Because it allows us more time to spend together.

Written by Claudia

When I see the continually developing interests my kids genuinely have (Karate, language learning, harp, gymnastics, ASL) I realize how little time we'd have with them if they spent most of the day at school and also went to extra classes to help them learn these things. Considering that they'd want to play with friends as well - we'd have very little time to spend with them and it makes me grateful that we have been led down this uncommon path.

The longer we home school and the more comfortable I become with it the more beautiful and miraculous I seem to find it.

My new motto, once it comes to our homeschooling life, is derived from the book Laddie. Little Sister's mother is speaking as to how they (mostly her husband) educated their children. (I've changed the words in parentheses to make it apply to myself.)

She says, "(I schooled my children) by educating myself before their coming, and with them afterward. Self-control, study, work, joy of life, satisfaction with what we have had, never-ending strife to go higher, and to do better...

From the start (I) have rigorously guarded (my) speech and actions before them. From the first tiny baby (I) have taught them all to read, write and cipher some...We are always watching, observing, studying: the earth, the stars, growing things...seeing things that we have or will study out for all of us.

There never has been one day in our home on which we did not read a new interesting article from book or paper; work out a big problem, or discuss some phase of politics, religion, or war. Sometimes there has been a little of all of it in one day, always reading, spelling, and memory exercises at night.

(I) have been a schoolmaster, (my) home (my) schoolroom, (my) children, (husband) and helpers (my) pupils; the common things of life as (I) meet them every day, the books from which we learn...and for each of them we have added at least two years of college, music school, or whatever the peculiar bent of the child seemed to demand."

Such a home environment is lovely and marvelous to me - it is the kind of environment I intend to do my best to create.