My Top 5 Benefits of Homeschooling

1. Academics

Homeschooling allows us to personalize each child’s education to his or her own learning style and my teaching style while also letting us pace learning in each subject to each child’s strengths and weaknesses.

2. Spiritual Growth

God desires to be a part of every area of our lives, especially the training of our minds. Homeschooling allows us to choose Christian curriculum so that every idea can be filtered through God’s Word. Homeschooling also provides us with the time to pour into our children spiritually as we walk and talk with them throughout the day.

3. Positive Social Experiences

Having our children at home gives us the opportunity to provide positive social experiences for our kids. When our children encounter negative peer influences we are usually right there beside them to help walk them through how to respond to negative influences in a healthy, biblical manner. Our children are also learning to interact with others that are not the same age as them. While traditional school settings offer lots of practice in peer interaction, they seldom allow kids the training they need for the real world, filled with people younger and much older than themselves. Homeschoolers come into contact and interact with individuals of all ages.

4. Flexibility

Because we homeschool, our children usually finish their school work in less time than the average traditional school day. This allows us extra time for extracurricular activities, ministry opportunities as well as time to visit with friends and family. We also have the flexibility of scheduling vacations, outings and other activities around our own needs and desires rather than a predetermined schedule set up by the public or private schools.

5. Family Unity

Homeschooling has provided us with hours of enjoyable time together as a family. Being together a lot of the time has forced us to learn how to get along and respect one another. It is priceless to see my teenage daughter playing with her preschool age brother or little sisters…and enjoying it! Those relationships didn’t just happen. They were nurtured and developed over hours of time together within the home. We love how homeschooling has united our family. Friends may come and go but a family is forever.

The Real Reason

These are all great reasons to homeschool but for our family they are just added benefits. My husband and I believe that God has given us, as parents, the primary responsibility to disciple each of our children. For us, discipleship includes the training of the mind as well as the spirit. We want to be there, with God’s Word in hand, as our children learn and grow in knowledge. For our family, discipleship happens best in the context of homeschooling.

What do you love about homeschooling?