Home Education versus School at Home

When I first started researching homeschooling, I saw advice against "doing school at home," but was I was not sure why this was even a concern.  Prior to the birth of my first child, I was a classroom teacher.  Many of my teaching methods were effective for a group of 25 students, but I am now learning that teaching your own children is completely different. Attempting to replicate a classroom environment at home may work for some families, but many have discovered the joy of learning when the education is tailored to the unique needs of each child .  Homeschooling is more than just academics.  It enables family members to have more time to build strong relationships with each other, serve in their community,  and teach content which is in accordance with the family's beliefs and values.

When I started homeschooling my son in September, I was trying to teach every subject each day.  I was requiring my son to complete many workbook pages and trying to complete each page in the curriculum.  By November, I calmed down and decided that homeschooling should not be stressful for our family.  I realized the truth in the wisdom of others when they advised that home education does not need to replicate the classroom setting.  I can enjoy the flexibility and freedom to make my own schedule and decisions about how concepts will be taught.  There is no need for us to rush or become worried if we do not keep up with a schedule written by the author of a curriculum.  We can learn from games, nature walks, household tasks, videos, discussions, chores, books, field trips, documentaries, projects, songs, and puzzles.  Home education truly is a lifestyle of learning.  Completion of a curriculum or a high test score does not prove mastery.  Any curriculum that I purchase will be used as a resource and guide to learning, just like any other book. Some weeks we do unit studies and other weeks we just read fun books, do some writing, grammar, projects, math, and science experiments.

My 9 year old has expressed interest in Ancient Rome.  In the next few weeks, we are going to check out some library books about the topic, watch some videos, and complete a couple lapbooks.  My son is also making creations on Minecraft that correlate to the theme.