Home Schooling

My wife, having worked six years in the public school system, was easily persuaded to homeschool our children.The Jesuit's have a saying, "Give us a child until he is eight years old, and we will have him for life!" - that is, they understand that the most effective time to indoctrinate a person with one's own moral system is during the early years of that person's life. The public school system (well, television helps too)is simply the most efficient way to indoctrinate a child into the "world" system.In the first four or five years of any child's life the child learns social behavior, language, reasoning etc. Some estimate that half of what we know was learned in the first and formative years of our life. Children learn by example, by situational necessity, by experiment etc. - all of which comes quite naturally at home. Then we take them out of that carefree learning environment where they have already learned so very much more than they will ever learn in school, and we force them to sit against their nature in straight rows, face the front, and 'learn'?? Perhaps I am just a romantic, but this seems quite ironic to me.Anyway, my wife and I determined to homeschool our children in their formative years - at least till after puberty.We determined this - that education and intelligence do not make a person happy in life - as these qualities can be fostered, nutured, and grown in a classroom - but these qualities only make a person more likely to have a higher paying job. Our priority was not that our children have high paying jobs, but that they learn contentment, that they should grow to be happy in whatever they end up doing - that we would determine our success as parents and homeschoolers, not on whether our child was the most educated person, but on whether they were happy, and living entirely to God's glory.To that end, we were not as concerned about scholasitcs as character. Never the less, our children are exceeding far beyond anyone their own age in the public school system. Nothing like one-on-one all day with the first and primary teacher (mom).Some further, unseen benefits of homeschooling that we have noticed, have been that our children are great friends with one another, and they have unfeigned respect for adults - whom they communicate with as people and not as "the enemy."We have been blessed by the Lord in that we are able to homeschool. My wife thought there was no way she could ever do it, and there was much fear and trepidation when we started, but now it is easy, and the benefits are so profound that we would never have changed a thing for the world.I sympathize with those who would like to homeschool but cannot because of financial, or personal considerations. Sometimes when a person gives a positive endorsement of homeschooling, it triggers a very negative reaction in others, who view the positive endorsement as a personal criticism against their own choices or situations. I add therefore this caveat - the Lord called my wife and I to this, and we have been blessed because He did. It is not an indictment against anyone who doesn't want to homeschool, it is not a boast as though I thought I were somehow a better parent because I am a homeschooler - nothing at all like that. The Lord gave us this opportunity and we took it. What was possible for me may not be possible for others, and I don't want to give the impression that I think it is.Hope that helpsDan/\\/\\/\\

*sigh*we've all been there...posting a long, juicy reply to a thread and it gets deleted for some reason....well, suffice it to say I agree with you both 100%'specially Krispy's point about all the boys being diagnosed ADHD because they don't fit into the new-age public school system and frankly, because of the laziness of teachers, parents, and doctors.

we've all been there...posting a long, juicy reply to a thread and it gets deleted for some reason....It is God testing our patience :-)

Well, we did the public school and for the most part it was an incredibly blessed experience. My daughter who is high functioning autistic received beyond what we could have expected----occupational therapy, speech therapy, etc. We did not have to ask the school for one thing when we moved to our current home. They told us what she needed and gave it to us. What a difference from our Florida public school experience. Another awesome thing is that our current PS is FILLED with Christians and boy can you tell. We totally believe the Lord's Hand was in our move here and that PS was a blessing for us. That was in 1999. Now my kids(twins) are ready to graduate from elementary school and we have made the decision to homeschool. We are very excited about doing this. Why did we make the decision since our school system seems so good? Well, the middle school years are absolutely HORRENDOUS. Hormones raging, clicks, peer pressure, choice language and behaviors, etc...........only a few of the reasons we feel we need to homeschool to benefit our children. My son (a true ADHD boy, non medicated) is quite a comic........and a follower, unfortunately. My daughter is sweet natured (for the most part), social and would do whatever someone told her to(bad things). Wonderful....my kids just walked in the door from school as I was typing this and my son told me a boy on the bus was teaching my daughter the "F" word, which of course she repeated over and over to this boy's delight.........sigh.........For us, homeschool is a protective measure for our kids, not to mention a great way to bond even closer to each other. In any case, until we are sure they are able to handle the "world" in a positive manner, we could not in good conscience send our kids out in it, knowing their weaknesses. Thankfully, we are in the position to be able to homeschool. So, in my opinion, PS can be wonderful or it can be terrible, depending on where you live (I live in a very "Christian" conservative area, so the PS is actually quite good and not real "worldly"). Just my thoughts. Blessings, Cindy :-)

We home schooled my daughter from 2nd grade through high school and she is now getting ready to attend college. I think if you have the time and resources to do it, it's great. Would I do it all over again? Yes. Would my daughter do it again? Yes.

I was going to write some long post but decided not to.Just as encouragement here is one 15 yr.old's website/journal who attends public school. Humble1 ("arielle" on SI)There is still light in the dark world of public school :)Also, just a thought. How many of us went to public school and , even though we had our dark times, God has used them and brought us to a better place and has used those situations to give us wisdom and discernment.I have to think that many of us who are the most hungry for the things of God, had the worst reputation, or backgrounds. (not that we should make sure our children have a bad childhood!) but just that God is sovereign! :)Just thoughts.....Blessings, Chaninp.s . also this is the same 15 yr. old- then 14 yr old who made the "Lay It Down" compilation. well, ok, we made it together, but she did all the computer work :)

I also want to say that i know that public school is not for everyone, nor is christian school or homeschool.I have two younger children (kindergarten and third grade) and I just take it year by year. i really doubt that they will still be in public school by the time they get to middle school , only because i know their personalities.We live near Cindy and the schools here are filled with christians (lukewarm as they might be) they still have values and morals. More than half of our youngest childrens teachers have been christians themselves. We have been very fortunate.Our oldest is just unusually "peculiar" for the things of God. :)In Him, Chanin

