As a homeschooler, I am sure you have heard many excuses as to why people can’t homeschool. Many times these reasons are honestly just excuses, and that is fine. Despite the many advantages of homeschooling, I understand that it is NOT for everyone. However, I have had to ask myself through the years, are there legitimate reasons not to homeschool? And, I have found that there actually are!
The money will sometimes be nonexistent.
Most homeschool families live on one income. If this will be your family, you may find that sometimes, the budget will be tight. What does this mean? It means that the pay for all your hard work will be hugs and kisses and that things like fancy clothes, new minivans, or six-figure homes will probably not happen! If you like these things and don’t want to tighten your budget….don’t homeschool!
You are the only one responsible for your child’s education.
You cannot blame the teacher, principal, school, or anyone else if your child is not learning. This can be a hard pill to swallow for many of us. If you don’t understand a topic your child is learning, you may have to study it yourself. If you and your child are constantly butting heads over homework, guess what? You will probably STILL butt heads when you homeschool. If you don’t want this responsibility, don’t homeschool!
Because everyone else is doing it.
Just because all your friends are homeschooling doesn’t mean that you should. If you are considering homeschooling to follow the crowd, I encourage you to fully weigh your decision. Homeschooling is hard, and you will need encouragement, and the desire to continue on the homeschooling journey. If you are homeschooling just to follow the crowd…don’t homeschool!
Your spouse is not in agreement.
In order for homeschooling to work, you must be in agreement with your spouse. Otherwise, it will never work. Homeschooling requires a united front. If one wants to homeschool, and the other doesn’t then take the time to pray about the decision, research, and fully understand the concerns your spouse may have. If your spouse is against homeschooling still, then don’t homeschool!
You will absolutely fall in love with homeschooling!
Homeschooling will probably take over your house :) You will have messes, books everywhere, and freedom to educate your children in the way you see fit. You will know your child’s friends, and you will know what they are learning. You will be the one teaching them to read, which is an amazing feeling. You will also get to show them the real world not the walls of a classroom. This is fun! And once you start there is NO turning back, you won’t want to. If you don’t want to chance falling in love with homeschooling then…don’t homeschool!
Author Bio: Misty Bailey is the blogger behind Joy in the Journey and the podcaster behind Joyfully Homeschooling. Her goal in this online space is to encourage and inspire you on your homeschool journey by providing practical tips for real life homeschooling. Through real stories, real struggles, and real life, Misty encourages her blog readers and podcast listeners to embrace imperfection and strive for a more joyful homeschool.
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