Another Reason...

Okay, I don't want to spill my guts completely for my children's sake, but I'd like to say this...

I LOVE homeschooling. For many reasons. I don't think you should...unless you want to. But I want to. And I don't think it's any one's business as long as I am actually schooling. And I am.

It doesn't matter what school district I live in. Mine is in the top 16% in the country. I might change my mind, but there is a good chance my kids will learn at home until graduation.

I'm pretty sure I was a weird kid. I probably still am weird.:) There were other factors about my situation that made people wonder about me, but I can't talk about it. So, I didn't really fit in. But I didn't know it until I started the first grade! And since my students share my DNA, they have a good chance of being like me. I am not bitter, but I do remember many sleepless, tearful nights.

I want my kids to realize how wonderful and special they were made. Oh, please. Not for self-confidence, but to honor God and to enjoy their uniqueness. They have talents that they may never recognize if someone tells them they did a bad job, or can't see past the backwards numbers, or continually reward others that didn't try as hard just because they are more likable.

I wonder how things would have been different for me if no one would have told me that I wasn't smart? What if I could have learned at home at my own pace, focusing on the things I was good at?

So, it kinda peeves me when people are concerned about my children's social life. Social life? You mean the social life that tells you what kind of clothes to wear and what kind of music to listen to and what activities you should be in? Or the one that teaches them to ignore someone who isn't so cool or to assume the new kid is mean? Or is it the one that our main goal should be to impress others so that we can get ahead in life? Ironically, my kids that don't have near the social teaching are the ones pursuing friends at the playground...yes, my kids. The ones whose mother would rather not open up to a stranger or mingle with a crowd. And yes, I know, they are not perfect. They can be mean too. Just sayin.

Okay, I probably just ticked someone off. I am going to go back to the fact that this is a personal experience and a personal decision for me.

And this is only one reason. I. Love. Homeschooling.

I don't do it because I'm mad at someone from the past, but my past does influence my decisions today.

Oh- and by the way, I do have great memories, too. And great friends. And I am just fine. But so are my kids.

This morning I looked around past my mess and at my five. Three were sitting in the living room working independently. Two were wearing leotards. One was in a dress and patterned tights doing a cartwheel every two minutes.
One was subtracting. Out loud, she was imagining word problems that went along with her math.
One was problem solving aloud. In a professional secretary-like manner.
One made meatballs. And peeled potatoes.
One was dumping my spices out on the floor. (can you guess which one?)
And my pre-schooler was still in pj's giving me her charging hugs every once and a while.

I. Love. Homeschooling. I'm hooked.