But No Pain, No Gain...
Did you miss me?
I’ve been mired in books – home school resource books at home and QuickBooks at the office. I’m ready for a little pleasure reading – next on my fiction list is “The Memoirs of Cleopatra” and some Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I’ve never read the Sherlock Holmes novels (but loved the PBS movies) and hear they are great.
It’s August 1, already – only 2 weeks until we officially start our school year – and I’m praising God for, yet another, heart change.But No Pain, No Gain...
Did you miss me?
I’ve been mired in books – home school resource books at home and QuickBooks at the office. I’m ready for a little pleasure reading – next on my fiction list is “The Memoirs of Cleopatra” and some Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I’ve never read the Sherlock Holmes novels (but loved the PBS movies) and hear they are great.
It’s August 1, already – only 2 weeks until we officially start our school year – and I’m praising God for, yet another, heart change.
Last Spring I was so discouraged and so tired of home schooling that I’d decided my boys would attend public school this fall. I even talked Chuck into supporting my decision.
As the time grew closer, though, I began to feel the tugging at my conscience. I resisted the pull; the conversations in my head went something like this:
“The boys will be better off in school.”
Mmm-hmm, of course they’ll be better off with 1 teacher taking care of 23 kids than they are with you teaching them one-on-one.
“They’ll make new friends at school.”
Mmm-hmm, of course they’ll make new friends – they’ll pick up all kinds of wonderful coping habits.
“But they don’t listen to me. They don’t take my instruction.”
Mmm-hmm, they’ll listen to a real teacher; certainly children aren’t expected to obey their parents.
“I just want a normal life!”
And that’s exactly what you’ll have. Your kids will be bored and lose their love for learning. Your kids will be taught at the level of the lowest aptitude in their class. Your kids will learn that being average is good enough. Your kids will learn that they have to fight for their place in line – just like everybody else.“
But, I need time for myself!”
Ah, and that’s it, isn’t it. It’s easier for you to send them off for the day. Then you can get a job – maybe spend the day writing? It’s okay, your friends will understand and support you, after all, sending your kids off to school is normal and expected. Your boys will be fine – look at you, you turned out okay!
“I never rose to my potential.”
No, you were never expected to. Why expect more for your own kids?
“But I can still be involved in their education! I’ll volunteer – I’ll work with them after school!”
How involved can you be as a volunteer? Crowd control? Work with them after school? You accomplish everything in 4 hours at home that already takes 7 hours in a classroom – then you’re going to spend family hours doing homework? Yeah, they’ll love school.
“I’ve got to get over this, don’t I?”
Yes. It’s not easy but if you invest this time in your kids, they’ll thank you when they’re grown. You are building a legacy that they will never forget.
You get the picture. I began to realize that sending my kids to school isn’t better for them – I don’t believe it’s better for most kids, actually. We’ve become so accustomed to sending our children to school, that we don’t even see that we’re accepting mediocrity.
So many parents say to me, “Oh, I could never do that!” I wonder what it is that they feel they cannot do. Teach their grammar school kids to read, write and do basic math? Is it that hard? Or, are they afraid that they can’t teach their middle-schooler Algebra? Are they really so convinced that they lack the ability to learn it along with their kids? Have they forgotten that they’ve already learned it once?
I’ll admit there are kids being home schooled today that are not better off. They are not getting a ‘formal’ education at home and, in some cases, are being neglected and abused. I’m not talking about those households – those kids are fighting odds that transcend school.
Home schooling means sacrifice. I’m putting my personal and career goals on hold – perhaps permanently – so that I can teach my kids in the way they should go… There’s no other school teacher who is going to care as much about them or love them more than me.
My inner struggle this summer has resulted in a couple of heart changes: one is that it has strengthened my resolve to provide the best available education to my children; the other is that it has strengthened my convictions regarding home schooling in general. I believe that, for most families, there is no better option for their kids’ educations.
Most of us would jump in front of a bus to save our kids’ lives. How many of us are willing to sacrifice our personal and career goals to provide the best quality of life for our kids?
What has me smiling and excited about the privilege to teach my kids at home is that, we’re not simply grooming our Nation’s future citizens – we’re preparing them to be our Nation’s future leaders. Whether they lead by example, or by position; whether they grow up to be bus drivers or presidents, they will be well prepared.