I have to think that many of us who are the most hungry for the things of God, had the worst reputation, or backgrounds. I can personally attest to this :-o The thing is that my mother and her many husbands were far from Godly. My husband and I are Christians(unlike my parents), so it's a whole different scenerio. I think the homeschool vs. public school discussion is valuable, but only so long as people can remain respectful of other's decisions for doing what they do. It's like so many other divisive issues-----the discussions are valuable as it gives opportunity to weigh our own hearts in the decisions/stances we take. Concerning our family, it is our PRESENT situation with our children which causes my husband and me to decide to homeschool. Public school WAS beneficial for my kids---extremely so. However, at this point in my children's lives, they are NOT equipped to go out into the middle school world:-x ---and not be harmed/overcome. Some children ARE equipped and have a driving call to be "a light" in the schools they are in. In those type cases, I can see where they SHOULD be allowed to walk in their callings----with parental supervision, of course.I don't know, I liken this situation to either a new believer/older believer who is struggling with sin issues. Knowing their weaknesses, would we throw them in the midst of temptation and tell them to "overcome"? Of course not. We would surround/protect that stumbling brother/sister and help them to overcome. That's why this is not an all or nothing type of discussion. Some believers are equipped to handle what is 'out there', while others need to be strengthened before going out. In my opinion, it is only when one has "overcome" in an area that God can truly use them effectively, without hypocrisy. What happens to many "christian" kids in public schools is that they verbalize their faith in Christ and a "changed" life, yet they are not "overcomers" and fall into sin, hurting their testimony and not being a light. They are not ready to "go out". When I first became a Christian I was not equipped to hang out with my previous friends who drank/partied/cursed like sailors, etc. I found myself removed from them. My new "friends" were brothers and sisters in Christ-----those who nurtured me and encouraged me to grow in faith as I studied His Word. Because of this nurturing and growth, I can now be around ungodly people doing such things and not partake----I can be "a light"---a believer who is "in the world, but not of the world".Homeschooling for us is "nurturing" and equipping our children who are not "strong in the Lord". Like I said, every parent needs to make their own decisions based upon who their children are IN THE LORD. Some parents may choose to homeschool one or more of their children while allowing another child to go to PS because they ARE strong in the Lord and able to handle the temptations that they are surrounded by. Many children are not even "in the Lord" yet, so that needs to be considered as well. Ultimately, each of us needs to really discern what the will of the Lord is for EACH one of our children. They are not "cookie cutter" kids. What's good for one may not be the will of the Lord for the other. This homeschooling decision was a no brainer for us in our present situation. However, if someone would have asked me 3 years ago if I would homeschool, I would have said "NO WAY". Matter of fact, a friend of mine was laughing when I told her I was going to homeschool. She remembers a derogatory comment I made years ago about homeschooling my kids....... :-)

Man, Krispy...that was impressive! As usual, I agree with you all the way!'specially the light in the darkness part. As a child I didn't get the "salt-no flavor" verses in scripture. Now, everytime I see one of these polls that say 90% of Americans Identify themselves as Christian I think about those verses. There's no way on God's green earth 90% of America is Christian...I'd wager less than half this country is truly saved and of that less than 50%...probably less than 10% give God any real thought in their day to day lives (I.E. attend services regularly and pray and worship, etc.)There's a whole lot of salt out there with no flavor and a whole lot of minor lights pretending to be one with the darkness, whose lights are so dim, you couldn't see them from two feet away. Not that I hold myself up as any paragon of Christianity or anything, but dang if my employer/coworkers don't know me as "one of those Church-going fundamental types..."And you should hear the reacton I get from our female dominated office whenever I talk about my wife being stay at home...or homeschooling...We're freaks, in their eyes.

No comment.............. :-P

moreofHim wrote:How many of us went to public school and , even though we had our dark times, God has used them and brought us to a better place and has used those situations to give us wisdom and discernment.I gave this a bit of thought, and found that things are not the same today as when I went to public school:When I went to Public School (I live in Canada):- we said the Lord's prayer every morning- teachers had the right to administer corporal punishment to disobedient children - you would be reported and taken to the office for saying D-mn!- the most violent show on television was Starsky and Hutch.- if you missed a class a note went home to your parents.- only about 5% of my classmates came from broken homes.My wife worked in the public school system for six years, and I volunteered there too during that time - and I can say from first hand experience, it is not the same as when I went to school. If I do send my children to public school, It would be wrong to imagine that I am sending them into the same environment that I came out of. I would be sending them into an exponentially darker system than I endured.Dan/\\/\\/\\

Interesting thread,I don't think I saw anything about William Bennetts' K-12 program. (Pardon me if I missed it...) K-12 is a state funded home school program that sets up homes with online curriculum, textbooks, a computer (w/online connectivity if needed), a printer, and a local teacher/coach for assistance.For me the interesting aspect of K-12 is the high degree of autonomy given considering it's technically funded by the public school system. By autonomy I mean that a parent is free to teach the material within whatever moral or religous environment they want to create for their children. There is accountability in the form of standardized testing.I know many many schoolers who feel K-12 is not really home schooling. For instance, there is a support group for home school mothers in our town that will not accept other women (or men) who participate in K-12.Personally I think K-12 is an encouraging development. When I was growing up homeschooling was looked at like some type of radical militia or cult activity. Now the state supports it.Any thoughts? Here is the link to the K-12 website. K-12By the way, I would be curious to know how Christians in Europe feel about the subject of "homeschooling". Once, while in London, I casually mentioned that we were considering homeschooling our children; everyone gave me looks of concern like I was Jim Jones. Is this typical?:-P Blessings,MC