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We’re a lot like amysue in our days. There’s so much freedom to come and go, ebb and flow, while honing disciplined skills. Our kids are really active socially with us as a family as well as their personal activities with a variety of groups where they can interact with different people. We highly value family – it is very important to establish that while simultaneously reaching out with open hands to be with others. Friends and community is valued, but these things come and go and at the end of the day, they have a constant, a grounding so to speak, in their life. I believe this gives them more security, strength, faith, and focus. I don’t want to miss anything either! The teachable moments and opportunities are endless.
I love that my kids can focus in on their passions. There is so much more time to have unstructured hours in the day, where they can explore, learn something new, invent something…etc. My 11 year old is already talking about her plan to be an artist, chef, horse trainer, and dance teacher. And I believe she will do all of it and make beautiful differences in peoples lives! She’s been able to walk in talent in those things already and has the freedom to pursue them now, with no pressures. My 5 year old son lately has been discussing the fact that when he’s a farmer, he “won’t kill the baby cow to scrape it’s stomach to make cheese”. um, yea, we’re pretty open around here, the good, bad and ugly – we usually tell it like it is. heh heh. Anyway, I won’t bore you with all the other antectodes, I’ll save some for other posts. ; )
We LIVE life together, allowing us to have a great deal of influence on my kids food choices and natural and organic lifestyle choices. It’s wonderful to not only be able to talk about whole and raw foods but preparing them together, and sharing our meals together just completes it! They talk about it with their friends too. Today, my 7 year old has a friend over, and already, she has proclaimed the benefits of raw smoothies and cloth diapering. : ) (her friend however wasn’t buying it…oh, well, poco por poco)
amysue, ya I have two sisters-one who is still being homeschooled, and one brother. My brother and other sister were homeschooled from the 4th grade, one is now an RN and the other an artist. I started teaching myself after 9th grade. math was harder for me, but Teaching Textbooks helped me through that. We used a variety of different companies, though I liked a-beka best overall, especially for history. One cool thing for us is that we are members of a local co-op group of about 400 families! lotsa social fun there, so I am totally not an uneducated social misfit (yet another myth debunked)lol
We have been a homeschooling family for almost nine years. Kirsten, we used A Well Trained Mind as a guide when we began and it was invaluable but found that a lot of what they recommend did not fit our learning and teaching styles. We did, however, basically follow the classical method from then on, heavy on the humanities. We live in California and my daughter just finished her first year at a junior college (she was also a senior in high school), received all A’s and plans to transfer to a UC school in one year which means she will finish college a year ahead of her peers. My son will be attending the same junior college as a junior in high school and plans to transfer to an art college when he has finished his general education. Homeschooling has enriched our lives and provided numerous opportunities for experiences most kids do not receive, let alone most adults. We have seriously studied classical ballet (my daughter danced in professional productions), fencing, art, guitar, martial arts, shakespearean theatre, opera, and rock climbing. We have lived in Russia, visited numerous other countries as well as many U.S. States. We have run summer camps for orphans and street kids in developing nations and helped families affected by poverty in Alabama, Puerto Rico, and Mexico. For the last two years, my kids have volunteered every Friday at a local community service agency that distributes food and clothing to people in need. I am proud (and relieved) to say that I have two of the most well adjusted, compassionate, intelligent, confident and creative kids I have ever met. This is due not to my abilities as a teacher or parent (for I have failed at both too many times to count) but to the wealth of experiences they have had that a formal education could not have afforded them. Probably the best part of homeschooling has been the closeness we have developed as a family. We even survived the teen years with almost none of the torment I know my husband and I put our parents through (knock on wood). As for raw homeschooling, I have only been mostly raw for a year and my kids eat only some of my raw creations but are healthy vegetarians none the less.
mamamilk – so funny about the diapers! My daughter has no memory of cloth diapers, but still uses them with her guinea pigs (to sit on, not to wear!). Those suckers last a long time!!
naturodude – sounds like it’s been really positive for you all. Any challenges for us to know since you’re at the end of the line and we’re at the beginning? That’s sort of not true because it never really ends, does it?
sanprecario – your post was so inspiring to me! I have a sign above my computer that says “Life is to be spent not saved” and I would say you’re definitely doing that! I so relate to what you say about how they’ve turned out through their experiences. I cringe when people call me a teacher, or that I must be some kind of extraordinary parent to be able to do this, so patient, so NOT!! I’m not a genius and I’m not a saint, I just think know that this is what makes us happy right now and our daughter is thriving. When we watched “Mamma Mia” recently there is a song about mothers and daughters, and the regrets of not having done all the things they had hoped to do together. I could hear the sniffling around me and I could see how that could be sad, but I was dry eyed because I don’t feel that way. I am sad for those who would like the opportunity to homeschool but can’t because of their circumstances.
challenges? hmmm. I’ve never encountered a challenge I couldn’t overcome with God’s help. But, as a hint of advice, never hold back; the sky is the limit went you take over your kid’s education.
This entire conversation is incredible. I am impressed, for sure! My absolute credit to all of the dedicated students and parents/teachers out there.
