Individuals from all different backgrounds homeschool. You don’t need to have achieved any particular educational level other than a high school education (and in some states, you don’t even need that). Some homeschooling parents stay home full-time, while others work part-time or full-time. You can homeschool one child or a house full of them. Some homeschoolers are extroverts while others are introverts. Some are professional athletes, while others have chronic illnesses that limit their activity.
However, it is important to take an honest look at yourself and determine whether homeschooling is a task you are willing and able to undertake, with the understanding that sometimes God calls us to things we don’t feel up to, and yet, with his grace, we can do them.
Do you enjoy being with your children?
Homeschoolers spend a great deal of time with their children. Yes, you can utilize co-ops, hybrid schools, or online classes, all of which we will discuss in the chapter on how to homeschool, but you will still be spending more time with your children than the average parent. Some parents really struggle with this and may even feel resentful. If the thought of being with your children so much makes you cringe, homeschooling may not be for you.
Do you have a reasonable amount of patience and flexibility?
Almost all parents struggle with their patience from time to time. Children can be exhausting, and they often have their own agenda on what they want to do. Homeschooling children, especially if they have any type of learning challenge, requires a great deal of patience and understanding. Your well-laid plans for the day may be upended regularly. You will need to be willing to adjust your agenda and your expectations. If you can only function with a very rigid schedule and frequently lose your patience when children do not do what you want them to, homeschooling may not be the best route for your family.
Do you enjoy learning?
When you homeschool, you are learning along with your children. Not only will you review material that you first learned in school but may have forgotten, but you will also learn new things based on your children’s interests. You are modeling what it is to be a lifelong learner. Those who love to learn, who get excited by new educational materials, and who see wonder in the world around them will be much better suited to homeschooling than those who don’t. If you never wanted to study an academic subject again after you finished your formal education, homeschooling may be very hard for you.
Please note,this does not mean you have to love all subjects equally. For example, I am not a math person. I rejoiced when I was able to waive my college math requirement because I had taken calculus in high school. I never planned to have anything to do with academic math again in my life. And then, I became a homeschooler, and God gave me a child who is incredibly gifted in math. Needless to say, I have done a lot of math in my life. But I enjoy learning and was willing to stretch myself intellectually to help my son learn what he was passionate about.
Do you have support?
While some homeschoolers have to work hard to convince their spouse or co-parent of the benefits of homeschooling, having that support is necessary. At the very least, the other parent needs to be willing to give it a trial run. If he or she is adamantly opposed to homeschooling, this is not going to be beneficial for your family as it will only create strife and tension. Having the support of other family members, such as grandparents and aunts and uncles, is helpful, but not as essential because if the parents are united, they can say, “This is what we have chosen for our family.”
Having an outside support network is also important. In-person is ideal, but online groups can help as well. You will need other homeschoolers to talk to who understand the challenges of this way of life.
Once again, there may be times when God is clearly calling you to homeschool because there is no other viable option for your family, even though you think that there is no way you are up to the task. If that is the case, you need to pray, do the best you can, and trust that God will help you. No parent is perfect. No homeschooler is perfect. There are going to be some messy days in every homeschooling life. But if homeschooling is something you are discerning and there are other educational options that might work, take the time to honestly consider the questions above as part of your consideration of whether homeschooling is the best option for you and your family. Deciding that it is not the right path for you, at least at this time, can be a holy choice.
This is an excerpt from The Essential Guide to Catholic Homeschooling.
