Why Do We Homeschool? Running Towards the Beauty of Home Education

We. Are. Homeschoolers.

Yup.  Those people.  The ones who are brave enough to commit ourselves to 18 years or more of never getting to shove our kids out the door shouting ‘have a great day’ (which I believe there are days in which I will regret this). The people that stress out about being smart enough to teach their kindergarteners to read.  The people that are insane enough to want to be around our tiny humans 24 hours a day, seven days a week.  Yes…we are homeschoolers.

And one of the questions we get asked about all the time – especially since I used to be a teacher in my parish’s (county for you non Louisiana dwellers) school system is why we choose to homeschool.  It really makes people wonder.

But first, I want to tell you what is NOT on our list of reasons to homeschool.

We are NOT homeschooling due to fear of the increasing school shootings in our nation.  This is a terrifying aspect of public schooling today, but I have trust in God that His plans are good, even in the bad things.  So we won’t be homeschooling out of fear of school shootings.

We are NOT homeschooling because of my distain for the Common Core curriculum.  As a teacher, I found the initiative very streamlined to only let those students who excelled in expression to achieve.  I also found the curriculum to be very taxing on teachers, who were basically instructed to teach to a test. UGH. But regardless, we are not homeschooling for that reason either.

We are NOT homeschooling because of my hatred for standardized tests and assigning a child a worth based on their test scores.  Which is just so…sad.

We are NOT homeschooling because of a fear of indoctrination in things that go against our Christian beliefs.  I do believe this is a real thing, but we aren’t homeschooling because of it.

We are NOT homeschooling because we are afraid of outside influences negatively affecting our children.

We are NOT homeschooling because we are sad about not seeing our children all day long (sometimes, that actually sounds blissful!).

See, we aren’t homeschooling because we are running away from anything.  No.  WE are choosing to homeschool because we believe we are running to something better for our family.

We are running to…

… a life we believe God has called us to.

…a childhood filled with lots of literature, music, read-alouds and nature studies.

…a life filled with travels and sightseeing our nation, as well as others.

…a family that serves through missionary work in our area as well as other countries.

…lots of outdoor playtime and exploring.

…learning through play, work, and life-skills.

…a home environment where learning and play are so intertwined that our tiny humans can pursue their passions and curiosities every day.

…an education that is tailored to each individual child and their own way of learning and developing.

But most importantly, we are running to a life where our children’s education is just as founded on the Word of God as their home life is.

Fear is never a reason to do anything.  Fear is a lie from the enemy that freezes us and causes us to make decisions that aren’t God’s will.  There is nothing wrong with school in any form, if that’s God’s will for your family.  But in our home, through much prayer and petition, we have decided to homeschool.  To run towards these dreams of ours with God blowing the wind on our backs to keep us moving.  We have made huge sacrifices in order to run towards this life – sacrifices that include my career and a dual income.  Sometimes those sacrifices scare the crapola out of me and my hunk.  But, again, we never let fear be a dictator in our lives.  We trust in the peace of God, and the direction He is leading us.

If you are trying to decide if homeschooling is in your family’s future, I would urge you to turn to God first.  Pray and seek His wisdom in this area.  It’s not for all families, just like public school isn’t for all families.  But, is it for you? Shake the fear and run, momma! Run towards your dreams and cultivate your life-giving home and education for your tiny humans!