Top 3 Reasons We Love Homeschooling

Here are my top 3 reasons I decide to silence all my negative thoughts when we don't have a productive day and keep my kiddo at home.

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If you're here, you are probably contemplating whether or not you should keep your kiddo at home for school, or if sending them to a brick-and-mortar would be a better option. And if I am being totally transparent with you, this question haunts me regularly even though we dove into the world of homeschooling with our daughter a few years ago!

“Learning is not the product of teaching. Learning is the product of the activity of learners.” – John Holt

Homeschooling has become more and more popular over the past few years (Pandemic Anyone?) and for us, it just made sense to take our daughter out of her Montessori School when everything started happening and keep her home. Not only did we save a ton of money, but we also were able to cater to her interests. Homeschooling felt natural, became a lifestyle for us, and gave us quality family time which is my first top reason!

Reason # 1 Family Time

This should speak for itself, but family time is one of the biggest reasons we love homeschooling. We have found that we can actually tolerate one another for a lot longer periods of time than we originally thought. (I'm only kind of joking!) But honestly, homeschooling our daughter has given us a lot of time back with her. Long gone are the days of not seeing each other for more than 10 minutes in the morning, dropping her off at school all day, and then rushing to eat dinner together before bed. We get to spend all day, every day together as a family and it has been amazing. We don't start our days cramming workbooks or making plans, we usually make breakfast together and see where the day takes us.

One of the best benefits of spending time together is that you get to really know your child. You get to learn everything about them; their likes, their dislikes, their quirks, and what they truly love. You have the opportunity to observe them from a distance and the pleasure of participating in their learning. You get to discover how they learn best, and what triggers them to behave a certain way. Now please don't think we don't have our moments, my child can act irrationally at times, and every now and then I question whether I am doing the right thing! These are teachable moments though and we all learn how to handle these better together, and I wouldn't trade them for anything!

That brings me to my next reason to homeschool... Kids love learning!

Reason #2 Life-Long Learner

Kids are born ready and eager to learn! From the moment your child wakes up until they are falling asleep, they want to know about anything and everything, they ask hundreds of questions, some without answers, and they want to absorb all the information like they are a tiny sponge.

The most beautiful thing about our relaxed homeschool environment is that I get to ask my daughter what she wants to learn about every day and usually, she chooses something new. When she doesn't know what she wants to learn about that day, we wait for something to pique her interest and we dive into that subject head first. This means that instead of sitting in a classroom, we go out and explore the world, and we wait for something interesting and new to happen that we can then learn all about. Sometimes I have the answers, and other times we learn together. It is exciting to know that as an adult I am able to learn right along with my child.

So, how can you grow your child into a life-long learner?

You can share the world with them by exploring, and encourage them to be curious. You can introduce them to all the things life has to offer, and when it's appropriate you ask them questions so that they can reflect on what they have learned. You don't have to go out to explore, (I know it's not always easy or feasible to get out) there are plenty of things around the house to learn about and books are always a great option to learn something new!

Azriel is reading a book about Dogs to Violet, our Great Dane.

Reason #3 Create Your Own Schedule

This is the reason I have always found most intriguing, and yet it is also the one that feels most unfamiliar ( I am sure that is true for most!). Both my husband and I come from a traditional schooling background where you wake up far too early, your day is then planned out for you, and you repeat that same cycle every day. Well, forget everything you know because homeschooling gives you the freedom to create your own schedule and while that feels a little scary, it is so liberating! Our daughter has had a routine since before she was born and always goes to bed around the same time, what she doesn't do is wake up at the same time every day, and if she needs to get up before her body says its ready, it almost feels like we have doomed her to have a more difficult day. Children need loads of sleep, in fact, school-age children need 7 to 12 hours of sleep every night. Choosing to take a more relaxed approach when it comes to our homeschooling lifestyle gives us the chance to wake up when our bodies feel ready and make plans as the day progresses! This has been an absolute game changer for our family and the way we homeschool our daughter. I encourage you to look at your family schedule and evaluate how much sleep you and your children get and if you could benefit from creating your own schedule!

Last but not least, the very best part about homeschooling is that there isn't one right way! You can be non-religious or believe in a higher power, you can homeschool traditionally or unschool, you can do co-op or do it all at home. There are so many amazing ways to encourage the love of learning.

Thank you so much for stopping by! I would love to hear how your family homeschools in the comments below!