Why Home Education? – Part 2: Back to the Basics (Part 18)
Categories: Léo’s Insights 2023-2024, Back to the Basics
Sometimes, something is so obvious it is hard to see and even more difficult to describe. That is what I have come to believe regarding home education. I cannot claim home education should be practiced by everybody, but I can definitely claim it is the best educational choice, when possible.
Most anyone can home educate. There are no better teachers than those who brought a child into the world. And, there is no one with a greater vested interest in the child’s success than loving parents. While many may say they are not qualified to be a teacher, parenting trumps teaching any day. However, while acknowledging that not every parent is “qualified” to home educate, lacking confidence is a not good reason not to.
The reason is simple. We do it because we love our children and want to be sure we provide the very best education possible. Funny thing about this desire is that of all the things the children will learn in life, the training they get in their home education program will not likely be what they remember when they have grown up and reflect on their upbringing. At least that was not our experience.
We cannot remember ever hearing about that fabulous math lesson or the joys of learning to read. Social studies was remembered, but only because we called a vacation a field trip. Science? Let’s face it – the explosive experiments won but the science was lost.
What our children remember the most is their experiences and the time they spent together. Our children did their “school work”, but usually because it was required before they could go out to play where they likely learned more valuable lessons than in the book work that morning.
Of all the lessons, trials, experiences, fun, and games, the thing we all value the most about home education remains to this day. We all grew older together as each others’ best friends. We cannot think of a greater blessing than to see our family continue to truly value, love and appreciate each other, decades after having grown up, left home and started families of their own. In our opinion, it does not get better than that and it came as a result of keeping our children home so they would learn to value the family rather than the temporary and fickle peers within a school setting.
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