Homeschooling

"Let brotherly love continue."

~Hebrews 13:1

Every person has different masks or hats that he or she wears.  There are many pieces to the puzzle of their life.  In this post I am going to tell you about one piece of my own puzzle.  This piece is my life as a Homeschooler.

   Yes, I am a homeschooler, shocking right?  I have been a homeschooler my whole life, and I do not want to change that anytime soon.  I am not shy, I do not hide in corners, I do not wear turtlenecks and denim skirts on a daily basis, I have many friends, and I have been given homework before.  I am hoping that by the end of this paper you will have a better understanding of what a “Homeschooler” actually is.  I am not some freak locked away in my house, spending every waking moment on studies.  No, not quite.  Now in this matter I can only speak for myself.  Most days I do school in my pajamas until we have to go somewhere, or I have to get a shower.  I wake up at 6:30 or 7:00 in the morning, not 4:00 in the morning.  I do chores, and then do regular school just like the rest of the world.  My subjects include, Bible, Algebra, Biology, History, Spanish, and English.  I do school the whole day until I have to leave for dance and theater, but my siblings are typically finished at about 2pm.  After my extra curricular activities, I go home, read books required for school, and spend time with family.  That is my typical run-down, a day in the shoes of my life.

I started teaching when I was 4 years old.  That may be preposterous to you, however it holds much truth.  You see being a homeschooler I learned very quickly the amazing gift of how to teach myself.  By the time I was teenager I had become a mini professional.  Okay, do not mistake my words.  I still have adult teachers, who teach me, and I still need them to do that, but I have learned to teach myself a lot of things too.  My mother will give me my work, make a general outline of what I am supposed to do, and send me off. When I am finished I bring back my work for her to check it, or if I have questions I come to her for help.  It is not like sitting in a classroom watching as the teacher explains every detail.  I do a lot of the work myself, but I cannot do all of it!

“Your siblings are your classmates?”  “You have to spend the whole day with your family!”  I hear these a lot, and they are always said with that “Oh, you poor thing!” tone of voice.  Having my brothers and sisters, as my classmates are not that bad.  Though sometimes I do wonder what it would be like without them.  In a regular classroom I can pull a prank on the teacher and my friends will back me up, they will keep my secret.  When my siblings are there this is not the case, unless of course it is a joint effort. :)  If I pull a prank on my mom there is always a multitude of people ready to tell on me.  They are all trying to earn their extra brownie points for the day.  In most usual cases I am beyond thankful I have my family with me.  I am never bullied by others, never picked on, or cast out.  I mean sure there have been name callings, ice cubes put down shirts, and pencils thrown at heads, but that is what siblings do.  I know that none of it is intentionally meant to scar me.  In less than five minutes we will be back to partner’s in crime.

I have a relationship with my family that is closer then many, and for that I am thankful. I hope you can see now that homeschooling is not as bad as you may have thought!  Homeschooling gives you the opportunity to grow extremely close with your family, and extremely close with God.  You learn more than just school, you learn life.

“What is most important and valuable about the home as a base for children's growth into the world is not that it is a better school than the schools, but that it isn't a school at all.”  -John Holt