The Homeschool Series – Part 1

Back to school beckons, and with it, many of you find yourself in a position you didn’t expect, in a role you may not have chosen. With schools moving online or delayed, you may find yourself wearing the mantle of homeschool mom. You may be excited, nervous, shell-shocked. Perhaps you’ve already stocked the school room and sharpened the pencils. Or maybe you’ve locked yourself in the closet and cried like a raging toddler.

Whatever the case … it’s OK. In the last 7 years as a part-time homeschooling mom, I’ve found myself in both places and every other spot in between. Homeschooling isn’t for the faint of heart. It will humble you. It will challenge you. But it will also develop and bless you and your children in ways you can’t yet fathom.

So for the next few weeks, I’m going to be popping in to share tips and tricks for making the most of your homeschool/distance-learning days. I’m not an expert, and you can surely find others who do this better than me. But I’m happy to share what I’ve learned, and I hope it informs and encourages you!

In the meantime, take a deep breath, and know that you’re about to embark on a really good thing! Studies continue to show that homeschooled kids perform better on standardized tests than their traditionally schooled peers. A study of 5,402 homeschool students and 1,657 families found that “homeschoolers, on average, achieved higher scores than their public school counterparts by 30 – 37% in all subject areas” (The Evolution of Homeschooling, Aislin Davis). A 2010 study that tested more than 2,000 students found that home schooled children were functioning at a higher level than traditionally schooled children in every grade and in all subjects (Rudner, Education PolicyAnalysis Archives). Additionally, homeschooled students typically outperform their traditionally educated peers in college as well. (http://i.bnet.com/blogs/homeschool.pdf)

And when it comes to socialization, homeschooled kids are generally better socially adjusted than their peers because their socialization involves a diverse variety of ages, rather than being centered on one age-specific group. In fact, “Jeffrey Koonce, a school superintendent in Miller County, Missouri, who wrote his doctoral dissertation on how homeschool students fare when they transition into the public schools, says that the students he interviewed were, in many cases, more ‘socially adept’ and mature than their peers.” (https://www.pbs.org/parents/thrive/socialization-tackling-homeschoolings-s-word).

All that to say … good things await! And I hope my insight can provide just a bit of useful info to make this journey even better! Follow along for the next few weeks for a collection of tips, tricks and resources to make your journey easier, and tag a homeschooling/distance learning/hybrid schooling friend!

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