I’d like to offer an alternative view though: I went to public school from k-12, and found that while I did not fit in with the clique mentality ( I went to a stereotypical 3000 kid jock vs. artkid high school), it pushed me to find my miche, to find where I DID fit in. It pushed me to push myself to success, to rise above the norm on many levels. My mom debated homeschooling after putting my older sister through the same system 6 years before me, but she decided that I would learn the best from enduring the hardships of simply growing up with other kids. Both of my parents still pushed me and encouraged me more than any teacher, though my school system was the best in Ohio and has rather impressive curriculums, and my extracurricular activities helped form me into who I am now. Parents should not be afraid of their children being “dumbed” by the system, because a lot of other activities and teaching can be packed into a day after school and on the weekends! It is how you nurture what is already there. We all have our paths, and we are all going to turn out as whom we are supposed to be, you know? We all find our ways to thrive in the world, whether or not we had to suffer through being asked to prom.
what a positive attitude naturodude!
cpagosa, monomeals of fruit is perfect in the morning. over the weekend make some crackers, trail mixes, and ‘bars’ to eat off of during the week.
Hey bethechange! How’s life? have you done any ‘uncooking’ for your beer drinking ramen frat boys yet? ; )
There IS much diversity and everyone finds their path. Personally, my family has done it several ways. Our kids range in age from 1 to 21. We’ve public educated, private educated AND home – educated. I must say, I am happier home-educating than anything. And there are as many different reasons and philosophies for home-educating as there are home-educators. Most parents choose this path after much thought and for many reasons other than fear of their kids being ‘dumbed’ down. Every family chooses the path that works. My oldest has been in the public, private and home sectors. He’s in his 3rd year of university and very succesfull and all his experiences did make him who he is becoming. None of us is all done becoming who we’re supposed to be anyway, right?
In addition to the other reasons discussed in previous posts on this thread, I just love that my kids are busy and well-spent, without being jam-packed schedule-wise. They have time to ‘marinate’ in what they’re doing and learning in order to apply and extrapolate to many situations. Being free to think and be while being challenged in discipline. My autonomous nature also can be free to choose what my kids learn when they learn it and how they learn it. They have their challenges in our active social life too…not to mention my husband and I can sometimes be a bit difficult to live with – talk about challenging. jk!
Activities such as art classes at a local center, horseback riding, sports, gymnastics, ballet and jazz, fit with ease into our family schedule. We aren’t too tired to hang out with friends and fellowship groups throughout the week. And, I still get dates and wonderful time with my great husband. Yeah, this life – it is shaping for sure. None of us is gonna do this parenting and home-educating and feeding our kids living foods perfectly. we’ll make mistakes, sometimes screw up royally, but in the end, we love, forgive, and keep moving forward. now about the prom….thats another story.
One of our home-educating friends tells us that in order to give his kids the ‘public school’ experience, he just takes them into the bathroom from time to time, beats them up and takes their lunch money. hysterical. (he is kidding, right?)
My daughter and her friend are spying on me right now, must be very boring.
Hey cpagosa! Thanks for sharing your story. My daughter would agree with mamamilk with the fruit for breakfast idea, she doesn’t have a huge appetite in the morning. But if they like a heavy breakfast we just tried the coconut pancakes with blueberries posted recently and my daughter loved them for dinner. It’s fairly quick too. Some kids love smoothies, mine does not.
BeTheChange – I totally hear where you’re coming from. My husband completely agreed with you when we started this journey. He went to a fairly tough boarding school in England and he believed the challenge pushed him to do things he wouldn’t have chosen to do and made him a better person. I have to say, though, that now that he’s seen what homeschooling has done for our daughter, I’m hearing more and more from him about what might have been, had his experience been different. He’s realizing the insecurities he developed from being made to feel stupid and sees the confidence in our daughter. You could take that one of two ways, that her belief that she’s hot stuff, since she doesn’t have peers knocking her down, will work against her one day. Or maybe her self-esteem will allow her to be whatever she wants because no one has ever told her otherwise. I agree with John Holt’s writings about education – our job is to keep them safe and healthy and then to get out of their way. I love your insight, though, and obviously your education worked for you.
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Exploring the world with my two adventurous children, aged 5 and 8, has been an extraordinary journey. It's a testament to the beauty of homeschooling, a lifestyle that allows us to seamlessly blend learning with the wonders of nature. In our family, we believe that our connection with nature is sacred. The rustling leaves, babbling brooks, and chirping birds are our companions in this grand adventure. We teach our children to respect and cherish the environment, understanding that we are an integral part of this delicate balance. But homeschooling is about more than just nature; it's about keeping pace with the modern world. We want our children to be tech-savvy and recognize the power of devices like computers and smartphones. These tools aren't just for entertainment; they connect us with distant loved ones and open doors to knowledge. Our smartphone serves as a lifeline, allowing us to call family and friends who are miles away. It's a bridge between our cozy home and the world beyond. The computer, on the other hand, is a portal to education. With programs like Magic Desktop, we create a safe space for our children to learn, create, and play. It's a digital wonderland where they explore and grow, all under the watchful eye of parental controls. Our diverse approach to upbringing isn't about choosing between nature and technology; it's about embracing both. We've witnessed the results firsthand – our children are blossoming, curious, and well-rounded. Their horizons are boundless, a testament to the harmonious blend of nature, technology, and education.The journey continues, and we're excited to see the limitless possibilities that lie ahead. It's a beautiful tapestry we're weaving – one that combines the simplicity of nature with the wonders of the digital age.