So, this week I have a Guest Blogger for my homeschooling week! I am super excited to welcome her to my website for a few minutes!
Angie is a homeschooling, work at home mom to 5. She runs an on-location photography studio, a web and graphic design service, and her newest endeavor, Buy By Mom. You can learn more about Angie and her 5 little monkeys by visiting her blog: 5 Vinez Monkeys.
Here is what she has to say:
Homeschooling is a big decision. “Do I or don’t I? What will people say? Will my kids suffer because I decide to keep them home?” There are dozens of questions you have to answer before deciding if homeschooling is right for you and your family. People often hear the word homeschooling, and they get this look on their face. “Homeschooling? Really? Why would you do that? Don’t you want your kids to be social? You can’t keep them in a bubble their whole lives.” You will hear all of that, and probably more. You need to be prepared to hear many negative comments.
When I first started praying about homeschooling my children, everyone in my family was against it – including my husband! But, as time went by, and he was introduced to families with successfully homeschooled children, he started to come around. We are now finishing up our first year homeschooling and it has been the best decision we ever could have made for our family.
If you are the parent of a toddler and are debating whether you should homeschool or not, you can start to work with your child now and see how they do. Do they work better one on one with you, or do they just show no interest at all? There are programs that you can purchase that are geared toward homeschooling toddlers, but in all honesty, they are expensive and usually unnecessary. Make flashcards of letters and numbers. Work on the alphabet and numbers to start with. Also, help develop their fine motor skills by helping them sort beans, (supervised, of course), or other items into groups. Have them work on their large motor skills by throwing a large ball, bouncing the ball, and just playing. A toddler does not need structured “seat work” time. They are constantly learning and toddlers seem to learn better by doing.
Many parents worry about the social aspects of homeschooling their children. This may take some effort on your part, but it can be overcome! Introduce them to other children by going to the library for story time, or hitting the local park now that the weather is nice. See if there is a local co-op for homeschooling families in the area. Get online and search for local homeschooling groups. There are tons out there! I live in an itty-bitty area, and we have 3 local homeschooling groups all within 15 miles.
Take time to think about it, pray about it, and then decide if homeschooling is right for your family. It’s not something that you should ever just jump into. The families that don’t do their research and just dive into homeschooling are usually the ones who give up fairly quickly. If you decide to homeschool, put your big girl panties on and get ready to face the comments. People don’t like anything different, and homeschooling is still considered “different” in this day and age. Simply remind these people that you have made this decision and it works for your family. Nothing else needs to be said.
Thanks for the opportunity!
Angie Vinez
http://www.angelavinez.com
http://www.5vinezmonkeys.com (Blog)
** Notes from Kelli**
1. Before you just take your kids out of your local school system, be sure to know the laws in your state! You can find lots of info here: http://www.hslda.org/laws/default.asp
2. Be sure to show Angie some support and visit her websites listed above!
3. If you would like to be a guest blogger on my site, please click here for information. The Guest Blogger info is towards the end of the article. I am planning an Organizing Week for Link-Tastic and my Guest Blogger (if I can find one).