“Home is where our stories begin”
“No place like home.”
“Home is where the heart lies.”
“Home sweet home.”
“Love begins at home.”
Our society has a vast amount of lovely little sayings about homes, houses, and the family; concerning what an important foundation a good home is.
So why do we hesitate to educate our children in the same loving home we glorify?
Our home is our safety, sanity, and sanctuary.
But we refuse to surround our children in this atmosphere as much as possible in the critical early years of brain development.
I personally believe that parents play the biggest role in establishing who their children will be when they are adults.
Children learn so much information from socially learning from their parents . Then when our children reach this special age, we no longer consider ourselves capable of teaching them what they need to know to thrive in our ever-changing bustling society. I personally know that I would have learned so much more at a younger age if my mother would have started my homeschooling at an earlier age and grade.
The public school system hardly caters to children’s individual needs. Forcing all students in the same grade to learn the same information at the exact time that the school board decides to be age appropriate learning.
While homeschoolers are encouraged to learn as vast of knowledge as your child wants or you as the teacher delegates for them to learn.
In one of my conversations with a father, I tried to explain that our school system trains mediocre scholars. On the other hand, Homeschoolers are encouraged to soar past their peers and learn triple the information at younger ages.
“Why would you not want your child to graduate three years ahead of their peers and join the work field three years earlier?”
They will one: have the upper hand.
Two: have the freedom to start businesses at earlier ages.
Three: Finish their required community service hours for scholarships.
Four: Freedom to accept that first unpaid internship, because they are highschoolers who don’t have an impending need for money. Either because they started a little business two-three years ago. Or they rely on their parents but have the free time for internships in their desired fields.
There is so much more freedom in a homeschooled child’s curriculum. Graduating high school earlier than normal, and many graduate early with an associates and or bachelors degree.
Below I answer some of the common questions and concerns parents have when considering homeschooling their children.
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How Many Families In The United States Homeschool and Why Do They Choose This Path?
Did you know that 1.5 to 2.4 Million children were homeschooled in 2008 (Ray 2008, see also Princiotta, Bielick & Chapman, 2006)? This is in comparison to the 56.1 Million students that attend a conventional school (2000 U.S. Department of Education Statistic). Homeschooling is growing exponentially, but it still pales in comparison to the number of students in traditional schools. Why do families choose this path? If you asked each family individually you’d probably get slightly different rhetoric, but in general, their answers would fall into one of the categories below.In a study done by Dr. Brian D. Ray, President of the National Home Education Research Institute, 7,306 participants were asked why they homeschool, and their responses were as follows:
- 79.5% Believed they could give their child a better education at home
- 76.7% Religious Reasons
- 73.5% To teach their children particular values and beliefs
- 69.2% To develop character/morality
- 66.7% Object to what school teaches
- 56.1% Poor learning environment in school
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How Much Does An Average Family Spend On Homeschooling?
In a survey done by Dr. Brian D. Ray in Spring 2008 with 11,729 participants grades Kindergarten through Twelveth Grade from all Fifty States, Guam, and Puerto Rico, the median amount of money spent per homeschool student was between $400-$599.
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How Do Homeschool Students Score On State Tests?
Do homeschool students do well in comparison to their traditionally schooled counterparts? The answer is yes! In the same study cited above in Spring 2008, homeschool students scored exceptionally high on test scores, in the 80th percentile, in comparison with the public school average of the 50th percentile.
Also, a study was done in 1997, of 5,402 homeschool students showed that on average, their scores were 30-37 percentile points higher than their public school counterparts. The study also showed that the longer a child was homeschooled the better the score was. For example, a first-year homeschool student scored in the 59th percentile, while a student homeschooled two or more years prior to taking the test score in the 86th to 92nd percentile (www.hslda.org).
Some other links to answer questions when homeschooling.
I know th is little snippet of a post doesnt answer a lot of concerning question some parents may have. My main drive for this post was to inform and ignite the desire to home school. Founded on good facts and understanding. homeschooling is just as important and monumental of a task as raising a child.
Not recommended for the lazy, or at least those who aren’t witty. Everything in life causes for improvement. Life its self is a learning process. You are not the first to home school, and you will not be the last.
You have the privilege to raise your children in the twenty-first century, that’s booming with technology, internet, and a gigantic source of easily accessible information.
People are learning trades, and professions everyday online.
- Thank you so much for taking the time to read and consider homeschooling. Or for simply learning something new.
Thank You BrightHubeducation, for a helping hand with information and statistics about homeschooling.
Big Contradiction 