Laura Delgado
Okay, as yesterday's teaser indicated, if you homeschool you've been asked these questions. If you don't homeschool, you've either asked them -- or wanted to! Just for fun, let's do this Jeopardy style: I won't write the questions, just the answers. See if you can guess the questions! Also just for fun, I'll write two answers. The first will be the answer that I usually give. The second will be the answer that is usually running through my head.

1. It's not that hard teaching multiple grade levels at once! Really, my children are all so close in age that it works out great! Are you kidding? Yes it's hard! My eight year old is two grade levels ahead of where she should be, and my six year old is one up, but they both have the attitudes appropriate to their ages, so where does that leave me? And can you imagine trying to wrangle a six year old and two four year olds even on a good day??

2. There's nothing wrong with public schools - really! That's just not the option that we've chosen for our family. In fact, I got a phenomenonal K-12 education, right here in this district! Get real. Let's just leave it at that.

3. But our children are socialized! Our daughters have dance classes, and our sons play baseball pretty much year-round. Beyond that, they have friends with whom they play. Just look at them! Obviously they know how to interact with people :) So which kind of socializing are we talking about exactly? The learning of off-color language in elementary school? An unnatural devotion to products of the Disney marketing machine (and I ain't talkin' about the princesses here). Maybe we're talking about high school, okay junior high,and exposure to sex and drugs...all of that socializing, I think we can do without.

4. Actually, you don't need a degree in Education to teach your own children. First of all, the materials available today are so phenomenal that just about anyone can teach her children at home (and boy would I love to share a few sites with you!). Second, if you talk to any teacher about what they actually learn in college as an Education major, you'll find that much of their coursework deals with things like classroom management, small group skills, etc. Finally, who cares more about your children's education than you? Please - that old saw again? I have nothing but respect for the vast majority of teachers. They are overworked, underpaid, and vastly underappreciated, and it is NOT their fault that the education system in this country is hopelessly broken. I know too many teachers who wish that they could homeschool their own children! I even know a couple of homeschoolers whose spouses are teachers! You truly don't need any special education: you just need to love your children, and to be willing to put in the time and effort.

5. I really don't think that the possibility of missing prom is a reason not to homeschool. Besides, we can hold our own prom. We actually do have a homeschool group... Because prom is so critical a rite of passage that I would send my children to school for that sole experience? Hmmm...let me think back to my own prom. Wait, I didn't go. I wasn't asked. My senior year my boyfriend was in the Navy. Darn government wouldn't give him leave. I *did* go to his prom when I was a junior. I don't remember having that great a time. I did, however, have a tame time. From what I appreciate, I don't think that my experience was typical. I think we'll just stick with my plan and homeschool. Plus, I'm pretty sure there are dances in college. I seem to recall a few (to which I didn't go, because God was good enough to drop a husband in my lap my first weekend in college. It kind of obviated the (need? desire? point?) for/of college dances). I digress.

Please feel free to send me your own homeschooling questions if I have not addressed them here. I know there are more; these are just my favorites. Oh, and if your kids go to public school, please don't be offended. I really did get a top-notch public school education, and it really just isn't the right choice for our family :)
0 Responses

Post a Comment