Contents
A homemade education is the best kind of education. By learning at home, you can tailor your education to fit your unique needs and interests.
Checkout this video:
The History of Home Education
Home education has a long and varied history. It is not a new concept by any means, but rather one that has been around for centuries. Home education was once the only form of education available to children. It wasn’t until the late 1700s that the first public schools began to pop up in the United States.
Early Home Education
Home education has a long and varied history. Some of the first recorded instances of home education date all the way back to the Roman Empire. In those days, wealthier families would hire tutors to come and teach their children in the privacy of their own homes. Home education continued to be popular among the elite during the Middle Ages. Many of the great thinkers and leaders of that time were educated at home, including Thomas More, Erasmus, and Sir Francis Bacon.
The Industrial Revolution marks a significant change in the history of home education. With the rise of large factories and urbanization, more and more families were forced to send their children to work instead of school. Education became less about learning useful skills and more about indoctrination into the factory system. This led to a decline in home education as families increasingly saw it as pointless.
It wasn’t until the late 19th century that home education began to resurface as a viable option for families. In 1869, Charlotte Mason, an English educator, published a series of articles advocating for “education at home” based on her own experience teaching poor children in England. Her ideas caught on, and by 1904 there were over 200 “penny universities” offering lectures on various subjects that anyone could attend for just one penny. This helped democratize learning and make it accessible to more people than ever before.
In the early 20th century, another significant figure in the history of home education emerged: John Holt. A former public school teacher, Holt championed “unschooling” – an approach to learning that focuses on allowing children to explore their interests without formal instruction or structured curriculum. His ideas helped pave the way for modern homeschooling as we know it today.
The Rise of Formal Schooling
Formal schooling began to take hold in the United States in the early 1800s. Prior to that time, children were largely educated at home or in informal settings like apprenticeships. In the early days of the republic, many leaders believed that formal education was not necessary for most children, since they would primarily be working as farmers or tradespeople.
However, as the country began to urbanize and the economy shifted from agriculture to industry, many people began to see the value of formal education. Horace Mann, considered the father of public education in America, argued that formal schooling was necessary to create an informed and productive citizenry. His ideas began to take hold, and by the mid-19th century, most states had established public school systems.
Today, home education is once again on the rise, as more parents seek alternatives to formal schooling. While there are a variety of reasons why parents choose to educate their children at home, many cite dissatisfaction with the public school system as a primary motivating factor. Others see home education as a way to provide their children with a more customized and individualized learning experience. Whatever the reasons, it is clear that home education is here to stay.
The Modern Home Education Movement
The modern home education movement has its roots in the 1970s, when a small group of families in the United Kingdom decided to educate their children at home. This initial group was inspired by the work of educational philosopher A.S. Neill, whose book Summerhill: Aradical approach to childrearing advocated for a more flexible and child-centered approach to education.
In the 1980s and 1990s, the home education movement began to grow rapidly in the United States, as more and more families became interested in this alternative approach to schooling. By the early 2000s, an estimated 1.1 million children were being educated at home in the United States—a number that has likely only grown in recent years.
There are a variety of reasons why families choose to educate their children at home, but some of the most common include a desire for a more personal and individualized education, dissatisfaction with traditional schools, or a need to accommodate a child’s special educational needs. Research on homeschooling has shown that, when done well, it can offer many benefits for children and families, including academic achievement, social development, and increased family closeness.
The Benefits of Home Education
Home education has become a popular choice for families in recent years. There are many benefits to learning at home, including customized curriculum, flexible scheduling, and increased family bonding. Let’s take a closer look at some of the benefits of home education.
Academic Benefits
When parents take an active role in their child’s education, the child learns more effectively. A study by the National Home Education Research Institute shows that children who are homeschooled score between 15 and 30 points higher on standardized tests than their public school counterparts.
In addition to higher test scores, homeschooled children also benefit from a more individualized education. Because they are not taught in a one-size-fits-all setting, homeschooled children can learn at their own pace and receive instruction that is tailored to their unique needs and interests.
Homeschooling also provides opportunities for real-world learning. Children can learn about science by planting a garden, about math by helping to cook dinner, and about history by taking a field trip to a local museum. Hands-on learning experiences like these are often more effective than dry, textbook-based instruction.
Social Benefits
One of the benefits of home education is that children can learn at their own pace and in their own way. They are not confined by the traditional methods of teaching, such as lectures and rote learning. This means that they can learn in a way that suits them best, whether that is through hands-on learning, visual aids, or simply by listening to audio recordings. Home-educated children can also choose to study subjects that they are interested in, rather than those that are prescribed by the national curriculum.
Another benefit of home education is that it allows children to spend more time with their family and develop close bonds with siblings and parents. This is because they are not away at school all day and so have more time to spend together. Home-educated children also generally have more opportunities to take part in extracurricular activities and hobbies, as they are not tied to a school timetable.
Emotional Benefits
One of the benefits of home education is the ability to tailor the learning environment to the individual needs and personality of the child. This can lead to a more emotionally secure and happier child, as they feel comfortable in their learning environment and can learn at their own pace.
