As you begin Homeschooling

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As you begin homeschooling, with love from a veteran homeschooling mom:

1. Don’t buy all the curriculum. In the beginning, maybe don’t buy any curriculum.
2. Enjoy putting a dedicated room together if you’re creating one, but don’t stress about it. Homeschooling happens all over the house.
3. There is GREAT value in letting young children learn by exploring, creating, playing and imagining. In fact, it’s far more advantageous to budding learners than is any kind of formal writing/read/math. That doesn’t mean you can’t do it differently, but when you hear others advise it’s too early, there is a good reason why.
4. Reading aloud to your child every day is a worthwhile goal. So is, reading more.
5. Set and steadfastly keep your focus on training up your child in God’s way with the bonus of academics: For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul? Matt 16:26
6. If you let your children out of their rooms, worry no more; socialization won’t be a problem.
7. You’re the boss of the curriculum, it’s just a collection of books w/suggestions and guidelines to use (be used, tried, stopped, paused, changed…) wisely.
8. No, you’re not going to mess up your children’s life and education by homeschooling them. Please don’t think a “real teacher” has any advantage over their God appointed mother/father. (Says classroom teacher of almost 20 years.)
9. Yes, you’re making the best choice for your children’s education and upbringing through biblical homeschooling (just another facet of godly parenting). Go ahead and search for yourself; proof is in the scriptures. Don’t try this alone; you’ll need the Lord. Thank goodness it’s not about our own ability, but His.
10. There are nearly as many ways to homeschool as children who are homeschooled. Don’t compare your child or your homeschooling to others. It’s a recipe for the pendulum of constant change in your home; enough to drive you and your children crazy.
11. Speaking of crazy, one last thing here, expect some days to be hard, for children to do wrong, for life in general to have plenty of trials. That doesn’t mean you’re not suppose to be homeschooling, it means you don’t have a perfect family, either, like the rest of us. It means you are and live amongst sinners and have opportunity to allow the Lord to do a work in your own heart and the hearts of your children as you learn more about Him and learn to love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul and might.