Children want to learn.
Children are born with an innate desire to learn. From the moment of birth they learn how to communicate their needs to you. Think about the long list of mental and physical skills that children learn in three short years. They learn this not by coercion or force, but instead they have learned because of their inherent thirst for knowledge. Children can almost exhaust us with their incessant questioning. "Why? Why? Why?" They are learning, because of their own drive to know and understand. Children have a natural love of learning that is often suppressed, diverted, and restrained by external pressures on them. As a parent it is our job to fuel that bright flame and place them in a setting that is most conducive to learning FOR THEM. Do that and you will have a child with an inextinguishable burning for knowledge.

You can teach them.
It is very natural to teach your children. Parents have taught their children long before there were public schools. You are probably already homeschooling your child (or should be) even if they are still attending public school. That 3 hours you spend helping with homework IS homeschooling. It would be just be easier and more effective if it was based on your child's abilities and needs.

Homeschooling is a lifestyle.
Just are there are many different lifestyles, each unique to the individual, there are many different homeschooling methods, each also unique to the individual family. Everyone who makes the decision to educate their children at home makes the decision for reasons that are unique to their individual family needs. Each and every child assimilates knowledge in a manner that is unique to that individual. How can one prescribed curriculum possibly accomplish the monumental task of properly educating all individuals? The simple truth is it cannot; it is impossible. John Taylor Gatto, a well respected teacher in the public school system, who was the New York City Teacher of the Year and the New York State Teacher of the Year, quit after 30 years of trying to get around the standard curriculum which he stated was hurting children. He said that there are as many different ways to become educated as there are individual fingerprints. With such diversity in learning styles have come many different methods of educating children in the home.

The home educator goal
Our first goal, as home educators, is to find the learning style of our children and custom fit a curriculum to our children. Who better knows the way children learn than their own parents do? Take time to watch for clues as to how they learn; observe whether they learn by watching, listening, reading, or doing, perhaps even a mix of all of these. Armed with this knowledge, you can then take the time to find the curriculum, or make a curriculum that best suits your child. By taking these steps you may avoid one of the most common mistakes made by educators everywhere: trying to fit the child to the curriculum instead of fitting the curriculum to the child. This is a mistake that can have a devastating lifelong affect. It is the number one killer of the love of learning. Armed with the knowledge of how your child learns and equipped with your child's tailor made curriculum, you arrive at your next goal. When, where, and how do you educate your child? Which method best suits you all as an individual family? Here is where the different homeschooling methods come into play. There are as many methods of home education as there are learning styles of children.

Mimicking the public school
One method that many beginning homeschoolers use is the one that is most familiar to them, the public/ private school routine. The sitting at a desk, diligently working on assignments, raising hands before questions are asked with scheduled breaks, routine. This is a method that mimics the strict public school structure. It is a comforting routine simply because of its familiarity. Many home educators begin this way and find that it works wonderfully well for their lifestyles. Others start this way and then find that the normal routine of day to day living in the home interrupts much too often to carry on in the same manner. Not even homeschool should get in the way of an opportunity to learn so this problem led to the development of many other homeschooling methods.

Unschooling
Unschooling is a method which is the total opposite of the aforementioned method. It developed in answer to the need of change. Unschooling is basically a lifestyle of learning, hinged upon the individual family's daily routine. It is a method in which children are given free range to learn and to pursue their own interests with parental support and guidance. Plenty of resources are placed within the home so that the children are free to investigate and research. John Holt, a well-known educator and proponent of desire-based learning concluded that given an opportunity children, born with an innate desire to learn and a curiosity that drives them to learn, will learn what they need to know when they need to know it. He believed that the natural curiosity and desire to learn were squelched and even destroyed by the usual methods of learning.

Car Schooling
For families on the go, car schooling may be the method of choice, it fits with every other method. It is the process of learning on the road, taking advantage of roadside stops, family vacations, visits to the doctor, etc.

Grandma(pa) School
This is simply when the grandparents join in the education process. Sometimes when parents have to work and the grandparents are retired, they are able to share in the experience of homeschooling.

Scout Schooling
A great resource for any homeschooler is the local scouting organization. You can use the scout handbook to supplement a great all around education for a child. A wealth of knowledge is available from scouts and other local organizations such as the 4H and the American Red Cross.

Eclectic Schooling
This is a method of customizing your teaching style for the needs of the child and family. This may consist of parts of all the above. Building your own curriculum based on your child's different learning styles.

Your Schooling
As you can see from all of this information, there isn't one right method of schooling for everyone. This is an individual family decision. Through trial and error you will discover your own method of schooling. What may work one day may not work the next. What method works for one child may have to be changed for the next child. One method may fit one child this year then the next year may need to be replaced with a different style. Finding the method that works best for your child is one of the most enjoyable aspects of homeschooling. Remember you and your children are on a continuing quest for knowledge. The most important thing to remember, if a dead end is reached, just back up and try another route.

Public Schools
We're not against public schools. They just do not provide enough of what our children need. We are not just a bunch of malcontents sitting out in the sticks looking for something to complain about. Many of us have been involved in the public school system and are mentors, tutors and teachers ourselves. We know that the classroom teacher has very little control over the mandated curriculum, learning environment, and teaching methods that they are required to use. We know that the school principal does not have a great deal of control over that either. We know that the school board member's hands are tied when it comes to affecting real change in the classroom because the state determines a lot of those issues. We know that the goal of state and federal legislators is to come up with an educational system that will offend the fewest special interest groups, cost the least, and most of all, maintain the perception that the schools are "OK" or "Improving" among voters. They do a good job. Most people, especially parents, really want to believe that the public school system is doing a good job teaching their children. Well they are aren't they? We are surrounded by schools with "Exemplary" and "Excellent" ratings.

We have tried to initiate changes in the public school system at all levels where decisions are made concerning how the public school system operates. Change may be forth coming but the change will not be soon enough or great enough to create an education system that will benefit our children. Therefore we have taken the responsibility for the education of our children.