Home education also allows parents to instill their own values in their children, rather than having them absorb the values of their peers or teachers in a traditional school setting. And because home-educated children usually have close relationships with their parents, they often learn to trust and confide in them more, leading to a stronger emotional bond.
Family Benefits
There are many benefits to home education, but one of the most important is the positive effect it can have on families. Home education can bring parents and children closer together as they learn and grow together. It can also give parents a greater understanding of their child’s individual strengths and weaknesses and how best to help them succeed.
In addition, home education can provide a more stable learning environment for children. With recent events, many families have experienced disruptions to their normal routines. Home education can help reduce some of the stress that comes with these changes by providing a consistent learning environment for children.
Home education can also be more flexible than traditional schooling, which can be beneficial for families with unique schedules or needs. And, because families are able to tailor their home educational experiences to their own interests and needs, home education can often be more cost-effective than traditional schooling as well.
The Drawbacks of Home Education
While homeschooling has many benefits, there are also some drawbacks parents should be aware of before making the decision to educate their children at home. One of the biggest drawbacks is the lack of social interaction. Homeschooled children may not have the opportunity to interact with their peers on a regular basis, which can affect their social skills. Additionally, homeschooling can be isolating for both children and parents.
Socialization
One of the most commonly cited concerns about home education is socialization. It is important to remember that socialization is not the same as schooling. Socialization is the process by which children learn to interact with others, and it happens everywhere—in the grocery store, at the park, in scout troops and church groups. School is only one place where children can learn to interact with others, and it is not necessarily the best place, since it involves primarily children of the same age group, who are often segregated by gender and ability.
In fact, many homeschooled children have more opportunity for social interaction than their peers in school. They are involved in a variety of activities—from sports teams to 4-H clubs—that bring them into contact with people of all ages and from all walks of life. They also often have more opportunity to develop close relationships with adults, since they are not confined to a classroom all day long.
Limited Resources
One of the most significant disadvantages of home education is the limited resources available to parents. While public and private schools have libraries, computers, and other materials, homeschooling families often have to purchase their own materials or do without. This can be a significant financial burden, especially for low-income families. In addition, homeschooling parents may not have the time or expertise to provide a well-rounded education.
Time and Energy
One of the drawbacks of home education is that it can take a lot of time and energy. This is especially true if you are teaching multiple children of different ages. It can be difficult to find the time to prepare lessons, teach, and then grade assignments and ensure that your children are keeping up with their studies. If you work full-time or have other commitments, it can be even harder to find the time to homeschool.
How to Make Home Education Work for Your Family
Finding a Support Group
Many families who choose to educate their children at home worry about socialization. Will their kids be ready for the “real world” if they don’t go to school? The answer is a resounding yes! In fact, kids who are homeschooled often have an advantage over their peers when it comes to socialization.
One of the best ways to ensure that your child is getting the social interaction they need is to join a support group. There are homeschooling groups all over the country, and you can find one in your area by doing a simple search online. These groups often have activities and field trips planned, so your child can interact with other homeschooled kids in a variety of settings.
In addition to providing social opportunities, homeschooling groups can also be a great source of information and support for families. There are usually experienced homeschoolers in these groups who are happy to share their knowledge with new families. If you’re ever feeling uncertain or overwhelmed, reach out to your homeschooling group for advice and encouragement!
Creating a Curriculum
What will you teach and how will you teach it? You need to give some thought to the how of home education as well as the what. While you are not bound by the methods used in schools, you will still need to have some sort of structure to your homeschooling days.
One of the advantages of homeschooling is that you can tailor your child’s education to suit their learning style. So, if your child is a visual learner, you can use more resources that encourage them to learn through pictures and diagrams. If your child is a kinesthetic learner, you can incorporate more movement and hands-on activities into their day. There are many different ways to structure a homeschooling curriculum, so take some time to research what will work best for your family.
In addition to thinking about how you will teach, you also need to give some thought to what you will teach. Curriculum requirements vary from state to state, so be sure to check your local regulations before putting together your lesson plans. Once you know what is required, you can start thinking about how best to include those topics in your homeschooling days. If you want more structure, there are many packaged curriculum options available for purchase. Or, if you prefer a more customized approach, there are also many free resources available online that can be easily adapted to fit your family’s needs.
Establishing a Schedule
One of the challenges of homeschooling is creating a schedule that works for your family. Every family is different, so there is no one “right” way to homeschool. However, there are some general principles that can help you create a schedule that will work for your family.
The first step is to decide what days and times you will homeschool. Many families choose to homeschool during the week, but some homeschool on weekends or evenings to accommodate work schedules. Once you have decided when you will homeschool, you need to create a schedule for each day or week.
Schedules can be flexible or rigid, depending on what works best for your family. Some families prefer a more structured schedule with set times for each subject, while others prefer a more flexible approach in which subjects are completed as time allows. There is no “correct” way to do this – it’s simply a matter of finding what works best for your family.
Once you have established a schedule, it’s important to stick to it as much as possible. Of course, there will be days when things don’t go as planned, but try to stick to the schedule as much as possible. This will help create structure and routine for your children and make homeschooling more successful overall.
