Replacing Fear with Facts - Homeschooling

Relax! Despite common belief most homeschoolers don't ruin their kids. Here is some information about replacing fear with facts. Homeschooling can be great for children!

Although home education has grown in popularity, myths about homeschooling continue to abound. Here are some homeschool statistics you can trust. The following are answers to common concerns about homeschooling:

1. Will I ruin my children?

   Unless you are neglectful or abusive, you won't ruin your kids. Whenever I'm convinced I'm the world's worst parent and my children are doomed, I remind myself of the statistics on homeschooling. Most home educated students excel academically and socially, and go on to home school their own children.

2. My children will miss out on recess, back to school shopping, pep rallies, school friendships and other fun experiences.

   We often look back on our school years through rose colored glasses. We remember the fun - not the hours of boredom, teasing, taunting, bullying, and nonsensical rules. Our children will have their own, equally fun memories without all of the disadvantages of public school. As for friends, how many of your elementary school friends are you still in contact with?

3. I don't want to wear denim jumpers, grind my own wheat or make my own laundry soap.

   You don't have to wear a denim jumper, but you can if you find them comfortable. You can also grind your own wheat or buy white bread, and you can use whatever type of laundry soap you prefer. Homeschoolers are a diverse group of individuals, and one size does not fit all. You have the power to choose - your values, your curriculum, your schedule, your lifestyle. Home educators highly value the freedom they have to live the lives of their choice.

4. What if my kid is not accepted to Harvard?

   We have all heard the reports about homeschoolers who've won spelling and geography bees, gone to college at age 15, wrote novels, and cured cancer - oh , wait, that hasn't happened... yet. Take a deep breath! Lower your expectations. A little lower... There. That's good. Your goal is not to impress the neighbors. Your goal is to do what's best for your child.

5. What if I forget to teach something?

   Step away from the homeschool curriculum catalogs - you don't need 3 math programs! When your child leaves home there will be gaps. Homeschooling is not about cramming your child's head with facts and figures, it is about giving your child the tools to learn anything he or she needs to know.

   When is the last time you solved a quadratic equation? Used the periodic table? Recounted historical dates? Much of what we learn in school is not used in real life, and some of what we use in real life wasn't taught in school.

   In the words of the late John Holt:
   

   "...no matter what the tests show, very little of what is taught in school is learned, very little of what is learned is remembered, and very little of what is remembered is used. The things we learn, remember, and use are the things we seek out or meet in the daily, serious, nonschool parts of our lives."

Follow this linkt of find more homeschooling facts.

Here are some additional facts about homeschooling.