“We want our children to learn independence and responsibility. By age seven, they were each required to develop and execute a business plan so they could begin to earn money that they could then use to practice money management skills.”
“We want our children to learn compassion. We took in a family that was homeless, and they lived with us for nearly a year. We make it a priority to seek out those who need support, and we often campaign to raise money to help individuals and families that are in need.”
“We want our kids to have a rigorous education that prepares them for whatever they decide to do as adults. We choose our curriculum very carefully, ensuring that we cover all subject areas thoroughly, and we always demand excellence from the kids, whether in academics or extracurriculars. We want them to reach their full potential.”
“We want our daughter to develop healthy habits. We make sure she’s engaged in some sort of athletic activity for at least thirty minutes a day, and we encourage her to play at least one sport each season. And of course we definitely emphasize healthy eating: we never eat fast food, and we buy only organic food for our home.”
“We want to encourage our children’s personal passions, letting them take the lead in their educational experience. In today’s society, creative thinking and the ability to problem-solve are key factors to success, and traditional school methods are not the best way to develop those skills; instead, we entrust the kids with taking responsibility for their own education, with us as partners rather than dictators.”
These are paraphrased, but all of these are sentiments that have been expressed to me in conversation with other homeschoolers. They reflect different priorities and choices, but all of them have one thing in common: they come from parents who clearly love their children and have given thought to the values they wish to prioritize in their home.
Homeschooling is a bit like Common Core math: there are many legitimate ways to go about solving a problem. Unlike Common Core math, you you aren’t required to try them all! There is no one right way to homeschool. The right way for your family will have much to do with your family’s personality and priorities–and that’s a good thing. Society will be stronger for having many people with different priorities and strengths. So admire your friends for following their passions while you play to your own strengths. Don’t worry about whether your methods look the same, worry about the end result: you’re all aiming to raise kids who turn out to be well-adjusted and responsible members of society, whatever their specific passion may be.
butmostlymommy 