Homeschooling

When you think of a homeschool family, what do you think of? I am often asked what it is like to homeschool my children, so I thought I would do a series of posts about homeschooling.

Here is what "school" looks like in our home:

Each girl has woken up without being told to, eaten breakfast and is now completely ready and eager to start school. They have cheerfully done their chores, and have asked how else they could help out around the house.

Then, they sit quietly at the table, and we recite "The Lord's Prayer" and "The Pledge of Allegiance". We sing a few hymns, and recite scripture verses and poetry aloud.

The girls will calmly, and quietly, complete all of their schoolwork in a timely manner and without complaining. There is never a need for me to raise my voice, because they always listen the first time...

OK.... enough lies.

This is what a lot of people THINK it is like to homeschool. That because you choose to homeschool, you must have exceptionally well-behaved kids, you must have the patience of Job (and practically be a saint), and your life must be just like a fairy tale.... perfect in every way!

When people find out that I homeschool my kids, many of them look at me in awe, and tell me that they could never do that. They picture me as somehow more qualified than they are.

I'm going to let you in on a little secret. I am not the most perfect homeschool Mom. I am not very organized, I tend to be a bit lazy, I am selfish at times, and I can be very impatient (just ask my kids!) I am more of a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl than dresses or jumpers. I don't make from scratch, gourmet meals every night for dinner. My house is not always super tidy, we have more of a "lived-in" look going on most of the time. Most importantly, I do not possess a teaching degree.

And yet....I homeschool. If I can do it, so can you! All you need is the desire to teach your kids at home.

In this series, I am going to hopefully cast a more realistic light on what it is REALLY like to homeschool your kids.