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Should I teach the same as public schools? This is one of the most asked questions in the homeschooling community, and rightfully so. Depending on your location, the homeschooling laws could lead you to believe that you need to “mock the school system” in order to be successful.
Although this seems to be the case, and the most stressed area for homeschoolers, teaching the same as public schools is not a necessity. Keep reading for three ways you can homeschool without looking like a public school, yet teach the important subjects and concepts. If you want your kids to stay at home but couldn’t commit to homeschooling, online learning through an Online Elementary School or Cyber elementary school could be a great option for your child’s education.
Keep Your Family the Primary Focus
As you begin (or continue) to homeschool, always keep your family as the primary focus. Each family has a unique dynamic of its own… one that should be embraced and celebrated. Too often, homeschoolers try to make their families fit a systematic mold that ends up doing more harm than good.
In this case, instead of looking to what the public school is doing, create and establish your own set of milestones and learning goals that fit each of your unique children. You will most likely continue teaching similar subjects and concepts; however, they’ll be tailored to your child’s skill set.
Create Your Unique Homeschooling System
Any veteran homeschooling mom will say that it’s vital that you understand why you’re homeschooling. They’ll also tell you that it is a great idea to not only write it down, but to also include:
- a homeschool mission statement
- your statement of beliefs
- an overall homeschool plan
- learning goals and milestones
- and what homeschooling looks like for your family
These simple, but powerful, aspects of your overall homeschool system will ensure that you and your family are the primary focus, and not a “school system.” The uniqueness of your homeschool will shine!
Be Encouraged to Homeschool Your Way
You may purchase a full boxed curriculum for math. Perhaps you choose online learning for English and Language Arts. Suppose you are part of a co-op that teaches other subjects. Whatever you choose is up to you.
Yes, it may look similar to what school system’s today are doing, but in the end, homeschooling your way is the best way. There are some moms who focus less on certain subjects, and more on others for a period of time. Some moms use notebooking while another may use unit studies to teach.
The primary focus is not on checking off boxes and teaching for a test (like in public schools). Homeschoolers have the liberty to expand, increase, decrease, and/or completely do away with things that will not matter to their child’s future.
Should you teach the same as public schools? I say no. I recommend:
- keeping your family the primary focus.
- creating your own homeschooling system.
- being encouraged to homeschool your way.
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Michelle Huddleston is a wife, homeschooling mama, and work-from-home mompreneur. She has a desire to help other homeschooling families walk this path at their own pace and their own way. Through a variety of resources, tools, and support – Michelle hopes to help educate, encourage, and empower today’s homeschoolers to home educate their children with grace and ease. Michelle is also the founder of More Than Minority and the unprecedented annual online conference, Multi-Ethnic Homeschool Moms Conference. Connect with her on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.
Wont you be denying your child some socialization if you home school tho?
Of course there are pros and cons to both decisions and there is much more safety in home schooling.
We have been homeschooling for 13 years and I feel like my kids are oversocialized! LOL We have actually had to cut down on a lot of the kids’ outside activities because it was just getting to be too much. My kids get most of their socialization at our homeschool co-op, our church, sports teams, and work (for the teens that have a job).
Thanks for the encouragement to Homeschool the way that works for us. That is what really drew us into homeschooling in the first place 🙂
The freedom to just teach to your child’s learning style and personality is the whole reason we began home schooling. Then I got insecure with my abilities and let that trap me into a public school mentality in my first year of teaching. It’s so easy to fall into that trap! And I quickly learned that public school teaching didn’t work for my kid. Trusting myself to teach was monumental to any success we have had in our homeschooling.
This is great advice!
Thanks for sharing
Wonderful article! For a long time we modeled our homeschool after public schooling and it just did not work out for us. Instead of “homeschooling” We now say home educating. It puts it in a different context for us because there are so many learning opportunities throughout the day that don’t include bookwork.
That’s a great idea! Just get rid of the term ‘school’ all together!
Thanks for the great reminder of why and how we homeschool. It is so easy to get caught up with your kids peers and what they are learning. This goes for both homeschooled and public school friends. Do school that benefits the most for YOUR kid.
I love what one comment said about it being called home-educating instead of homeschooling.