Some of Why I Homeschool ...

Every day in a life fills the whole life with expectation and memory. ~ C.S. Lewis

I took a piece of living clay
And gently formed it, day by day
And molded with my power and art
A young child's soft and yielding heart.

If a child is to keep his inborn sense of wonder ... he needs the companion of at least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, excitement, and mystery of the world we live in. ~ Rachel Carson

The imagination should be allowed a certain amount of time to browse around. ~ Thomas Merton

My Conviction

As a homeschooling mom it is essential that I know why I have chosen to home school. It is not a good enough reason to say "because it is the more 'noble' way". I know that in the days ahead there will be moments when the public school down the street looks very inviting and the whole idea of homeschooling will seem utterly ridiculous. It is on days like these when I will need to go back to that little piece of paper stuck on the inside of my cupboard door and read it aloud. I will need to remind myself about my original convictions of why homeschooling is the best choice for our family at this time. I will need to read something more realistic than "because I want to be a good mom".

So here I sit on the brink of officially homeschooling my oldest daughter. Conviction writing time is here. My convictions are several, with some being stronger than others, but nevertheless each one is important and will be essential in the days ahead. So here they go . . .

Conviction #1 - Living Without Regrets. I have the opportunity to home school and a large support group is already in place. I don't want to look back on this time and wish that I had, when I hadn't.

Conviction #2 - Age 5 is Toooooo Young. Someone, somewhere decided that age 5 was the appropriate age for a child to leave the influence of his home and start being influenced by 20 other 5 year olds and an adult stranger. I personally feel that 5 is too young to leave home. Just my own personal conviction.

Conviction #3 - Faith and Character. No matter what I do, my kids are going to learn their ABC's and how to count simply by being alive. But will they learn how to love God with all their heart, soul, and strength? Will they grasp an understanding of God's love, faithfulness, and forgiveness? Will they learn that God cares about the big things but also the teensy, tiny things? As for character, we are presently talking a lot about the Fruit of the Spirit and trust me, we have a looooong way to go!

So there you have it. I may come back and revamp occassionally, but for now these are the convictions that stand. Now I just need to tape them to the inside of my cupboard door.