What essentials do you need to homeschool your children successfully? A master’s in education? Classroom experience? Lots of money? None of the above, in my book.
Here’s my list of homeschool essentials:
1. A supportive spouse
Let’s talk about the first one: a supportive spouse.
God worked a miracle in my heart to help me embrace homeschooling. Then, I found myself desiring something that my husband did not approve of.
A supportive husband provides the balance needed in the homeschooling process.
My husband and I are best friends. We talk about everything. We agree on everything.
To say it was hard while we wanted different things for our children would be a huge understatement. Thankfully, it only happened for a couple of months.
Did we talk about having children in pre-marital counseling? Yes. Did we discuss how we were going to educate them? Sure. But I wasn’t a mom. I did not know that, one day, I would feel I could not breathe if my children spent seven hours away from me, five days a week.
Having children changed my perspective on homeschooling.
Well, God changed my husband’s heart, too. He agreed to homeschool and here we are.
What a team we make, the two of us! I have always been into Humanities, while he is a computer geek and a scientist at heart. Combining our forces, we love guiding our children’s education, talking about developments and making decisions as we see fit. We joke that he is the principal of the school, but he really fulfills that role.
A supportive spouse can
- counsel
- congratulate
- pick up the slack
- endure till the end
- keep you sane
- teach a subject you don’t like
- read to the kids
- drive them to co-op
- listen
- laugh
- pray
- brag
- love
- accept
- forgive
- encourage
- etc etc etc
I personally know some homeschooling mothers who are either single or whose husbands barely tolerate homeschooling. These moms have done an amazing job without a supportive spouse. They prove it can be done even without a supportive spouse, but they tell me how difficult it is.
For me, a supportive husband represents the #1 homeschooling essential.
For more interpretations of the homeschool essentials, check out these great blog posts from my friends on the Crew.
Laura @ Day by Day in Our World
Julie @ Nurturing Learning
Lisa @ Farm Fresh Adventures
DaLynn @ For the Display of His Splendor
Lori @ At Home: where life happens
Nicole @ Journey to Excellence
Brandy @ Kingdom Academy Homeschool
Meg @ Adventures with Jude
Sarah @ Delivering Grace
