interesting article

My son is only 10 months old and I am planning to homeschool him at least for primary school.  This is mainly because of the hours I work.  I run my own business and work 3 afternoon/evenings a week and all weekend. If he went to traditional school I would never see him and I would hate that.  I was also incredibly bored at primary school and spent most of the time reading under the desk.  I hope I can make schooling more interesting for him and still keep a really close bond!

I like that you don't specifically say that one method is the only way to go. Far too often, I see the public schoolers or the homeschoolers becoming close minded and trying to convince people that their counterparts are harming the children involved, when really, everyone is just trying to do what they think is best for those they love.

 I was actually home schooled for the last 3 years of my schooling before college. I was given the choice by my parents to either be home schooled or return to the school where something traumatic had happened. (I had wanted to go to an arts school for creative writing.) 

 The first year was horrible. My parents and I were always at odds with each other, I often finished my work well ahead of schedule and became bored. The second year however, I was eligible to attend a Co-op of home schoolers, that also happened to have a few friends of mine in it. We met once a week, and each parent taught  or assisted in a different subject. We were given work assignments for the rest of the week. That's when I really started to enjoy myself, although I wished we had met more than once a week. 

Having a lot of friends that have been home schooled, I have seen many of them go one of two ways. They rebel either at home or when they get out, or they are so sheltered they are scared of everything. There are a few who ended up in the middle ground, but honestly, most of those had some regular schooling at some point in there lives.  I do believe it can be done successfully though. 

I would have this advice for those considering it. Be sure you don't get into it out of fear. Trying to keep our kids from harm is every parents desire, but sheltering them hurts them too. If you are going to do it, make sure it's your child's education you have in mind, not just their safety. And be sure you have the patience, self-control and finances for it. Home schooling is a lot of work and can be very expensive. It's also a good idea to look for a local co-op or start one. Oh, and I know at least here in America, home schoolers are often allowed to participate in after school programs and sports at local public schools.

fantastic advice, there is also the middle ground of vollenteering in the classroom. it is free, easy to do and verry little stress. although i would dearly love to go back to homeschooling i started with so little support and found it a bit much for me to cope with at the time which kind of has me fearful of it.

i have since put my hand up for the classroom helper atm once a week but would love to make it twice and have found that i get more interaction with the teachers and know more about how logan is going there than i would know just through a once a term meeting and a newsletter. it is wonderful to get to know all his friends there too and help them all learn, they have such a lovely class of kids.

::)'s from becca.

There are so many considerations... I guess with Home Schooling, you would need to be confident in your own ability to impart knowledge and stick to a learning routine on a regular basis.  Do you really want to spend that much time every day with a school aged child or do you need a break to get on with your own education, work etc?  The local schools would also affect your choice, are they good are they bad?  Do you know anyone who attends them?  What are their experiences?  Will you be able to provide alternative occasions for your child to associate with his/her peers to learn things in a group environment, or partcipate in sports, music etc?  How do you create a balance in the home between schooling and ever day learning?  What boundaries do you set between being a teacher and parent, or do they merge?  Where can we find out more about home schooling and statistics in regard to the acadmeic results of equivalent aged home-schooled, public-schooled and private-schooled children?  Great article as it provokes thought, however it prompts me to ask these and many more questions ; )

Okay! Off the top of my head. . . .

The cons for home schooling is:  the time the parent has to give the child every day, both for the school work, AND the activities the child would participate in. The possibility of isolation for both parent and child, depending on where you are and how you go about the teaching. Very little respite.

The cons for public/private schooling is: The negative influences (peer pressures, bullying, certain 'attitides' brought home etc) The possibility of your child 'growing apart' from you due to two seperate lives being lived and little knowledge of how to 'build bridges'. Travel to and from (either public transport, or your own vehicle, and the worry of saftey and cost because of this.

This would be great if you did put the cons as well as the pros as then people can see both sides of the story. Even if it does cause some discussion, heated or otherwise.

Juzzy xoxo