Losing your free time – Yes homeschooling does take a chunk out of your day, but my day now is far less stress free. I no longer shout at my youngest to get a move on, shoving socks and shoes on her feet as we fly out the door. I no longer have that desperate feeling as I look at my panic stricken older daughter worrying that she has everything for the day so that she doesn't get a demerit, her worst nightmare. Then to have to sit in the heavy traffic for almost an hour, the school was 20 minutes away! I would get back home, do a few chores, then it was back in the car to go fetch again. Get home and then the homework stress would begin. For the amount of work that was sent home, I might as well have homeschooled from the beginning and now I had to sit with tired children, teaching most of the work for the first time! So, let me remind you, what free time did sending my children bring me? Sure, there was the odd morning of coffee with a friend or shopping, but that was not what my life consisted of. Anyway, homeschooling is not about you, its about what your children need.
Loss of second income – We covered this earlier in the book. You really can survive without the extras and your kids will thank you for it. They would rather have your time than the things money can buy.
Its expensive – This depends on what curriculum you choose. As mentioned before, you could actually do school without spending a cent.
My child is gifted/has learning challenges – Then of course you should homeschool! They can go at the pace they are more comfortable with. No boredom of having to go the same pace as the rest or feeling dumb because you learn in a different way or just take a little longer to understand.
Pressure of family and friends thinking you are ruining your children – Who are your children's parents again? You are! I will not have a single regret one day and can truly stand up and say "I did my best by my children and enjoyed every moment of their lives with me!" Don't be bullied! Time will tell a different story to the nay sayers.
Socialization - Seriously now?!
Do you live on a farm with no outside contact with human beings at all?!
By the way, children learn social skills from watching their parents deal with different issues and situations, not from peers, all the same age that they are stuck with for 13 years.
I watched my daughter go from being a shy timid little girl that hated being parted from me every morning for 5 years, to this confident young lady in a short space of time, even family noticed the change. How was that possible?
So as I see it, what are the disadvantages? There are none!
It's the best decision that we have ever made as a family!
