Be very wary of those people who have been homeschooling for years and tell you that teaching your kids at home is a bed of roses. It is not. There are many pros and cons of Homeschooling. Mostly pros but a few cons.

And because it would be best for everyone involved if you were to go into this homeschooling adventure with your eyes (and your mind) wide open, I thought I’d share a few of those homeschooling pros and cons with you.

 

 

The 10 Pros and Cons of Homeschooling

 

I have been homeschooling my kids for ten years.

Has it all been wonderful and fluffy and rosy?

Nope.

Would I do it all again given half the chance?

You bet I would.

Becasue I am in a positive mood, and I don’t want you to slit your throat before you get to the end of the post, I have decided to start this blog post with the pros of Homeschooling.

That way I can butter you up before I get to the negatives.

 

 

The Pros of Homeschooling

 

 

 

 

Pro 1: You get to choose your hours

 

When, where and how you homeschool is entirely up to you.

Nobody can force you to follow a specific homeschool schedule or keep to a rigid routine.

Depending on where you live in the world, then you will have your own state laws.

These laws usually require that a set amount of ‘teaching time’ takes place and that certain subjects are covered. But how and on what days and hours you do this teaching remain your choice.

If you are homeschooling and working full time, then you might find that it benefits you to homeschool three days a week.

You may only want to do school at the weekend.

You may wish to start at 5 am and finish at 11 am.

Whichever way you choose to homeschool, the choice remains yours.

 

 

Pro 2: You save money

 

This one is a bit of a double-edged sword because although you can save money by homeschooling, you will probably take a cut in hours or will be homeschooling and working.

*Know that this is very doable but I would advise putting a reliable homeschooling schedule in place in order to keep things running smoothly.

My kids were at public school for a few years before we started to homeschool, but I remember the costs that were involved and they weren’t cheap.

School dinners, school uniforms, school trips. School books, stationery…the list went on and on, and I felt as though my hand was never out of my pocket.

I have homeschooled for ten years, and within that time I have utilized ways to homeschool for free, meaning that homeschooling proved to be a lot less money than when I sent my kids to school.

 

 

 

Pro 3: Your kids get (far more) time to themselves

 

This homeschooling pro is a huge bonus and one to remember when weighing up the benefits of Homeschooling vs public schooling.

The first thing my kids would comment on whenever they got together with public school friends is how stressed and tired (or sick) they all seemed to be.

If you are doing it right then, there is no reason why homeschooling lessons cant be done and dusted within three hours a day.

The rest of the time, your kids get to explore other things that they love which leads to happier, less stressed kids.

Which leads to homeschooling pro number 4…

 

 

Pro 4: Health

 

Take your kids out of school, and the money that you’ll save on cold remedies alone will be worth it.

Every week my kids were at public school they’d have a cold or a cough.

Or nits.

It was a nightmare. And with the state of the world, as it is at the moment, I would imagine that this homeschooling pro will be enough to have you running for the homeschool sign up forms.

 

 

Pro 5: No More School Run

 

Oh, my God. If there is one thing I despised more than anything else about my kids going to public school it was that damn school run.

Stressy from the minute we got into the car. Arguments about what they had and hadn’t done for the entire car journey, nowhere to park when you arrived at school. And then, to put the icing on the cake, you got to do it all again six hours later.

No thanks.

For me, this is probably at the top of the list for the benefits of Homeschooling.

I mean it, the school run is one thing you will NEVER miss and one of the enormous pros of Homeschooling.

 

 

The Cons Of Homeschooling Your Child

 

 

 

 

Con 1: Juggling

 

I’m not going to sugar coat it for you.

If you at the beginning stages of your adventure and are still wondering how to start Homeschooling, then know that you will need to be able to readjust, change and preferably be a competent juggler. 

If you are already a parent, then these three things will be no stranger to you. You are probably already doing all three on a regular basis.

 

 

 

Con 2: Not much alone time

 

You don’t need me to tell you that when you homeschool your kids they are at home with you all day.

Which means that you no longer get the breathing space that you had when they went to school for 6 hours a day. 

So, please make sure that you take care of yourself throughout the first few years of Homeschooling. 

You mustn’t neglect your own needs.

Practice some self-love exercises regularly and make sure that you allow for some time alone when planning your homeschooling schedule.

 

 

Con 3: Cost

 

I know that I said you would save money when you homeschool, but if you are not into the whole how to homeschool for free deal, then you may very well get sucked into the curriculum spending pit.

It is so easy to believe that the more money you spend on kids, the happier they will be.

This isn’t true. I happen to know this for a fact, but that’s for another post.

Just be careful that you don’t take your kids out of school and throw money at their education in an attempt to make up for feelings of guilt and fear of failing.

You have nothing to fear about homeschooling your kids.

Resist the temptation to buy expensive materials and curriculums, you’ll only end up selling them two years down the line for a fraction of what you initially paid.

 

 

Con 4: Justifying

 

You might as well know this now. Once you start homeschooling, the whole world and her cat will suddenly become an education specialist.

You’ll be questioned incessantly about your decision to homeschool your kids.

Not only that, but you will have to listen to boring stories from strangers about how the school prepares you for the real world. 

So. You have two choices on how to move forward from here. You can either… 

a: Tell the offender to p*ss off and mind their own business, or,

b: practice chanting these answers:

•  Universities look more and more to enrol homeschooled kids.
• No, they don’t wear their pyjamas all day. But I do.
• Yes, they have plenty of friends so they don’t need another right now thank you.
• No, I’m not a teacher, but I am trained in Kung foo and if you don’t step out of my way I’ll demonstrate my high kick.

 

Seriously, you will have to learn to grow a thick skin once you start to homeschool. Either that or pretend to be deaf.

 

 

Con 5: It’s all over too quickly

 

You weren’t expecting this one were you?

But it’s true.

If you read my Homeschooling blog, you will see that i have been homeschooling my kids for the past ten years, and those years have f-l-o-w-n by.

Really. They have.

I hate to sound like one of those old women who coo over your baby in the supermarket and say things like ‘make the most of it Ducky! They grow up so fast!’

But my God it’s true.

Whatever you are struggling with right now know that it won’t matter in two, three, five years. In fact, you won’t even remember it.

And by the time you get to year eight of homeschooling, you’ll wish you could go right back to the beginning and do it all again.

Only this time, without the fear and the doubt.

 

 

 

Summing up the  Pros and Cons Of Homeschooling

 

Homeschooling isn’t for everyone. But try it for a year ( give it at least this long – that’s when things start to ease up) and it isn’t for you they that’s okay.

You gave it a shot. How wonderful to say that you tried?

But if you stick with it (and I hope that you do) know that you are going to be okay—more than that, you will be amazing.

You will be a successful, homeschooling family. You will. I know it.

 

 

 

You can do it!

 

I hope that this post has given you an honest and realistic look into the pros and cons of Homeschooling. The most challenging thing about starting something new is making the decision and taking the leap.

Once you have that part out of the way, you can get on with the next new and exciting chapter of your life.

If you need any help with Homeschooling, please don’t hesitate to contact me. Either through my email or by leaving a comment below.

And if you would like to join my 30-day free newsletter and receive 30 days of homeschooling tips and inspiration, then sign up in the box below, and we can become friends.

 

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