Why You Should Homeschool Right Now
I never wanted children. I didn’t think being a mother was in my DNA. When I was a kid, I shunned playing with baby dolls in favor of target shooting with my bb gun. I imagined I was Annie Oakley and would practice by holding a mirror and shooting over my shoulder. And I was pretty good. But I suppose God didn’t see a potential future in that, and instead blessed me with two wonderful children.
The instant I learned that I was pregnant with my son, my firstborn, something clicked. I knew that I could do this mom thing and I was determined to do it right from the very start, though I hadn’t a clue how to go about it. I never babysat neighborhood kids for extra money when I was a teen. I had never changed a diaper and knew nothing about whether to formula or breast feed. I was, quite literally, starting with zero knowledge about how to bring another person into this world and help them survive until adulthood.
Somewhere in my fog of confusion and raging pregnancy hormones, I decided that I would homeschool. Honestly, I didn’t even know what that entailed, but I had friends that I respected sing the praises of homeschooling. That was enough for me. I was going to do it. And I did, from birth to high school graduation with both of my children.
At this very moment, parents everywhere are anticipating the upcoming school year. And if you have been paying attention to what is happening in our nation, in our communities, and most importantly in our schools, then you should very seriously consider homeschooling. I would even go so far as to say that you should move heaven and earth to homeschool your children. Extreme? Perhaps, but these extreme times we are living in call for sacrificial obedience.
Trust me when I say that you do not want your treasures from heaven subjected to a school curriculum rife with CRT and Social Emotional Learning, drag queen story time and a militant LGBTQ+++++ agenda, and every evil scheme the enemy can throw their way.
The plain truth is, Satan wants our children, and you, the parents, must be the hedge between your child and the rest of the world. Scripture tells us to “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Proverbs 22:6
Now many of you are saying to yourself, “I can’t do this. I’m not trained appropriately. I don’t have the finances to support a homeschool lifestyle. I’m not educated enough. My child will turn out weird and unsocialized. Etc., etc.” I’ve heard it all, and so has God. Listen, He has not blessed you with these precious gifts for you to offer cop-out excuses about why you can’t see to their education, spiritual guidance, and relationship-building. He always makes a way.
In my case, my husband and I gave up fully half of our income when I walked away from my job with a U.S. Congressman. By the time our second child was born three years later, we decided to walk away from a cushy job at a business journal and start our own newspaper in rural Georgia. Our children were 5 and 2 and I was responsible for half of the newspaper business, running a household, and homeschooling my babies.
Before you assign me the moniker of Superwoman, let me clear that up. I am anything but. I was nearly 29 when I had my first, 32 when our daughter came along. In my mind, I was already old and tired, but again, God paved the way.
I looked at scores of pre-packaged curriculums that others were using, but always rejected them. I ultimately decided to handpick every part of my children’s curriculum based on their personalities and learning styles. Did I instantly know those things? Of course not, but that is one of the most rewarding benefits of homeschooling—you get to know your children in ways that even the mom on “Father Knows Best” didn’t have the benefit of. I knew the way my children thought. I saw their personalities develop, their talents and special interests take shape, and their relationship with Jesus unfold. I was there for the entire show, not just the first laugh or stumbling steps.
True, we’ve all heard it said that absence makes the heart grow fonder, but that wasn’t our experience as a homeschooling family. Our children enjoyed hanging out with us, even as they became teens and more independent. Today, our son is 30 and our daughter is 27. We are good friends and enjoy time together. They say “thank you for an amazing childhood” frequently. And I am a richer person today because I witnessed God completing a good work in my children that began when He knitted them together in my womb.
It wasn’t always easy and some months were financially lean, but we never missed a meal and nobody ever suffered from frostbite in my home.
So how do you get started? The first step is to acknowledge that YOU CAN DO THIS! Second, there are copious resources available to help you on this new adventure. I think the best place to start is with the Home School Legal Defense Association (HSLDA) at hslda.org. There you will find information about homeschooling laws in each state (yes, they vary from very free to very strict, but even those hurdles can be overcome). They can also provide links to resources, homeschool co-ops in which parents skilled in various areas teach other children from their expertise, and homeschool conventions.
Start there and dig in! Reach out to groups in your area. Go to conventions and conferences (it’s like Disney World for the homeschool parent, without the woke agenda!) We joined a group when our son was only three—too young to formally homeschool, but I wanted to learn all I could from veteran parents before we started.
Our children are a gift from the Lord and homeschooling will allow you to nurture that gift until it’s time to release them as adults. Go for it, mom and dad! You can do this!