Home School Advice

Question:
I'm considering using Christian home schooling. Can anyone offer some advice such as why you do it? Whe is a good age to start/stop?

Answer:
-We are always delighted to hear of a prospective home school family. We started home schooling 4 years ago when my sons were in 4th and 2nd grade, respectively. I had worked for 12 years and sorely missed spending time with them. They were doing well in Christian schools but, even in that environment, experiencing some peer pressure and the influence of worldly values (there were always some non-Christian or nominally Christian children in the classes). They were just re- ceiving the normal grade-level material for their ages, nothing more, although my oldest son had been given some special encouragement for his gift in scripture memorization. We began home school with a few hand-me-down materials and just a very general idea of how to proceed, but we loved it right away! My child- ren thrived on being at home; they learned to enjoy the learning process without having to be "entertained"; they became history buffs, math fans, avid readers and very competent researchers. They developed a deeper friendship with each other. They had more play time and more activities, and always managed to have good friends, even when we lived in the country. And best of all, our whole family grew closer, and my husband and I have been able to teach OUR values (rather than waiting in fear to see what they would come home with next!). We have Bible study every day, which is as much a benefit for me as for them. We know all of our children's friends, and those who are not Christians get to spend time with our family, instead of our children spending minimally-supervised time with them outside our home. My boys are now far above grade level in every subject, simply because I let them go ahead as fast as they wish. They enjoy every subject (some are more popular than others). Each has "specialized" in one area: my 10-year-old in creative writing and my 12-year-old in computer systems and programming (he is teaching me Internet). They are both active in sports. And the thing that I most recommend to other parents is the chance to enjoy every bit of time that we are given with our children. I hope you will decide in favor of home schooling. I would like you to hear from my older son, Noah, whose idea this reply was:

I hope what my mother just told you will convince you to homeschool your kids, so that they can get the same benefits of being at home that I got. I really like it. I know some kids complain about being homeschooled because they don't "have friends", but that hasn't been a problem with me at all. If we have any lack of friends at all, we pray for them, and our prayers are always answered. If you have any other questions, just E-Mail us at liv...@earthlink.net, or call us at (714) 666-8172. We'd be glad to be of service if you need us. -I am sure you will get alot of answers to these questions!

I have three boys, 3rd grader, preschooler and 9mo old. We have been homeschooling for 4 years now and would not change this decision for anything.

Personally, I started homeschooling for selfish reasons. I had to drive past the highschool each day to take my son to preschool and the teenagers were always "making out" in front of the school, smoking, cursing and shouting obscenities at passing cars. They would walk out in front of you and bang your car, yelling at you if you had to slam on the brakes. (many other things but I think you get the ugly picture!) This was not just a handful of the students but over one hundred! This same disrespect and "ugliness" was displayed in the elementary school (just in smaller bodies). I decided I did not want my son to turn out like that. In that area, Kindergarteners also went to school for a full day. I decided to start looking into homeschooling.

Since then, the Lord has changed my views on the whole thing. We now homeschool because we feel it is a direct command from the Lord for our family. We are told many times thru the Bible (Deuteronomy 6:6-7, Proverbs 1:8-9 & 13:1, etc.) to teach our children. If this is something I am going to be called accountable for, then I am going to do it myself. Also, Bible knowlege and a strong relationship with the Lord is the most important concepts to be taught and they will not be taught this in public schools! And it is hard to teach this "after school" when they come home exhausted and with homework to do.

To make a long story short (I could go on forever!), I use a Bible bases curriculum --the Weaver. It starts with the Bible, then academics come from whatever you are studying from the Bible. (as this is already quite long, if you want more info on Weaver, either email me or post a question and I will gladly go on, and on, and on! )

I do believe that if the child is old enough to learn to talk, he is old enough to "start school". I do not mean workbooks and pressure, but reading to them, scripture memorization (even if they do not understand the scripture at this age, it is already in their hearts for when they can), letter sounds, etc. It is amazing how eager little minds are to learn if it is made fun (God gave them this insatiable curiosity for a reason! Use it!).

A good book is "Never Too Early" by Doreen Claggett. They (Claggett Ministries) also publish a curriculum for young learners (I have not used it) called Christ Centered Curriculum. Claggett Ministries can be contacted thru:

Rocky Bayou Christian School 2101 N. Partin Drive Niceville, FL 32578

I highly recommend reading this book. There are lots of different ideas as to whether to start teaching early or later. I think that noone knows your child better than you, rely on God's guidance. -We began homeschooling our first child at Kindergarten age. We had been researching the options and praying for a couple of years. I would recommend research and lots of PRAYER as the first step.

All homeschoolers I have talked to (especially those who pulled their kids out of public school) say it is best to homeschool from the beginning. As to the age, I have started them at around 5 in a program of learning to write, learn the sounds of the letters, count beads etc...they were already learning a lot of these things prior to "school" due to curiosity. I have heard that many times boys are not as interested at that age and it is best and easier to wait until THEY are interested.

We homeschool for several reasons, some are: 1. We can pray to, talk about and read about God throughout our school day. 2. I know what the children are learning, where they need help, where their interests are (for further reading and exploring) and what they are being exposed to. 3. The children have time to learn homemaking skills. 4. The children have time to play. 5. The children are not exposed to negative influences from peers and teachers 8 hours a day. Our home is not perfect but I am able to discipline inappropriate behavior and praise good behavior as it happens. 6. The children are best friends.

For us, homeschooling has been great. We continue to pray about this decision and plan to go through high school "Lord willing". -ok with my limited experience with the school systems (we have homeschooled for 11 years and my daughter attended school for 1 year and 1 quarter at the high school level) private Christian schools here in Illinois do not even use Christian books! most use all secular books for their academic subjects and then use some type of approved bible curriculum as I recall in my high school studies we were just beginning to be introduced to situation ethics (just who do you throw out of the sinking boat first?) I really have been thankful that Christian Liberty Academy and the Abeka Satellite programs were available to us for homeschooling. Where I may have failed as a parent or teacher the schooling materials were steadfast in their beliefs. I never thought I would homeschool for as long as we did and alot of the success depends on a combination of who you are as a teacher but also stand back and watch as the child is influenced by who the God of the universe is!