Each family’s homeschool story is unique and deeply personal. Some of you knew you were destined to homeschool when you first held your newborn child. Maybe you fell into homeschooling as a result of circumstances not within your control. A few of you have chosen to educate your child at home for a season and might be wondering what you’ve gotten yourself into.
The one thing we all have in common is that we love our children to the moon and back and want them to thrive.
Our own story is one of unexpected twists and turns. We have not experienced a straight path, but rather, one of zigs and zags with some seasons of clarity and consistency and other periods of questions and trials. If you’d like to hear our homeschool story, read our post below.
Our Homeschool Story
In 2008 Brent & I moved our sweet toddler, Anna, from Chicago to our current home. The great recession had hit, and as professional musicians, we were grateful for Brent’s new university job that would provide more job stability and benefits. We had plans to settle in our new community, grow our family, find a good school system for the kids, and have me return to my career field of piano pedagogy.
Our plans moved along quite nicely. Micah was born the following year and we found a lovely private preschool for Anna. She adored it and was truly thriving.
As a stay-at-home mom the kids and I spent a great deal of time reading and doing learning activities together. We noticed that at around 3 1/2 years of age Anna would sit down and “read” books. We assumed she had memorized her favorite stories and was pretending to read.
We were wrong.
This sweet child had taught herself to read! Not only had she figured out how to read on her own, but she was reading anything and everything I put in front of her. She was writing her own stories. How did she learn to spell? How could a child teach themselves to read? I was dumbfounded.
Anna was almost four at the time and we were thinking ahead to kindergarten next year so I approached her teacher and asked for her recommendation. She informed me that the private school we were attending did not offer any gifted programming. So, I went to another private school and inquired. I got the same answer. I went to the public school system and asked for help. Nothing. They all informed me that if Anna was to enroll in their program she would need to follow the typical kindergarten curriculum and, aside from trips to the library where she could choose books at her level, there wasn’t any programming that would meet her needs.
What was I supposed to do? I did the only thing I knew how to do. I began to pray for wisdom and asked God to reveal a place for Anna where she could learn and thrive.
In my young mama heart, I truly believed God was going to plop the perfect school into our lives. I was willing to drive to another community and pay for a private education. There had to be a place for our child.
I waited and kept praying.
The longer I prayed and waited the more unsettled I became. I stopped sleeping. For six months I sat up at night praying and reading from the Psalms desperately searching for an answer. Why was I so unsettled? Why wasn’t I sleeping? Why couldn’t I find a school for our daughter?
In the midst of this season of searching and praying, God brought a memory to me of a very special family that I taught in Pennsylvania. This mom had seven children whom she had homeschooled. They lived in a beautiful stone house and were the loveliest people. Their children were happy, intelligent, articulate, well-socialized, and thoughtful. Even more impressive to me, was that her grown children had become successful adults and served their communities as doctors, artists, and teachers. This family inspired me.
The idea of homeschooling our own children was never something I had considered. Both my husband and I were brought up in the public school system. I had career aspirations of going back to get my doctorate and returning to college teaching.
Once I began to ask God if this is what He desired for our family, a great peace came over me.
I knew.
I began to sleep again.
It was scary to be solely responsible for our child’s education. I felt truly afraid of missing something and messing her up for life. The questions of how to teach, what to teach, and where to find resources were real but I trusted that if God called me to do this He would provide.
And He did.
He brought other homeschool moms into my life. They encouraged me, shared tips and ideas, answered my questions, and walked with me. I found some great blogs with teaching ideas and resource recommendations. And we moved ahead.
Our early days of learning were so sweet. We spent our time cuddled up on the couch rowing Five in a Row books, going on field trips and nature walks, working on art and craft projects, and digging into hands-on science activities. Micah was a curious toddler and eagerly joined us.
We had plans to homeschool Anna for a year or two until she could easily transition into a public or private school. That year or two has turned into almost nine years. We have fallen in love with learning as a family. We treasure the opportunity to provide a customized learning approach to each of our children. Learning with our hands, exploring the world together, and immersing ourselves in in-depth learning have allowed our kids to thrive.
I will not pretend that homeschooling is an easy journey. It can be all consuming. It can be messy and can leave you feeling frazzled. It will sometimes leave you with more questions than answers. It can also be isolating which makes finding a community of homeschool parents very important. It is incredibly humbling.
Even though it has stretched me beyond what I ever imagined, I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything. I have witnessed our children reading their first words. We have been able to discuss and process difficult themes such as war and slavery as a family. We have the gift of time together and get to learn, explore, and grow as a family. All three of our children have unique gifts and challenges and they are able to learn in the way that is best for them.
Each of us has our own unique story and reasons for homeschooling. Whether you are a veteran homeschool parent or are just starting out, I would love to hear your story. Please feel free to comment below and like our Delightful Homeschooling Facebook page for new posts and daily encouragement & resources.
The days, months and years fly by quickly. Seize the day and enjoy, friends. Live, love, and learn to the fullest.
I wish you joy in the journey!