A Homeschool Primer

By Nathanael Schildbach
Issue 126, September/October 2004

My five year old is at the kitchen sink, designing and conducting experiments on which things float and why, when suddenly my nine year old rushes in after studying the world map in the bathroom (where else would it be?) to inform us that besides London, England, there is a London, Ontario and an East London, South Africa. Inspired by this find, he goes on to enlighten me about issues of colonization and immigration. The five year old, during a pause in this conversation, begins telling his brother about Archimedes and the golden crown.

Is this a typical day in our home? Is it typical of our homeschooling experience? No matter how many times I'm asked, it's still difficult for me to define what is typical about homeschooling, and exactly what it is that we do.

With homeschooling becoming more visible and with more people considering it as an option for their children's education, the number of inquiries I address has increased. But whether I'm being asked by the merely curious or those just embarking on this journey, their questions seem to be the same:

• What, exactly, is homeschooling?
• What do you do all day?
• Why do you homeschool? Did you hate school yourself?
• Aren't you deserting public education?
• But without standardized tests, how do you know your kids are getting educated?
• Do your kids want to be homeschooled? Are you doing this for yourself or for them?
• Do your kids have friends?
• What about when they get older? Can you teach them calculus?
• Homeschooling may be fine for now, but what about your children's futures? Will they go to college?
• How do you balance your own work and homeschooling your kids?
• How did you get started?

To read the full article "A Homeschool Primer" get your instantly downloadable digital copy of Homeschooling Toolkit which contains a collection of five of the "best of" Mothering articles on this popular education alternative to public schools.