What are the pros and cons of homeschooling?

We have been homeschooling now for 8 years. (Gosh time flies!) However, we have been on both sides of the fence. Homeschooling has pros and cons. Public school also has pros and cons. I can honestly say for me, the pros of homeschooling outweigh the cons. This is obliviously something I didn’t realize when we first started.

My oldest was going into the 6th grade when we first started homeschooling. At the time I had no idea what I was doing! I just knew that the public school system had been failing my son for long enough I had to do something else.

With that being said, we made the leap and pulled him out of public school. It was the hardest and best choice for him and I would do it again.

Here is my list of the pros and cons of homeschooling

The Pros of Homeschooling

• I know what they are learning

When you homeschool your children you have control of what they are learning. If you want them to learn the religious view of science then you can teach them that! If you don’t want your child learning about the latest presidential debate, then you don’t have to worry about that!

• You can make your own schedule

This became a big pro for us! We get to make our own schedule. They don’t have to get up really early and get on the bus. And if we want to go on vacation I don’t have to get anyone’s approval for that! They are my children and we can come and go as we please.

• You don’t have to deal with homework after school

If you haven’t had a child in public school let me tell you. Working on homework was our biggest challenge. Your probably thinking homeschool and homework, isn’t that the same thing? Well, yes and no. With both, you are doing schoolwork at home. But, with homework, you have no idea what’s actually going on. The teacher sends homework to be completed with no explanation on how to complete it. Your child has no idea and really has no desire to get it done so you find yourself googling the topic to figure out what the heck the teacher wants from your child. In the meantime, your child is so exhausted from the day he ends up having a complete meltdown. Then you find your self frustrated because you’re also exhausted and homework has now been going on for over an hour! Yes, this was a nightly homework routine when my oldest was in public school. I do NOT miss it!

• You don’t have to worry about what the school thinks of your child

My son was completely 100% boy. He was not a trouble maker at all, he just couldn’t sit still! His mind was constantly thinking about something other than schoolwork. And yes I would get something every single day written on his agenda about what he wasn’t doing correctly. (by their standards) Just little things like, “your son is playing with his shoestring in class” or “he can’t sit still” or “he keeps playing with his pencil”. Y’all I know my son was not perfect but, keep in mind he was only in Kindergarten at this time! What most teachers expect from a 4 or 5-year-old is ridiculous! With my kids being at home, they aren’t being labeled as “bad” kids for being a kid.

• Your child is free to be whoever they want

I’ve noticed that kids in the public school system seem to grow up way too fast. I believe this happens because they are under a lot of pressure to fit in with the crowd. They want cell phones because everyone has them or they feel like they need the same shoes that everyone else has. Maybe all kids aren’t like this, but its dif the normal for most. Walkthrough a high school and you will see what I mean. At home, my boys are free to be who they want to be. They can wear what makes them comfortable and they don’t feel like they have to impress anyone.

• You are in control of their safety

An eight year old boy brought a gun to our local elementary school. A child was stabbed at our local middle school. There are countless fights every day, drugs being sold in the hallways and bathrooms of our public schools. Yes, this is going on in every single public school not just ours. I still educate my kids about the dangers of drugs and talk to them about violence. But, I choose not to put them in a position to where they have to deal with it at such a young age.

The cons of Homeschooling

• You don’t have a teacher to figure it out for you

I’m not sure if this is really a con, but it can be a challenge! Especially if you feel like you have no idea what you’re doing! There are so many different curriculums and you have to figure out what will work for your children and what won’t. And you will probably always wonder if you’re doing the right things or if you’re doing enough. You don’t have anyone else to figure it out for you. It’s all your responsibility. While this may seem frightening, and you may tell yourself you can’t do it but, its something that you can do and its not as scary as you might think!

• You won’t have much alone time

You will see moms drop their kids off at the bus stop then head to the gym. Then meet up with a friend to have coffee and they can totally go home and take a nap if they want to. Or you will have friends who are moms and have the most amazing career. There is nothing wrong with this at all. Homeschool is not for everyone. Just know that if you want to homeschool your alone time will be limited. There is also nothing wrong with this! There is nothing wrong with you staying home and raising your own children. After all, they are your children.

• You will feel overwhelmed at times

If you meet a homeschool mom who seems like she has it all together and her ducks are all lined up in a row. I promise you, she is struggling with something. And there has been a time where she was completely overwhelmed. The good news is, if you feel overwhelmed and you feel like things our getting out of control, you have the power. You can take a break if you want to, you can change curriculums if you want to. If the sun is shining and you want to go to the pool and work on Math tomorrow, you can totally do that!

• You will have to figure out how to entertain your child all day

When your child is in the public school system they are typically at school from 8 am-3:30 pm. Most of this time is spent doing busy work. When you homeschool it does not take this long to complete a day of school. So you have to figure out what they are going to do for the remainder of the day. I find this to be a little more difficult with the older kids. When they are younger you can just pack them all in the car and head to the playground. Obviously, you can always tell them to go play and use their imagination. But, there will be days where they are screaming that they are bored! Lots of days actually, and you will have to guide them!

These are my main pros and cons of homeschooling. Yes, I do wonder if I’m doing this homeschool thing right. I am always a little freighted that I may not be picking out the right material for my children and I do get completely overwhelmed at times! But, the pros completely outweigh the cons for us! I love that I can make my own schedule, I always know what my children are learning and I can let them play outside on a beautiful spring day for as long as I want them too! What are your pros and cons of homeschooling? Do you feel like the pros outweigh the cons? Leave a comment below!