Parents often tell me that they will supplement their children's education at home to make up for the educational or moral deficiencies of the public school.
I always ask, "When?"
Before school when you are rushing to get to school? Maybe after school, when the child is tired and doing the assigned homework? How about on the weekends, instead of helping around the house or taking a break with their brothers and sisters?
Of course, when the child is at home, he or she may no long want to spend time with family. Putting children in age segregated classes for long periods of time teaches them that peers are more important than family, even more important than learning. If that were not the case, people wouldn't keep asking homeschoolers about "socialization."
Time with our children is very short. Our family has been dramatically reminded of this quite of few times. In our society, more frequently than we choose to admit, families lose each other. At some point, usually too late, parents realize that their children have grown up to be someone they don't really know and lacking the skills to be a successful adult.
Parents tell themselves that later, when they aren't so busy, they will spend more time with their children. Usually, later is too late.
Homeschooling gives families time to do what matters most.
2 comments:
A Great post! And so, so true! I raised two stepsons who went through public school and am now homeschooling my two children. My two stepsons had little time for one another or for us and little interest in what we had to say. My two children trust in us to teach them and spend a great deal of time playing with one another even though they are a boy and a girl and they are 3 years apart in ages.
That's too bad about the stepsons. I remind my kids that after Mom and Dad are gone, it will be the relationship with each other that will matter most. I really love how homeschooling strengthens our family.
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