Homeschool vs. Public School

The Great Debate: Homeschool vs. Public School

As a homeschooling mom, I am often asked the question of why our family chose homeschooling. It is not an easy choice when you are considering homeschooling vs public school, and truly, there is no right or wrong answer – it all depends on your individual family needs and circumstances. With that in mind, here are a few of the things I try to talk to others about when the topic of “should I homeschool?” comes up:

1. Is your child bored (or are you pretty sure he will be) in public school? A lot of times, very bright and motivated children tend to become hyperactive because they’re simply bored sitting in class waiting for the teacher to answer 20 other questions when they’ve already completed the assignment.
2.  Does your family operate on a “normal” schedule, or would something more unique better suit you? Some families have dads who work nights, weekends, and holidays; this leaves very little time for family activities. Other families like to take vacations in the “off season”, and would just as soon be inside working during the hot summer months and have off during the cooler times for outdoor winter activities. Many homeschooling families opt for year-round schooling and take several short breaks throughout the year instead of a single long summer vacation. For some children, this also keeps the amount of material that needs to be reviewed at the start of the school year to a minimum.
3. Do your children have special educational or physical challenges?  Would they be better suited for working at home or outside the home? Likewise, do you feel your child can and will learn from you or will they try to get away with doing the bare minimum and not take school seriously?
4. What about socialization? Boy, this is a question we hear ALL the time! Homeschooled kids are usually involved in lots of things outside of school: 4H, Scouts, Awana, youth group…the list goes on and on! We recently joined a homeschool co op for the first time, which gives us like-minded families to do educational and social activities with one day a week. Plus, some co-ops even offer sports, and there are homeschooling sports teams for baseball, volleyball, and football near my hometown. My son plays on one such team. There are homeschooling groups on Facebook for all sorts of interests from the region you live in, to groups that are alike because they use the same type of curriculum, to field trip groups.
5. Do you have certain things you want (or likewise don’t want) covered as part of the learning process? For instance, many homeschool curriculum programs are fairly heavy, religion-wise. There are definitely secular options out there, but not as easily found and commonly used.  Additionally, many co op groups are faith-based. If you are not religiously inclined, this is a consideration. On the other hand, if you are, you may want to incorporate religious study as part of your homeschooling program. You may not feel comfortable having certain aspects of science taught, and may wish to have Creationism taught instead of the Scientific Theory of “the big bang.”

These are just the more common things to consider when you are thinking about homeschooling. Again, so much of it depends on your personal circumstance, but for my family, and so many others, it fits our needs in so many ways.

Are you already a homeschooling family? What prompted your decision? I’d love to hear from you!