I wanted to write this for a few reasons:

• to answer questions that I know some people will have
• to let others travel this exciting journey with us
• to give others encouragement if they are thinking of going this route as well

For this upcoming school year, Jim and I have decided that Jimmy will not be returning to public school. He will be getting homeschooled this year. We are going to take it year by year in deciding if this is the right path for Jimmy and our family. Jimmy also had a say in this decision. He is very happy and excited. My youngest sister (Jimmy’s Aunt) is homeschooled so Jimmy does know that it is not all fun and games. He understands that he does have to learn just as he would in regular school. And if you know me well enough than you know that I do not let my children slack off when it comes to school work. All 3 of my school aged children will attest to that.

I know so many family and friends are thinking, WHY? WHAT THE F*CK? HOW IS HE GOING TO HAVE FRIENDS? Etc etc etc. We have a lot of reasons for the WHY question. Without getting into details let me just say that last year we were less than thrilled with certain things that occurred. His elementary school was decent, and I won’t talk bad about it or his teachers. However, we had enough reasons to make this huge decision and we really do feel this is the best decision we could make right now for Jimmy and for our family. Does this mean that Jimmy will never return to public school? No, not at all. It just means that right now, this is what is best for our family.

Jimmy has an entire curriculum just as any elementary student has. He is set to achieve great things! We are so excited. He will be given a state mandatory test just as all 3^rd graders in Pennsylvania are. He will NOT be taking the PSSA’s, which I feel is an extra bonus for homeschool.

Jimmy plays sports, signing up for cub scouts, and I have spoken to a local homeschool mom who has invited us to join her co-op group. He still has friends from school and his neighborhood friends. So, I am not worried about his socialization which always seems to be the 1^st hot topic when it comes to homeschooling. Also, let me just say that my son was in trouble a decent amount for “socializing” in school. I also don’t think people realize that socialization isn’t limited to interaction between kids in the same age group. People need to know how to socialize with every age group.

Homeschooling gives our family a lot more freedom to go out and explore. To learn on the road if we choose, instead of inside 4 walls 5 days a week. Our travel won’t be limited to certain times of the year. Jimmy can play outside more than 1x a day! An 8 year old kid needs more outside time during the day. I don’t know about all of you, but I typically had recess 2-3x /day in school. Today, our kids are lucky to get 30minutes of outdoor time during the school day! And if your child gets into trouble during the day, that outdoor recess time can get cut! Kids need to be KIDS! They are not meant to sit at a desk for 6 hours a day. Stop making them grow up before they need to! They aren’t little robots or zombies. They are kids!

Homeschooling also allows for Jim and I to know exactly what is being taught to our son. In today’s society this is extremely important for many reasons. It will also allow us to see where he excels and struggles. He will be given one on one attention and not pushed along even if he doesn’t understand a concept. Children learn all different ways, and we will teach him by the way that HE learns best. We will be able to really explore his interests too.

We are not expecting this to be a cake walk. We know that there will be much to learn, we know that there will be some bumps in the road. But we are ready for the challenge, ready for the excitement, ready to learn, and ready to explore everything we can.

You are welcome to travel this homeschooling journey with us by following our blog! We will share stories, pictures and video too! Jimmy will be on here writing, posting, sharing as well!

Escape the Ordinary