What If You Couldn't Go Wrong with Homeschooling

When we started homeschooling in the early 2000’s I was the only one in our peer group doing so and no one on either side of the immediate family had homeschooled their children.

All of our friends were either sending their kids off to public or private schools and since we didn’t have the pocketbook for private school and I didn’t have peace about public school, homeschooling prevailed.

(But before I get too far into this post, I want you to know it should be read with a lighthearted tone and attitude because that is the kind of spirit it is written in, it’s all is good fun!)

By the time I had prayerfully made the decision to homeschool, our boys were around 5 and three. My husband was in full support and I was “all in” with both feet and excitedly moving forward! Homeschool curriculum was purchased and a homeschool convention was scheduled. I was gathering supplies, my thoughts and my convictions.

Our peers, as well as our families, were gracious and since they knew me and my abilities, they also knew I was up to the task and could handle our boys’ homeschooling with integrity and fidelity. (Either that, or they were terrified and just didn’t say anything to me!)

Other families we encountered during that time met us on either side of what I personally nicknamed, “The Homeschool Spectrum” and being somewhere in the middle, suited us just fine.

I refused to be the denim dressed homeschooling mom of the 1990’s and did my own thing, comfy and usually in jeans, mom jeans, the first go around mind you. ;) My boys were dressed in clothes from our nearest Kmart and Target as well as thrift stores and garage sales. They didn’t care where their clothes came from! For so many reasons, including this one, I loved being a homeschooling boy’s mom.

We would often be out in our community, and I’d get the surprised comment, “Oh, you guys homeschool?” To which I would confidently say, “Yes” and took that as a compliment because I wanted to be seen as a “normal” functioning family in society.

My boys would often get complimented on their behavior and character when we were out. So, my husband and I decided we would reward them when this happened and we’d give them a quarter if someone commented on them in a positive way. It wasn’t much but it let our sons know that we appreciated their good behavior and character as well. We increased the reward to a dollar when they were teenagers. We handed out several quarters and dollar bills, happily I might add, over the years. It was just a small gesture but it let them know we valued good behavior and character. People notice those things. They were good boys, good teenagers and now, good men.

We never got any criticism really for homeschooling our children, but we did get the occasional snide “socialization” comments as well as a myriad of questions like these gems through the years:

“So, do you like your teacher?”

“Shouldn’t they be in school?”

“Do you get together with other homeschoolers?”

If seen out playing, “must be recess time, huh?”

Thankfully I learned how to handle these remarks after my skin toughened a little and we went on our merry homeschooling way!

Being confident in my homeschooling decision helped especially during these times though I might add.

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Other homeschooling families that we knew at the time were so varied and interesting!

One family we knew had 6 or 7 kids and filled a large station wagon. I will not use names in this post as I do respect them all for being homeschooling pioneers. They would pile out of the car on Sunday mornings at church and be dressed in their Sunday best. Mom was a fast talker and a little thing, she commanded attention and respect from her children and homeschooled with fervor and never backed down from anyone challenging her beliefs on anything.

Another homeschool family we knew, were very strict. They wore uniforms (matching outfits) and learned three languages, one of them being Hebrew! They followed a set, rigorous schedule of schooling all day and this particular mama made her houseful of boys “tow the line” let’s say. They ate extremely healthy diets and all appeared quite thin and pale. The handsome boys always looked wide eyed when they were out in public and were well-mannered.

Then there was the other side of the spectrum of homeschoolers one might say.

This family had five children and although they homeschooled, they never seemed to spend much time at home or to be schooling at all for that matter! They were involved with a lot of activities and seemed to homeschool on the run or simply skip homeschooling for the day, days, week, I don’t know. They did always seem to be having fun and laughing and I adored the mom and her infectious laugh, but their casualness with homeschooling always made me a bit nervous for her kid’s educations.

Like I said, we fell in the middle of what I called “normal”. We homeschooled in the mornings and covered most subjects every day, leaving plenty of time for playing in the afternoons. It was a relaxed yet planned out schedule. A Biblical world view education was held as a priority in our home. We took field trips and weeks off in the summer and holidays, but any homeschooling parent knows that even when the state requirements are fulfilled, you can’t help but continue to learn about the world around you when you’re “done”.

Decades later, I have lost contact with these families I recall for you now so unfortunately, I can’t report back how everyone turned out, only my own.

So, after 15 years of lovingly homeschooling my boys, and much prayer and debate with the Lord, they went on to private high school and excelled in sports and academics in their college preparatory studies and made great friends. They transitioned to high school and state colleges quite seamlessly and I attribute that to lots of prayer and “trying to stay normal” all those years! ;)

You can hear more of our personal homeschooling story here on Claire’s podcast:

Our sons were scooped up pretty quickly by two beautiful, smart young ladies in college who are now our daughters-in-law! They were not homeschooled but are considering it now for their children in some form. (And you better believe I’m praying for my grandchildren’s educations, whatever routes they choose to take!)

Our oldest son is in Logistics, completing “honey do” lists, learning quickly how to be a dad with 3 kiddos aged 4 and under and starting his own online apparel business, Drifthound.

Our youngest son completed his Residency in ER Medicine and for the first time since he was three, will not be going “back to school” this fall! He and his wife just bought their first home and are expecting their first baby in December! That’s right, we are excited to welcome our 4th grandchild, a girl, into the family!

I do not write this post to “toot my own horn” in any way but to share a few of the varied homeschooling families we were witness to, all in good fun, and to share a bit about what worked for us. Maybe you see yourself in a variation of one of these families and smile. I certainly hope so!

It’s “Back to School” time, so I want to share a couple of our homeschooling favorites that have stood the test of time!

Five in a Row curriculum (FIAR) by Jane Claire Lambert! We absolutely LOVED and learned from this curriculum that focuses on wonderful children’s picture and chapter books, ages 4-12. The “five in a row” concept is that one book will be read/retold 5 days in a row and different activities will be completed for the various subjects: science, math, language arts, history, Bible, music and art.

This FIAR curriculum is delightful and very easy to incorporate into a lifestyle of learning. It’s also very affordable as curriculum go and you can use books from the library! I can’t imagine homeschooling during our early years without this wonderful resource!

Oldest son - To Kill a Mockingbird and anything on baseball!

Youngest son - the entire Redwall Series by Brian Jacques or as his wife calls them now, “his rat books!” :)

(this post continues below but wanted to share these for inspiration too!)

If you enjoyed this post, then you might like these too that I’ve written:

Here's What I'd Tell You After 15 Years of Homeschooling My Children

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February 19, 2025

A young mom mentioned that she was planning on homeschooling her three children. Excitedly I responded back to her some encouraging words and praised her for her decision. She responded back, “Thank you so much, any tips?” Boy was that a loaded question!

Until next time sweet friends,

Brooke

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