Gary suggested this month that we include a series of post from the kids' perspective allowing them to share their thoughts on various topics. Today, he asked them the questions "What do you think of Homeschooling? Tell us the positives and negatives." and "Do you like homeschooling, and would you ever homeschool your kids?"
Katherine
What do you think of Homeschooling? Tell us the positives and negatives.
Well if you are starting to get bigger are learning how to read, it's hard. But you have to keep trying till you get it right. I like homeschool, except for one thing, and that's me reading books. It's not easy to know what the words are saying. My very favorite part about homeschooling is science. I like making things in the kitchen and learning about stuff. Experiments are the most fun.
Do you like homeschooling, and would you ever homeschool your kids?
Yes I like it. I think when I grow up, I would make some kids go to real school and some go to homeschool. I would drop off the kids in actual school, and then do homeschool with the others. Then next time I would home school the other kids and send the second set of kids to school. That way no one misses out on anything. The kids in school would miss out on the fun science experiments and free time, but the kids at homeschool would miss out on having a playground at recess and lunch with their friends. So if they take turns no one misses out.
Rebecca
What do you think of Homeschooling? Tell us the positives and negatives.
A positive is that we can easily fit things in. Since Momma makes our schedule we can do things that normal schoolers can't because they go to public school. It also means that I get more free time, because I can finish my work faster than a kid in public school. Another up side is that we can take breaks when we need them, and move around our school day if we need to sleep in. We also get to help pick our subjects like what we want to learn about in science. It's also fun to get to do school sitting in our bed. There is only one downside that I can think of is that we don't make as many friends as homeschoolers, since we only get to see them on Sundays really.
Do you like homeschooling, and would you ever homeschool your kids?
I mostly like homeschool, but I'm not sure what I would prefer since I've never been to public school. About the second question, I like the idea of maybe homeschooling my kids because they might have ADHD and stuff like me, but I also would like them to have friends at school. Like Lilli likes her friends and wouldn't do good at homeschooling, so it would depend on the kid if I would homeschool or not. Also, I'm not sure I'd be very good at homeschooling. For one thing I'm not good at multitasking and Momma has to do a lot of that with six kids. Also, I don't know if I'd be good enough at the subjects to teach them everything.
Ruth
What do you think of Homeschooling? Tell us the positives and negatives.
A positive is that we can pick more of the subjects we learn, and if it doesn't work or if we struggle with it we can do it at a slower pace or pick new curriculum. Also, you don't necessarily have to wake up early, because you can set your own schedule which is nice. You can also plan other things to do and go different places or take different field trips. Things like Co-op and Adventure Fridays can be part of our schedule because we aren't tied down to it. Then you also get better lunches, if you can cook, if not you can learn. Negatives means we don't get to take off every useless holiday which is sad. It can be kind of annoying when we spend all day in the house so often, and school on your birthday isn't fun. Plus you don't get to hang out with your friends all day, just your siblings.
Do you like homeschooling, and would you ever homeschool your kids?
Sometimes I like homeschooling, and sometimes I want to yeet homeschooling out the window. Cause on one hand you can do lots of fun things, but you don't meet new kids as often. Would I ever homeschool my kids, maybe. On one hand it sounds like a great idea to homeschool my kids, but on the other hand it is a ton work and really hard. Some things you can more easily do in public school like sports teams. But homeschooling can help them out so they can really understand and you can pick out great curriculum that doesn't suck to try to learn from. So I'm not sure which I would do.
Britt
What do you think of Homeschooling? Tell us the positives and negatives.
Positives - we have a more flexible schedule, and we get good lunches. I don't have to try to get my sisters up early to homeschool, and I can have some gaming time before school. We can take a break from school for Church meetings, which would be nearly impossible with normal school. We get unlimited bathroom breaks whenever we want. There is no dress code, it's fun to match up your own outfits. It's definitely easier to learn drivers ed, molding it around my own schedule and driving for short practice sessions every morning. Negatives - we have only one teacher for every subject, and the teacher can punish you more freely. (It's crazy to me though that public teachers can't spank.) We don't get to meet as many kids technically, since we don't have recess at a public school.
Do you like homeschooling, and would you ever homeschool your kids?
I think I like the idea of homeschooling. I haven't really thought that far down the road yet, but I would homeschool unless schools got drastically better. I would be able to help them learn, and the chances of them having ADHD and Dyslexia like me are higher. It would be easier to help them learn at home with those challenges. I think it provides a better education, and I could be the best history teacher in Ancient History.
Final Summary
I enjoy hearing the kids thoughts on their schooling at least once a year, to help evaluate if it is still in their best interest to continue homeschooling them. I am of the opinion that the only real essential to a good education is an involved parent. By default homeschooling parents have to be involved because the entire education is their responsibility. But those same kids most often will also excel in public school because they have involved parents who care. So for us, it's not a moral decision or a calling to homeschool, it's just what we feel is best for our family at this time. It is interesting to me that the kids hold similar views of both public school and homeschool being options, even though we've never discussed it with them directly, and that they might chose one or the other depending on different circumstances. It's also nice to hear their thoughts to help know what they feel is going well or not in their schooling, because it lets me make changes and guides me in focusing on various areas that I might have over looked.
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