Just wanted to start a conversation on this topic......

I simply love teaching about the LORD and not having to get them up at 7AM in the morning everyday :D

There are so many wonderful benefits.  Today I would pick not having school on super nice days like today!

Letting my son have a wide variety of grade levels, methods, and speeds through his curriculum - a truly customized education.  I also like learning/re-learning with him!

JC

j.c. you can do more than 1 grade level at a time? sorry im still learning lol

Kaila said "

j.c. you can do more than 1 grade level at a time? sorry im still learning lol"

Absolutely!  My son started out, at age 5, with a mix of Kdg-2nd grade.  If you do an "all-in-one" or "school-in-a-box" curriculum, it may not be easy to separate out the grade levels.  We started with K12, Inc., as independent HSers and they let us mix and match.  My son could also go through courses at different rates.  So he would finish a year of math in 3 months.  But then we might stretch out art to 12 months, or do music only in the summer (we've always HS'ed year round).

wow... i am looking at www.heartofdakota.com . and was thinking of getting the 2-5 and 5-7 that way its 2 at 1 time but idk yet.. the girls will just barely be 3 and 4 when we start

"j.c. you can do more than 1 grade level at a time? sorry im still learning lol"

Kaila,

My children are 17,15,14, and nearly 12. We have always homeschooled all of them. My oldest learned to read while I nursed the youngest! It is a challenge but the early years are so fun. You can incorporate so many things that are learning activities into everyday life when they are very young, like cooking. We used "Early Education at Home" by Jean Soyke with several children at a time. Each week has a theme, color, Bible verse, food, and a book, like Five in a Row. We did as much (sometimes as little) as we were able.  I loved cooking with the children. For Thanksgiving, we made hardtack, a kind of cracker without yeast, similar to what the Pilgrims took with them when they crossed the Atlantic.Gradually the older chldren segued into text books and eventually online classes and dual enrollment, but that's way ahead of where you are. Take lots of trips to museums, parks, zoos,libraries. etc that you may have in your area. A new children's museum opened when my oldest was about 8. We had membership there and used to go an hour or so before closing time as it was uncrowded . The children were able to roam and just have a good time!

I long for those early days of our homeschooling! After 13 years, it has become a bit....tedious. We are entering a new phase. 17yodd has been at community college full time this year as an early admit. She was recently inducted into Phi Theta Kappa, the honor society of two year colleges.Now, I'm mostly her advisor as she is getting ready to finish her AA in less than a year...then off to a 4 year college to finish. My 14yo will be going to school in Jan. The other 2 dc will still be hsing for at least a few more years. So, while I'm a bit burned out, the changes are exciting. I'm waiting to see what God has in store for us in the next phase of life!!!!!!!!! You will have a interesting and exciting journey ahead of you, I promise, Kaila!!! Best wishes to you and your family as you begin your home school adventure!!!!!!!!

Sorry for hijacking yoru thread, itobellabooks!

Patrice

your good LOL no problem :D

I love spending the time with my daughter.  When she was in public school I missed her.

I love that I don't have to get up early or get out when the weather is bad.

I love spending the time with my daughter.  When she was in public school I missed her.

I love that I don't have to get up early or get out when the weather is bad.

Great question!

There are so many "best things" about homeschooling. Some of mine are:

choosing our own schedule, one that works for us

being able to go anywhere, anytime

spending lots of time together

having lots of time to spend with friends

eating when we're hungry, sleeping when we're tired

The list goes on and on.

Yesterday morning we were taking a litle break from "work," two of my sons went down to the lake behind our yard and were fishing together. It was such a sweet setting......The two of them don't always get along, so that made it even more endearing to me. I love those moments!

itobellabooks - I work part time as a Crossing Guard. When I get to my post around 7 a.m., there are already MANY children out about.. how early do you suppose they wake up to be at the corner before 7?! Ugh!!!!

itobellabooks - I work part time as a Crossing Guard. When I get to my post around 7 a.m.,

there are already MANY children out about.. how early do you suppose they wake up to be at the corner before 7?! Ugh!!!!

Tell me about it,my son used to have to take the bus at 5:30AM every morning for a 2 hour bus drive,when the school was only 20mins away, then 2 hours to come back home.CRAZY!

FREEDOM! 

Freedom of Religion

Freedom of wearing pajamas to school

Freedom of multiple grade levels at once

Freedom to have a 4 yr old participating in 3rd grade science experiments

Freedom to bake cakes to learn measurements

The list could just go on forever!

I love how homeschooling is tranforming the sister relationships. Even though they have normal sibling squabbles, I have really seen them become more patient and caring with each other. My oldest daughters self confidence has really grown. My youngest daughter who has some learning challenges has surpassed our preconcieved ideas of what she could accomplish this year. I love seeing all those "ah ha" moments.

Not having to deal with the nonsense going on in schools today.

Freedom to actually teach not getting stuck waiting for red tape and funding for big projects. Focusing on learning. (see story below)

Being able to custom tailor the learning to the learner, teach something until it is mastered, go faster if they learn something quicker, stagger the learning to their abilities (one grade up in math, 2 grades up in spelling, 1 grade below in writing composition).

