What do you think about homeschooling your children?

Question

Pros and cons

Answer 1

pro... it will save money and you'll spend more time with your children

cons...  choldren may become tired of hanging out with you all day.. you might not have enought time for work and they mgiht not become socialable

Answer 2

Pros:

-Not exposed to all the c**p that public school kids are. My school has fights, bomb threats, etc, all in the same day.

-You'll know how your child learns best, which could help them

Cons:

-Won't get to see other kids as often

-Wouldn't surprise me if the kids got on your nerves rather quickly. lol.

Answer 3

well for me is not the best way to raise children ....they'll never dare to face  a group of people in a correct way.

Answer 4

I started with my oldest for kindergarten.  It went well, but I had to go back to work, so sent him to 1st through 4th, but pulled them out again for last year.  I think last year went really well.  We had a lot of fun, tried new things, found out which curriculum worked for us and what schedule worked best.  Honestly, 3 of the kids loved it and want to stay home, but my second oldest wants to go back to school "because it is easier".  He had a great teacher his last year and I think, really misses the idea of that perfect classroom.  I plan to home school until around 8th grade and then let him decide if he wants to try a year in school.  This same child scored 100 percent on his state standardized tests during his home school year.  The others all did well, but he got a perfect score, so I guess we're doing okay by the state standards.

The things I like best are being home with them.  I am constantly amazed by their thought processes and enjoy learning alongside them.  I get to see their eyes light up when they learn a new concept or master something.  We can call a field trip and go somewhere fun to learn, like a museum or state park or historic site.  We can go off on a tangent if someone finds a particular topic fascinating.  I get to monitor what they are eating and drinking, so they are healthy and seem calm and happy.  I also hope that I am helping them to be independent, critical thinkers.  I felt that they were being turned into little sponges in school, soaking it up and spitting it back out when pressed.  I really liked many teachers, but the state mandates were such that they had to teach to a test and when children wanted to learn more about a topic, they were told that it wasn' t on the test, so let's get back to work.  I like that we get to do lots of sports and can follow their interests, whether it is dance or computers and take extra classes.

What I get tired of sometimes is that I am never, never alone.  If I have interests outside the school stuff, it is hard to fit them into my life, because right now, I think it is important to encourage these people I am responsible for to grow and stretch in all the directions they can.  Occasionally a child has a grumpy day (don't we all) and balks at what we are doing, but this is rare.  Our house is always messy, and we do way more driving for lessons than I would like because we live in a very rural area.  I am always amused when people ask if they get enough socialization.  Now that we homeschool, we see so many more people than the same 20 from their class in our little rural school.  There is the soccer team, the dance class, our informal homeschool group ( 5 families/25 kids all pretty close in age), other groups we belong to, special events,  the band, the orchestra, etc.  I try to allow them to handle more and more situations on their own to deal with problems.  Things like making their own appts., shopping for clothes, helping with the family budget, managing a throng at the local farmer's market, working for neighbors at yard work, etc.

Answer 5

It's different for every family, so I'll give you the pros and cons for ours:

Pros:

-my son is able to learn at his own pace, according to his interests

-he is responsible for his own work and schedule

-he gets to help pick his coursework and curriculum according to what is interesting and makes sense to him

-he has a lot more time to play with his friends and be involved in extracurriculars

-he has a lot less stress, so he's a lot healthier and happier than many kids his age

-he's not afraid to be himself or try new things, as he isn't sucked into the conformity of the school system

-he gets to work according to his developmental schedule rather than the state mandated curriculum plan

-he'll get to take college credit a lot earlier than he would in school - he'll likely graduate high school with much of his Bachelor's degree taken care of

-he is a lot more comfortable around adults than many non-homeschooled kids I know, since he's around them more

-he knows how to act in many different situations, since he's socialized by actual society instead of simply kids from the neighborhood

-he values the things that our community offers (libraries, museums, nature centers, zoos, etc.) and spends time volunteering for them

-he doesn't feel like he can only play with kids his age; at 10, he hangs out with kids from K/1st through high school, and they all have a blast together

-he is very close to us as his parents, as well as his grandparents (who live with us).  He also has many close friends, both homeschooled and public/private schooled.

Cons:

-other than having to deal with people who see homeschooling only through stereotypes, I really can't think of any.  Yes, it costs money, and yes, it takes effort, but so does being a parent.

Answer 6

I have many diffrent fellings on that. First off all i think it would be nice a lot calmer situation but if it were up to me i would send him/her to a public school he/she will learn things there that can not be taught at home like cliqes, Developing him/her, guys/girls,ect. He/She will be with kids him/her own age and be able to make more friend than at home. if things dont work out then home school him/her. But give it a chance. Let her decide. him/her has to learn to deal with people and that would be harder to do at home. So honesstly let him/her go to a public school it may be hard to let him/her go but i deff. thik that its the best thing for Him/Her

Answer 7

Homeschooling can be good as long as the parents or the designated teacher is intelligent enough to teacher the curriculum.  Homeschooling is also good for parents who cant afford private school and would like to keep their children out of the public schools being that they're getting less and less safe.

Answer 8

well im homeschooled..and its fine..just make sure ur children r very socialable..other wise they will stay inside all day

Answer 9

pros: they wont be exposed to all the bad stuff all the other kids do, (trust me, i know. if i had been homeschooled, i wouldnt do half the stuff i do.)

cons: their social life may need a little help.

and your life will get really busy too.