but right now this is best.
Now, I don’t expect everyone to agree with my reasons, but this is my reality. We are a military family which means constant change. Homeschool life brings a sense of normalcy for the girls and our family. We do not have to worry about shot records, transcripts, and all of the other things that other families have to when moving from one state, or country, to the next. I also stand strongly next to those who choose to send their kids to school. It is so amazing to have the choices that we do but make sure to just do what is best for you and your family
