 |
| ID 150714829 © Arloofs | Dreamstime.com |
If you’re questioning whether homeschooling is the right choice for your family, check out some of these unique benefits and then see what you think! Of course you’ll have challenging days, but you’ll have a whole lot of fun alongside your kids, too!
1. Free
time. If it seems like your child is coming home with endless hours of homework
in addition to being in school 35 hours a week, free time is a big benefit of
homeschooling. You can teach what is necessary and once your child “gets it”
you can move on to something else. Also, I doubt you are trying to keep 20+
kids under control, which does take a lot of time for a teacher at school!
2. Great
education. You can offer an education comparable to that of a costly private
school, even if you don’t have a college degree. When you homeschool, your
child won’t be bored while the other kids in her class are learning things she
already knows, according to homeschooling dad of one, Tom Kliethermes.
Likewise, she won’t be frustrated trying to keep up with something she’s not
ready for.
3. Teaching
freedom. Do you want to homeschool lightly year-round? Or would it suit your
family better to homeschool several hours a day for seven months, taking off a
week or so here and there, as well as taking off the summer? Are you a
curriculum-loving person or do you like to create your own lessons? Further,
maybe you are an unschooler and just go where your child’s interests take you
(check out unit studies if this is you!). You are free to take off a day for a
funeral or family function.
4. Focus
on something cool. Remember loving a certain subject in school and really
getting into it, but when the bell rang, it was time to move on and get in a
new frame of mind for a new subject? Homeschooled kids have time and freedom to
pursue their passions, like music, writing, acting, sports and more.
5. Works
great with any schedule. Forget about the vision of a homeschooling mom
teaching her kids at the dining room table. Sometimes it’s Dad teaching English
when he gets home from work and Mom teaching other basics in the morning,
leaving the afternoon/early evening free for other activities. If Dad travels,
the whole family can tag along. If Mom and kids are night owls, so be it! You
can stay up late talking, reading or watching educational shows.
6. Socialization
across the board. You won’t hear many homeschooled kids saying they can’t play
with a kid who is younger or older than they are. Homeschooled kids in urban
communities these days have friends who are homeschooled, friends who are
unschooled, friends who attend public school and friends who attend private
school. “Love the one you’re with” certainly rings true here!
7. Healthy
kids. We’ve all heard about how schools are cutting recess time, and Tom K.
says one benefit of homeschooling is that your child won’t be sitting at a desk
6 hours a day. As a result, your kids may be healthier because they are likely
getting more regular exercise, more fresh air, more sleep, etc.
8. You
learn, too! This one might be a little selfish, but one unique benefit to
homeschooling is that you learn as much as your kids do! In teaching things to your
own kids, it might seem like you’ve lost 90% of what you learned in school. Now
that you don’t have that pressure to memorize and perform on a test, you’ll
soak up what you pre-read and read to your own kids and can really teach it to
them in a relatable manner.
9. Do
what you want, when you want. Another selfish benefit is that you can go on
vacation anytime you want and get a cheaper, off-season rate. “We can take
breaks/vacation whenever we want to,” says Jennifer Bentley of Jonesboro,
Arkansas. Field trips are by far not as crazy on a weekday as they would be on
a Saturday. Parks and other fun kid venues are less populated.
10. Trickle-down
learning. Think about how much easier your younger children will be to teach
since they are learning already from what you are teaching their older
sibling(s). Learning truly does filter down in a homeschooling household!
11. “Quality
family time” is a big homeschooling benefit given by Jill Connors, mom of five.
“It’s easier to be my child’s moral guide” was a reason given by Tom K. Those
random conversations and life questions can happen any time of day when you’re
together for most of it.
Kerrie McLoughlin, homeschooling writer mom of 5, can be found at TheKerrieShow.com and would love to connect with you!
