The Freedoms of Homeschooling

I’ve started and deleted so many articles about homeschooling lately. My words seem to flood the pages but not really provide the impact that I’d like for them to do. Instead of rambling on and on about how this year is impacting homes everywhere, and instead of whining and complaining, I thought sharing these few things with you would be so much better.

Everyone is doing the best they can. Instead of accepting and adapting, though, you can walk away from your local education options and gain some control that you may be desperately seeking. Homeschooling can happen at any point of the year. You can withdraw your child any moment of any day. You may also reenroll them at any point that you’d like! (Each county may require different enrollment processes depending on the child’s grade level.) If you are even toying with this idea, I want you to hear why it may provide you with the freedoms your family is craving.

Note: I completely understand that homeschooling is not for everyone. Whether it is just something you don’t want to do – or you cannot do due to work and finances, that is okay.  However, this article is for those who are really thinking about taking that leap… and are able to. (No judgment to anyone who cannot or does not want to.)

The Freedoms of Homeschooling

Freedom of Choice 

With a civil war (of sorts) building right before our eyes, we are living an extremely impactful part of history. No matter whether you stand with the majority or have stood your ground in another way, you have the right to choose what your child is learning RIGHT NOW.  While religion, politics, and health choices should never be discussed within a school building or by a teacher, they are. Every time a teacher shares a video, reads a book, or pushes on something happening in our world right now, the children are impacted. Whether these views are in line with yours or not, it’s still extremely inappropriate that they are spoken. 

Homeschooling grants you the freedom to choose your own curriculum, the freedom to do your own research, the freedom to go against the whole and follow your own path.

It also allows you to stay within your own bubble – whether it be for health, safety, or sanity.

Freedom of Childhood

Childhood ends too early in our society. Between social media, celebrities, movies, and even clothing options, our babies are jumping straight into teenagers before they are ready. Homeschooling is an opportunity to extend the years of exploration and play, imagination, and youth. Some may think homeschooling equals naivety (in a bad way), but the truth is that this innocence stays with them until they are ready to truly understand more adult-like things. It also means that topics are spoken openly and together within the family, instead of through peers.

Freedom of Time

Homeschooling does not have set hours or days. It can happen 2 hours a day from 6-8pm. It can happen every other day. It can be as structured or unstructured as your child’s personality demands. 

Freedom of Passion 

It’s no secret that our school system is very broken. 

By homeschooling, you are eliminating the chance of peer-pressure, bullying (by peers and teachers), and the squashing of your child’s passion. Jumping off that assembly line that asks 28 students in a room to line up and spit out the same facts, will allow you to truly learn who your child is – not the one that is formed and molded by the school system. Your relationship will strengthen. You can help guide and teach your child in ways he will retain and crave more. 

Freedom of Travel

This is one of the greatest freedoms that our family enjoys. We can pack up and hit the road on any given day. We try to work around sports and work, but the option is always right there. 

While the rest of our country has been sitting in front of virtual learning screens or heading in and out of an overly sanitized, faceless building for hybrid learning, we headed out for two weeks on the road! We hit up North Carolina and then cozied up watching the rain pour down on a lake in Southern Virginia. The music played, puzzles were put together, pancakes were devoured, and we still read books, completed work, and headed out on the boat for sunset. 

Homeschooling is what grants us the freedom to do this. Yes, it takes a different mindset. Yes, it presents many challenges. Yes, it is so worth it – for us… and possibly for you.