Story: The $33 million elem school built recently has a meadow, woods, and an organic garden in the front "yard" run by a local organic farmer as the site used to be farm land. Story in newspaper that 2nd grade teacher wants kids to get outside & learn abt nature. But she is asking for funding for large trails to multiple sites and desks and chairs outside plus a solar greenhouse. She has proposed this to a parent group who does fundraising (who currently is focusing on bringing engineering & more tech science to the middle school bc there was none and the school itself was not funding it or making it a priority) and they are "enthusiastic". The whole project waits for funding of expensive equipment. If teacher was a gardener she'd know a whole greenhouse let alone a solar powered one is not necessary and would go unused most of the year. If she wants them outside learning abt nature take them out now and just teach. But they focus on funding and expensive equipment. So annoying.

I guess I'm the first on this thread to approach the topic as a homeschool alumni, instead of a teacher!  Here were my favorite things about homeschooling:

1) A love of books.  I wasn't assigned a list to choose from; I read what interested me.

2) A strong relationship with my sister.  We being the only two students, we had to learn to put up with each other every day!

3) Freedom.  Our learning was influenced by my parents, not by what the government says is right or wrong.

4) Flexibility of schedule.  I could start at 10 AM if I slept in, or I could start at 5:30 AM and get everything done by noon!

5) No lectures.  Someone standing up and talking about a topic for an hour or two is a lot less effective than just sitting down and working on that topic!

6) Quality education.  Above all, I got what I needed to be able to think for myself in a logical, productive manner.  I also got the nickname of "Walking Dictionary" from my friends!

7) Stereotype debunking.  It's fun to tell people I was homeschooled after they get to know me.  It challenges them in the ignorant thinking that homeschoolers are socially inept or unable to make choices without parental command.

Homeschooled K-12, and so thankful for it!

since we live in IL and the snows have started, I LOVE that I don't have to wake up early and step out in the cold if I don't want to. We can stay inside in the warm for as long as we want, even if its days at a time. Also there is no such thing as snow days in our house unless its you playing in the snow!

My son is autistic, so at home we have the one on one contact he needs without trying to navigate all the red tape and lack of funding for therapy etc.

It also means I can cater to his educational needs, not just move him up because of age.

Kaila said "

j.c. you can do more than 1 grade level at a time? sorry im still learning lol"

oh yes! right now my son is doing tot school (toddler), pre K and some K. I cater everything to where he is at skill wise, we don't worry about age or grades, those are just numbers to me.

Yes, we also enjoy the freedom homeschool provides to learn in a variety of ways.

I am homeschooling my 7 year old grandson.  He is in 2nd grade but with the ability to progress at his rate, we can do 3rd, 4th, or any subject he is interested.  He has the freedom to pursue his passions and he is thriving.

I love the fact that I can control what my daughters are learning about how what is being taught.  I enjoy spending time with them.  I love being able to give them a bible verse to back up what they are learning about and explain to them why we don't want them to do something based on the bible.  I feel that we are helping them become more Godly young ladies than they would be if they were forced to go to a public school where God is not welcomed and they aren't allowed to pray whenever they feel the need.

from Christine M.

"Being able to custom tailor the learning to the learner, teach something until it is mastered, go faster if they learn something quicker, stagger the learning to their abilities (one grade up in math, 2 grades up in spelling, 1 grade below in writing composition)."

 I feel the same way.

Academics came very easily to my oldest so we worked at whatever level she was at. She did very well in college. We gave a fair amt. of freedom about when work was completed so she learned the self discipline that is needed in college.

My youngest processes things very slowly. We took 2 years for Alg. 1 and she really learned it well. I'm pretty sure in a class where they teach to the middle she would probably not have passed..

This of course is only one academic benifit.  There are so many others.  Spending time together, bringing God into everything. The list goes on.

It's been a while since I've talked on a homeschooling board! I homeschooled for 19 years and I'm so thankful I did! We really had to scrape to make a living with me staying at home, but I think it was well worth it. Little ones can overlook a lot of financial challenges when the family has time to be together. My 2 boys and 1 girl are now 28, 26 and almost 20 and they've always been best friends and looked out for each other. They love the Lord and are all full of energy and ideas to pursue in their lives.

My favorite part of homeschooling was choosing curriculum! I loved wading through catalogs and choosing an eclectic mix that seemed right for us. My dear mom paid for all of our books for that whole 19 years because she knew we didn't have the finances to do it and she wanted us to homeschool.

I loved the flexibility to change when things didn't work. My daughter did two years of public school in high school and graduated from the local public school with the many friends she had made playing sports. She really wanted to see what she was missing, so she went to 10th and 12th grades at the public school. She was very resistant to learning from books and didn't apply herself much at home, but she was forced to really make up for lost time in public school. She learned a lot just by that experience!

Most of all, I like that my kids could grow up to be themselves without pressure. They've become such fun and wonderful people and they learned to think outside the box. My 26 year old and his wife are doing college and have a baby and have great plans for their future. My daughter did 3 semesters at a community college and is now working as a gymnastics coach and dog groomer and she and her hubby are expecting a baby in August. My 28 year old son is still single and just returned from a missions trip to Uganda. He's thinking about doing some college. He's already done 4 years at technical school, but has some other interests to pursue.

At age 54 I'm completing my third semester of college and just got accepted into the nursing program. Hey, I figured if the kids are all doing it, why not?

Oh yes, and another favorite thing is getting to the end of it all and letting the naysayers see that homeschooling really does work!