As summer is winding down and parents and kids are gathering up their supplies and preparing to head back to school, we are preparing for a new school adventure here as well. Eli will be starting kindergarten this fall, and we have decided to homeschool him for the upcoming year. And although for many, the very notion of homeschooling conjures up images of unsocialized kids sitting around in their pajamas watching "educational" cartoons and combing each other's bowl cuts, let me assure you just how far home-education has progressed from that stigma. It would be more accurate to state that we have decided to "alternatively educate" Eli this year, since he will be out taking a variety of classes with his peers just as often as he will be learning from home. The reasons we came to this decision are many and varied, but we came to it with the absolute certainty that this is where God was calling us to follow Him this year. Homeschooling has always been on my radar. However, with all of the unexpected stress, and time, and energy we have been pouring into caring for Gavin and getting him to all of his appointments for the past 14 months, I honestly didn't think I could handle it anymore-or that I even wanted to. John and I have been praying over school decisions for over a year (as in public or private options), knowing that time would creep up on us and catch us unprepared if we didn't. And the more I poured out my heart to God and asked Him to show us where to send Eli, the more my desire to educate him at home grew. Much like Gideon though, my faith was weak, and yet each time I asked Him to confirm His will by keeping the fleece dry and the ground wet or the ground dry and fleece wet, God answered. The confirmation was all around us and eventually, we settled into the idea and started to get excited about it. We are heading into this year with open hands and open hearts knowing that it is going to be a trial. We have not committed ourselves to 12 years of homeschooling, knowing full well that God is full of surprises and that only He holds tomorrow.
I am a bit terrified of course, because this is all very new to me. But after reading what seems like 100's of books on learning styles, teaching styles, curriculum, educational philosophies, socialization, behavior, etc, etc...I am getting pretty excited to get started.
Eli will proudly tell anyone who asks him about kindergarten that he is going to be homeschooled. He thinks its pretty cool that he gets to travel around the city for classes and have mommy all to himself for a few hours a day (sort of, at least). And to me, homeschooling is simply the gift of time with my child that I don't have to miss out on. And the fact that I get to be his favorite teacher.... for a little while longer at least.
